Bland open house

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J

jemezcrusher

10 Year 15 Year
Joined
May 9, 2007
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31
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Location
Jemez Mountains
I know this is pretty late, but the ghost town of Bland, NM will have it's gates open for visitors tomorrow. I am attaching the info I have. Can't make it myself but thought there may be some of you that would like to make the trip. West of Cochiti a ways.

Driving Directions
Link:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=35.514623,-106.22612&daddr=Bland,+NM&geocode=%3BFdadIQId43en-SmhdtR6XXQYhzFbprk8dUkPug&hl=en&mra=dme&mrcr=0&mrsp=0&sz=12&sll=35.548709,-106.277962&sspn=0.239948,0.364609&ie=UTF8&ll=35.645579,-106.401901&spn=0.479314,0.990829&z=11&dirflg=d

----- Original Message -----

From: M & K Winscott

To: Dirtriders @Sandia ; Linda Riddle (FS) ; Gordon Spingler

Cc: David Chester-G&F ; Rob Jaggers (BLM) ; Rep Jimmie Hall ; Ron Schubert ; Joe Esquibel-POL ; Derrell Burgin(h)

Sent: Thursday, July 01, 2010 10:27 AM

Subject: Bland Open-house Aug 1st



For all:



The town of Bland, in the Jemez Mtns., will have an open-house (open gates) on Sunday, August 1, 2010. Per the owners, Alley and Kathy Blount (sisters), visitors may walk around and look at stuff as long as they mind their manners and don't take pictures. Owners will be armed and will ask anyone to leave if they don't abide by "the rules".



Please don't irritate them, and apologize if that happens. We want and need them as friends. Alley is a confessed motorcycle and horse rider.


Driving Directions
Link:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=35.514623,-106.22612&daddr=Bland,+NM&geocode=%3BFdadIQId43en-SmhdtR6XXQYhzFbprk8dUkPug&hl=en&mra=dme&mrcr=0&mrsp=0&sz=12&sll=35.548709,-106.277962&sspn=0.239948,0.364609&ie=UTF8&ll=35.645579,-106.401901&spn=0.479314,0.990829&z=11&dirflg=d

----- Original Message -----

From: M & K Winscott

To: Dirtriders @Sandia ; Linda Riddle (FS) ; Gordon Spingler

Cc: David Chester-G&F ; Rob Jaggers (BLM) ; Rep Jimmie Hall ; Ron Schubert ; Joe Esquibel-POL ; Derrell Burgin(h)

Sent: Thursday, July 01, 2010 10:27 AM

Subject: Bland Open-house Aug 1st



For all:



The town of Bland, in the Jemez Mtns., will have an open-house (open gates) on Sunday, August 1, 2010. Per the owners, Alley and Kathy Blount (sisters), visitors may walk around and look at stuff as long as they mind their manners and don't take pictures. Owners will be armed and will ask anyone to leave if they don't abide by "the rules".



Please don't irritate them, and apologize if that happens. We want and need them as friends. Alley is a confessed motorcycle and horse rider.



​
​
 
Man, I wish I was there (NM) right now, I love ghost towns! Too bad they don't allow photos.
Tell us what it was like afterwards please.
 
There was another "open house" at Bland about 6 or 7 years ago that I attended and really enjoyed. At the time, the town's last permanent resident was still there and provided some great oral history of the site. Unfortunately she has since passed away, as I understand.

If anyone is up for a hike you can also visit the townsite of Albermarle in the next canyon over to the west. With all the slated road closures there may be limited time to drive close enough to the site to make the hike doable for those that aren't hard-core hikers.
 
Now, that sounds interesting. Shame I'm tied up all day on Sunday. If it was open today, I'd love to check it out.
 
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I'm Goin'

The old Bland mining district is pretty cool. Lots of history. There were 3000 people censused in that area in 1900. All the mining was gold and silver. Pictures show the canyon was chock full of buildings - Hotels, banks, brothels, saloons, supply stores, the whole gamut of wild west stuff. There's not much of the town left these days, just an old hotel and a few adjoining buildings.

I've never had the opportunity to meet the owners. The story I got is that they are the children of Helen Blount, who died in 2004 and is buried at Bland Cemetery. Helen was supposedly the child of the man who ended up buying all of Bland after the mining died down. He was the last Postmaster of the post office that was closed in 1935. Helen was born there, lived there, and died there. So the story goes, as I have managed to piece it together. Could be all wrong! :-)

This is a great opportunity to learn more about the history of the place. I'm going!
 
This looks like the place that we drove by on our way to the camp spot in the Jemez. We were going along and then came across a locked gate and a sign that said "TURN AROUND HERE" and had to make a hard right turn to continue on the trail. It'd been cool to have gone through those gates!!!
 
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Road Closures?

CruiserGreg,

Is the road up Bland Canyon slated for closure? I've been camping and exploring that area for years, and if they close that road I will not be a happy camper!

The road that goes up Cochiti Canyon, up past Dixon's, is closed this year due to fire concerns. I saw a posting on that gate a couple weeks ago that said the road was closed for the whole season. But a friend of mine was up there recently and said the gate was open and people were in there camping and riding their noise-makers. Anybody know what's up there?

