Silver City, New Mexico (a.k.a. Cactus Land)

I'd love deserts, If it weren't for the heat

I drove the last 98 miles from Elephant Butte Lake State Park to Silver City, NM this morning. In the spirit of avoiding interstates and taking the most direct route between sample locations I took Hwy 152 through Emory Pass. At 8,828 ft Emory Pass pales in comparison to Hargeman Pass (11,960 ft) but may be the most beautiful drive I've ever done in North America. I actually laughed aloud as the road switched back and forth, back and forth up the pass. Here's the view from the top.

In the middle distance is the old silver mining town of Kingston, which sprung up in the late 1880's only to be abandoned in 1893 when silver prices fell. 

Mining remains a major component of New Mexico's economy. Silver City itself was incorporated in 1870 following the discovery of silver in the area. Today, the Santa Rita Copper/Molybdenum mine forms the basis of the local economy, providing some 1250 jobs (Silver City's population is only 10,000). The town's "Historic Downtown" is quire reminiscent of other western towns I've been through lately.

Here is Javalina the coffee shop I visited this morning while waiting for the Gila National Forest to finish my permit. The building was built in the late 1800's.

The decor was more modern.

The first serious mining at Santa Rita began in 1909 when a rail line through the area made economical shipping of ore possible. The mine is an open pit over a mile across. Here's a shot from the observation area.

Here is another shot from near the continental divide at my sample location. You can see the mine in the distance. Also a good shot of New Mexico.

Today I was describing and sampling the Bliss Sandstone in the Silver City Range right at the continental divide. The area was rife with cacti off all varieties. My personal favourites were the Perry's Century Agave and the Pin Cushion. Century Agave on first then the Pin Cushion is on the right of the second picture. Also shown are prickly pear cacti.

The geology looked much the same as previous locations. Sandstones overlying, in this case, proterozoic granites. The only major difference was the occurence of ironstones. I have to admit I don't know much about ironstones. I will have to look them up. Here's a photo of one.

I decided I'd include a self portait today. I'm always behind the camera so I rarely get to be in my blog.

Tomorrow I head for Tucson to stay with a collaborator for a night. Then on Saturday I'm off to Payson, Arizona. Silver City was my most southerly sample location. It's all west and then north from here!