Onward to Texas

After leaving Carlsbad on Sunday 4/5 we headed south on 285 and saw lots of oil wells and trucks hauling oil. Once we hit Texas we saw wind turbines and tons of buttes/mesas.  We arrived at Oakwood RV Park in Fredericksburg TX about 5:30 p.m. after getting wrong directions from the staff.  After setting up and walking the dogs we went to Friedhelm's German Restaurant for our Easter dinner.  It was very empty- nice place with plenty of German artifacts/artwork.  I had the sauerbraten which is one of my favorites, with red cabbage of course and a glass of Liebfraumilch wine.  It was great to be off the road and we will be staying here for a few days.  The campground is OK, gravel roads and quite a few permanent sites which tends to make it less appealing.  On Monday Kirk and Joe got up early to head to the German bakery for some breakfast treats. They came back with an almond ring coffee cake which was great.  We all went to the Pioneer Museum downtown, a collection of ten buildings from the early days of the German settlers.  All furnished and well done. 

After eating lunch at the German Bakery (homemade meatloaf for the guys, I had a chicken salad with peaches in it!), we drove east of town and stopped at two of the 30+ wineries in the area for some tasting.  After that we drove south to Luckenbach and listened to some pickers under the live oak tree on the grounds of the famous dance hall. It was very nice out and we met a couple from Austria! The roosters and hens strutting on the stage were very entertaining as well!

Since we had such a big lunch we went to Altdorf's Biergarten for dinner for sandwiches, ate them outside.  Weather has been beautiful!!  Came back to camp to watch the Badgers lose to Duke in the Championship game. So disappointing.

Back home in Tomahawk

I wanted to let everyone know that we arrived back home yesterday (4/15) after spending two nights at Kelly and Billy's.  I do plan to update the blog with the info from Texas- when I get a chance.  It's been a whirlwind 3.5 months and it did seem to go fast.  We've been busy unpacking the camper and cleaning it.  Check back in a few days and thanks for following my blog.  It's been a great way to keep a journal of our travels. Since I am not sure how long this will stay online, I am going to transfer my posts to my paper journal just to be safe!

Roswell and Carlsbad NM

We got to the Alien UFO Museum in Roswell early on Friday morning- it was very busy since it was Good Friday and there were a ton of families. It's kind of a hokey place but Kirk and Joe really enjoyed it.  They had lots of articles about the July 1947 "landing" of a UFO in the Roswell area and the ensuing government cover-up.  Not sure how I feel about this but it sure looks like the locals believe it.  After that we went back to the campers and got ready to roll.  Not much else to see and do in Roswell so we headed to Carlsbad which is about 90 minutes south of there.  We stayed two nights there at Carlsbad RV Park (not very appealing, lots of permanents for oil workers).  After we got set up we drove south towards Sitting Bull Falls but it was closed due to flooding. We drove as far into the canyon as we could- saw a goat looking out of a cave!  Went to Carlsbad Caverns on Saturday- it was also very busy with families off for the Easter weekend.  We took the self-guided Big Room tour (free to us seniors!).  It took us about 1 1/2 hours to walk through this huge room- that is about as large as 14 football fields!  The path was paved and had handrails and we used the audio tour feature which explained what we were seeing.  This is a must visit place too- you will never see a larger cavern unless you go to Borneo.

We watched the Badgers beat Kentucky in the final four Saturday night.  Got up early on Sunday and headed east into Texas- it took us about 7 hours to get to Fredericksburg.  Sure missed church but it would have gotten us into our campground too late if we had gone.  Had a wonderful German meal at Friedhelm's Bavarian Inn- came back to walk the dogs and crash early. Long day of traveling!  Looking forward to three nights in one place to explore the Texas Hill Country.

