New Mexico: Brantley Lake State Park

Brantley Lake State Park, New Mexico

Unlike the majority of New Mexico's state parks, Brantley Lake is not one I'd go out of my way to visit, although that's exactly what I did recently.

But Brantley Lake State Park does have some stories to tell.

DDT

Remember DDT from back in the day, probably before you were born?

The link is to a wikipedia article, which does a good job of explaining the not-so-black-and-white issues about the pesticide in a reader-friendly way.

Some high points: 

• DDT was used to control pests in agriculture and also to control insects that carried diseases such as malaria, plague, and dengue fever.
• One problem with DDT application circa 1950s-60s was the lack of restraint in its application. Instead of being used strategically or with the least amount necessary to be effective, it was often applied in promiscuous quantities and locations. This resulted in unnecessary environmental damage and the development of resistance by the target insects. 
• DDT was associated with the near-extinction of peregrine falcons and bald eagles and human toxicity, leading to illness. 
• DDT was banned for agricultural use in the U.S. in 1972
• DDT or its decomposing spin-offs attach to soil, and "depending on conditions, its soil half life can range from 22 days to 30 years."

DDT and Brantley Lake


Here is a 2006 advisory from the EPA:

High levels of DDT found in Brantley fish. Officials warn against eating channel catfish, walleye caught in lake. Carlsbad, NM -- Data released by the New Mexico (NM) Department of Health, Department of Game and Fish and NM State Parks and the U.S. EPA show that elevated concentrations of total DDT, a banned pesticide, has been found in channel catfish and walleye in Brantley Lake. A fish consumption advisory due to mercury contamination is already in place for several fish species at Brantley Lake, which also advised limited eating of channel catfish and walleye. The new advisory recommends against eating any channel catfish and limiting eating of no more than 4 ounces of walleye.

NMED officials said that although only a small amount of data is currently available, the concentrations of DDT are high enough to cause health concerns for people of all ages. A composite sample from five channel catfish had 1,761 parts per billion, which is more than three times the EPA's "do not eat" guidance level of 550 ppb. A composite sample of five walleye had 485 ppb. The source of the DDT, which was banned from the US in 1972, is unknown. Source: Current-Argus Staff Writer - February 4, 2006, http://www.currentargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article

In 2013, Stella Davis wrote a fine piece on Brantley Lake and DDT, published in the Carlsbad Current Argus. An excerpt: 

 How did DDT get into the fish in Brantley Reservoir? According to the State Environment Department, years ago, DDT was apparently used in the Pecos River valley for agricultural and mosquito control purposes. After being applied, rain probably washed it into the river, or it may have been directly applied to water (for mosquito control) where it tends to attach to the sediment. That's why bottom-dwelling fish, such as catfish, tend to have higher concentrations than fish that live higher in the water, such as walleye.

Between 2000 and 2003, the EPA conducted a nationwide study of contaminants in fish tissue in several hundred lakes. Brantley was one of the lakes included in the study. Total DDT levels in Brantley channel catfish were the highest of the entire study - more than three times the EPA recommended "do not eat" level. Brantley walleye were at the EPA recommended "no more than one meal in two months" level. The question often asked by avid fishermen at Brantley is, if DDT has not been used in decades, why are there still unusually high amounts of it in fish at Brantley Reservoir? The state Environment Department, in its fish consumption advisory questions and answers, says DDT breaks down into DDD and DDE. When experts talk about total DDT, they mean the total amount of all three. DDE is very stable and lasts a long time in the environment. The total DDT in Brantley Reservoir fish is almost entirely DDE, which means that it has been there for a long time.

No one knows for sure, but it is likely that DDT used over several decades accumulated in the sediment of McMillan Reservoir. After Brantley Dam was built, McMillan was drained and all the sediment was stirred up, releasing several decades worth of accumulated DDT (by then, probably mostly broken down into DDE) to be absorbed by fish when the sediment settled in Brantley Lake.

 Counter-intuitively, it is safe to swim in the lake.


Who owns the lake? 

The state owns the park. Another entity owns the water in the lake (in this context known as Brantley Reservoir).

Well, it owns the water to the "minimum pool level."

It looks like the Carlsbad Irrigation District might be the owner of the lake.

