August 20, 2016 Home Again

We got an early start this morning. I wasn't in any hurry but when Maggie and I took our morning walk it started misting on us. I looked at the radar and we had some thunderstorm's headed toward us.  I woke Susan up and we finished hooking up and were on the road by 7:30 am. We had an easy drive and stopped to eat some breakfast in Columbus. We made it home a little after noon. The traffic thru Houston was a lot heavier than I expected but really wasn't bad. I just haven't been in much traffic for 3 months. Everything was certainly green when we got home.  The good thing about a trailer is you don't have to unload everything when you get home. You can space it out so it doesn't seem so much.  Over all, we had a good trip this summer but it does feel good to be home. We did 3 states Colorado, Wyoming, and New Mexico. We tried to stay 7 days at each stop and then move only about 4 hrs to a new location. We did a lot of dispersed camping and USFS camping. We did 5 straight weeks of living off of our generator and having to conserve water. I find it hard to stay in rv parks anymore We put about 7700 miles on our truck this trip which is the least amount we have done in 5 years. We are trying to stay longer in one location and not move quite as much. Now that we are home my blog will be very sporadic.

  

August 19, 2016 A Drag of a Day

Today was a lot like yesterday. We got up and went to eat breakfast at the Blanco Bowling & Café. Its a bowling alley and a café together. They have good food and you can bowl if you want. Neither one of us felt real good so went back to the trailer and rested all day. Maggie and I took a couple of walks. For supper I called in an order of BBQ at "The Old 300". It has great BBQ and should be on your list of places to eat around here. We decided to head on home tomorrow. We hope all our ailments will heal  quickly.

August 18, 2016 Blanco State Park

I must have really been tired because I slept till 7:00 am. That's almost unheard of. One other thing is that with the cloud cover it was still pretty dark. I have been used to it being daylight between 5:30 and 6:00 up in the mountains. I guess being farther north and the time zone makes a big difference. Anyway it did feel kind of nice not to have to put long pants and a jacket on 
to take Maggie for our morning walk. Susan slept till 8 and we just lounged around. We decided to get cleaned up and go to our favorite breakfast place in Blanco, it's called "The Chess Club".  Its an old house which has been converted to a café for breakfast and lunch.  They have very reasonable prices and should not be passed up. After breakfast I dropped Susan off at a quilt shop and I went home. When she was finished she called me and I picked her up. We then decided to drive up to Inks Lake State Park and look around, We have never camped there before, Its a huge park and we found several lakeside sites we would stay in. I bet weekends there would be overflowing with folks. We stopped and had lunch in Burnet and headed back home. We did get a little misting rain but it quit. I cooked a pot of chili outside and we were able to sit out for awhile. With the cloud cover the temp only got to about 86 so with a slight breeze it was ok. We saw a few deer feeding along the fence line near us.  I had a good day with no pain but Susan had allergies or maybe coming down with a cold. I guess we will know tomorrow,

A Quiet Morning along the river

The Chess Club

Our shady campsite

August 16,17 2016 Heading to Blanco State Park

We pulled out at 7:00 am heading back to Texas. We stopped in Clayton NM and ate breakfast. Our next stop was in Amarillo to fuel back up. We ate lunch in Plainview Tx. We finally stopped in  Sweetwater for the night. We made a little over 500 miles for the day.  I really don't like to drive that far in one day anymore  but there is not a lot to see in between.  We just had sandwiches as we didn't  want to go anywhere, watched tv and went to bed.....                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      About 2:15 am I woke up with a kidney stone attack.   Its the first one I have had in almost 5 years. it lasted till about 5 and I went back to sleep. Woke up about 5:45 and we both got up. We got on the road about 7.  We fueled up and I got a pump that I thought had kidney stones. It took almost 15 minutes to fill my tank. We ran into a heavy fog for the first 30 miles. We ate breakfast in Mason Tx. We made it to Blanco State Park and got set up by 12:30. I didn't have much pain but had nausea at times. We have been surprised  with the low temperatures in Texas. Lots of rain all around with clouds so we have been in the low 80's.  We stayed at camp and I took a long nap.  For supper I cooked some pork ribs and asparagus on my little smoker. It drizzled and rained most of evening. We decided to  go to DQ and get some ice cream.

.I told Susan if I have to suffer with kidney stones then I need a treat.   We will decide tomorrow if we stay or go on home... ...     

                                                                            Blanco State Park  

August 15 2016 A Cold Morning and a Rainy Evening

It was a cold morning with the temperature at 39 and feeling like 36. We sure had the furnace running when I got up. Maggie and I went for a walk and the lake was fogged in. We had 4 mule deer feeding by our trailer. About 10 we left and took another day trip. The first road we took turned into a very rough bumpy narrow road. It was 10 miles over the pass I and could only manage 6 miles per hour. After about a mile we turned around and went a different way. We stopped at Coyote State park and looked around. Its not a place we would ever stay. We headed back to the trailer for the evening. It started raining early and the wind blowed so we couldn't sit outside. The forecast for the rest of the week was rain ever day. We talked it over and decided to head back to Texas. We are going to Blanco State Park for a few days. We don't know where we will stop tomorrow night.