White Sands National Monument

Since we drove by White Sands last night in the dark, we headed back west (about 30 miles) to see this phenomenal place.  Do NOT miss it if you are ever in the area!  We got there about 8:30 a.m., were one of the first groups there, and it was calm and cool (about 55).  About half way into the park the pavement ends and you are driving on hardened sand (actually gypsum) which has been plowed by a huge grader to the sides of the road.  We got out at the end of the park road and headed into the dunes.  I was surprised by how hard they were, I guess I expected it to be like walking on a beach.  The dogs had a blast running around- they acted like little kids.  There were little kids there sliding down the dunes on saucers.  We stayed and hiked around different areas of the park for about 2 hours.  By 11:00 it was 75 and getting warm.  When we sat down the sand felt cool.  We didn't see any animals, just some beetles and lots of tracks.  It was very cool and quiet.  There was an area where they do filming, I know that some recent music videos have been filmed here.  The area is part of the larger 3200 square mile White Sands Missile Range. By the time we got back to our campsite after stopping at Pistachio Land (groves and store), the wind had picked up and we could see the white sands blowing from 30 miles away!  Sure glad we went when we did. We drove two hours to Roswell and checked into Town and Country RV Park.  It was about 89 when we got here, it seems like the AC is working pretty well- too bad the pool is not open yet!! Joe and Nancy got here about 5:00 and we went downtown Roswell to cruise the strip and check it out. Had dinner at Farley's. Good food, reasonable.  Came back to camper- AC had worked very well, it was 68!  Caught up with journal and in bed early.

 

Back to Tucson for one day

On Tuesday we drove five hours back to Tucson and checked in at the Lazydays KOA park. Nice place but pricey.  Each site had a shade tree (some were citrus, picked up some lemons), a nice table and chairs, and some had grass and a hedge.We got set up and walked the dogs and then went to the pool to cool off. Getting pretty hot here, upper 80's.  We went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner (great filet for me, ribs for Kirk) and ran into some friends from Mission View (Barb and Al from WA).  It was their last night in town.  Stopped at Food City to pick up some pickled cactus for Joe and Nancy to take home. Then we went back to the park, walked the dogs again in the dark and relaxed before bed.
On Wednesday we were at Camping World before 8:00, got our rig parked for service and went to our favorite hiking spot, Tucson Mt. Park.  Took a walk to look for cacti blooming. Did find a few, but you could see buds on more so I think mid-April would be better.  We also went to the Saguaro National Park where we saw a few more.

We finally got out of Tucson about 1:30 (2:30 MST) and headed east again into New Mexico.  It is amazing to see how much of the desert vegetation has turned green since we were in AZ a month ago.  We had a six hour drive to get to Alamogordo- Kirk only let us stop once for fuel/break.  We arrived around 8:15 in the dark.  Got set up at Boot Hill RV Park, had a quick dinner, and collapsed into bed around 10.  It was a quiet night, except for the train across the street!

Last two days in Elephant Butte NM

On Sunday Kirk and I found the only Lutheran Church in T or C.  It was very small, about 30 people were there.  About half way through the first hymn the power went out so we had to sing acapella since all they had was a electronic keyboard.  It was just fine.  The pastor had an accent but we're not sure where he was from.  We left after communion so we didn't find out.  We had a pontoon reserved with our neighbors from Minnesota, Lonn and Theresa.  We had a beautiful afternoon, it was partly cloudy so not as hot as it could have been. Had a good time until our motor killed- we were just turning around to head back to the marina when it happened.  The rescue boat came and towed us back and we didn't have to pay for a thing.  Nice afternoon.  We then went to the local Mexican restaurant (La Cuchina).  My shrimp enchiladas were the hottest I've ever had- must have been the green chilies.   Had a great time visiting.

On Monday we had another gorgeous day. Kirk packed the outdoor things since we are leaving in the morning.  I did one load of laundry and then we went with Joe and Nancy to the Geronimo Springs museum downtown T or C.  It was three buildings and showcased a very extensive history of Sierra County. Great collections of native pottery and arrowheads and a real miner's log cabin.  Then we went to the River Bend hot springs.  It was more expensive than the Blackstone place, but we had our own pool overlooking the Rio Grande.  There was a cold shower over the pool so whenever you got too hot you could pull the chain and get cooled off.  Nice option!  One hour cost $30 for two. They didn't provide towels like Blackstone so we had to rent towels.  Very relaxing. Before we got back we stopped at the Ivory Tusk tavern across the street for a beer. Then we headed home to have shredded beef sandwiches that Joe made in the crock pot with fruit salad.  A nice day overall.  Getting anxious to head out Tuesday morning and continue our journey, although we have enjoyed Elephant Butte a lot.  The park is very neat and clean. The only complaint we had was the rotten internet service.

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!