As I headed back to Arizona from a week in Texas during March, 2001, I decided to leave Interstate-10 just west of Lordsburg and take the road toward Animas Peak, the highpoint of Hidalgo County, New Mexico. Animas Peak is visible from Interstate-10, but sits a good 50 miles south. The road off of I-10 went through the towns of Cotton City and Animas. In Animas, the state maintenance ended and a lesser paved road headed south. This road had no markings and generally meandered through ranchland, which got progressively prettier as I headed south. Along the way, I encountered these signs, which the locals have obviously customized for their own amusement. I took this paved road to its end, about 20 miles south of the town of Animas and over 40 miles south of the Interstate.

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Variations on a theme. Animas Peak is in the background on the left.

As I headed back north into Animas, I apparently caught the eye of an Hidalgo County Sheriff Deputy. He was heading south as I was heading north. He immediately made a U-turn as I watched in my rear-view mirror, and started following me, although he didn't turn on his lights. I wasn't speeding and I was definitely following the rules. Finally, after about 3 miles, he turned on his lights andf pulled me over; his reason was that I had "crossed the center line 'back there'", which was bunk as there was no center line! But he was pleasant, and I suspected he pulled me over because I looked like I didn't "belong", i.e. I didn't look like a rancher nor a laborer, or possibly I was aiding and abetting the border-crossers. In any case, he took my licence, ran it, came back clean, and we chatted. He finally admitted that this route is popular with smugglers and drug-runners coming up from Mexico. Why didn't he just admit that from the get-go? Racial profiling, man.

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Two more customized signs.