the sun is going down on a friday afternoon out in the dry mountains of southeastern new mexico, and i'm proud that the only place i went today, i went on foot. i headed out to the back of our four-and-a-half acres, into the national forest, which is dry and scrubby but goes back maybe a couple of miles to the apache reservation. there's a dry creekbed, mostly rocks, that comes down from various hills in the area and washes out more or less in our back yard; because several canyons come down and join here, i know that this was a lively place back a thousand years ago or so. even today it is full of elk poop, deer poop, and even cow poop as i know all the animals are back there eating whatever they can find that's green. today, though, i didn't see any. they are wary of people these days, as it's hunting season.

i did find a road, a pretty good road, that circles around at the base of this mountain, a mountain that is pretty high and that i take to be the boundary of forest and apache reservation. i hiked up that mountain about halfway. as you went up, you could see that it kept getting higher but you couldn't see the top. it was dry, with lots of rocks and the christmas tree kind of pine that has needles. deer and elk poop everywhere. looking back into our own valley, i could see the hills that i live among, and more mountains in the distance.

from this little canyon, it gets very dry and empty to the east, but there are still plenty of hunters. to the north, you go but a mile or two to the reservation; i still haven't been there, as far as i know. but to the west, if i follow that road along the bottom of the mountain, i could conceivably stay in forest land, all along the border of the reservation, and walk more or less to cloudcroft, about sixteen miles. that is my goal.

an overland hike would probably take a couple of days, because i'd have to go there, and then come back, or at least arrange a ride. going west it gets wetter, lusher, and shadier, but the mountains get higher too. about six miles this side of cloudcroft is the heart of the mountains, where it's very green, and a little rainier than here, and definitely higher. we are at about 73; cloudcroft is at 87. a ridge between here and there is also 87, but i wouldn't necessarily have to climb it, because i could circle around behind, stay in the forest, and only go up to 87 when i got to town.

there are bears and cats in the mountains, and also coyotes. the coyotes are a threat to the house pets, if they get loose, but i'm not sure if they would be a threat to me, out there camping on my own in some remote part of the forest. i actually don't know what i'd find.

we are trying in most ways to have what we need to not go anywhere. the kids have sports practice, but they've been canceled. they have school, but it's being canceled too. they are around. they are not into the area or walking around, like i am. but the state is on lockdown, and we need ways to survive a few weeks.