Before You Go

• Many ghost towns or other structures are on private property. Ask permission. You won't always get it, but others who have been so lucky have shared their photographs of these areas with the rest of us. See the reference section for a good listing.
• Dress appropriately. A ghost town is not the place to make a fashion statement. Snakes, prickly cacti, sharp rocks and goatheads are all waiting to welcome you to their land. Boots are good, as are jeans (no shorts) and a hat.
• Bring water. Cokes are not water.
• Bring maps, and know how to get where you're going and how far away help will be if you get stuck.
• Bring a friend. Ghost-towning isn't any fun by yourself. Plus they'll come in handy if you fall and break your leg.
• Bring a cellular phone, if you have one.
• Make sure you have plenty of gas and oil in your car, and the tires are properly inflated, etc.
• Tell someone where you are going and when you expect to be back. Show them on a map and give them a written copy of your itinterary. Establish a "grace period" after which your non-return will be reported to the police. If you take a detour from your schedule, let that person know the change in plans.

While Getting There

• Many ghost towns or smaller communities in New Mexico are on roads that run through open range.  It's not unusual to come across cattle lounging in the middle of the road. (Of course, you can tell the "Architectural Digest" magazine on their coffee table is just for show.) Drive slowly, with enough time to brake if necessary.
• If you can't resist the temptation to keep the car windows open as you drive and smell the outdoors (I rarely can), at least cover up your camera and other valuables in the car. The dust from the road will coat them quickly. It will also turn the water in your ice chest to mud.

While You are There

• It's fun to admire and observe from a distance, but quite another thing to actually enter a building or structure. Take special care when you are performing any of the following prepositions to an abandoned structure: going into, under, through, between, over, among or around. Do not, under any circumstances, go underground --either into a basement/cellar or in a mine or cave. This is simply not safe.
• Remember the time you broke the window in second grade and then blamed it on your best friend?  Make up for it now by donating generously to the building fund, if there is one, at these sites.
• Additionally, if the town has a post office and it's open, stop in and buy some stamps. Every little bit helps, and if a community loses its post office, that can bring a real hardship to the residents.
• Be aware of what I call the "phantom sound syndrome." In the absence of sound, your mind can make up new ones. The sound of the wind becomes the sound of a passing car, or of people talking. That alarming yet beautiful sound cicadas make becomes a police siren. My Dad, who was with me on a visit to a ghost town once, said he kept hearing snakes all arouind him, until he realized it was his camera strap rubbing against his shirt button. Don't freak out - it's normal. Just don't let it get you so jumpy you ignore the real snake hissing at you.
• When you're in a beautiful place, it's normal to want to look at everything around you. But when you're walking in a ghost town, it's important to keep your eyes forward and on the ground. While you're looking at the beautiful foundations on the hill, you may walk right into the open mine pit. Also, never back up. If you need to step back a few feet to get "the perfect shot," turn around and walk those few feet facing foward, then turn around again to take the shot. Many mines in ghost town mining camps have been left unfilled, with little or nothing to keep you from falling in. Stepping backwards without first looking where you'll end up is asking for it.

After You Leave

• Don't take anything that isn't yours. Stealing is bad, remember? (I stole a plastic block with the letter "Z" on it in second grade and that one act haunts me to his day.)