Burro Buzz: Base Camp Opens, and More

Locals open a petite Cloudcroft leather and high-end goods shop, Aspen & Ivy relocates, a restaurant closes, and one store adds a chai bar.

Aug 19, 2024

New businesses are cropping up on Burro Avenue this month, as well as one closure. Cloudcroft Reader gets to know one pair of new owners below.

New Business:

Cloudcroft transplants Ellie and Kyle Smith soft-opened their new shop, Base Camp, on Burro Avenue over the weekend.

Squeezed between The Western Bar and Instant Karma, Base Camp 9K boasts bespoke leather goods, Cloudcroft gear, and high-end camp wares.

Ellie works as an associate broker and realtor for Future Real Estate in Alamogordo, and Kyle is retiring in October as the Senior Enlisted Leader of the 29ATKS squadron and MQ-9 Sensor Operator in the Air Force.

Kyle says,

“So I've spent over 12 years total in New Mexico. And we lived down at Alamogordo for over a year and a half. And when I figured out that I was going to retire, and I said, I can't live in that heat.
Let's move to Cloudcroft.”

Ellie says,

“I love the mountains. It reminds me of home in Colorado, home in Wisconsin, you know. We love the snow. So, we visited 12 years ago. We fell in love.
We were like, we love these little shops. So we were like, hey, someday it'd be awesome if we could open our own store and just kind of make it Cloudcroft-based. Because we love New Mexico, we love Cloudcroft.”

The Smiths have four children. Ellie says, “We have three older girls. They all moved to different states—in Texas, Tennessee, and South Carolina.”

Their son attends Cloudcroft Middle School, and the Smiths plan on staying awhile. Ellie says, “Our little one is in 7th grade. Since my husband will be retiring, we decided we won't move again until he graduates high school.”

About where the Smiths stock up on their curated goods for Base Camp 9K, Ellie says,

“We wanted to do a camping style, outdoorsy, you know, apparel and goods [store.]
We wanted to kind of focus on custom leather goods…everything you see is going to say ‘Base Camp’ or ‘Cloudcroft.’
And then the way I curate is literally things that remind me of home. Things that are unique. Things that you can't find anywhere else.”
“We try to support other small businesses. So everything's really kind of handmade from different shops all over the U.S.”

Base Camp’s teeshirts are all custom printed by Rebecca at The Branding Outlet in Ruidoso. Ellie says,

“Rebecca’s the owner and she's fantastic. We could have saved a lot more money sourcing from a bigger company, but we didn't want to. We wanted to support local.
Especially Ruidoso, our friends to the North.”

Another unique feature? Kyle, a rockhound, has a display of his finds from the area in “mostly New Mexico,” which he cuts and polishes—and the rocks are available for purchase.

Base Camp also sports a Polaroid wall, where Ellie says, “I'm taking pictures of everybody who comes in—you can be local or out of state, but I want you to write where you're from, and then we'll keep them in our album.”

More on Burro:

Sadly, Toni’s Mexican Grill, owned and operated by Toni Carizzal, has closed its doors on Burro. Don’t worry; Toni will still serve her delicious carne asada tacos at village and chamber events.

Nicole Alcorn’s Aspen & Ivy has relocated from the Village Plaza to Burro Street, next to the Pine Stump Mall. Alcorn carries bespoke handmade gifts, original art, home goods, and more.

Instant Karma recently added an Afternoon Chai Bar to their offerings.

Owner Alex Carilli opened the Burro Avenue yoga studio in 2005, and it gradually became the boutique with a decidedly Eastern flair that we see today.

Instant Karma is a hidden gem of a yoga studio. It has beautiful heated wood floors and ropes bolted into the walls—just a few props [Alex] has assembled in years of teaching and practicing Iyengar Yoga.

The Afternoon Chair Bar menu offers Masala Chai Tea, Cacoa, and more. It is open daily from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.

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We’re looking forward to:

Cloudcroft Reader Presents: Cloudcroft’s Fire Risk, a free public forum to discuss fire risk, mitigation, insurance, and more. The meeting will be held at the Lodge Pavillion at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 25th.

The forum will focus on what government agencies are doing to mitigate risks and what you can do to prepare for a fire. We'll also examine the impact on insurance and how you can best protect your investment.

Cloudcroft Reader will moderate a panel including:

U.S. Forest Service Fire Management Representative from the Sacramento Ranger District;
Otero County Electric Cooperative Vegetation Management representative;
A local insurance agent from the Otero/Lincoln County area and;
Chief Erich Wuersching of the Cloudcroft Volunteer Fire Department.

Presentations will be kept short and sweet to ensure plenty of time for questions and discussions. Seating is limited. Cloudcroft Reader pledge supporters (“Cloudcroft Stars”) can RSVP for a reserved seat.

We hope you can join us for this interactive affair. If you’d like to submit your questions ahead of time or reserve a seat, please do so at chris@cloudcroftreader.com

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Readers can follow us on social media for more news and our fun giveaway game, “Cloudcroft Zoom.”

We’ll post a photo highlighting a specific and interesting place in Cloudcroft and the surrounding mountain. The first person who can tell us where it is located will win a free sandwich at Cloudcroft Sandwich Shop.

Our sponsor, Cloudcroft Sandwich Shop, is located on Burro Avenue near the Post Office. They craft classic and simple deli offerings with giant cookies to boot. They are open every day except Wednesdays.

If your business is interested in our corporate sponsorship options, contact Chris at chris@cloudcroftreader.com