When the water-users (e.g. farmers) south of Brantley Lake need water for irrigation, the water management entity drains off water from the lake to supply their needs. 

Because of the drought in New Mexico, the lake level is already very low - not as low as it's ever been, but close. Fortunately, although there's been little rain this year at the lake, the land south of the lake has enjoyed some. This happy chance has reduced the need for pulling water from the lake.

What's "minimum pool level"? 

The "minimum pool level" is the lowest level to which a reservoir is allowed to drop. (Source: Irrigation Engineering - Basak.)  

One guide to establishing a minimum pool level is here: "the level of groundwater in the aquifer and the level of surface water at which further withdrawals would be significantly harmful to the water resources of the area".

Some of the above information I received from one of Brantley Lake's park rangers. 


Conclusions

If I had limited time in the area, I'd forego Brantley Lake and instead visit:  

• Bottomless Lakes State Park
• Carlsbad Caverns National Park (of course)
• Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park

I'd consider checking out Sitting Bull Falls also, but I haven't been there yet. It's about 30 miles west of Brantley Lake.

 

Carlsbad Caverns, Chihuahuan Desert, and the Hot Enchilada

Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico

[2010 Out West Road Trip.  Travels with Carol.]

In March 2010, my mother, Carol, and I took a road trip from Missouri to New Mexico, in search of sun and warmth. Here is Day 6 of our road trip. 

Monday, 8 march 10 

 

MZURI'S REPORT

We packed our lunches for the day at Carlsbad Caverns. Carol bought a lifetime senior pass for national parks which allowed me to skate in free on her skirt tails. Or shirt tails. Or whatever. We took the elevator down 750 feet to do the self-guided tour of the Big Room. We then walked the 1.1 mile tour. It was damn dark. Carol felt a little sense of ... vertigo? At times, I believe I felt similarly. A fellow traveler, who also felt it, opined that it was due to lack of oxygen. Or having dropped 750 feet. Or the 45,000-year-old guano fumes. Regardless, it didn't delay our tour. It probably took us about two hours. An awful lot to see, or not see, depending on the available light. We agreed Matt Hodges would probably love to visit the cave, albeit on one of the tours requiring crawling through mud.  

 

When we came up into the light of day, Carol had a nice phone conversation with her niece, Laura. Then we ate our lunch in the car in the parking lot as it was unbelievably windy. I mean windy. From atop the escarpment (which is what we now know the Living Desert Zoo and Garden sits on) where lies the cavern visitor center, you can look out over a vast plain. In the not-too-far distance, you can see the Guadelupe Mountains. Bountiful clouds hovered over the mountains, along with what were evidently great washes of blowing dust. 

 

After finishing our packed lunches, we took off on the 9.x-mile Chihuahua Desert drive. As I drove, Carol read aloud from the brochure guide at each numbered stop along the route.  We saw the  ubiquitous prickly pear, plus cholla, yucca, ocotillo, juniper, sotol, and other spiny flora.   

Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico

 

Finally, we headed back to the town of Carlsbad where we went, once again, to the local Walmart, this time for things like band aids, Q-tips, tea, and other boring items.

 

We dined at a local Mexican restaurant. Carol hankered after a quesadilla, thinking of how good Shilo Girl's are, and I selected the "plain spinach cheese enchiladas." Plain, it turns out, means no meat, which was fine. I got mine with the green sauce. Hot. This place actually had refried beans worth eating.  The heat from the green sauce had a cumulative effect, so by the end of my meal, my lips were afire. Carol decided to have a taste of my enchiladas, so I prepared to scrape off the green sauce from a piece, but she chose to have a bite of the sauce. I tried to warn her off but .... oh, it was painful to watch. And long. She reached for a glass of water, but I counseled her to have a drink of her margarita instead, and that helped some. And then, wretch that I am, had to laugh. Hard.

 

Photo credit: Darwinino

 

CAROL'S REPORT

Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico

She laughed VERY hard!  I did say very hard, didn't I?  Almost gave the enchiladas back to her.  I've now confirmed I do not like Mexican food and that along with biscuits and gravy I can now wipe them from my consciousness.  Chinese food is nudging its way into the group also. The yesterday tour was unique tho exhausting and I refused to take the occasional shortcuts the self-guided tour offered afraid I would miss something a bit more spectacular then the vaulted ceilings dripping with looked like huge blobs of cement.  Far different from our crystal stalagmite and stalactite caves, this gave the effect of being in a giant stationary cement mixer with superb lighting here and there.  The winding and narrow paths were bordered by waist-high metal banisters and when the paths rose higher I put my hands on both sides and sort of pulled myself up the incline.  The cave is limestone which explains the cement effect.   

