Year 3 Week 42

April 1 to 7, 2007

Pecos, Texas to Albuquerque, New Mexico

Year 3 week 42

 

Sunday ; Pecos, Texas to Carlsbad, New Mexico

Today was sunny and hot.

This morning I returned the Baja California guides and maps to our new friend from Quebec, then we prepared for departure. We drove to the Wal-Mart in Pecos, but it was a very small store ( for a Wal-Mart ) so we decided not to stop and shop there. We drove north on Hwy. 285 towards New Mexico. Shortly after we crossed from Texas to New Mexico we passed through the little town of Otis, where we saw the Christian Cowboy Stampede Church. HUH ? ! ? Yee-Haw ... Amen ! HA HA HA !

As we entered the city of Carlsbad there was a large Wal-Mart Supercenter. We stopped, did our shopping, then had lunch in the parking lot. We found our way to Windmill RV Park and checked in. As advertised, they had cablevision, but the reception was so poor it was not watchable < sigh >. The main reason we came here was to have good TV reception for watching Amazing Race tonight. I checked and rechecked all the cable connections inside the trailer, and could find no problem. I decided to remove the cable TV outlet from the exterior wall of the trailer, expecting to find a corroded cable end inside the wall, similar to the recent antenna problem. With considerable difficulty I got the cable outlet removed, and could find no corrosion or other problem. I don’t know whether the problem is our trailer or the park’s cable TV signal. I put up the antenna and got a decent signal on the CBS channel, so we were able to watch Amazing Race after all.

Today we passed from the Central Time Zone into the Mountain Time Zone. I reset all the clocks and watches, then spent the afternoon preparing the recently repaired stress cracks on the trailer for painting. I decided to do some other routine maintenance, like removing some old caulking around the areas I was intending to paint. While cleaning one area with acetone, I discovered an old fiberglass repair and paint job, done before we owned the trailer, and I made somewhat of a mess of the old paint repair with the acetone. What was going to be a very tiny little paint touch up became a fairly large panel area that I will have to repaint < big sigh >. I felt disheartened.

I found an interesting recipe in a tourist magazine I picked up today at Wal-Mart. We tried it for supper and it turned out very poorly < another big sigh >. Today was one of those days when nothing seemed to go particularly well. Oh, well, at least we got to watch Amazing Race.

 

Monday ; Today was sunny and hot, with a bit of wind. The wind hampered my painting efforts.

I spent the day trying to finish repairing and painting a deep scratch, some stress cracks, and a side panel on the trailer. The more I have worked on these things, the more work they've become. Some projects are like that. I made progress, but did not finish today. I tried connecting to the park's Wi-Fi while in the trailer, but was unsuccessful. I went to the clubhouse and tried to connect, but still was unsuccessful. I needed to update my blog, and retrieve month end investment data and bank statements. The park's Wi-Fi system was down. Story of my life !

Hey, after all those Country and Western radio stations in Texas, that's pretty good Classic Rock on Coyote 107 ! < high pitched >YIP YIP YIP < howl > AWHOOOOOooooo ! HA HA HA ... what a great radio station call sign !

I found an interesting item for sale while browsing the local Bargain Hunter type newspaper. A semi-automatic AK-47 assault rifle ! For only $585. Hmph ... I guess the local oil field rough necks must need them to ward off coyotes at night. HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA ! Welcome to New Mexico !

 

Tuesday ; Carlsbad to Lakewood, New Mexico

Today was sunny and hot. We prepared for departure and left Windmill RV Park, which was a bit of a dump. We stopped at Wal-Mart in Carlsbad to buy some fiberglass repair and painting supplies, then at Albertson's to buy groceries. We left Carlsbad heading north on Hwy. 285, about 20 miles to Lakewood. First we stopped at the Post Office in Lakewood to pick up our Passport America membership renewal package. WOO-HOO ... it was there ! Then we pulled into The Ranch SKP Park, the park with the condemned water supply. We arrived with full water, 42 gallons in the freshwater holding tank, and 10 gallons in the hot water tank.

Without a doubt, The Ranch is the friendliest SKP park. When new visitors arrive, they ring a big bell outside the registration office, and while the new arrivals are registering, people wander over to welcome the new arrivals with hugs. By the time we were registered, we had received about a dozen hugs. We got set up in our site, and I began to continue working on repairing and painting an exterior side panel on the trailer. The job continued to get larger, instead of smaller, it seemed. We took a break to go to social hour at 4:00 P.M.. This friendly park’s social hour is second only to Saguaro SKP Park at Benson, Arizona. All of today’s new arrivals introduced themselves and their “story”. The park’s daily announcements were read, including the date and time of the next MEOWS outing. MEOWS are Men Eating Out Without Supervision. HA HA HA ! A bunch of old men go out in the morning for breakfast, eating artery clogging steak and eggs, doughnuts, etc., with no wives nagging them. HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA !

