Hey hey USA - 14th October - the Guadaloupe Mountains

 The road we were travelling back to El Paso passes the main chain of the Guadeloupe Mountains which rise to a height of 8000 ft. Below is the Chihuahuan Desert that runs south for hundreds of miles into Mexico. The mountains were populated by the native Nde Apache who valued the water and shelter they provided. Unfortunately white settlers also saw the advantages of the Guadaloupe and in 1849 the US Army started a campaign to drive the Nde out. By 1880 they had all gone. 

The area is immensely important as one of the best examples of a marine fossil reef in the world and the highlands provide homes for numerous species of animals, such as mountain lions, bears, golden eagles and deer.

We drove into the visitor centre at Pine Springs and decided to do the Smith Spring trail. This is only 2.3 miles long, but despite it being mid October it was very hot, and in our just post-Covid state, going uphill was difficult. It was worth it though. We passed the the Frijole ranch which was being repainted so we could not visit and then to a shady area where the Smith Spring ran across the path.


The Frijole Ridge



I discovered a great affection for grass hoppers







The Frijoles Ranch, built for a cattle ranch









Here you can see the expanse of the Chihuahuan Desert


Agave plant



There had been some fire damage along the trail


We come to the spring, and Anne has a paddle












We filled up our water bottles in the parking area. The afternoon was getting on and we had miles to go yet.



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