The Arroyo de las Minas is along the right side of this image, with the
Arroyo Spring located at the sharp bend in the road.
The Gray Area is the small basin just below the center of this view.
(A ground-level view.)
It drains initially to the west (left) and then to the southwest. The blue-gray
color comes from the accumulated tailings around some shallow 1880-era mining
prospects.
The dead-end road in the upper left corner of this view is a remnant of the failed
Occidental Minerals attempt to develop a copper mine in these hills in the mid
1970s.
How good is your vision? During his recent visit to the Hills, NM Congressman Tom
Udall visited an 1880-era mine shaft. (A photo of
the Udall visit.) Near the top edge, and one-third of the way from the right
edge of this photograph, there is a small oval surface feature which is gray-
colored on the lower portion and rust-colored on the upper part. If you look
carefully at the upper left edge of the 'rusty' area you will see the mine shaft
inspected by Congressman Udall.
This website is maintained by the Cerrillos
Hills Park Coalition
and is dedicated to the creation, enhancement and stewardship
of an historical, recreational, and cultural open space in
the
Cerrillos Hills, Santa Fe County, New Mexico, USA
