by Leslie Doran

Farmington, New Mexico 

Farmington, the miniature metropolis of the Four Corners, is only forty-five miles south of Durango in New Mexico. In the community of Farmington, visitors will find the convenience of a larger city with the charm of a small town. There are a number of national retail and restaurant chains, but the city also offers unique shopping in downtown trading posts, gift shops and museums, locally owned restaurants, theater productions and a casino complete with a racetrack.

Only minutes from the casino, is the B-Square Ranch, located in the San Juan Valley. The ranch, owned by Tommy Bolack, is a 12,000-acre paradise-on-earth where the land is dedicated to wildlife in a private refuge. Visitors will find an abundance of deer, pheasant, quail, hawks, eagles and owls along with cattle, sheep, pigeons and turkey. There are also two museums on the property—the Bolack Museum of Fish and Wildlife and the Bolack Electromechanical Museum. The first displays 2,500 specimens and is dedicated to the memory of late New Mexico Governor Tom Bolack, who was an avid hunter and fisherman. "All of the animals were older male specimens, hunted legally, with the license costs dedicated to preserving the animals' natural habitat," Bolack explains. The animals are displayed in what looks like their natural setting, complete with a polar bear in the arctic and a shark floating in an underwater ocean landscape.

The Electromechanical Museum, housed inside two 12,000-square-foot buildings, includes 300 feet of standing electric power plant switchboard, including the meters and gauges. Bolack describes the museum as "a static display of electromechanical equipment of all kinds. Someone, somewhere in that museum will see something that will bring back memories."

Bolack also proudly touts his three trains on track—a 1921 Baldwin Locomotive, an RPO and a caboose. "I built some railroad (track). I tell you it took us a long time."

The museums, located at 3901 Bloomfield Highway, offer free tours from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Reservations must be made in advance for the one-hour tours, by calling 505-325-4275.

After the museum visit, stop in downtown Farmington for refreshments at the local brewpub, Three Rivers Eatery and Brewhouse in an historic building at 101 E. Main Street. The restaurant and its award-winning beer liven up downtown with food, spirits and a game room.