August 14, 2016 Our Last Move and the Rio Grande Gorge

We got up this morning and rain was over but it was pretty cool around 43. We got the trailer ready to move one more time. I did't think we could get into our site before we headed out for the day but we drove by and checked. Nope they were still there.  We headed out for a short day trip. We drove thru Red River and on to Questa. We were looking for the Wild Waters Recreation Area. Its northwest of Questa and the Rio Gorge runs thru it. They have 5 small campgrounds along the rim and we found a couple of sites we liked.  There are several trails which lead to the river. Only problem I see are no elevators back up . We headed back to camp. I decided to go ahead and hook up the trailer and move as it was looking like rain.  It was about 1:30 , of course the folks on our site were still there and had made no move to start packing up. They had till 2:00 which is checkout time. I stopped and talked to them to make sure they knew that,  We went back to the parking lot and had lunch. We pulled around at 2 as they were headed out. I got the trailer set up and now I don't have to move for 7 days when we start heading back to Texas. Our new neighbors are from Hunt, Texas and we talked with them for awhile. We had a really nice evening. It m isted for just a little while and then we had a double rainbow. The wind layed and we stayed out till about 9:30 pm.  

August 13, 2016 A Rainy Day

Another cold morning when we got up. We got ready and went to Eagle Nest for an event in the park called Eagle Fest.  We were there early and all the booths were not set up yet. There was going to be live music all day. We decided to try and come back in the evening. When we got back to the trailer I checked to see if any one had cancelled for the night.  They had't so we had to move to a overflow area for the night. We actually like it better because we have a great view out of the bay window. About 1:00 pm the winds picked up and it started raining. The temperature dropped to 58, It rained off and on the rest of the evening. We just decided to stay home.  

Our new one night spot 

 A nice view

Susan and Maggie chilling

Auguat 12, 2016 A Day Trip to Cimarron, NM

It was 45 degrees this morning. Generator hours are 7:00 to 10:00 pm so I couldn't make coffee till then.  We ran the furnace to warm the  trailer up. I fixed us a little breakfast inside the trailer cause we haven't set up outside yet. We had to move one spot over . This is the site we have reserved starting  Sunday. We will probably have to move one more time. We are hoping the person who has reserved this site doesn't show up and then we will not have to move. We decided to drive to Cimarron today. It is a really nice drive thru a canyon. It is a small town with not a lot in it .It does have one nice old antique shop which is run by a nice lady. It also has an old hotel called the " Saint James Hotel". It claims that many old western heroes stayed  here at different times such as Billy the Kid, Bill Cody, Annie Oakley and a few others I have forgot. We left there and went back to Eagle Nest and had lunch. We headed back to the trailer and chilled out. We tried to sit outside but the wind was just blowing too much.

Shopping

We had an outside lunch

Downtown Eagle Nest 

A Windy Evening

August 11, 2016 We Moved to Eagle Lake State Park, New Mexico

We got up and were on the road by 8:00 this morning. We stopped along the way and ate breakfast. The drive from Esponola  to Taos was really pretty. We were driving along the Rio Grande river. The closer we got to the mountains the clearer the river got. We got to the park about 12. We got the only open spot for the night. We may have to go somewhere else for 2 nights if a spot doesn't open up tomorrow. We drove around and checked out some private rv parks. We found a nice dispersed area but if it rains we might have an issue getting out so we probably will not go there. We ate lunch at a little café in Eagle Nest and then we got some ice cream in Angel Fire. We had a really nice evening sitting by the fire.

If I had this we could go anywhere

August 10, 2016 Our Last Day Here

It was the warmest morning we have had exactly 70 when Maggie and I went for a walk. We had a really nice sunrise. We had no plans to go anywhere today. Susan did some sewing and I did some reading. We decided later in the evening that we would head on to  Eagle Nest, New Mexico in the morning. Our reservations start on Sunday but we think we can get a walk-in spot tomorrow. If we cant we will just look for a place to boondock for the next 3 nights. This campground is nice but we are not all that impressed with the lake. We were expecting clear water but the lake here is pretty muddy. This location is not great for day trips so we are moving on tomorrow.

A Nice Sunrise

Maggie and Susan sewing

Our last evening

August 9, 2016 A Day Exploring

We had a really nice morning. It was just cool enough to use our propane fire pit. Glad we have it because you cant have regular fires here. We watched the hummingbirds who made us laugh. There is one who sits and watches from a tree limb and when others come to the feeder he runs them off. This went on for at least an hour. We then drove to the other side of the lake and looked at the campground over there, The Rio Grande River feeds Cochiti Lake and that is where it comes in.We left there and went into Santa Fe and just looked around. Its a nice town but not much there for me. They have lots of art gallery's and jewelry places. We ate some lunch and then headed home. We had another nice evening outside.

