Black Mesa a quarter century later
In 1998, I was driving in New Mexico south of Taos on a rainy day. A rainbow appeared to the east over a butte lit up by a ray of sunlight. I pulled over and snapped several photos of the scene with my 35mm film camera. It became one of my favorites. A few white crosses in a cemetery at the foot of the butte stood out like those in Ansel Adams' famous "Moonrise" photo which was taken near Hernandez, about 10 miles north of here.
This April I went looking for the spot again. It was a sunny day, not as scenic as before, but I was glad to see that the setting has not changed. Under dramatic skies, I think this location has photogenic potential, especially if one gets the Santa Fe peaks with snow in the comp. The butte is called Black Mesa. It's about 5 miles south of Espanola on state road 30.
I've since learned from Jim Scully that Black Mesa is famous in the history of native Americans vs Spanish colonizers. A final battle was fought here in 1694.