Another 45 minutes and we are back in the mountains, this time stopping for a picnic in Cloudcroft. Sandra and Bunny have packed a feast.

The Lodge at Cloudcroft is wonderful - the architecture and history, including a resident ghost, are worth more time than the few minutes we had to visit.

Michael takes a break beside the Alpine pond outside the Lodge.

And a visit to Ruidoso would not be complete without visiting Ruidoso Downs - we spent the afternoon of the 4th of July having fun at the track.

I believe we won a total of about two dollars each on the horses we chose - I bet on the colors of the outfits that the riders wore and won as much as anyone - which is to say, not much! But it was lots of fun.

As we were packing up to leave on our last morning in Ruidoso, this deer peeked through the trees from across the road. We also discovered that the bears had turned over the steel trash dumpsters in the middle of the night! But bears or no, we'll be back to this really unique and pretty part of New Mexico before too long.