Saturday, October 17, 2015

The long day is over

On Saturday, October 17th, we arrived, safe and sound, at our summer retreat, Elite Resorts. 

Feeling tired
By the fire
The long day is over

The wind is gone
Asleep at dawn
The embers burn on

With no reprise
The sun will rise
The long day is over

Songs have played through my head the entire journey and a song written and sung by one of my favorite artist's is stuck on rewind. Click here-  Nora Jones - The Long Day is Over - to listen to her soulful and sweet voice. 
Nora Jones





Saturday, October 10, 2015

Sweet Home Alabama




Our trip to Alabama, took us through all of Louisiana and most of Mississippi before we called it a night. It was truly a long day's journey into night and the first time that we needed headlights to navigate our way through the dark, desolate and winding roads. My wish to stay along the Mississippi went unfulfilled and remains on my bucket list.

The Mighty Mississippi

We had gotten on the road at 9:30 AM and didn't shut Allie down until 8:30 PM the first night. We covered 514 long miles knowing we had an overnight at a Walmart on tap. Once we hit Fulton, MS, we called it a day.


We were so blessed with great weather.
Beautiful roads and views of Alabama
I've made many observations during our long journey. For one, cotton is my favorite crop, because it looks like snow-covered fields amidst green rolling hills of grass. Secondly, there are a lot of people out there who like old rusted memorabilia, or who hoard, or who are just plain junk collectors and the last - and sad observation, is that the wounds caused by the Civil War have yet to heal for many, even with the passing of so much time. The display of Confederate flags had me feeling conflicted - I wavered between anger, pity and respect. At times, the division between north and south is palpable and sad. Perhaps it bothered me because I am a firm and staunch US Flag fan, even if I am not a fan of our government, per se. Our flag is hoisted over victories and devestations as a symbol of strength and determination and is draped over our fallen heros as a blanket of gratitude.

The sun rose quickly in Fulton and we found ourselves with just a short 45-minute drive to Tiffin Motors in Red Bay, AL - the manufacturer of our RV. The visit there was quite an experience, to say the least. I've never toured a plant so huge or been in the presence of so many Tiffin RVs. The parking lot on Tiffin property was chock-full of large Phaetons, Allegro Buses, Allegro REDs and Open Roads, just like ours, all awaiting repairs.

Due to that full lot, we were directed to one of the local RV "campgrounds" to wait until we were called for service. I'm being very generous with the term campground - bare minimum was all you got - water, sewer and electric. Rigs were parked so close together that you needed to be careful when extending your awning. Down past the last rig in a row of about 15, began the "RV Graveyard." See photos, because the sight was beyond words.



Not sure what happened to that Airstream.

