There are two legs of the Geronimo Scenic Byway, both branching off west of I-25 with Elephant Butte midway between the two. We took the northern route one day and drove the southern route a second day.
Chloride Ghost Town
Chloride got its start in 1880 when a rich silver strike was discovered. By 1900 it was a quiet village and today only twelve people are permanent residents.
The Grafton Cabin is now a historical site.
The General Store is now a museum. When the town folded, the proprietors of the store just locked the doors and left everything in place.
Most of the items in the General Store are the original merchandise.
End of the North Scenic Road
The north Scenic Byway ends at Beaverhead Ranger Station. From there the road turns into a high-clearance dirt road.
Emory Pass
After passing through a number of "Ghost Towns", our first stop along the southern route was Emory Pass at 8,168-foot elevation.
Almost 140,000 acres were burned from a lightning strike during this month-long fire, the largest in New Mexico history.
Great views from the top. We could see Elephant Butte Lake over 50 miles away.
Santa Rita Copper Mine
We made a stop at this active copper mine.
Currently 100,000,000 pounds of copper is extracted from this mine each year. The mine works 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
They started digging this pit in 1910. For a time, it was the largest open pit copper mine on the planet.
Big tire from 2.5-million-dollar dump truck.
Since the ore contains less than one percent copper, most of the material extracted is dumped into massive tailing piles all around the area. This is one of many piles.
Old bridge from 1927 and new Percha Canyon Bridge.
Lake Valley Historic Ghost Town
The town of Lake Valley was founded in 1882 with a large silver discovery. During the depression of 1893 the town was abandoned due to declining silver prices. It is now being preserved by the Bureau of Land Management.
General Store
Some of the old homes.
The schoolhouse has been converted into a BLM office and Visitor Center.
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