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A Bad Man But a Great State Park

Text and photos by Don Laine

first grease rack - concrete. Pancho Villa State Park. — The first grease rack – made of concrete. Pancho Villa State Park. © Don Laine

General Francisco “Pancho” Villa was not a nice person, but the Mexican bandit-revolutionary, certainly without meaning to, played a major role in helping the United States prepare for its entrance into World War I.

Today, those traveling in southern New Mexico can drop in to Pancho Villa State Park in the border town of Columbus to learn about Villa and see some of America’s first mechanized military equipment. If your timing’s right you might also see blooming cactus in spring and do a bit of bird watching in winter.

White Sands Welcomes RMOWP

Playing in the cool gypsum sands, White Sands National Park — Playing in the cool gypsum sands of White Sands National Park. © Don Laine

RMOWP’s annual conference is just a few weeks away (Sunday-Wednesday, September 26-29) with a good time for all planned in sunny Alamogordo, New Mexico.

In addition to photographing the glistening white gypsum sands of White Sands National Park, we’ll discover the real Wild West at Oliver Lee Memorial State Park. A must-see in the area, that we hope you’ll explore on your own, is Three Rivers Petroglyph Site, with more than 21,000 ancient petroglyphs. Other local attractions include the New Mexico Museum of Space History for a glimpse of the beginnings of America’s space program, the Tularosa Basin Museum of History, and of course the Toy Train Depot. Due to the ongoing pandemic, some of these attractions may have limited hours when we’re there, but we’ll try to get current information closer to the conference.

Will You Join Us?

By Virginia Parker Staat

RMOWP is just a few weeks away from its 2021 conference. Are you making plans to attend? I do hope so.

Travels and Travails of a Magazine Photographer

By Jack Olson

[Ed. Note: This article was first printed in the April-May 1996 issue of Rocky Mountain Outdoors.]

I recently had a magazine assignment which I thought might be of interest to members who are aspiring photographers. It seems pretty funny now that some time has passed but it didn’t tickle me too much at the time. Experienced photographers in RMOWP will probably recall similar stories of their own.

Crikey! It’s National Punctuation Day

By Virginia Parker Staat

“England and America are two countries separated by a common language.”
~ George Bernard Shaw

I recently edited a children’s book written by a Glaswegian friend of mine (aka, a native of Glasgow, Scotland). I quickly recognized that editing his book would take a bit more effort on my part than I originally anticipated. I had forgotten about the many differences between American versus United Kingdom styles of spelling and punctuation.

September – October 2021

Bald Eagle, Alameda Park Zoo, Alamogordo, NM — Bald Eagle at Alameda Park Zoo, Alamogordo, NM © Don Laine

For the latest information on RMOWP’s 2021 Conference in Alamogordo, New Mexico, check out the latest issue of Rocky Mountain Outdoors. Click here to view and/or download.

Am I Really Retired?

By Richard Holmes, April 2020

Best of Show, Writing ~ RMOWP 2020 Contest

It just occurred to me that I might be retired. I had not thought of that before. Could I have just eased into it without noticing?

Shade and Water

By Peter Kummerfeldt

According to the National Weather Service, in 2020, more people died from heat related issues than from any other weather related phenomena. 2021 is looking like more of the same – if not worse! Heat related medical problems are not limited to the desert Southwest. With the changing climate patterns the country is experiencing life-endangering summer temperatures can occur just about anywhere – and probably will.

Hoop Hoop Hurray!

By Jack Olson

It’s time for a bit of nostalgia. Do you remember the hula hoop? I was traveling in Europe when I saw my first hula hoop. Some boys were playing along the Appian Way south of Rome. I believe there is WWII damage in the background of the photo. It was January, 1959.

Simplicity

By Virginia Parker Staat

One of David’s and my evening rituals includes sitting on our deck, enjoying the antics of our many bird friends. It is a quiet and simple time for us. It is a time of decompression from the day and whatever challenges may have come with it.