Sorry, but we missed the photo-op of the toilets and refrigerators.
The mess wasn't limited to RVs. There were cars, trucks and boats.
A rare moment, being at a loss for words.


~~~~ REPAIR DAY ~~~~
6:55 AM - far right - waiting for the bay door to open.

Allie being checked out

The immense building that fits over 30 motor homes
Once our repairs were NOT done, due to Tiffin no longer honoring extended warranties, we made a beeline for the State line where another long ride led us to a Walmart in Albany, Georgia.  It turned out to be a less than desirable location, perhaps due to it being a Friday night. The sounds from loud shoppers and mufflers made sleep elusive , yet morning came quickly, and surprisingly quietly. Lucy was already in her basket, seeming to know that we would be getting back on the road, and just wanting to get it over with fast.

Life, as we know it, seems to find us dealing with something that is not working and today was no exception. My insulin pump decided to sound an endless alarm, forcing me to remove its battery. A call to customer service ascertained that the motor, once again. had quit working. As upset as I could have been, the timing was actually good since we are so close to our Florida address. In the meantime, it's a time-consuming drag of testing and covering high glucose readings with injections.

After 4,460 miles of driving, stopping, going, sightseeing, grand-children hugging, blogging, socializing, fun-seeking, rock collecting, eating and awe-inspiring sights, the long "2nd Great Big Adventure" has officially come to an end.

Deep thought for the day: Although this journey has ended, our possibilities are endless...stay tuned.

Friday, October 9, 2015

Howdy Texas!

Tuesday, October 6 (a special day of the year) we left Carlsbad and headed for Austin, TX. It was a bit of a detour for us, but it allowed us to meet up with friends from back home and who we camped with at Croton Point Park. It will be nice to see familiar faces, because except for our daughter-in-law and grand kids, we haven't really had the opportunity to meet any other RV'rs and shoot the breeze.

Our first night after crossing the boarder was an overnighter at Walmart. We have stayed at better, but hey, it was free. It was a warm evening and we weren't able to run the generator, so we heard a lot of noise from road traffic and trucks through the open windows. Most of our electronic devices lost their charges, but we survived. We have been receiving very minimal Internet and cell service for awhile, especially in southern Colorado and all of New Mexico. It's amazing how dependent we are of this luxury. 

So, for some trivia on The Great State of Texas! It's called the Lone Star State and its red, white and blue flag boasts one large white star. The state flower is the Bluebonnet, the tree is Pecan, and the mammal is the Texas Longhorn.

In Texas, like Kansas, we noticed many gracefully turning wind turbines, which gives me hope for reduced dependency on fuel oil. Unfortunately, there were just as many ugly oil rigs pumping away. We saw other beautiful sights, as well, like miles and miles of soft, white cotton fields that looked like snow. I was reminded of the jingle, "Look for the Union Label." Click below to watch a commercial clip from 1978. The International Ladies Garment Workers Union pushed hard to alert Americans as to the reduction of clothing manufacturing in the USA.  I remember my grandparents always checking to be sure items had the Made in USA by Union Workers label. How things have sadly changed in my lifetime. It is challenging and expensive to buy, especially clothing, made here at home. The jingle is just a sad bit of memorabilia of my past, however. with the new resurgence of "Made in America," I'm hoping for a turnaround.


Austin is the Capitol of Texas and although not a big city, it has all we could need. Our campground for two nights was the Oak Forest RV Resort and it was a very nice place with wide cement roads and pads, picnic table, pool and hot tub. The place was booked solid, so we needed to raise our jacks and move on Friday morning. 

Our current spot on the map finds us at our final stop in Texas - Shallow Creek Golf and RV Resort in Gladewater, TX. Hopefully we will be able to hang here for at least 4 nights because we really just need a little R and R. A quick check of area attractions doesn't turn up too much, so we shall see where the wind will blow us next - and how soon.

Our USA map is filling up fast. We will be adding at least three more before the end of our 2nd Great Big Adventure.








Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Hola, Carlsbad, NM

Sunday WE drove to Carlsbad, via Roswell, NM, which was made famous by THE EVENT that took place in Area 54 - the great UFO cover up or controversy, depending upon your beliefs. Due to pouring rain and a desire to just "Get where we're going," we drove past the international UFO Museum. Reviews were rather weird. People either loved it or hated it and I didn't feel like being a tie breaker.

A totally unflattering photo is proof that I actually did, for about 30+ miles, wrangle a way into the driver's seat. As I've mentioned many times before, the roads we have been traveling on out west have been straight and less traveled. "G" finally gave in and allowed me the opportunity I've been waiting for - being in control of the wheel. I think I did very well, despite being told to slow down, speed up, move to the left or move to the right - everything but "stand up, sit down and fight, fight fight." 

We ended up at the Carlsbad KOA and were happy to descend upon civilization and a terrific campground. Sites are level, very spacious and we are afforded wide-open level land, nice picnic table and a fire pit. All sites are pull-throughout and 50 amp. This place too, has a restaurant that delivers right to your site. I had dinner already planned, but perhaps after our day trip to the Caverns we shall take advantage of that amenity.

A quick stop at a Walmart mid-way between Artesia and Carlsbad allowed us to stock up for the next couple of days. Lucy has a month's supply of canned food, so all is right with her world. She has apparently been the first to find a friend. A long-eared rabbit was munching on something under the picnic table and she sat on the back of the couch watching the show. 