After social hour I continued painting. < sigh > I ran out of paint. I underestimated how far a small can of paint would go. I unhitched the truck from the trailer, planning to go to Wal-Mart in Artesia tomorrow morning for more paint. We had supper, then I signed onto the park’s free Wi-Fi, retrieved investment data and bank statements, and updated my blog. Joanne asked me to come outside to see the moon after she had walked Bo. There was a huge, orange moon sitting just above the horizon, casting an eerie glow on the desert landscape. The only thing missing was a silhouette of a coyote howling under the moon.

 

Wednesday ; Today was a sunny, warm day. As we proceed north, and higher in elevation, the temperatures are becoming cooler.

This morning we drove about 16 miles north on Hwy. 285 to the city of Artesia, to buy more spray paint at Wal-Mart. < sigh > Wal-Mart only had one can of the paint that I needed, and I needed two cans. We drove to K-Mart. They didn't have any. We drove to Auto Zone. I bought another can of the paint that I needed, but paid almost twice the price of Wal-Mart.

I spent most of the afternoon working on finishing the exterior fiberglass repairing and painting. I think it's finished, but I won't be sure until tomorrow morning. Joanne worked on shelling the bag full of fresh pecans we bought recently in La Feria, Texas. This evening she baked a pecan pie with them. We went to the afternoon social hour. There was a special guest. A local old man, who has been a cowboy and rancher his whole life. He has recently published a book, sort of a memoir of his life's stories. He read some excerpts. I bought a copy of his book.

This park is in the middle of the desert. There is a knee high electric fence surrounding it because theland all around the park property is ranch grazing land, with cattle roaming around. After taking Bo for an obedience walk late this afternoon, I picked him up, stepped carefully over the electric fence, and we went out into the desert to chase cows. HA HA HA ... Bo loves barking at cows, especially when it makes them run away. Well, except they weren't exactly cows, they were steers. But Bo doesn't know the difference. I barbecued a beef brisket this evening, using a Texas barbecued beef brisket recipe we recently found. It turned out okay, although I over cooked it.

I was surfing the Internet tonight, and found something interesting. I was looking at the web site of Belleville Dodge, where we traded in Dee-Dee and bought Lanoire 11 months ago. Amazingly, Dee-Dee is still sitting on their used car lot, awaiting a new owner. HA HA HA ... may you rot in hell, you piece of shit ! I wonder why they have kept her on their used car lot this long, instead of just dumping her on a wholesaler, or used auto auction ? Boy, she sure is a pretty looking truck. HA HA HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA HA !

HMPH ... despite repeated attempts yesterday and today, I am unable to attach a photo of Texas Bluebonnet wild flowers to last week's blog entry.

 

Thursday ; Lakewood to Valley Of Fires National Recreation Area, New Mexico

Today was sunny and warm.

We were planning to leave The Ranch this morning, but changed our minds. We thought that we probably had enough fresh water to last us another day. We were wrong ! I was going to use the day to finish my fiberglass repairing and painting, and a few other chores.

I phoned the Camping World stores in New Mexico and Colorado. We were going to wait until next fall to purchase new tires for the trailer, and have the trailer's wheel bearings repacked and brakes serviced or replaced. But ... upon reflection, we decided to do it now. The tires are worn. The brakes are worn. We're about to begin travelling through, over, across, up, and down the Rocky Mountains for the next 5000 km. / 3000 mi. or so on our way "home". And the new Camping World catalogue we recently picked up has a coupon for $50 off 4 tires, and $25 off a wheel bearing repack. So I made an appointment for new tires, wheel bearings repacked, and brakes inspected and adjusted or replaced, for Monday morning at Camping World in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Then Joanne made a reservation for Saturday and Sunday nights at the Passport America campground next door to the Camping World. That will give us some of Saturday, and all of Sunday, to see and do the things she is interested in, in Albuquerque.

I spent the morning fussing and fidgeting with my fiberglass repairs and painting. I finally realized that I was not going to achieve "perfection" and was going to have to accept "good enough". We took Bo for an obedience walk, then a tennis ball play session in The Ranch's fenced dog run area. We had lunch, then immediately ran out of water. Okay ... we're outta here. Thought we had enough water for one more day, but ... no !

We left The Ranch at 2:30 P.M.. Seemed like an awfully late time to begin a day of travelling. I wanted to head for Valley Of Fires, halfway to Albuquerque. We headed north on Hwy. 285 to Roswell. At some point in the 1940's, a "flying saucer" allegedly crashed near Roswell, New Mexico. At that time, the U.S. Air Force confirmed finding the crashed "flying saucer", and the remains of the "alien space being" inside. Shortly thereafter, they recanted, saying they made a mistake. The "cover up" controversy continues to this day.

At Roswell we turned west on Hwy. 70 / 380, remaining on Hwy. 380 when Hwy. 70 split off. The topography changed from flat, scruffy "low desert" to treed, mountainous "high desert". We drove through the little, old, "wild west" village of Lincoln, where Billy The Kid made his last escape from jail. We drove over and through the Capitan Mountains, and the little village of Capitan, "birth place" of Smokey The Bear. Just past Carrizozo, we stopped for the night at Valley Of Fires National Recreation Area. It's a small, minimally serviced campground in a area of lava rocks, from a volcano eruption over 5000 years ago. It's quite high up in the mountains, with a great vista for miles in every direction.

