Skip to main content

Aguirre Springs Road

By


Aguirre Springs Road is an approximately six-mile roadway located in Dona Ana County, New Mexico. Aguirre Springs Road connects US Route 70 near San Augustin Pass to the Aguirre Spring National Recreation Area & Campground in the Organ Mountains. The two southernmost miles of Aguirre Springs Road is narrow one-way loop. Aguirre Springs Road can be found as a primitive road on some early1940s era United States Geological Survey maps. Originally Aguirre Springs Road followed the eastern part of the now one-way loop which has grades exceeding 10%. Since 2014 the Aguirre Spring National Recreation Area has been incorporated into Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument.




Part 1; the general history of Aguirre Springs Road

One of the earliest maps to display Aguirre Springs Road is the 1941 United States Geological Survey Map of Organ Peak.  Said map edition depicts Aguirre Springs Road branching south from US Route 70 near San Augustin Pass to the namesake Aguirre Spring located at approximately 5,500 feet above sea level in the Organ Mountains.  Aguirre Springs Road is shown ascending to Aguirre Spring along what is now part of the eastern part of the one-way loop the modern road utilizes.  


Aguirre Spring is not named on the 1941 Map of Organ Peak, but Aguirre Springs Road can be seen terminating at a water source east of Baylor Pass.


Aguirre Spring appears named on the 1955 United States Geological Survey Map of Organ Peak.  


The southern end of Aguirre Springs Road appears as an elongated one-way loop on the 1982 United States Geological Survey Map of Las Cruces.  


Aguirre Spring is part of Bureau of Land Management held land and was eventually declared Aguirre Spring National Recreation Area.  The Aguirre Spring National Recreation Area was incorporated into Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument which was declared by then President Barrack Obama on May 21, 2014.  




Part 2; a drive on Aguirre Springs Road

As US Route 70 eastbound descends from San Augustin Pass it intersects Aguirre Springs Road.  Traffic is advised Aguirre Springs Road can be used to access the Aguirre Spring National Recreation Area.  


As southbound Aguirre Springs Road begins traffic is warned about the steep and winding road approximately three miles ahead.  Hours of operation for the Recreation Area are also posted.  


Aguirre Springs Road south from US Route 70 and enters the boundary of Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument.  








Aguirre Springs Road continues south of the National Monument boundary and reaches a one-way fork where the loop portion begins.  Modern traffic heading south is forced onto the western part of the loop.  As noted in Part 1 the steeper eastern loop was the original grade of Aguirre Springs Road.  
















The one-way southbound lane of Aguirre Springs Road climbs towards the namesake spring within view of the formation known as the Rabbit Ears. 



















Aguirre Springs Road ascends to the Aguirre Spring Campground where traffic can access the Baylor Canyon Trail and Pine Tree Loop Trail.







From the Campground, Aguirre Springs Road begins a northbound descent and reconsolidates with the two-lane portion of the road at the bottom of the loop.  The steep descent has excellent views of the White Sands Missile Range and Tularosa Basin.  















Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grand Loop Road of Yellowstone National Park

By
  Grand Loop Road is a 140 mile loop highway which traverses the interior of Yellowstone National Park.  Grand Loop Road connects all of the major attractions and geological features of Yellowstone National Park along with the entrance roads.  Grand Loop Road is a seasonal highway and despite some conjecture never has been part of the US Route System.   Part 1; the history of Grand Loop Road The majority of history pertaining to Grand Loop Road was taken from the below National Park Service article: Historic Roads - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Yellowstone was declared the first National Park of the United States on March 1st, 1872.  The first real highway to access Yellowstone National Park came in 1873 when a tolled facility was constructed from Bozeman, Montana via Yankee Jim Canyon to Mammoth Hot Springs.  Numerous attempts were made to fund construction of roadway infrastructure during the early years of Yellows...
Post a Comment
Read more

The last 1956-63 era California Sign State Route Spade?

By
Along southbound California State Route 170 (the Hollywood Freeway Extension) approaching the Hollywood Freeway/Ventura Freeway interchange a white California State Route 134 Sign State Route Spade can be observed on guide sign.  These white spades were specifically used during the 1956-63 era and have become increasingly rare.  This blog is intended to serve as a brief history of the Sign State Route Spade.  We also ask you as the reader, is this last 1956-63 era Sign State Route Spade or do you know of others?  Part 1; the history of the California Sign State Route Spade Prior to the Sign State Route System, the US Route System and the Auto Trails were the only highways in California signed with reassurance markers.  The creation of the US Route System by the American Association of State Highway Officials during November 1926 brought a system of standardized reassurance shields to major highways in California.  Early efforts to create a Sign State Route ...
Post a Comment
Read more

California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway

By
From 2017 through to early 2019 I drove the majority of the California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway from CA 89 southwest to CA 99. CA 70 is an approximately 178.5 mile state highway which starts at US 395 near the Nevada State Line and travels west through the Feather River Canyon to CA 99.  CA 70 is often referred to as the Feather River Highway" given it's close association with the river.  Historically CA 70 was previously signed as US 40A and CA 24.  The Legislative Routes prior to the 1964 California Highway Renumbering that made up the current route of CA 70 are as follows: -  Legislative Route Number 21 from US 395 westward to Oroville. -  LRN 87 from Oroville south to Marysville. -  LRN 232 from Marysville to the current junction with CA 99.  CA 70 was even dual signed with CA 99 into Sacramento on what was LRN 232 for a time. The change from US 40A/LRN 21/LRN 87/LRN 232 can be seen by comparing the 1963 State Highway Ma...
Post a Comment
Read more