Our Bully Hummingbird

Rio Grande coming into lake

That's our campground across the lake

Another Coyote

Lots of hummingbirds feeding this evening

August 8 2016 Tented Rocks National Monument

We had a power outage last night after I had written my blog. The temperature was nice so it wasn't bad at all. We sat outside till almost 9. I started the generator so we could watch TV and keep our battery charged, . The park ranger said power was out all over the valley. It finally came back on before we went to bed,  It was a lot warmer when we got up Monday morning about 63. Its the first time in a long time I didn't have to put the furnace on to warm up the trailer. It was nice sitting outside except the wind was blowing which made it feel cooler. After breakfast we decided to do some exploring. The little town of Cochiti appears to be mostly retired folks. All the houses are adobe style homes.  There is just one convinenece store here with gas pumps and a laundromat. The only resterant is at the golf course. Santa Fe is the closest town to go to. We found a place called Tented Rocks Monument. We drove up to the overlook and looked around. The rock formations are interesting. Their are two different hikes to take and we may do them later in the week. We headed home and spent the rest of the day there. Susan did a little sewing. I hung some hummingbird feeders and it didn't take long for them to find it. We had another nice evening. It looked like we were going to get rain but it just missed us.

August 6,7 2016 We moved to Cochiti Lake, New Mexico

Saturday was our last day on the West Dolores river. It had rained some during the night but had quit by morning. It stayed overcast most of the day.We went in to Dolores because we thought there was a craft show in the park. It turned out to be a dog "agility show". We left there and went to the general store and had ice cream. After that we headed back home. It actually cleared up and we had the nicest evening for the week.
Sunday morning was cold about 48when I got up. We finished getting ready and was on the road by 8:00 am.  We stopped in a little town called Bloomfield and ate breakfast. We had a nice easy drive. We arrived at Cochiti Lake around 2:00 pm. We got set up. We have both electricity and water hook ups here This a COE Campground and is very well maintained. The camp host said there has been several bear sightings so we have to keep our camp bear proof.  The temperature is warmer than we have been used to. With the humidity so low 86 still feels nice as long as you are in the shade .It looks like we are 35 miles from Santa Fe and about 49 mikes from Albuquerque.

August 3,4,5 A Slow Day, Rainy Days & Laundry Day

 

Nothing exciting to report this morning, just our same old routine. We ran into Cortez to go to Walmart. Susan found a couple of quilt shops to go to. I went and talked to a place about putting new u-joints in my truck. I started noticing one was going bad in Steamboat Springs. It didn’t heal itself so I figured I better replace them and not get caught on the road somewhere. I have 320,00 miles on them so I am replacing them all.  We tried to sit outside but the winds and rain started. It lasted most of the evening.  

It was still misting Thursday morning when I got up. Maggie and I couldn’t walk. Susan did some sewing and I went to Cortez for my truck repairs. It took about 3 hrs to get it all done. Ole  Blue sure does drive smoother now and no clanking. It continued to rain and mist when I got home so we didn’t even try to sit outside.

I slept late Friday morning almost till 7. We got up and piddled around . We headed to Cortez to do laundry. We stopped in Dolores and had breakfast at “The Ponderosa”.  They have a great green chili burrito. We then headed on to Cortez and did our laundry. We also stopped by Walmart and picked up a few things . We got back to the trailer between rain showers. Finally  later in the evening the rain stopped. We sat by the fire till until supper time.

Rainy Days by the River

 A Great Breakfast

UGH,  Backseat full of dirty clothes

A happy face doing laundry 

August 2, 2016 Mesa Verde

 

Another nice morning here on the West Dolores River. Maggie and I took an early walk looking for a bear but we didn’t see one.  Supposedly one was seen yesterday. I have been looking for a bear all summer with no luck. We decided to go to Mesa Verde today. Its been 20 years since we have been there. There have been lots of changes since then. You now have to get tickets for all the cliff dwellings. We got there about 10:00 am and most all the tours were sold out for the day. You can buy tickets two days in advance. We chose to just drive on up and look around and not worry about the tours. If we want we can come back another day since we are not far away. It is really a great drive to the top. It’s a 20 mile climb with several places to stop and look at the views. We looked at the Tree House and The Cliff Palace. We also checked out the museum. There had been a couple of fires since we had visited before. The last one was 2002 I think. The grass and small bushes hav grown back but the trees are slow coming back. We headed back home and chilled the rest of the evening. We had a few evening showers but overall it was very nice.

Mesa Verde

Tree House

Cliff Palace

Wiley Coyote

Fire from 2002

Maggie loves peanut butter

Chilling