Trinity Miller, an archaeologist with the BLM, talks with KC Counts about Saturday's event to connect the community with its public lands and celebrate America's 250th.
KC Counts:
Trinity, let's begin by talking a little bit about why you would say it's important for people to come get connected with their public lands.
Trinity Miller:
Hi, thanks for having me. Okay, so I'm really excited about sharing this event because this is the perfect opportunity to learn about your public lands.
KC Counts:
So talk a little bit about what you hope to put in people's hands or in people's minds on Saturday.
Trinity Miller:
Oh, good question. Okay, so it's really important that we are celebrating America's 250th anniversary. So it's our birthday. We are gonna be celebrating by connecting with a lot of outdoor recreation vendors. More on that in a little bit. And we're also going to be having some incredible entertainment.
KC Counts:
So tell us a little bit more about some of the folks that you're teaming up with and what they can bring to this celebration.
Trinity Miller:
Sure. So when you join us at the farmer's market on Saturday, September 12th, you are going to see some incredible entertainment. I want to talk about that first because I'm very excited about that. So NMSU is going to be having a wonderful dance groups. We have the Ballet Folklorico, the Sundancers, Dance Sport Ensemble from the Latin Ballroom, the Roadrunner Westies, the West Coast Swing, and even Clogger. So we have a whole variety of music and dance for everyone. everyone to enjoy, which is just going to be incredible backdrop as we enjoy and convene as a community together.
KC Counts:
Maybe you can talk a little bit about some of the folks that are joining you.
Trinity Miller:
Sure, of course. So one thing I'm excited to check out is the Asombro Institute. So I'm really excited about science and education. And as you may know, or maybe you don't know, is they also manage the Chihuahuan Desert Nature Park. So that'll be a really wonderful opportunity to get to know some of the folks that have created incredible spaces for us. Another group that I'm excited for everyone to be participating with are the multiple groups for the search and rescue. So we have the Mesilla Valley Search and Rescue and also the Dona Ana County Search and Rescue. So if you're passionate about that and public lands, that would be a really good spot.
KC Counts:
It's one of those things that really hits home when you see and I follow them because we want to know when those events are taking place and we talk to them about helping people avoid getting into those situations right in the 1st place.
Trinity Miller:
Exactly.
KC Counts:
So they have lots of great information about that and I know they're kind of always looking for people who want to go hike up the mountain and help somebody get down.
Trinity Miller:
See, yeah, we have wonderful geographic landscapes that are very rugged, but not everyone has all those skills or maybe they just need some which is okay. So that's a wonderful community asset that we have that we're really grateful and they do a lot of great partnerships with us at the BLM. Okay, anyone else to highlight? Oh yes, I am personally also excited about the hot air balloon, the RC balloon, and that's going to be by Visit Las Cruces. So definitely check that out.
KC Counts:
I'm trying to figure out what RC stands for.
Trinity Miller:
Radio control, I believe. Oh, another thing that I'm really excited about, and this is one of our newer partners, is the Las Milpitas del Norte. So that's about sustainable agriculture. It's community-based in nature and people. So it's right up our alley. So I can't wait to connect with them.
KC Counts:
Sustainable agriculture is something that we'll be talking about, having very in-depth conversations about for the next, well, for probably forever, but certainly critical timing for that as we enter the phase of deciding how we're going to navigate our water future here in Doña ana County and in southern New Mexico in general.
Trinity Miller:
So something else that's going to be unique that's going to be great for the whole family is if you haven't heard of Velo Cruces, it is going to be a really fun thing where we're going to host a slow bike ride area. So if you've never experienced anything like that, definitely want to check that out. So you don't want to be the fastest bicyclist. You want to be the slowest one.
KC Counts:
I'm kind of the slowest at anything I do, but I'm excited to see how slow can they go.
Trinity Miller:
And we do love slow riders. So I like that. Another thing that would be great to highlight for everyone is if you like birds and nature, there's also the Mesilla Valley Audubon Society. So that would be a really great thing to check out as well.
KC Counts:
Something I recently talked with them about was the annual bird count. They do the Christmas Bird Count and they all go out to, you know, in different places and just count birds. birds, right, and document what they've counted. And we had a good chuckle when I asked, well, how do you know you're not just counting the same bird twice or three, four or five times? You really don't know. But what a great, what a lot of fun it looks like to just go out and watching birds is just one of the most peaceful things that you can do, I think.
Trinity Miller:
Absolutely. And some other great places to do bird watching that are also going to be partners for our event. White Sands National Park is going to be there. We have the Franklin Mountain State Park. There's just so many partners that are pulling together here to create wonderful memories for our community. So I'm really excited.
KC Counts:
All right, well, what else do people need to know that maybe we haven't touched on just yet?
Trinity Miller:
Okay, so another unique thing that you have to see, like do not miss this. It is called the Wonders on Wheels. And if you have never been to this mobile museum, you have to. And this is really because they have created a whole exhibit that is specific to America's 250th birthday. But the best part is it is actually rooted in New Mexican history. So what is specific in New Mexico that we have ties to with our history and culture? So you definitely want to check that out. It's going to be a big RV. It's blue. It's going to be near the plaza. So definitely check that out.
KC Counts:
And one of those emerging conversations I think that people are having more and more related to and public lands is that maybe a lot of people might not realize that land itself has folks that are looking at, like yourself, an archaeologist, looking at the history that's there and ways to preserve it for generations to come. Well, Trinity Miller, thanks so much for joining us. We appreciate having you on to talk about public lands-a-palooza.
Trinity Miller:
Thank you.