I'm new to the forum, but I have read into the road closures thread. Do their proposal documents point towards closing Bland and Cochiti Canyons?
 
gmog said:
CruiserGreg,

Anybody know what's up there?
Click to expand...

If you mountain bike, there are a bunch of really cool single track trails. Just up the hill from the Bland gate, is the Media Dia trail that loops you back down to the Dixon apple orchard. If you go up the road from there, there what bikers call "the spring", it is actually a pipe from an old house that flows into a stream. Further up there is a sanctuary. If you keep heading north you come out at Bandelier. If you go up to the ridge you can get to the Tent Rocks. Mountain Bike mag had that area has one of the ten top gnarliest rides in the US. You have the Beaver Dam, Media Dia, Carl Shipment, Killer Switchback (cool they had a Wolverine doll hanging from a tree under the name) and others. I heard years ago that it was on the NORBA circuit. It is a really cool place to hang out for a small group, I've camped up near the spring and only saw one truck drive by in three days, FS truck of course. I have a map from Two Wheel Drive of the area if you want one. It mostly concentrates on the single tracks though.
 
I've explored that area a lot too, but more on the Bland side. I have found and hiked the Media Dia trail. I'm curious to know more about where "the spring" is, and that "sanctuary". I'll send you a private message.

But I am also curious to know if anyone knows about the Cochiti Canyon road closure, and why it might have been open for a day or more, right after I read the Forest Service postings on the gate explaining the closure.
 
gmog said:
Is the road up Bland Canyon slated for closure? I've been camping and exploring that area for years, and if they close that road I will not be a happy camper!
Click to expand...

A lot to answer. I doubt the road up Bland will be closed, but I'm guessing the spur up to Albermarle will be. The route up Media Dio used to be drivable with a connection to the Dome Road or Rt 4 (if the locals hadn't been out cutting down trees to block the way). There is a gnarly single track that winds out of the end of Cochiti Canyon (built by Juane and other single trackers 20 years ago or more) connecting with Media Dio and other routes up on the mesa that Rudy mentions. The one time I biked it (in my 30s) we were passed but two guys at least in their 50s that turned out to be notable early mountain bike icons.

GMOG, I believe the road that you mentioned as gated and marked "closed" is the Dome Road that skirts the western edge of Bandolier and dumps out onto Rt 4. The last few miles on the southern end run through the Cochiti Pueblo and there is (or least was) a sign stating that the passage along it was subject to the pleasure of the tribal governor, so my experience is that it tends to be open or closed at random times. I doubt the road that dead ends in upper Cochiti was closed because there are a bunch of private homes up at the end where the single track begins.
 
Is this the trail that crosses the creek about a dozen times?
 
SteveLCetc said:
Is this the trail that crosses the creek about a dozen times?
Click to expand...

If you are asking about the Media Dia trail, yes. It crosses the creek 13 times (last recall), one of last ones, stay left because it drops about thigh deep on your bike. It is a fun ride.

What time is everyone heading out? I wanna go. Always wondered what was past that fence. I will check the ham and phone # is two fiver niner three one sixer niner if you don't ham.
 
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We are heading out now.
 
Bland Update

Wife and I visited the cemetery where we saw the Jeep Club roll by. Then met up with Rudy, Steve, and Wendy at the entrance to Bland. No visitor day.:confused:

The Jeep club continued up the road. Steve and Wendy returned to ABQ. Laura and I decided to follow Rudy up the road to the springs. Once at the springs, we decided to continue up the road to Highway 4.

I did not have my camera as the email said no photos at Bland, so Rudy will post a few pics. Many hours later we made it to Santa Fe where Rudy turned off to ABQ. Laura and I stopped in Santa Fe for a byte to eat and drinks.
 
Source3 said:
Wife and I visited the cemetery where we saw the Jeep Club roll by. Then met up with Rudy, Steve, and Wendy at the entrance to Bland. No visitor day.:confused:

The Jeep club continued up the road. Steve and Wendy returned to ABQ. Laura and I decided to follow Rudy up the road to the springs. Once at the springs, we decided to continue up the road to Highway 4.

I did not have my camera as the email said no photos at Bland, so Rudy will post a few pics. Many hours later we made it to Santa Fe where Rudy turned off to ABQ. Laura and I stopped in Santa Fe for a byte to eat and drinks.
Click to expand...

If it works, I need to figure out how resize pics on this computer. Anyways it was fun drive. Nice to get away from the city and nice to meet Andrew and Laura for the first time (in person that is). Let's see if the pics work for Mud.
 
pics....Thought about taking the last one head on, but I think I would lose.
Bland failure 015 (640x480).webp
Bland failure 009 (640x480).webp
Bland failure 044 (640x480).webp
 
Bust

The Bland open house was a bust. Turns out the event was planned for people who own property up there, and friends and family who had been personally invited.

I met a couple of the Blounts at the gates, when they came down to post the notice about friends and family only. They were pissed that word of their event had been passed around without their consent.

I hope this mess doesn't completely turn them off towards sharing anything about their history and history of Bland.

Oh well . . .
 
Interesting about no cameras. I took pictures up there when they did the open house last time.
 
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