Day 35 - Ruidoso, NM (Day 3)

We're staying put today.  

It rained most of the night and there are flood warnings along our planned route back to I-25 and Albuquerque.

The rain finally stopped at around 12:30pm.   It was good to see the sun again.  We went out for lunch and for a drive.

Ski Apache ...
We drove up to the Ski Apache area on Sierra Blanca (on NM-532 north of Ruidoso).  Access to this tourist attraction was strange.  There were no services on the 12 mile entrance road. The entire length was marked as no passing and had virtually no berms.  The road surface was pretty good, but we couldn't imagine anyone traveling the road under winter conditions.

These pictures were taken on the way up.  You can see how the road snakes up the mountainside.

There was evidence of forest fire damage

Rain clouds were forming,
we stopped the drive at this overlook

A Mystery Solved ...
We've wondered about an unusual structure on the hillside behind us.  It's surrounded by a chain-link fence.  Carol investigated by asking the park owners.  Their first explanation ... "This is a place where Billy the Kid hid out.  Why not?  After all, everyone else around here uses Billy for marketing."  The laughing subsided and the truth was revealed ... it's an abandoned fruit cellar.

End of the Day ...
Clouds and a light rain returned late in the day.  This is the pattern we've seen for many days. We plan to head toward Albuquerque tomorrow.