While we were in Comfort, TX, this Carolina Wren was entertaining us on a wooden water tower.
Carolina Wren singing his song
Carolina Wren Dancing his dance
Carolina Wren taking a bow after a fine performance
Carolina Wren
Category: Travel
Hotel Giles
Hotel Giles at night
At this time last week, we were staying at the Hotel Giles in Comfort, TX (https://www.hotelgiles.com/). We had driven 687 miles to Comfort to experience the total eclipse of the sun. Comfort, TX, was in the direct path of the eclipse, so we got around 4 minutes and 20 seconds of totality. Hotel Giles is a wonderful hotel that was perfect for viewing the eclipse with its large open space behind the hotel. The owners and staff were friendly and went out of their way to make our stay pleasant and memorable. They kept us informed on what was happening in Comfort, arranged for lunch, and made the guests dinner for a reasonable price on Monday since most restaurants were closed on Monday. A delicious home-cooked breakfast was included in the price of the room, and the coffee was excellent. If you are in the area, I highly recommend staying at the Hotel Giles.
The Hotel Giles was originally Hotal Faust, designed and built by architect Alfred Giles for Paul Ingenhuett in 1880. Alfred Giles was an English architect who moved to San Antonio, TX, in 1875 for health reasons and became a well-known and influential architect in San Antonio, southwestern Texas, and northern Mexico. He was also involved in ranching near Comfort. You can read more about Alfred Giles at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Giles_(architect).
The room we stayed in.
Interior stairway and the Parlor where guests gather. They have jam sessions on Friday nights.
This guy had been waiting for years for the eclipse.
The courtyard and gazebo at night.
The Cottage, a covered deck, and the Cabin.
The barn and a Tesla charging station out front.
Streaks
Early morning light
Clouds streaked by left dawn behind
Moon frolicked in clouds
Santa Fe Riot 2009
Farm and Ranch Graffiti on a beached box car. In 1980, a riot broke out at the New Mexico State Penitentiary in Santa Fe, NM. It turned into the most deadly prison riot in U.S. history. The graffiti on the box car is a rather bold reminder for us folks who remember the Penitentiary riot.
Old Adobe Architecture
Carrizozo, New Mexico
Somewhere In Nowhere
Night Skies
Dawn
Assassin Bug on Sunflower
Somewhere in Nowhere
Dusk
Moon at 98.8% full of itself
Another Old School
White Oaks Schoolhouse was built in 1895. It’s only open on weekends, so I did not get to go inside. White Oaks, New Mexico is 17 miles northeast of Carrizozo, New Mexico. The White Oaks webpage is at http://whiteoaksnm.com/index.html. There is also a wiki on White Oaks, NM: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Oaks%2C_New_Mexico.
It has a three-hole outhouse.
A safe from the old post office and bile of mystery metal. Although there is an old tricycle on the concrete slab.
View from the west side of the school.
The south side of the school.
The east side of the school.
Tank Art
Graffiti on water tanks on NM Highway 380 between San Antonio and Carrizozo.
Little Red Schoolhouse On The Prairie
Three Rivers School 1904 on NM Highway 54 between Carrizozo and Tularosa. I don’t know anything about this building other than it sits behind the Three Rivers Trading Post, it’s old, it’s red, and where it is.
The above satellite map shows the location of Three Rivers School. The school and the trading post are 24 miles south of Carrizozo and 18 miles north of Tularosa. The border of the White Sands Missle Range is about a mile west of NM Highway 54 at Three Rivers. The south end of the Valley of Fires lava flow is the black area west of the Three Rivers. East of Three Rivers is Sierra Blanca Peak which is 11,981 ft (3,652 m) high. The Trinity Test Site where the first nuclear bomb was detonated in 1945 is north and west of Three Rivers.
The Adversary
Off Center & Not Even 