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B. Happy, I spent most of my life in wildfire country before moving to New Mexico, and being stacked up in the dense pines in town in Ruidoso would give me the willies, especially during "red flag" weather conditions. However, just a few miles north and east out toward Alto and the airport, the country opens up to magnificent views and fire-defensible space. That's where I would live if I could afford to. One of the nice things about Ruidoso is that it has only about 1/3 the population of Alamogordo, but about 400 percent more retail and restaurants. It also has medical care infrastructure. It is a nice place!
B. Happy, I lived most of my life in wildfire country in the Northwest, so living in the dense pine forests of urban Ruidoso would give me the willies, especially during "red flag" weather conditions. The best of all worlds would be to find a place a few miles north and east of Alto, toward the airport. Here the country opens up to magnificent views of the Capitans and fire-defensible living space. Yet you still have easy access to Ruidoso's many amenities -- medical care, lots of retail, lots of restaurants. It is a nice place!
Hi Oregon Bill,
Thanks so much for the description of Alto and Ruidoso. We have yet to see this part of New Mexico, and as a nature lover and outdoors type person it sounds like a great mix of beauty and things to do! Also, since I am a mental health therapist, it sounds like the infrastructure and referral base for health care is there. Good to know. We will look into it!
B. Happy, I lived most of my life in wildfire country in the Northwest, so living in the dense pine forests of urban Ruidoso would give me the willies, especially during "red flag" weather conditions. The best of all worlds would be to find a place a few miles north and east of Alto, toward the airport.
Fire danger is certainly an issue here, but I'm not the slightest bit concerned about losing my life. Worst that could happen is that the surrounding woods and town would sustain enough damage to ruin what's nice about the area. North of town has already been "pre-disastered" by the Little Bear fire.
We bought 16 acres NE of town several years ago, N of the Spenser Theater near the Bonito. Were planning to build a house, but other things happened. Will probably sell it. It's a beautiful area.
The Silver City area gets plenty of fires as well, but I think right in town it's dry and deserty enough to not be much of an issue.
Thanls for the insights, rruff! Ironically, as you have probably gathered over the past few years through the news, Los Angeles has encroached several fires as well. We no longer have fire season- it is just a fact of life and risk year round now. Disasters and disaster movies are quite close in the making!
We do like the arts and nature, and being a gay couple we feel more comfortable in a liberal area. Still, we also want to do a little farming and such. Rural and liberal are not always coexisting so we really want to check out several areas before making a solid decision. It is also a three to five year plan, not immediate, so we have time to explore and learn about different areas so we are well informed. Thanks much, your feedback has been very helpful!
Being gay would definitely not be odd in SC or Bisbee. You wouldn't be alone in Ruidoso, but I get the impression that "being different" is more fringe or at least under the radar.
If you are farming in NM you will need to irrigate in the spring, so having a good water source is vital. It is possible to buy land with irrigation rights, or use a well if it is more of a garden rather than a farm. And then keeping the deer and elk out can be a challenge!
Great advice on farming in NM, rruff! Wow, it must be amazing to see elk. I saw a small herd once when traveling through the Colorado River basin many years ago. While I try to think of myself as down to earth, being different is a fact of life for us, and I am reminded that I am different as we travel. We are always watchful of where we want to end up because of this. It is always nice, though, to experience a level of acceptance and sometimes it comes as a surprise. I have met some wonderful people everywhere who accept people as people, and I hope to interact with this perspective as we travel and eventually relocate. Thanks for the encouragement, and SC and Bisbee are sounding more like what we might be looking for.
Great advice on farming in NM, rruff! Wow, it must be amazing to see elk. I saw a small herd once when traveling through the Colorado River basin many years ago. While I try to think of myself as down to earth, being different is a fact of life for us, and I am reminded that I am different as we travel. We are always watchful of where we want to end up because of this. It is always nice, though, to experience a level of acceptance and sometimes it comes as a surprise. I have met some wonderful people everywhere who accept people as people, and I hope to interact with this perspective as we travel and eventually relocate. Thanks for the encouragement, and SC and Bisbee are sounding more like what we might be looking for.
I can't really relate to the discrimination you must experience in some parts of the US. Where I grew up in small town IL for sure. Still! "Land of the free"... not so much. One thing I like about NM, at least in my experience, it's a live and let live kinda vibe pretty much everywhere. You might really like Santa Fe, Taos, and N NM also.
My wife actually got chased by an elk on the links trail not long ago. She was stupid and went right up to one and took a picture. Didn't realize they could get aggressive. And they are huge! It just wanted her to back off, and it lost interest when she did.
Deer are everywhere in town. Too many really. They keep getting hit by cars.
Whoops, just noticed the double post. I thought my first one had completely vanished, and now there it is again. B. Happy, I think you will notice the "live and let live" vibe just about everywhere. I have found Alamogordo very mellow in this regard. Folks in these parts tend to be very friendly.
By the way, one of Alamo's best-kept secrets is the spectacular fall-winter-spring hiking in the canyons on the east edge of town. You can hike them in summer, too, if you don't mind heat and snakes. If you do, Cloudcroft and trails through evergreen forest and aspen glades at 9,000 feet are just 25 minutes away.
Whoops, just noticed the double post. I thought my first one had completely vanished, and now there it is again. B. Happy, I think you will notice the "live and let live" vibe just about everywhere. I have found Alamogordo very mellow in this regard. Folks in these parts tend to be very friendly.
By the way, one of Alamo's best-kept secrets is the spectacular fall-winter-spring hiking in the canyons on the east edge of town. You can hike them in summer, too, if you don't mind heat and snakes. If you do, Cloudcroft and trails through evergreen forest and aspen glades at 9,000 feet are just 25 minutes away.
Oregon Bill - thanks for referencing the hiking in the Sacramento Mountains starting on the eastern end of the City of Alamogordo. When you're there in person the mountains loom large to the east - I never tire of them. I think they are one of the big reasons I can leave the great Pacific Northwest (Washington) and fully enjoy being here in Alamogordo. They're gorgeous!
Flooding can occur down below, I have been warned by my workmates here. They know my wife and I are househunting and we found one we like and now are awaiting the flood report on it early next week. It will be huge and will probably make or break whether we pursue that one any more or not. There will be another one available, for sure, because Alamogordo has many of them.
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