Simple Living and Simple Travel

I broke up the drive to City of Rocks by stopping at Leasburg Dam state park. If you come at it from Las Cruces, definitely drive up rt.185. Really nice drive through farm country with very little traffic (it’s all out on I-25 off to the east a bit). Since Leasburg Dam is so close to an interstate I was expecting it to be pretty full of large RVs—and it was. Worth a try though, since it was so close to my route. I really need to stay away from this type of place. Got in on a Friday and stayed till Monday morning since I don’t like to move along the asphalt on weekends. We took a primitive site along the edge and M/O flew out the door when I gave them the okay. They were SO ready to get outside after our little stay behind Jerry’s. The trails here probably only add up to a mile but they are well designed and have a few informative kiosks along the way. It’s not a bad stop for an overnight but not a place I would like to spend time. Geez, City of Rocks sure had a lot more RVs and campe...

Not exactly my favorite dry camping spot. This is the year of the ox, my year, and it is not getting off to a stellar start. So far two chances to meet up with friends have both fallen through, the Cherokee’s transmission died, and my campground manager position for this summer will have my hours cut down from 40 to 20 a week. Maybe the gods are just playing around for a bit and the rest of the year will be fabulous. On the way from Brantley to City of Rocks, the Jeep broke down in El Paso. All in all, not too bad since it could have died miles down one of the dirt road we frequent and quite a ways from a decent size town. Good Sam Roadside Assistance once again proved a worthwhile investment and had a tow truck pick us up and take us to a mechanic, without any charge. I missed out on a good photo of the Cherokee sitting up on the truck’s flatbed with the casita hitched to the back of the truck. Hope I never have another opportunity to take the shot. Just down the road from Jerry’s ...

Crossed the Pecos once more, making it number nine for this trip and still no Bill. The park is 16 miles NE of Carlsbad. During the two weeks I stayed here last winter, there were only a half dozen RVs or so each night. Not so this winter, however. Quite a few more rigs but most of the electric sites are nicely spread out. The reservation sites are #1 – 29 and mostly empty except for the two hosts and two or three other rigs each night (kind of a waste). The other electric sites (#30 – 51) have been at least half full most nights. People generally only stay for one to three days. The disperse area, down by the water, does not have designated sites. One just sets up wherever. Sometime I’ll set up the camper where I took the shot of my bike. There are a couple trails for walking, as well as, a shoreline to explore. One can bike on the trails and ride down to the primitive camping area. You can also bike up the road in front of the park (north to the ‘T’, then left) to the old dam. It...

After a run, Tai Chi, and breakfast, we rolled out of Oasis. I stopped in the Do Drop In one more time for coffee and WiFi before heading south to Bottomless. Sure glad it was not windy during the drive. I would imagine that this 90-mile stretch can get gnarly with heavy winds. Passed over the Pecos twice more. That makes eight times so far on this trip. Still no Bill. Roswell has all the stores one would need. ‘Not of This World’ coffee shop at 209 N Main Street has wi-fi, sandwiches, and smoothies. That pretty much covers it. If you already had your morning coffee, go to the city library. It has faster wi-fi and plenty of nice widow nooks with power outlets. The state park is 14 miles east of town. The lakes were formed when underground water dissolved salt and gypsum deposits to form subterranean caverns. The roofs of these caverns eventually collapsed from their own weight forming sinkholes that then filled with water. Mirror Lake is two adjacent sinkholes. What’s strange is that t...

Stayed longer at Sumner Lake than I had intended. Except for the last few days, there was intermittent wireless coming from somewhere and was such a treat, I did not want to leave. Then a class A motorhome pulled into the site next to me even though there were other vacant sites not next to any rig. The gods were telling me to roll-on. Scooted over to Clovis before heading down to Oasis. I wanted to get supplies at a grocery store with more of a selection. Clovis is large enough that one could probably find whatever they need there. This area has a number of dairies. I almost feel guilty with all the non-fat milk I drink. These cows are only milk-machines. Their black and white bodies are packed into large dirt pens with no room to roam let alone have any grass to graze. Not truly living&#151merely existing in perpetual black despair. There is a dairy two miles from the park and if there is no wind, one can easily smell all the cows and their waste early morning or evening. The par...

Had a last good trail run at Santa Rosa the morning I rolled away. Breakfast was a potato with cottage cheese and a jalapeño. Stopped at Jean’s on the way down route 66 and exchanged three more books. Easy drive down to Sumner Lake. It was partially cloudy when I got there and the lake was beautiful shades of green. The next day it was clear so the lake was back to its fabulous blue color. Really need to get a kayak. The Pecos campground is left open in the winter. Elevation is 4300’. It has thirteen sites, two of which are taken by host rigs. Once again, I was the only camper. Took an end-site along a hillside so Meadow and Onyx would have a place to roam away from the sites. Most days, the three of us went for a half-mile meander through the hills. These two are great company. The campground is way more open than I like but since it’s empty, it’s doable. The host said they were full a couple weeks ago for a week. Damn, is my timing good or what? Big honking light in the middle o...

Stopped in Tucumcari for groceries (Lowe’s had tofu!!) and to access the web at the library. The library had blockers too prohibitive for me to access my blog for updating or even look in at the fiberglassrv.com forum. Also, except for Siscily’s, they had the SLOWEST connection that I have experienced in YEARS. Guano. I guess I’ll try Santa Rosa on Monday. Also stopped at the post office to mail a package to the Philippines. Only cost $4. I know, a little late to be sending out a holiday gift. Well, Ute Lake, along with Rockhound and Pancho Villa, make three NM state parks that I will not be returning to. Although some of the sites without electric at Rockhound are not too bad. It’s mainly that Rockhound is close to an interstate so it’s generally full of RVs. Ute Lake state park campgrounds are developed in fields that butt up to the town of Logan. They are more like town and county parks than what I’ve been seeing at the other state parks. Not my kind of thing but must be very popula...