At Walmart, Mzuri and I each bought garments to wear when we arrive at some sulphur springs which may be tomorrow.  I, a pair of stretchy navy slacks and scissors to cut the legs into shorts and Mzuri trekking over to the swim suit section to purchase swim shorts (I didn't know swim suits were a part of Walmart's sartorial specialties).   When we shop we usually separate.  Every morning Mzuri makes fresh coffee and serves me while I'm flipping thru the television stations.  So far she has driven the entire way and other than a sneaking feeling that creeps over me that I may forget how to drive or lose my nerve about getting into that bumper car society I do enjoy just vegetating in the passenger set with my feet resting on the paper debris we gather here and there.  Beautiful sunny weather here although windy.

READER RESPONSES:


FROM CATBIRD:
I laughed so hard I started to cry.  I can only imagine how hard you were laughing.  I'm thinking about how I would have reacted with the green sauce, but I learned from someone that I had worked with that the green was hotter than the red.


FROM SHILO GIRL:

 

Mom, if you like grilled beef, chicken, pork and vegetables I would suggest ordering fajitas.  They are sooooo good.  And you can forego the tortilla that comes with them.  Because I know how you don't like that soft tortilla.

 

The best is a fajita quesadilla.

FROM CATBIRD:
Or fajita taco salad.  That is what I usually get when we have Mexican.  But yes fajita quesadillas are good as well, I have had those at Chili's.

Carlsbad: Cows Just Don't Like Carol

[2010 Out West Road Trip.  Travels with Carol.]

In March 2010, my mother, Carol, and I took a road trip from Missouri to New Mexico, in search of sun and warmth. Here is Day 5 of our road trip. 

Sunday, 7 march 10 

MZURI'S REPORT

We left Buffalo Inn, Canyon, TX, about 9:30 or so this morning. Rainy all day til we hit NM .... sunny, warm. In Carlsbad in mid-afternoon it was 74.

 

We didn't talk much on the drive between Canyon and Carlsbad while we listened to music, looked at the scenery, or got lost in the meditative rhythm of the road. Carol did remark on how a particular herd of cattle looked "interesting."  We pulled off the road for lunch, bringing out sandwiches we'd made for the trip.

 

A little past the town of Seminole, TX, we went by an odd lake. White crustiness surrounding it.

 

 

Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park, Carlsbad, NM

Upon arrival in Carlsbad, we climbed up in the car to the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park, which sits atop a tall knoll. Scenic panorama all the way around. Beautifully designed -- it was a serene walk amidst various desert climates, in and out of shade, and crossing paths with many desert animals. These included a bear, the very rare Mexican wolves, and also-rare Bolson tortoises, plus hawks, prairie dogs, mountain lions, bobcats, and snakes. Oh, and antelope, bison, and elk. It was a good walk, about a mile, and we both enjoyed it. Many pleasant spots for visitors to sit and take in the immense view, feel the breeze and the sun on one's face, and drift away from the daily stuff.  

  

Drove back down into the valley in which Carlsbad sits, and selected the Carlsbad Inn as our new home. It has a big ceiling fan over the bed - we're loving that! Not to mention the fridge + microwave. We're sharing a bed this go-round to maximize our living space. Did I mention the ceiling fan? What a luxury. For ~ $50/night. Outside our window are palm trees. Not the healthiest palm trees we've ever seen, but palm trees nonetheless. We're eating in again tonight after a replenishment trip to Walmart. 

 

Carol bought a bloody mary mix, so we are sipping these while watching the Oscars. 

 

 

CAROL'S REPORT

Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park, Carlsbad, NM

I think Mzuri was tired tonight when she wrote this.  Sad because I know she puts a lot into revisiting our day in order to pass along what we are experiencing traveling hundreds and hundreds of miles south and west of Missouri into a warmer climate and time change.  The fan above the bed is nice because both of us have fans above our beds at our own houses.  Here and all of the places where we stay have air conditioning...the best kind where each unit controls the temperature and fan speed with their own units protruding from outside by the door.  Now at 8 PM we can hear thunder outside of our room and the weather channel forecasting damaging winds up to 70 miles an hour with hail. More later.

