Another View of the Rio

To say, "Rio Grande river" is a bit redundant. Here's a picture of the historic river from the Rio Grande George Visitors Center on the way to Taos, NM.

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head...!

White Rock finally got some serious rain for about 30 minutes. Brief flooding in the streets and in the arroyos. Not near enough to make up for the drought. But, very welcomed indeed. Unfortunately, heavy rain on parched soil runs off too quickly to be absorbed.

 

Golondrina

Golondrina statue outside the Larry R. Walkup Aquatic Center

Fuller Lodge Health Fair

Recently held health fair at the Fuller Lodge which was built in 1928 and served first as the Ranch School dining hall, later as a hotel and gathering place during the Manhattan Project. In 1988 Robert Redford
produced and directed The Milagro Beanfield War. In the movie, Fuller Lodge was used as the office of the "evil" land developer.

Art Fair at the Cathedral

The park next to the Santa Fe Cathedral (Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi)

  often hosts an art fair for local artists from northern New Mexico.

Walking Through La Senda

The walking/bike path through the La Senda area of White Rock

Now That the Smoke Is Less...

....more normal sunsets are occurring instead of the "orange" skies due to smoke from the recent fire.

The Shed Patio

As you may have figured out, The Shed in Santa Fe is one of our favorite places to eat. Usually we arrive at 11 AM just as they open. Otherwise, you might not get a seat.

Where Were These When I Was a Kid?

Wonder if it would be wise to create an adult version? Hmmm? Maybe not such a good idea. Not sure I want to bounce and bump into a lot of adults inside. Maybe one at a time would work? 

Larry R. Walkup Aquatic Center

The Larry R. Walkup Aquatic Center is a world-class facility that offers diverse activities to users of all age, income, fitness and interest levels. At 7,245 feet (2,208 m) above sea level, the center, once known as the "blue whale" when it had a blue roof, is internationally known for providing high-altitude training to swim teams.

Skateboard Competition

Driving by the skateboard park near the library, I saw a large crowd and arrived to see several doing similar tricks like this slide down the hand rail.

Astronomy

Local astronomists gather on the Overlook Park soccer fields on "dark night out" during the new moon to set up their telescopes and scan the sky.

Bandelier National Monument at Chamberfest

Sections of Bandelier National Monument reopened to the public on July 15, 2011. Campgrounds and trails on top of the mesas, not in the canyons. 

Tsankawi, and area separate from the main park, is open. 

Unfortunately much of the park will remain closed for the foreseeable future. The Las Conchas Fire, which began on June 26, has burned over 50% of the park's landscape and has left Frijoles Canyon, where the visitor center and main sites are located, subject to flash   flooding. 

'61 Corvette For Sale

The oldest Corvette at the recent Los Alamos Chamberfest. A 1961, I think it was less than $5000.

Whimsical Statutes in the Plaza

Large metal statues for sale at the Plaza Art Fair in Santa Fe, NM. Each one's head is balanced on a hinge and bobs up and down with a push or with the wind. (PS. No! The object on the right in the turquoise jacket is NOT a "whimsical statue," although I do enjoy her company all these years.)

Rabbit Standoff

Two cotton tails frolicking in the front yard.

Native American Jewlery for Sale

Every day, Native Americans from near by pueblos gather on the portal of the Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe, NM. Built in 1610, it is the oldest seat of colonial government, Spanish, in the U.S. 

What's Wrong With This Monument

This stone marks the End of the Santa Fe Trail, 1822-1879. Erected by the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Territory of New Mexico, 1910. However, this monument to the Santa Fe Trail in the Santa Fe Plaza has a problem. Do you see it?

Solar Panel Array

 Los Alamos Schools put in a solar panel array on school land in front of the Los Alamos Middle School. The array was funded by a $300,000 federal stimulus grant that funded this 50 kW solar array and was installed by Sacred Power.

Fire Smoke Makes for Interesting Picture.

Early morning smoke from the Pacheco Fire (now contained) made for interesting picture of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. (Picture taken one week before the Las Conchas fire start.)

Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane

Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane at Los Alamos airport was landing and refueling station for two sky cranes and numerous other helicopters during the Las Conchas Fire.

"Black Hole" Discovered in Los Alamos

This is the Black Hole.

Rubber Duckie

Tired of posting nothing but fire news.

Youngster at recent Chamberfest "fishing" for a Rubber Duckie.

Sullivan Field Getting a Face Lift

Just after the sod give away at Sullivan Field in preparation for the artificial turf.

Sand Pile Kids

Los Alamos National Bank piled up sand in the street during recent Chamberfest and grew a crowd of kids.

Getting Back To Normal Is Just NOT That Easy

Above: Panoramic view taken on the eastern edge of Los Alamos. On the far left, above the building is the Ski Area. Though unseen, the large plume to the right is coming from the area north of Santa Clara Canyon. (1630 MST 7/5/11 from the rim of Pueblo Canyon behind East Gate.)

Below: Large smoke plume as viewed from White Rock. This plume is hidden for the most part from people in Los Alamos. Notice the "halo" smoke. (1330 MST 7/5/11 from White Rock)

This "cloud" is a pyroclastic cloud or better, a pyrocumulous cloud, is a fast-moving current of superheated gas from the fire. Not from a volcano, but from the Las Conchas Fire.

Hawk Country Water Tower

Trying to get back to normal after the fire - at least to some degree

Newest water tower in Los Alamos is near the Los Alamos Middle School and named after their mascot.

Happy 4th of July, 2011

Thanks to all the firefighters and police personnel from Los Alamos and surrounding communities, the Type 1 Teams, NM National Guard, NM State Police, Los Alamos County workers, NM Red Cross, the Governor and the State of NM, our Congressional Delegation, and on and on. Special kudos to all the citizens of Los Alamos County to had to evacuate and those who contributed aid and comfort.  

~

A very special note to those who lost homes (on the southern edge of the fire) and to those to the north - especially Santa Clara Pueblo who have lost sacred ground and trees in this fire. [Fire Updates]

And firefighters from all over New Mexico and Arizona

 

Road Block - Las Conchas Fire

Evacuation order ends today at 8:00 AM. All normal routes into Los Alamos are open. This road block, however, stays in place for now.

Road block stopping cars from traveling west on NM 4 towards Bandelier National Monument and the Las Conchas fire. Road blocks have been set up by NM Highway Patrol and the NM National Guard.

The top picture was taken when fire was only 5000 acres. Overnight it grew 10X bigger in one day and is now at 121,000 acres and smoke. The picture below was taken a few days ago. Mean while, the fire is still burning north of here. [Fire Update here]

Suspected cause? A down power line during a strong wind storm suspected. Add to that the extreme drought in NM and the fire danger is high everywhere.

Burned Leaves and Cones - Las Conchas Fire

Went out last Wed morning to water the yard and found these larger "ash" leaves and cones in the yard from the Las Conchas Fire. We had seen burnt pine needles and silver dollar sized flakes of burnt bark in the yard. These were new and must have been taken high into the atmosphere by the fire.

Smokey White Rock Mornings

Early morning smoke inversion layer the past few mornings in White Rock. Below, sunrise in White Rock. Air quality very hazardous. Southerly winds later in the morning clear the smoke and push the fire further north to Santa Clara Canyon. Fire now estimated at 97,000 acres and 27% contained. If we get our usual "monsoon" rains in July and August, they will help put out the fire BUT at the risk of flash flooding and ash flows down canyons.