EXCLUSIVE NEW BEAUTIFUL ADVENTURES THROUGH THE WILDS OF NEW MEXICO

TTX

Now you can experience an American safari kind of adventure with the recently launched Ted Turner Expeditions (TTX).

TTX offers a collection of high-end, exclusive, eco-conscious journeys through Turner’s vast land holdings and adjacencies in the most picturesque corner of New Mexico, including Turner’s Ladder, Armendaris, and Vermejo ranches and Sierra Grande Lodge & Spa.

Turner, a billionaire media mogul and founder of CNN, has long been a nature and wildlife enthusiast. Now, he is sharing this passion with others, helping to develop a greater awareness and appreciation for the beauty of our natural world. Turner also hopes to foster a shared sense of responsibility for protecting it.

Each property is unique, each rich in its own history and geography. Each adventure tour is led by a specially trained private guide.

TTX adventures range from half and full-day tours leaving from Sierra Grande Lodge & Spa. They range from an up close and personal tour of Spaceport America, to balloon rides, to bat expeditions. And they are all a thrill.

Loads of adventure await you on Turner’s historic 363,000-acre Armendaris Ranch, a swath of land in south central New Mexico, along the Rio Grande River.

Home to the Fra Cristobal Mountain Range, as well as large sections of desert and semi-desert grasslands, Armendaris is also home to big game species, including bison, pronghorn, desert mule deer, mountain lion, javelina, oryx, and desert bighorn sheep.

The bighorn, once an endangered species, were successfully reintroduced and subsequently delisted thanks to efforts supported by the Turner Endangered Species Fund (TESF).

One adventure might be the cross country passage over 3 miles of ridge crest terrain with commanding views across the Chihuahuan Desert to the Continental Divide. At the summit, a bird’s eye view encompassing over 60 miles in every direction awaits.

One of the most unique adventures you will ever take is the Bat Expedition at Armendaris, where you will experience the “river of bats.”

Every night, from June through September, about 1.6 million Mexican Free Tail bats emerge from the volcanic Jornada Bat Caves to feed. It is tantamount to Africa’s Great Migrations.

Watch this Armendaris Bat Flight Video to get a taste.

Catch the early morning light on a grand balloon adventure, starting in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico (located between Ted Turner's Armendaris and Ladder Ranches) and arrive at Armendaris Ranch at dawn. You’ll see the first rays zap the jagged peak of Fra Cristobal crest.

Your balloon will float above the wild Chihuahuan desert and mountain range, with bison herds, bighorn sheep, and mountain lions roaming below.

Go on a Paleontology Adventure through the vast Late-Cretaceous dinosaur bone fields found on Armendaris. There are active digs underway on the ranch. Recently, a Sauropod femur was unearthed.

Spend a day just exploring the undisturbed beauty of the vast Armendaris Ranch grasslands and desert mountain range on the TTX Heritage and Photography Tour, as you pass by landscapes once ogled by Spanish pioneers along the Jornada Del Muerto section of the historic El Camino Real.

The large scale landscapes, sculpted by dramatic sunrises, sunsets, and their long shadows offer photographers an embarrassment of riches. Picturesque stops such as Lava Station, Lava Camp, Casa Grande and the Fra Cristobal Canyons are always guest favorites.

Follow the Animas Creek from its head at the southernmost end of the Rocky Mountains, through Ladder Ranch, to the Rio Grande. Rich in biodiversity, this area was a lifesource for ancient peoples, including the Mimbres people (A.D. 1000-1150) and other native tribes.

An adventure on Turner’s stunningly beautiful and biologically diverse 156,439-acre Ladder Ranch, yields breathtaking views, immersion in a unique mix of ecosystems, and a survey of ancient petroglyphs and turn-of-the-century adobe ruins.

Ladder Ranch is considered one of the finest birdwatching sanctuaries in North America. With diverse habitats, from lush riparian zones rocky deserts and cliffs, a large number of species live here and migrate through. TTX offers excellent birding guides and an intimate and low-impact birding experience.

Ted Turner’s personal favorite local adventure is the Vision Quest hike, along a unique path once used by ancient Native Americans cultures for their sacred vision quest ceremonies, offering breathtaking views of Animas Creek, Ladder Ranch HQ and the surrounding Chihuahuan desert.

And if you want to mix in some otherworldly futuristic mind blowing adventure, visit Spaceport America, the world’s first purpose-built commercial spaceport, with exclusive access to Mission Control, granted to TTX guests.

Explore the 18,000 acre campus, chat with the scientists, and check out the equipment. If you fly in via private jet, you can even land on the 2-mile long Spaceway.

Check out Ted Turner’s 2013 biography, “Last Stand: Ted Turner’s Quest to Save a Troubled Planet,” to learn more about his passion for nature and adventure.

Read more about Beautiful Adventures in Ideas & Images Inspired by Adventure, These Eco-Adventures Help to Save Our Planet, Cool Culinary Adventures with Durian Now, and An Amazing Armchair Kayak Adventure Awaits You...Now.

And check out more beautiful things happening now in BN Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact Daily Fix posts.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Vermejo Park Ranch.” New Mexico.
2. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Ladder Ranch.” New Mexico.
3. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Antelopes. Armendaris Ranch.” New Mexico.
4. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Vermejo Park Ranch.” New Mexico.
5. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Bat Expedition at Armendaris Ranch.” New Mexico.
6. Image: by Yathin S Krishnappa. “Pronghorn Male.”
7. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Armendaris Ranch.” New Mexico.
8. Image: by Patrick Alexander. “Fra Cristobal Range.” Crest of the Fra Cristobal Range on Armendaris Ranch. Sierra County, New Mexico.
9. Image: by Emmitt Booher. Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Bat Expedition. Armendaris Ranch.” New Mexico.
10. Image: by Jerry Oldenettel. “Sunrise Over the Fra Cristobal Range.” Sierra County, New Mexico.
11. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Armendaris Balloon Adventure.” New Mexico.
12. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Armendaris Ranch.” New Mexico.
13. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Ladder Ranch.” New Mexico.
14. Image: Courtesy of New Mexico Tourism Department. “Ladder Ranch.” New Mexico.
15. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Armendaris Ranch.” New Mexico.
16. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Ladder Ranch.” New Mexico.
17. Image: by Emmitt Booher. Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Spaceport America.” New Mexico.
18. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Vermejo Park Ranch.” New Mexico.
19. Image: by Bureau of Land Management. “My Public Lands Roadtrip: Sierra Vista National Recreation Trail in Southwestern New Mexico.”
20. Image: by BN App - Download now!
21. Image: Courtesy of Ted Turner Expeditions. “Bat Expedition at Sunset on Armendaris Ranch.” New Mexico.