It made me think of what a lucky cat she is to have found her way to me and be afforded the best life a cat could dream of having. Her tail has been in more states than most yet, she is always home, among her familiar surroundings. Having a mommy and daddy who love and spoil her, helps a bit too.

Our first stop on Monday took us to The Living Dessert Zoo and Gardens. For the most part, we enjoyed a stroll along the grounds seeing and learning about the flora indigenous to the area, like Fairy Wand (my favorite - because it reminded me of Savannah), Three-Leaf Sumac, Yucca, Mesquite, and fringed sagebrush. 
A Javelina

What I dislike most about zoos are the small cages that contain only one animal. They seem so lonely, and the animals we saw actually appeared to be looking for human contact. Two, in particular tore at my heart, a mountain lion cub that paced back and forth, leaning into the fence and a Javelina that kept trying to push his snout through the wire as if he were trying to get a kiss. 


From that stop, we grabbed a bite for lunch and then headed for our second National Park, Carlsbad Caverns. I was sure to bring my NP passport and obtained my official "Park and Date" stamped in my book.

The photos included in this blog can never truly do justice to the magnificent grandeur of the caves. We toured "The Big Room," which was located 754 feet below ground and immediately, I felt like I entered a holy place. There were several references to religion along the way, such as "The Top of the Cross," and "Angels Grotto." Although, as we continued the tour, I saw stalagmites and stalagmites that caused my imagination to run wild. I saw a Mutant Ninja Turtle, three chess pieces, Snagglepuss and a Christmas tree, to name a few."G" took dozens of photos, but the lighting created a blue glare in many of them. 
Some of the formations appeared as lace curtains.

This one reminded me of the Three chess pieces.


At closing time, visitors are allowed to wait in an outdoor amphitheater until dusk, when the possibility of a night flight of the Brazilian Free Tail Bats could take place. The weather the previous night caused the bats to remain inside, so I had a good feeling that these babies might be hungry. We waited quite awhile and almost left when the spectacle began. It was a silent symphony that could only be viewed to be believed. Thousands of bats, about the size of your hand, flew out of the cave and spiraled up and up, and then flew off in their nocturnal search for food. A few circled low and close to our heads, but the scene playing out before our eyes only took your breath away. It was a very moving and emotional experience for me....I will not include "G's" reaction or response in this entry. Suffice it to say that it was a solo moment of awe and beauty, and one I will never forget. 
We were not allowed to photograph the flight, but I found this on the Internet.

I am so grateful that we ended our time in New Mexico on such a high note. I would highly recommend a visit to Carlsbad Caverns National Park should any reader be in the vicinity.

Deep thought for the day:  How can a hole in the ground be wholly holy? Holy cow!



Sunday, October 4, 2015

Adios Santa Rosa

Our stay in Santa Rosa, NM, while only two days, was more than enough for us. Here is a list of what we did and now we felt, backed up with photos.

Photo of decrepid buildings along Route 66
Stop #1, a drive along Old Route 66. While seeming to be a sure bet for a blast of the past, it turned out to be depressing and sad. The few original businesses that remain open are surrounded by abandoned and disintegrating shells of motels, restaurants and souvenir shops. Broken neon signs are interspersed with an open bar, a food market and a lumber store. I don't know what the major income source is here, but it is definitely not even a Walmart, since the closest one is 81 miles away. 

Stop # 2 was to the Route 66 Antique Car Museum. This provided us with many photo opportunities, but it seemed like this place was holding by threads to remain open. Entrance fee was only $5 per person, so it constituted a bargain to see all the restored cars within. There was much memorabilia as well.  




A Phaeton and a Victoria. Is this a coincidence or a prediction?



Stop # 3 was for lunch at the authentic Route 66 Restaurant. It reminded me of a Johnny Rockets, but there were no dancing waitresses. The place was clean and the food acceptable, but the service was slow as molasses. I ordered tacos and "G" got salad topped with chicken. Not anything out of the ordinary, but it took about 45 minutes for our orders to come out. I ended up having to inturrupt the waitress, from a very in-depth conversation with another patron, for our check. 




What remains from the 1800 chapel, St. Rose of Lima
Stop #4 was the Chapel of St. Rosa de Lima. We headed south and found the remnants of the original church, which was erected in 1800, but never found the relocated chapel.




Billy the Kid
Stop #5 was to be our last stop, but turned out to be just a drive by. We drove to the town of Fort Sumner to visit the Museum of Billy the Kid and his final resting place. What we noticed first upon our arrival was that it resembled a ghost town. Businesses and homes were either abandoned, boarded up, falling down, or closed for business. Stray dogs and feral cats ran in the road making it difficult to drive through a side road. 

It was a Saturday afternoon, a day you would normally see more people than usual out and about running errands, but we didn't see anyone. The only thing we can assume, after seeing a hearse and a large group of people in mourning, is that someone in town must have died and everyone was attending the funeral. We continued on our journey to locate Billy's grave, but to no avail. There was not a soul around to even ask directions. 

