New Mexico Reimagined
at Star Ranch, Chimayo, NM
Western NM Gallery
As you drive towards Sky City,
we are greeted by Enchanted
Mesa. The top of Enchanted
Mesa was once occupied by the
Acoma people. Today, the top of
the mesa is off-limits to
everyone.
The mission church on top of
Acoma mesa was built by the
slave labor of the Acoma people
under the orders of the Spanish
conquerors. Construction of the
church was begun in 1698. All
the rocks and dirt for mortar used
in the construction were hauled
from the valley floor by hand.
Adobe architecture was
developed in Africa and spread
around the Mediterranean world.
Traditionally the Native
Americans in the SW used stone
and mud mortar. After the
Spanish introduced adobe to the
Pueblo Indians, they began
incorporating it in their buildings.
The Santa Maria de Acoma
Mission Church is on the valley
floor, not on the mesa top. It was
built in 1933 in traditional
Spanish Colonial style from the
native sandstone. It is not open
to the public, but it is lovely to
photograph on the exterior.
The views from on top of Acoma
mesa are just spectacular. There
are no guardrails or other
barricades around the edge of
the mesa, so extreme caution is
necessary when exploring and
photographing.
The Ice Cave near Grants, NM is
a remarkable geologic formation
that for centuries was used as a
source of ice and refrigeration for
the Native Americans and the
Spanish settlers. Today, no ice is
taken out and it being preserved
for the enjoyment of visitors..
Part of the fun in western NM is a
drive along the actual roadway of
historic Route 66. Many old
signs and abandoned
businesses remain from the days
when Route 66 was the Mother
Road, the path to imagined
riches in California.
Ventana Arch and the other
sandstone bluffs create an alien
landscape south of Grants, NM.
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