They were once a staple of many small towns across New Mexico: local feed and supply stores where one could find a decent pair of gloves, all sorts of hardware and some hay for your horse.

These days, it's a lot easier to find a dollar store than an old fashioned mercantile, but there are still a few out there — and even one where stopping by is an exciting adventure.

Those who take the time to visit the CWW Feed Store and More in San Ysidro will find menacing mountain lions, snarling black bears and sneaky coyotes among the amazing array of mounted wildlife on display there.

There's also the big, wide head of a water buffalo looking down from a wall; a slinky leopard ready to pounce; and the great curved horn of a rhinoceros on exhibit.

Owner Connie Collis said the mounts are her late husband's trophies from hunts all around the United States, Mexico and even in Africa.

"It's a great attraction," she added, pointing out the wildlife display that spans two rooms inside the store. "But it's also a tribute to him."

Collis lost her husband Dave Collis, 66, to a stroke last December. "This store, this community, has turned out to be my salvation," she reflected. "We have made so many friends here over the years."

Located off U.S. 550 west of Bernalillo, at the turnoff to Jemez Springs, the store carries a line of cowboy boots, biker T-shirts, Western wear and cowboy hats. And of course, good gloves.

There's an aisle featuring nothing but rack upon rack of nuts, bolts, screws, nails, hard-to-find mobile home parts, springs, cotter pins and other hardware.

Then there is the assortment of colored lariats, beautifully designed chaps, riding gear and even armored vests and protective helmets for bull riders.

But among all the merchandise, "My heart is with the horses," Collis said. It certainly is: The property also includes a riding arena and horse stalls for the many animals boarded on the property.

When Collis is not at the store, she can be found running the stables and riding program at Santa Ana Pueblo's Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa in Bernalillo.

Collis was born and raised on a small farm in Albuquerque's South Valley along with her two brothers, Mike and Andy.

Her father, Charles Andrews, was a lineman at Sandia National Laboratories while her mother, Willene, worked as a store clerk. But they also found time to tend a garden, can vegetables, and raise goats, sheep and cows on their small farm. And of course, they kept horses, too.

Collis said she always knew she'd grow up to be a cowgirl. Her upbringing included 4-H classes, involvement in Future Farmers of America and riding with the Rodeo Club at school.

"I was very lucky to have had that kind of upbringing," she said. "And you know, my parents worked, but they never missed a meeting or any event of ours. They were the greatest." Both have died.

Collis graduated from Rio Grande High School and went on to spend a year studying agriculture at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces.

But she discovered that college just wasn't what she wanted at that time; she was a hands-on gal who wanted to work.

Her first job as a young teenager was at a chinchilla farm, where her mother also worked. Collis cleaned stalls and did other chores around the place, and liked it.

About her first husband, Collis said she always wanted to marry a cowboy. So she did that next, "after finding a good one."

The couple traveled, worked on some great ranches and had a lot of fun together, she said. Her husband then worked for the Dunigan family on the sprawling Baca Ranch, near La Cueva in the Jemez Mountains.

The ranch is now owned by the public as part of the Valles Caldera National Preserve.

"It was his idea to open the feed store," Collis remembered of their start in business more than 20 years ago. So she blended her love of horses with local culture in the tiny community of San Ysidro, an old Spanish settlement on the Jemez River in the heart of Indian Country.

"I was ready to settle down then, but he wanted to continue with the cowboy life. So he moved on and I kept the store." That would later prove to be a blessing.

Collis remained single for several years concentrating on her work, expanding the operation to include a horse arena and holding pens.

Then one day, the Baca Ranch hunt manager, Dave Collis, stopped by the store to pick up some salt licks. The two quickly became friends, then dated and later married during a hastily arranged ceremony on Ted Turner's Armendaris Ranch outside of Truth or Consequences.

At the time, Dave Collis was guiding a federal judge on a hunt to cull older bulls from the ranch's bison herd. "And we got married over that dead buffalo with the judge doing the honors."

Connie Collis herself later worked at the Baca Ranch as cook during hunting season.

"I absolutely loved working up there," she said of the area's pristine beauty.

And what did the wealthy clientele enjoy the most for dinner, you might ask? "White beans and ham, corn bread and banana pudding for dessert."

Visitors to Collis' store will usually find a big, pot-bellied stove blazing away, the wood odor blending with the musky scent of leather from hand-tooled saddles and other gear.

And with the holidays coming, visitors will find any number of interesting gift ideas among the big stock on the shelves. Just don't be alarmed to find a mean old grizzly bear eyeballing you while you're browsing the aisles.

Karl F. Moffatt is a longtime New Mexico journalist and avid outdoorsman who can be contacted through his blog at www.outdoorsnewmexico.com

IF YOU GO

From Santa Fe, take I-25 south to Bernalillo and U.S. 550. Follow to the village of San Ysidro and look for the store at the turnoff to Jemez Springs on NM 4.