The desolate ride back to Allie had me thinking about what misfortune led these people to this area. There seemed to be much abject poverty and dispair. It did not feel like a happy place. We noticed many churches, considering the small population, and I could imagine them being packed on Sunday's with prayers for just about anything. Like Santa Rosa, these two towns are holding onto the past much too loosely. It seems that a Historical Society is needed to designate historical buildings and mandate restorations of the buildings that remain. It costs money, but perhaps they could create some sort of resurgence in the area. God knows, they need something.

We thought of staying a third day in Santa Rosa, but after the depressive day we witnessed, we decided we had seen enough. 

Deep thought for the day: Do not judge me until you have walked a mile in my shoes. 

Friday, October 2, 2015

Santa Rosa, NM

New Mexico! The Land of Enchantment. State tree is the Piñon Pine. State animal is the Black Bear and the State Bird is the Roadrunner. We are enchanted and have seen hundreds, perhaps thousands of Piñon Pines. No bears or roadrunners yet, but can see why they would want to live here. 

Another sticker on our map! We were fortunate to find space in a nice little campground in Santa Rosa. Fortunate, because I had no idea what an active town this is, how busy the surrounding towns are and that all campgrounds would be booked. 

I learned a valuable lesson about traveling without making reservations in advance: You need to research the surrounding areas for big events, like the HUGE hot air balloon festival going on in the next big town, Albequerque. Two other deterrents I faced were that all the State Parks I searched in this area limit motorhome size to 30 feet or less and reviews for many RV parks leave you searching for a better place. We were very fortunate, indeed to manage a site at Santa Rosa Campground. All pull through sites, a great little restaurant on premises, full hook-ups and security. 

The ride here was eerily similar to previous treks where we faced straight roads, sparse trees and no indication of human life for miles and miles. I mentioned to "G" that I felt like we were in an episode of "The Twilight Zone" or "Lost in Space," because of the alien-looking terrain. An interesting observation during this leg of the journey was the amount of abandoned cars, motorhomes and farm equipment that litter the land along Route 84. I guess they don't have a metal pick-up day in these parts. I'm figuring that Jimmy Hoffa could actually be out here somewhere- it would be an ideal body dump location because no one would ever find him here.

A funny sight that we encounter are the infrequent UPS or Fed Ex delivery trucks. We assume they don't have too many stops because we only see sporadic signs of habitation along the way. 

A gas station, yet again, caused us some problems by not being RV-friendly, and we found ourselves waiting for parked cars to move out of our way so we could make a break for a bigger station. Another bothersome issue we are facing are flies. Ever since we left Yogi Bear Campground, we have been dealing with a fly infestation. We either kill or set free about six to eight a day. It is driving all of us (yes, Lucy too) crazy.

We were too tired to plan our itinerary for the upcoming weekend. We both want to drive down Historic Route 66, tour an old car museum and possibly take a Jeep tour that looks exciting. Then, there is Billy the Kidd's grave, that site is on my list. Future sightseeing in New Mexico will be Roswell and Carlsbad Caverns. Next blog entry will contain info on those. In the meantime, we will be silly tourists.

Raton Pass - Elevation 7823 feet - Watch for bears crossing the road!



Straight roads and "G" finds a Santa Fe caboose!
This is what I get to eat in New Mexico? No burritos or chimichangas?

Deep thought for the day:  Don't take yourself too seriously. Make life fun...live, laugh, love.


Thursday, October 1, 2015

The Great Sand Dunes National Park


Today "G" and I visited our first National Park, The Great Sand Dunes National Park. It was an amazing day full of awesome sights and only about an hour and a half drive from our campground in La Veta. During the ride, we witnessed more straight roads for mile upon mile. The next time I am in bumper-to-bumper traffic, I will close my eyes and remember the wide open roads of Colorado.


Once there, we were afforded the spectacular sight of sand dunes, which are the highest in North America, in a location where you would think no sand could accumulate! They rise 750 feet above the floor of the San Luis Valley and cover over 30 square miles. In winter, the sand dunes are a stark contrast to the snow-capped Sangre de Cristo (Blood of Christ) Mountains.

The delicately balanced ecosystem lends to a sight you would never imagine so far from an ocean. There are seven insects that are only found in this park. They have evolved from common species, but have adapted to the harsh winds, cold winters and dessert-like summers. 

I don't know what happened to the 8th insect...I only captured 7.

Welcome Center where we bought our National Park Passport Book

Unfortunately, we were not informed that we were supposed
to get the book stamped with the park name and date.
Interesting to reference the plaque below and identify the different formations.
We attempted a few miles of the Medano Pass Primitive Road, which is a rough 22 mile road that connects the sand dunes with Highway 69. The pass rises to an elevation of 10,040 feet and crosses areas of deep sand, the Medano Creek (9 times), and passes through the habitat of the bighorn sheep. It takes a high-clearance, 4-wheel drive vehicle about 2-3 hours to traverse. We thought Sir Duke could handle it, but we didn't want to decrease our tire pressure (required) and didn't want to take the chance of getting stuck in the deep sand further up the road. Duke did an admirable job on the rocks, hills and sand that he did traverse.


It felt like walking in the sand at Jone's Beach, on Long Island, but no ocean at the end.

Colorado's version of "fall splendor," Aspen trees in full glorious gold.

My new screen saver....

Deep thought for the day:  I noticed that I needed to stop taking pictures and videos because I was missing out on the sights before my eyes.