We spent a while in the morning looking around the plaza of
Las Vegas. The square was very pretty and surrounded by old buildings. Las
Vegas is notable for the number of movies and TV series that have been shot in
the area, including Red Dawn, No Country for Old Men, Paul, Due Date and Easy
Rider. In the Plaza Hotel the hallways have framed photos of the stars that
have stayed there while filming, including Hilary Swank, Miranda Otto, Lou
Diamond Phillips, Woody Harrelson and Javier Bardem.
One of the buildings had a front door that was curiously labelled “Durant, Wyoming” and a Sheriffs star. We were told that is a set for a series currently filming in town called Longmire.
One of the buildings had a front door that was curiously labelled “Durant, Wyoming” and a Sheriffs star. We were told that is a set for a series currently filming in town called Longmire.
We left Las Vegas and headed north to Fort Union. The first
of 3 forts on the site was constructed in 1851 at the junction of 3 major
branches of the Santa Fe Trail, to protect the travellers and locals from
Indian threats. The site was only in use for a decade before it fell into
disrepair and was abandoned. From the site of the third fort, looking across
the valley, we could see the remains of the adobe walls. Adobe, or mud brick,
is relatively easy to build but must be constantly maintained so it doesn’t
deteriorate in the weather. Hence, even though the remains of all 3 forts are
not that old, they have slowly fallen apart due to weather action. The best
preserved building is the prison because it was made from stone not adobe.
Presumably to make it impossible to dig out of.
In 1861 a star shaped ditch and mound fort was hastily dug
to protect the Santa Fe Trail from the Confederate Invasion, and was abandoned
in 1862 when the Confederates were turned back.
In 1863, the final fort was constructed. More a small city
than a fort, the ruins stretch over a considerable area, and at its height, the
forts grounds covered 104square miles.
Fort Union was the supply fort for 46 other forts and garrisons in the neighbouring states, and the annual budget was $2.6M at a time when the US Government paid $7M for Alaska. It was really interesting to walk around the ruins and imagine what it would have been like when the buildings were whole and the fort was full of people and animals.
Fort Union was the supply fort for 46 other forts and garrisons in the neighbouring states, and the annual budget was $2.6M at a time when the US Government paid $7M for Alaska. It was really interesting to walk around the ruins and imagine what it would have been like when the buildings were whole and the fort was full of people and animals.
Leaving the Fort we headed for Ojo Caliente to the historic
mineral springs resort. They have an RV Park and we checked in and had dinner
at their wine bar.
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