READER RESPONSES:


FROM SHILO GIRL:

OK.  I simply must stop reading at the mention of "interesting cattle".  Did you stop near the cattle?  Did you seem the mom-cattle phenomena?  Mzuri, if not, you absolutely have to stop the next time you see cattle and see if mom can still work her cow magic.  You may need to put her outside the car so the cattle can see her.  Close to the fence is good.  It was a sight to behold when we were in Kentucky at the Land Between the Lakes.  I discovered her cowly wiles work on BUFFALO!  I was a little concerned that they came right up the the fence and seemed overly interested in us(?) and we only had the protection of a little wire and a little Chevy Cavalier to protect us.  So of course I skedaddled and got in the car!

FROM MZURI:

We did stop to look at some other interesting cattle near Palo Duro. What appeared to be a bull looked piercingly at Carol when she got out of the car.

 

We also got out of the car to look at Palo Duro's resident longhorn cattle. The one had its back to us, but the other one only had eyes for Carol. It seems her mojo is still there. 

 

Hah - that's funny about the buffalo!


FROM SHILO GIRL:
It is too bad you didn't have a herd of longhorn cattle running toward you, even from a short distance.  seeing a herd of cattle come up at you with such enthusiasm is a sight to behold!


FROM BEEKEEPER:

Dear Thelma and Louise,

Your journals kindle my genetically inherited wanderlust. 

 

I want to hear details of the "armed holdups",  the "high speed chases", and of course, the glorious moments leading up to the "car flying off the cliff".  Pay for nothing!  Show them folks out west what two Missouri girls are capable of.

 

Keep on truckin'

With envy,

"The Hitcher"


FROM MZURI:

Hah!

 

I wish I liked that movie better. I'd say refer to us as Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid, but they ended pretty much the same way, eh? 

 

In search of sun and warmth, we're deviating from our original itinerary and heading toward Las Cruces instead of Tularosa (north of Alamogordo). We'll pass through Salt Flat and Cornudos, Texas, then take a loop around El Paso before re-entering NM.

 

There was a war over salt in Salt Flat back in the day.


FROM TRAILERHOOD:
In reference to the comment, "A little past the town of Seminole, TX, we went by an odd lake. White crustiness surrounding it." The white crusty residue surrounding the lake are referred to as evaporites.


FROM HOLSTEIN GUY:
God, he's one of us after all. 

FROM SHILO GIRL:
yes, the genes will always come out.


FROM SHILO GIRL:

but seriously, Trailerhood, loved your answer.  even clicked on evaporites link and read a little.

 

of course, that reminded me to look up the definition of cobblestone.

 

lately people in the St Charles area have been referring to old Main Street as cobblestone.  This irks me because it isn't.  its brick.  Now confirmed to my satisfaction.

 

whew.  so glad I had a forum to share that information with.  holding it in was really becoming critical. 

 

cuz, ya know I had to hold that in from the rest of the world. ;-)

FROM LABARQUE:
Ouch. That brings back memories. I remember being holed up in a log outbuilding in the cow pasture at Lost Creek with mom after she pissed off a herd of cattle.  We looked at the cows' eyes through the spaces between logs. Our eyes and the cows' eyes met and they don't like that. It's like a challenge to them and they just stare right back at as if to say, "Make your move. ". Based on current observations and past history I've come to believe bovines in general just don't like mom. I'm not sure she has much regard for them either. I think she has not ever resolved this issue out of respect to her brothers who seem more fond of them.  I'm just sayin em aren't Missourah cows. Em are Texas cows so you be careful out there, Mom. ... I can't say cows like me much either. Come to think of it horses, especially colts named Bruiser don't like me much either, but that's another story.

FROM TRAILERHOOD:

I thought my genetic physical stature would have been the first clue to my membership in the family. I really enjoy keeping up with the C&M travels.

 

Shilo Girl, I also get annoyed with the misidentification of cobblestone when it is really just a bunch of bricks. WIkipedia is not always the greatest reference, but it''s a good place to start.