Science Teacher's Dream II

Dust storms in NM

Oh yes.... this is living.  White Sands National Monument is right next to Trinity Site.  Just to be this close to the spot where the good old USA developed the most massive weapon of destruction known to man, was so overwhelming.  To be this close to where my hero, Robert O, actually worked. (Oh...I forgot.  I was also within feet of his house in Los Alamos.)  Now that caused palpitations in the old ticker.  (not as many palpitations as the atomic bomb though)  Now..if we could only get going on the cure for the common cold! or even stop losing the war with bacteria.

Who wears white to a sand dune?

Snow plow needed?

 Hey, is that snow?  Thought we were in New Mexico in summer?  Nope that's sand.  and yes, people were sledding down it.  Attempting to walk to the top of a dune was a lot of exercise for we old folks. 






















But... we were not finished.   The White Sands Missile Range was next.  Had to pass through the official base gate, answer the questions, promise to not photograph the base with my $40 dollar snap and shoot camera (base was about a mile+ from us), and all the other security stuff.  Of course, you could just go up the road with a good lens and photograph the whole thing, but... I am not going to give that nice soldier any lip.

I think I dated this guy in HS.

Oh, to have been there. To have seen the blinding light through government supplied smoked glass.  To have protected myself from radiation by hiding in a ditch.  Those were the good old days.   Those rats that they hung by their tails on clothes lines at various distances from ground zero told us a lot about radiation.  So did the native indians who were still there when the bomb went off.  But..we did learn that to protect school age children from a nuclear holocaust, all you have to do is hide under your school desk.

Men and their desire to go fast.

Well, we had to leave New Mexico.   Trinity Site is open to the public 2 days a year.  One of the days was the same week we were there, but I couldn't hang around for 4 more days.  Places to go, people to see. 

We've been through New Mexico a few times and each time it's:

1.  Very high winds.      2.  Enough dirt in the air to clog your filters in a few hours.   3.  Hot.  The government picked a good place for top secret work.  No terrorist would go there.  LOL

Science Teacher's Dream Part I

Finally.... could it be that I could get this close to the Trinity Site!   To my science hero, Robert O?  The that time period when the US could put together the most massive weapon of destruction ever created?  Yep.... (of course...still no cure for the common cold and resistant bacteria are winning the war in our sinuses and lungs)  but.... I digress.

First, there was our visit to the MacDonald Observatory just north of Alpine, TX where we parked the rig.  This is a nice observatory.  The ride up was awesome views and a trip past a huge dude ranch.  Could barely keep from pulling over and renting a horse for the rest of the trip.  We did have to visit in the day and not stay for the night star party on the patio (using all the smaller telescopes and lead by a resident astronomer.  Had to get back for the pups..the hardships of motherhood!   We took a short walking tour and listened to an understandable presentation on our solar system and near by constellations.  I finally was starting to understand,  "When the moon is in the 7th house...and Jupiter aligns with Mars."  (and peace will rule the planet, and love will steer the stars!"  Wish I had seen this demonstration (with people acting out the roll of earth, Jupiter, etc.) when I was teaching science.

 

BIG BEND.... BIG BLOG !!!

We've been wanting to see this place for a long time.  We've put on our hiking shoes, got out our sunscreen, and ....we're off.   Books could be written about the animals, the plants, the geology, and history, but I'll just post the pics and you can decide if this is something you'd like to drive way, way out of your way to see.  It's worth it.

When you look at these pics, remember that the park is as far as you can see in the picture and beyond that.  It is a huge park.

Yes, Cindy can and does get up at sunrise.

Coyote in our campground.

yes... as far as you can see.

Someone needed a rest from sightseeing.

The Rio Grande made that little hole in the rocks.

Jose crossed the Rio Grande illegally.

This was March so the flowers were blooming.

Get an idea of the size?  compare this pic with the one above.

These were my favorite flowers.

A store used to be here.  There are hot springs just down the path.

Yep, it's hot. That's the Rio Grande in the background.

Birds are so darn smart.

Rock climbing anyone?

Can you find the illegals in this pic?  

This guy rode his horse across the river.  It's only a few feet deep in places.

That's Dale in the top in the middle.

We had a good storm come through and it left the parking lot/campground a little wet.  It was gone in a few hours.

Turkey buzzards waiting for one of us to slip on the trail.

Buster was very alert to the smells.  He's no dummy.

Hey was that a coyote over there????

We were warned that these javelinas would attack a dog.

They walked right through our campsite.

Not a scenic campsite.  Blacktop...and it gets very hot!

Our rv going through a tunnel into Big Bend.

Remember, as far as you can see....it's still Big Bend.

Dale drives us out and up to Alpine, TX.