May 11, 2015 by New Mexico Rails-to-Trails Association

Work Day – May 16th!

What we’ll be doing

This month we’re moving up into Cloudcroft to tackle some brush cleaning, minor drainage work, and possibly some gully work down around Bonnie Brooks’ Trestle and Bridge. These efforts are in support of having the Trestle eventually recognized as a historical site.

We’ll be walking down to the worksite from the parking area, detailed below.

When/Where: Saturday, May 16th, 2015. We’ll meet at 9am and we’ll work until noon.

Directions to the Village Spur Trailhead parking area (click this link for a Google map)

Driving Directions

Head on up to Cloudcroft as you normally would. We’ll be parking and meeting at the Village Spur Trailhead parking area where Highway 130 intersects with Highway 82. It’s easy to spot there on your right just as you enter Cloudcroft if coming in from High Rolls or Alamogordo.

Thanks!

If you need any additional information, please call 575-434-1949 (ask for Grady) or e-mail nmrailtrails@gmail.com

April 14, 2015 by New Mexico Rails-to-Trails Association

NMRTA Annual Meeting – Friday, May 8th!

It’s that time again! Please join us on May 8 (that’s a Friday) at 6:00 at the Lodge’s Pavilion in Cloudcroft for our ANNUAL MEETING. If you haven’t been to one of our annual meetings in the past, it’s nice for you to know that this is not so much a MEETING but more of a casual, social gathering where we’ll feed you some free hors d’oeuvres, talk about what all the local Rails-to-Trails has done this last year and what we plan to do in the future, AND we always have a guest speaker. This year, we have Mr. Wayne Turner, who worked for the Santa Fe Railroad for 35 years — most of those years as a structures foreman building bridges. Mr. Turner will be presenting a “show & tell” of many unique tools used by the worker as they traveled with the railroad in those earlier years.

We can also expect short presentations from the Forest Service as well as several local area hiking groups. We expect it to last until around 9pm but it’s a totally open meet so you are free to come and stay as short or long as you like!

We certainly hope to see you up at the Pavilion at 6:00pm, Friday, May 8th! There’s no admission charge and should be a really great time!

April 13, 2015 by New Mexico Rails-to-Trails Association

Work Day – April 18th!

What we’ll be doing

This next April work day, we’ll be continuing the work we’ve been doing over the last few of months at the mouth of Labrocita Canyon just above La Luz. This will likely be the LAST work day at the La Luz Canyon site until the fall due to the rising temperatures that far down the mountain (we like to stay at least a little cool on our scheduled volunteer work days!).

To recap: the original rail bed runs through two private properties (we have easements in place with the owners of the land, so we’re all legal for public access) and we’ll be taking on the task of transforming the original rail bed into a usable hiking trail where needed. We’ll be working the same piece of property we worked the last three months and we’ll likely be continuing preliminary work on a private piece of property further up trail (for which we also have a legal easement in place). This month the excavator work will be done BEFORE the official work day.

The upcoming May work day will be up further in the mountains. There’s more to come on that of course, but it’s looking like we’ll be just outside of Cloudcroft.

When/Where: Saturday, March 21st, 2015. Meet at 9am and we’ll work until noon.

Directions to the La Luz Creek area where we’ll start from the main intersection in La Luz (click this link for a Google map)

Driving Directions

Drive to the center of La Luz (the three-way intersection of La Luz Road/Main Street and Alamo Street) and then do EITHER of the following:

– Drive south about 50 feet and turn east on to Section Road.
– Travel east on Section Road 1.1 miles to just before you cross La Luz Creek… YOU ARE THERE! Park along the side of the road.

– Drive north on Main Street (leave La Luz) about 1.9 miles and turn east onto Labrocita Canyon Road.
– Travel 1.4 miles up Labrocita Cayon Road to the cut off that crosses La Luz Creek (south side of the road).
– Cross the creek… YOU ARE THERE! Park along the side of the road.

Thanks!

If you need any additional information, please call 575-434-1949 (ask for Grady) or e-mail nmrailtrails@gmail.com