Having a freshly-installed AEV Conversions 3.5” Suspension, I set my sights back on the road.

There’s a lot to see in Texas. It’s an extremely vast state that features a lot of variety, from bustling metropolitan areas, to barren, desert mountain-scapes. I wanted to see all of it, but I was ready to travel further westward.

I targeted Roswell, New Mexico, which was a larger hop than usual, coming from the Dallas / Fort Worth area. However, I was excited to experience a desert environment for the very first time, and also to take advantage of the large expanses of public land available for camping and exploration.

The Capitalization of Little Green Men

Roswell is famed for the alleged UFO crash, and subsequent government cover-up, that occurred in the area in 1945. Since then, it has become a mecca for aficionados of science fiction, and for seekers of intelligent alien life. Countless movies and television shows have been produced using this incident as a centerpiece.

Whether or not there’s any truth to what happened 75 years ago, Roswell has capitalized on the novelty of visitors from outer-space. The streets are lined with kitschy fiberglass statues of aliens, space-themed murals, and bulbous street lamps adorned with large alien eyes. The city is filled with shops, museums, and even has a coffee shop with a science-fiction theme.

Into the Dunes

A short drive to the east of Roswell, there is an OHV area called Mescalero Sand Dunes. Although it costs $3 per vehicle, per day, dispersed camping is allowed within the dunes. It wasn’t too expensive and it seemed like it’d be a unique and interesting place to camp. Furthermore, I thought it’d be fun to take the Jeep out on the dunes.

After filling out a slip and inserting my payment into a metal post, I followed a long dusty gravel road into the OHV area. I then turned into the sand, and followed an obvious route that wound its way through the dunes. It was like a low-speed roller-coaster, as the trail crested and dipped through the soft sand.

I wasn’t sure what the traction was going to be like, so I didn’t air down until I felt like the Jeep was struggling. Indeed, I encountered a difficult climb, at which point, I aired my stock Rubicon tires down to 15 psi which then enabled me to traverse the dunes effortlessly.

This was my first off-highway test of the AEV suspension. While it wasn’t very technical, nor high-speed, it was very comfortable and it seemed to evenly distribute tire pressure across the sand as it responded to the terrain.

When I was finished exploring, I parked on a flat spot at the top of a moderately sized dune to settle in and pop the camper for the night. It was a very picturesque setting, as I was surrounded by rolling dunes, and there was a towering plateau on the horizon to the east.

Gone with the Wind

Just as the sun had set and after I had climbed into bed, the wind picked up instantaneously. The side of the Jeep was pounded by blowing sand, and the fabric walls on my Ursa Minor camper flapped violently.

As I raced to close windows, sand penetrated the Jeep, coating the interior with a dusty, gritty mess. I made a snap decision to relocate, and sealed up the camper as the airborne sand stung at my exposed skin.

I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of trying to navigate the dunes in the dark, however, I had my GPS track to follow back to the staging area, which I decided would be a less sandy place to re-deploy and to find some protection from the wind.

I was disappointed to leave my picturesque dune, which I was looking forward to seeing in the morning, but I was thankful to make it back to the staging area and salvage a night of sleep.

The Trinity Site

Pushing further westward into New Mexico, a family member suggested that I visit The Trinity Site, which is where the first atomic bomb was tested. In the spirit of neither researching nor planning, I entered “trinity site” into my GPS, and I was off.

Within a barren and sprawling valley, my GPS led me down an unremarkable two-lane road as I approached the The Trinity Site. Soon, a gate appeared in the road. It wasn’t a visitor’s center, or some inviting memorial. It was the secure entrance of a military installation. Something was amiss with my directions, and I immediately regretted my cavalier attitude toward planning as I was approached by a security officer.

I expressed my intentions to the gentleman, and with a smile, he explained that the memorial is in a restricted area and it was only open to the public twice a year - neither of which being the day that I was there. He politely directed me to a historical marker off of a nearby highway. I thanked him, did a u-turn, and went back the way I came, only a little embarrassed!

An Ear to the Sky

Following my aborted visit to The Trinity Site, I continued westward toward National Forest land, where I hoped to do some exploring, and to find a primitive campsite for the night.

On my way there, I passed the Very Large Array, near Socorro, New Mexico, which is a famous radio observatory consisting of multiple, large, positionable, radio telescopes used by astronomers to listen to, and to study space.

It’s an impressive scientific installation, and just being there inspired me to wonder about the heavens. I had the urge to enter the facility, sit down at a terminal, don a headset, and listen for anomalous signals, just like Jodie Foster in Contact.