Some friends and I set out for some adventure…….

The moon was at about 33% illumination and the sky was clear so it was the perfect time to get out away from the city and do a night hike and grab some photos of the beautiful New Mexico sky and landscape. We left town about 5pm and made the 1.5 hour drive to the Cabezon area as the sun set.

Just off of highway 550 and after 15 plus miles of dirt road, our first stop was the ghost town of Ojo Del Padre NM or as some locals calls it, Guadalupe. Ojo De Padre means “Spring of the Father” and sits near the banks of the Rio Puerco river just north of Albuquerque and about 25 miles west of San Ysidro, NM. Ojo means eye in Spanish but I’ve read when used here it means spring. There are several small ranching towns/settlements in and around the Cabezon area dating back 50 to 100 (or more) years when the area was use for cattle and sheep grazing. Guadalupe is now deserted and sits in ruins but once consisted of a number of adobe homes, a two story hotel/store/bar, a church and a post office.

After a few snaps of Guadalupe we moved on to some Native American ruins further south that sit atop a mesa. The ruins are made of several 800 year old plus walls, small rooms and two Kivas. We made the quick 10 or 15 minute hike to the top to enjoy the moon lit view of the Rio Puerco Valley, the quiet, the history, and the fresh air.

Thanks, Alan, Mike and Bill for the awesome company. You guys rock.