Fort Craig and El Camino Real Heritage Center

On Thursday Kirk and I took a drive north towards Socorro, not sure how far we would get or how much we would be able to see.  We got about 10 miles north of town and his tire pressure light went on.  We played it safe and drove back to Truth or Consequences to get the tire fixed. Turns out it had a nail so it's a good thing we went back.  We headed back north again and got off the highway to see Fort Craig, which is the ruins of a civil war era fort where a battle actually took place.  There was a good self-guided tour on the trail around the ruins.  The host told us to watch out for snakes- he had seen a rattler the day before so we were extra vigilant!  Do NOT need to see another one of those close up!  After the fort we went to the local truck stop/restaurant at the exit because we hadn't brought a lunch.  We had green chili cheeseburgers and iced tea which were pretty good.  I had not wanted to stop since it looked like a real dive, but the place was full so that's a good sign.   Then we went to the El Camino Real Int'l. Heritage Center, which is a museum in the middle of the desert that shows the history of the "royal road" between Mexico and New Mexico along the Rio Grande.  Very nice place, and good exhibits.  We spent about an hour there before heading back to Elephant Butte.  On Friday we did laundry and washed the dogs and I spent the rest of the afternoon reading my book in the sunshine until the guys decided to plan out the rest of our trip. We are going to head out on Tuesday and after a stop in Tucson to get our AC fixed (hopefully for good!) we will go back east to Roswell via Alamogordo, then to Carlsbad Caverns before leaving New Mexico and heading into Texas.  Time is getting short but I'm getting homesick for my own bed and the folks back home.  Can't wait to see everyone again!