Bates and Bates

Trip Ideas Vacations with Family in Taos

Travelers come here for the fine art and the raw, untouched beauty of the landscape. Some come for the climate and the scenery. For others, it’s the culture and atmosphere. Drawn by clean air and great views, they come to experience rich spiritual traditions. They come to Taos for creative insspiration and for the abundant outdoor redreation. Find your own re-creation here.

You’ll find vacation specials to help you find the perfect place to spend time with family and friends. Day trip recommendations will make planning your vacation a snap. And because art is always in season in Taos, you can find a variety of classes and workshops for every interest, all season long. After the hustle and bustle of the holidays, relax and rejuvinate and let Taos restore your spirit.

Source: Taos.org Website

The Center of an Ancient World

Today the massive buildings of the ancestral Pueblo peoples still testify to the organizational and engineering abilities not seen anywhere else in the American Southwest. For a deeper contact with the canyon that was central to thousands of people between 850 and 1250 A.D., come and explore Chaco through guided tours, hiking & biking trails, evening campfire talks, and night sky programs.

Source: National Park Service’s Website

We’re not Alone

In July 1947, something happened northwest of Roswell, New Mexico, during a severe thunderstorm.
Was it a flying saucer? Was it a weather balloon? What happened?

This website helps you explore this UFO Incident, as well as other UFO incidents and sightings.

The site also contains links to UFO researchers and related information.

Source: Roswell UFO Museum Website

Winter and Summer Fun!

A trip on the Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway transports you above deep canyons and breathtaking terrain a distance of 2.7 miles. See some of nature’s more dramatic beauty unfold before you. At sunset the desert skies produce a spectacular array of color, and your vantage point from the observation deck atop 10,378 foot Sandia Peak in the Cibola National Forest affords an 11,000 square-mile panoramic view of the Rio Grande Valley and the Land of Enchantment. Located on the eastern edge of Albuquerque in the Sandia Foothills at the end of Tramway Road.

The scenery steals the show on the Sandia Peak Tramway. The Tram, as it is affectionately known, has taken more than 10 million passengers to the top of Sandia Peak and back again, and celebrates its 48th anniversary in May. Located on the eastern edge of Albuquerque, New Mexico’s largest city, the Tram is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Central New Mexico.

Source: Sandia Peak Website

The Billy the Kid Trail

Billy The Kid Museum is located in Fort Sumner, New Mexico, on Highway 60-84, 2 miles east of downtown. It is one of the most complete museums in the Southwest and features relics of the historic past of one of Billy the Kid’s favorite haunts. Scores of items are one of a kind and are not seen elsewhere. The museum appeals to old and young alike.

Billy the Kid was a frequent visitor in Fort Sumner where the 21 year old outlaw was shot to death in 1881 by Lincoln County Sheriff, Pat Garrett. The Kid used William H. Bonney as his name even though he was born Henry McCarty. He also use the name Henry Antrium, taking the name of his stepfather. It’s all blurred in the mists of myth that leaves the name ‘Billy the Kid’ indelibly imprinted in folklore.

One item in the museum is a rifle that belonged to Billy the Kid, along with the documentation. Other interesting things are the door Billy backed through the night he was slain and two curtains that came out of Pete Maxwell’s bedroom where Billy was shot. There is a large rock he carved his name on. Also, on display you will see the chaps and spurs Billy liked to wear to the dances. Billy was a very good dancer and singer and was much admired by the young ladies.

The museum’s collection included antique cars, wagons, and buggies along with a horse drawn hearse and memorabilia from the once Fort Sumner military fort. Some of the most interesting items are an army blanket, cash box, and spurs that belonged to General Edwin Vose Sumner, the Civil War General for whom the fort was named in this eastern New Mexico town. There is a letter from his daughter giving the items to the museum.

Billy The Kid is known the world over and has great appeal as an outlaw legend. Visitors have come from every state and 50 or more foreign countries.

There is a large souvenir and gift shop in the front entrance to the museum where visitors may purchase items for the entire family. There is ample free parking around the museum.

Source: Billy the Kid Museum Website

Beauty and Wonder; Above and Below

High rising ancient sea ledges, deep rocky canyons, cactus, grasses and thorny shrubs – who would imagine the hidden treasures deep beneath this rugged landscape? Secretly tucked below the desert terrain are more than 119 known caves – all formed when sulfuric acid dissolved the surrounding limestone.

Source: National Park Service Website

Museum History

The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, opened to the public in July 1997, eleven years after the death of the artist from whom it takes its name. Welcoming visitors from all over the world, it is the only museum in the United States dedicated to an internationally-known woman artist.

One of the most significant artists of the 20th century, Georgia O’Keeffe (1887-1986) was devoted to creating imagery that expressed what she called “the wideness and wonder of the world as I live in it.” She was a leading member of the Stieglitz Circle artists, headed by Alfred Stieglitz, America’s first advocate of modern art in America. These avant-garde artists began to flourish in New York in the 1910s. O’Keeffe’s images—instantly recognizable as her own —include abstractions, large-scale depictions of flowers, leaves, rocks, shells, bones and other natural forms, New York cityscapes and paintings of the unusual shapes and colors of architectural and landscape forms of northern New Mexico.

The Museum’s collection of over 3,000 works comprises 1,149 O’Keeffe paintings, drawings, and sculptures that date from 1901 to 1984, the year failing eyesight forced O’Keeffe into retirement. The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum is the largest single repository of O’Keeffe’s work in the world. Throughout the year, visitors can see a changing selection of these works. In addition, the Museum presents special exhibitions that are either devoted entirely to O’Keeffe’s work or combine examples of her art with works by her American modernist contemporaries. The Museum also organizes exhibitions of works by her contemporaries, as well as by living artists of distinction. Over 140 artists other than O’Keeffe have been exhibited at the Museum, such as Arthur Dove, Sherrie Levine, Jackson Pollock and Andy Warhol.

Source: Georgia O’Keeffe Museum Website

Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

For nine days in October, the New Mexico skies are painted as hundreds of balloons lift off from Albuquerque’s Balloon Fiesta Park. Nothing rivals the power of Mass Ascension on crisp early mornings as these graceful giants leave the ground to take their place in the cerulean desert sky. For ballooning fans worldwide, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a pilgrimage. There’s something for everyone to enjoy . . . whimsical special shapes filled with equal parts of hot air and wonder, and Balloon Glows that create a magical night landscape for spectators to wander. No matter who you are, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta will leave you awestruck and wanting more.

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a world-renowned attraction and destination for kids of all ages. For more than three decades, the first week in October brings the smell of roasting chiles and the beautiful, magical moving picture show of hot air balloons sailing silently through the crisp fall air.

Guests from all over the world come to Albuquerque to celebrate ballooning. Literally hundreds of balloons will be taking flight from the Balloon Fiesta Park this year.

Source: Albuquerque International Baloon Fiesta’s Website