Going Up to the Spirit in the Sky: Desert Escape Day 4 – Socorro to Springerville

Dear Isaac, Maia, and Virtual Wanderers,

I thought today would by boring. I was wrong. It was a true road trip day with an empty agenda and 150 flat, rural miles. We filled it up.

Kokopelli is in slow start mode this morning.

Our day started with a trip to the Kittrel Park Historic Plaza in Socorro, NM. The pups enjoyed the sunshine and grass while I listened to the drum circle.

Drumming Circle at the park in Socorro.

After that we were window shopping on the way back to the car when I noticed an Easter Lily Cactus like my Octomom. I snapped a photo, and the shop owner came out and asked us in. Then he said, “I have a tile with your dogs on it.” It was love at first sight and is now a special souvenir and a logo design for my dog’s Three Amigas IG page.

Tile: The Three Amigas

After that, we hit the road towards the historic town of Magdalena, NM. I stopped at the trading post, which was closed. I did snap a couple photos of their creative antiques.

Directions sign in Magdalena, NM.
Space antiques in Magdalena, NM.

Next up was VLA: Very Large Array. I remember going the other way on US 60 ten years ago with Maizzy. We were hauling a$$ because we scheduled too many miles that day. I pulled over back then for a quick photo. A friend told me what it was when I posted the pic.

National Radio Astronomy Observatory Visitor’s Center.
Sign at Very Large Array walking tour.
Entrance to Very Large Array.

This time, we stopped. The short dog- friendly, self-guided tour was worth the $8 senior price tag. The pups got a leg stretch. And, I couldn’t get those sounds from the movie Contact out of my head. It was filmed there.

Kokopelli, Kachina and Cimarron are beaming up at Very Large Array.
Lots of satellites at Very Large Array.
Tile in the Visitor’s Center bathroom.

A few miles later, we drove through Datil. There were a few tiny towns on our route today. While I saw gas stations in a couple of them, probably best to gas up in either Socorro or Springerville before starting.

Datil, NM.

I was excited for the next stop: Pie Town. Another place I was curious about 10 years ago. The sign on the front of Pie-o-neer talks about the history of early settlers stopping for homemade food on the long journey. I had blueberry muffin pie al-la-mode. The pups got a little ice cream. Yum.

Pie Town, NM
Cimarron, Kachina, and Kokopelli want a bite of pie.

Next up was the town of Quemado. Another blink of a town. The last New Mexico town was Red Hill, that looked to be a store. Period.

Quemado, NM
Red Hill, NM

We crossed into Arizona a few miles later. The time changed. Or, the satellites beamed us up an hour early. Lol. Tomorrow, we begin our descent into the low desert. This trip makes time disappear into outer space.

Love ya’ll, Cathy Hartt

One thought on “Going Up to the Spirit in the Sky: Desert Escape Day 4 – Socorro to Springerville”

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