As I ride into Hachita, the first town in New Mexico after crossing the border, I am being greeted by a very stylish but abandoned looking church. Several Arizona plated cars are parked right in front of it. Seven or eight people, some speaking Spanish, some English, are checking out the place and one of the guys hands me a bottle of water, seeing that I am riding a motorbike in this desert heat. I thank him and ask him if the church is abandaned. "Yes" he replies and, immediately opening my belly bag reaching for my GoPro, I start feeling the excitement.
In the US for less than one hour and I already found my second abandoned building. Yes, that's right! On the way from the port of entry to Hachita I had already found an abandoned farm at the side of the road.
If I keep finding abandoned stuff at this rate, I'll need more batteries and SD cards for my camera, I thought.
Checking out the surroundings of the church, I quickly discover more and more abandoned stuff. Not only several cars that had seemingly been left to rot in the middle of this little desert town but a building adjacent to the church was also abandoned with its front door wide open, basically begging me to check it out!
Upon entering the first building, it looks like squatters have been living in there for a long time. The place is an absolute mess but it is beautiful and I instantly start imagining how it must have looked like when it was first built.
An early 80's style fridge freezer, two nice rustically built chimneys going up from the fire places and a bird's nest in the chandelier hanging from the ceiling weren't the only things I encountered. The drawers in the kitchen were still packed with cutlery and other kitchen utensils.
Several windows are already missing and as I enter the next room I almost get hit by a bat flying very low.
In the churchyard I meet one of the guys who belongs to the group I had met in front earlier on. We get talking and he tells me that his granddad grew up in Hachita and actually went to school and church right here. He had died a year ago and they came to honour his last wish and spread his ashes around the church. Today is the first anniversary of his death and they returned in his honour.
Another one of his family members in front of the church tells me that he thinks this place is being used by so-called coyotes . A coyote is someone who smuggles people across the border illegally.
With that in the back of my head I make my way into the church.
Full report, all pictures and video link in my blog:
therealbloodyfox.com
In the US for less than one hour and I already found my second abandoned building. Yes, that's right! On the way from the port of entry to Hachita I had already found an abandoned farm at the side of the road.
If I keep finding abandoned stuff at this rate, I'll need more batteries and SD cards for my camera, I thought.
Checking out the surroundings of the church, I quickly discover more and more abandoned stuff. Not only several cars that had seemingly been left to rot in the middle of this little desert town but a building adjacent to the church was also abandoned with its front door wide open, basically begging me to check it out!
Upon entering the first building, it looks like squatters have been living in there for a long time. The place is an absolute mess but it is beautiful and I instantly start imagining how it must have looked like when it was first built.
An early 80's style fridge freezer, two nice rustically built chimneys going up from the fire places and a bird's nest in the chandelier hanging from the ceiling weren't the only things I encountered. The drawers in the kitchen were still packed with cutlery and other kitchen utensils.
Several windows are already missing and as I enter the next room I almost get hit by a bat flying very low.
In the churchyard I meet one of the guys who belongs to the group I had met in front earlier on. We get talking and he tells me that his granddad grew up in Hachita and actually went to school and church right here. He had died a year ago and they came to honour his last wish and spread his ashes around the church. Today is the first anniversary of his death and they returned in his honour.
Another one of his family members in front of the church tells me that he thinks this place is being used by so-called coyotes . A coyote is someone who smuggles people across the border illegally.
With that in the back of my head I make my way into the church.
Full report, all pictures and video link in my blog:
Blog
therealbloodyfox.com