Our campsite had a campfire box. It was the first opportunity since last September for us to have a campfire. I have been hauling around about a dozen pieces of firewood for over 6 months. Extremely well travelled firewood ! HA HA HA ! After supper we sat around a campfire for awhile before I started working on reconciling bank statements and updating investment spreadsheets.

 

"Good Friday" ; Valley Of Fires to Bernardo, New Mexico

Today was sunny and mild, with extreme winds starting late in the afternoon.

This morning I was examining a deep scratch on Bo's tummy when ... ZOOOOM ! WHAT ? ! ? A FLEA ? ! ? Gee, Bo ... you gotta stop hanging around with trailer trash dogs like that little beagle floozy back in Carlsbad. We immediately took him outside and sprayed flea spray on him. We prepared for departure, then went for a hike around the Valley Of Fires.

The Valley Of Fires is an area of lava rock desert. We hiked a short distance, looking at the lava formations, caves, and cacti growing out of the lava. Joanne spotted a large snake. She hollered for me to come back and see it. Bo was pulling me, and I was about 50 feet ahead of her. Bo has to be the hike leader < rolling eyes >. By the time I picked Bo up, and rushed back, the snake had "sidewinded" into the rocks. Later, Joanne described the snake to the woman at the campground registration office, who said it was a non-poisonous "sidewinder" snake called a Racer.

We drove west on Hwy. 380 passing along the north side of White Sands Missile Range, and the Trinity Site, where the world’s first atomic bomb explosion took place in 1945. We stopped for lunch at the tiny village of San Antonio, where Hwy. 380 met Interstate 25. After lunch we headed north on I-25 to the town of Bernardo, where we stopped for the night at Kiva RV Park & Horse Hotel. Horse Hotel ? ? ? What the hell is a Horse Hotel ? ? ? Oh ... what we would normally call “boarding stables”. Okaaaaaayyyyy !

After setting up in our site, we fell asleep for a nap before supper. The wind increased to over 50 MPH. The trailer was rocking from the winds. Bad weather is blowing into New Mexico for the next couple of days. While Joanne prepared supper I downloaded and processed the photos I took this morning. After supper we gave Bo a flea bath.

 

Saturday ; Bernardo to Albuquerque, New Mexico

Today was cool. It started out raining. As we drove towards Albuquerque, and rose in elevation, the rain turned to snow. It seemed incongruous to be driving in snow in New Mexico in April.

We departed this morning heading north on I-25 towards Albuquerque. Halfway to Albuquerque we realized that we would not have enough fuel to make it to Flying J in Albuquerque. We stopped at the town of Belen. The Wal-Mart fuel bar didn't have diesel, but we went into Wal-Mart and replenished groceries. Just down the road from Wal-Mart I purchased just enough diesel, at the outrageous price of $3.189 per gallon, to make it to Flying J in Albuquerque. We continued north on I-25. In Albuquerque, where I-40 intersected I-25 we turned west on I-40. We stopped at Flying J to refill with diesel, then found our way to Enchanted Trails RV Park, next door to Camping World where I have an appointment for service on Monday morning.

We got registered and set up in our site, had lunch, unhitched, and headed for Albuquerque "Old Town". We crossed I-40 and got onto historic, old Route 66, the quintessential trans-America road that ran from Chicago, Illinois to Los Angeles, California. Only remnants of old Route 66 still exist. In this area, it runs parallel to I-40, which replaced it. We followed Route 66 right into Albuquerque "Old Town". As we finished parking, the lady parking behind us began to chat with us. She recommended a local restaurant called Little Anita's for authentic New Mexican food. We went there for supper.

We spent the afternoon walking around Old Town, the historic "original" Albuquerque. We explored and admired the inside and outside of the old church, San Felipe De Neri, built in 1793. We shopped in many stores, admiring the beautiful silver and turquoise jewellery made by the Navajo and Zuni Indians of New Mexico. Joanne was considering purchasing a silver and turquoise bracelet. I was considering buying a silver and turquoise watch band. Neither of us found exactly what we wanted. We bought some small gifts of local specialty products, for ourselves and others.

I was feeling a little ill today with a colitis flare-up ( yet again ! ), so after about 3 hours of shopping I was feeling exhausted. We went to Little Anita's for dinner. It was very good. New Mexican cuisine is similar to Mexican, but slightly different from Mexican or Tex-Mex in Texas. Neither Mexico nor Texas embraces chile peppers like New Mexico does. The "official question" in New Mexico is "red or green ?" As in "do you prefer red or green chile sauce with that ?" I had no problem finishing my taco salad ( with neither red nor green, thank you ). Joanne was incapable of finishing her “green”. HA HA HA ... what a gringo !

DSK