Arrive at our winter home

Arrived at Tombstone Territories RV Park yesterday around 3:30 pm, good trip from Elephant Butte, NM, little wind and that was great since the area we drove through is an area that has many warnings of high winds, dust storms and gusty winds as you drive through small mountain ranges and large open deserts with sparse vegetation. We did not go through Las Cruces this year as we could not get in touch with our friends Mark and Annette, so decided to take a shortcut (Hwy 26) which is known as the Hatch Hwy and is the scenic route. Very happy we decided to take the road less travelled, good paved 2 lane road, scenic and joins I10 at Deming, NM and cuts about 50 miles off the trip to our park in AZ. After driving the scenic route, the interstate runs through the desert for miles it is exciting to be driving through small mountain ranges, the rock formations all through New Mexico and Arizona never cease to intrigue us!




To me this looks like a castle sitting on top of the hill.

From this angle the castle is not so apparent. It is unfortunate that the picture did not capture the different colours of the rock, they are striking to the eye!

Santa Fe, to Elephant Butte, NM

We drove from Santé Fe, NM accidentally taking HWY 14 (wrong turn leaving the park) known as the Turquoise Trail, the road was paved, okay but narrow and windy through the Sandia and I think San Pedro Mountains we drove through Madrid on the only road that goes directly through the middle of town and only wide enough for 2 vehicles, with the buildings set right on the edge of the road, we met one car and he had to move over as far as possible as we did to go by each other. We could not stop not a place to park the rig, but what an interesting looking little town. I had left the camera in the fifth wheel thinking I had enough pictures taken from the Interstates, sure wish I had packed it in the truck! Of course I had to look up its history on the Internet which proved to be very interesting. An old coal mining town which also had a gold rush, some silver mining and is reported to be haunted. The town has become a haven for artists and craftsmen. The natives actually mined Turquoise there 1500 years ago.
Check the links below.
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/NM-Madrid.html
You can also check out information on the Turquoise Trail at the above link.
http://www.visitmadridnm.com/
Highway 14 connects to I40 east of Albuquerque and added some miles to our trip but worth the views, wish we could travel it again with just the truck!

We stayed at Cozy Cove RV Park close the Elephant Butte Dam, nearest town Truth or Consequences, NM.
Nice clean park built on five levels, the area we stayed was brand new, all gravel but very level large sites. The area is known for good fishing, hiking and hot springs. Truth and Consequences was named after the radio program, you can read the story at the link below along with other information regarding the area.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_or_Consequences,_New_Mexico
We only spent the night there as were anxious to arrive at our winter home.




As you can see, nothing but gravel but a HUGE area to pull into your spot!










Some brand new landscaping, all the trees and other plants they have planted are irrigated, this area will be beautiful in a few years time.

Pueblo West, CO to Santa Fe, NM

Today we travelled from Pueblo West, CO to Santa Fe, NM. We only spent one night at the Pueblo West Campground and Horse Arena (same place we stayed last year on our way home.) Our friends Charlie and Dawn were both working so did not get a chance to visit. Today was pretty much an uphill trip all the way; elevation at Pueblo West, Co is 4750 ft. then climbing through the Raton Pass at 7834 ft. then downhill to Santa Fe, NM at 7260 ft. A beautiful drive through the pass as it follows the old Santé Fe Trail. Very interesting area, the pass is designated as a National Historic Landmark read the history and other facts here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raton_Pass

Longmont, to Pueblo West, CO

Short trip today, stopping in Pueblo West, CO. We did plan on staying a couple of days to visit with Charlie and Dawn but now due to all the weather stops we are only staying overnight. The snow along the edge of the highways was melting which created lots of spray from vehicles, especially the big trucks, now our truck and fifth is really filthy, ah well we will wash it once we reach our winter home! One good thing the spray cleaned all the mud stuck around the wheels, etc. The snow disappeared as we travelled south and the campground at Pueblo West was pretty much dry with some puddles left in the low spots. No TV in this campground but they do have WiFi so we could chat online with friends! All in all it was a good day!

Casper, WY to Longmont, CO

The weather man was correct, the wind calmed down about 50 miles down the road, we drove in and out of areas where we could see the remainder of the snow. Every time we drove out of a snow covered area we thought, good there should be no snow in Longmont, but as we came towards Cheyenne, WY we could see the snow covered mountains and when we arrived at Longmont, there was snow along the sides of the roads. We stayed at St. Vrains State Park, same as last year, easy to find, with many walking trails, fishing ponds and many birds. The last mile or so into the park is not paved and this trip due to snow, the gravel road was a huge mess of mud, as well as the walking trails and roads within the park were muddy! Yikes, the rig, the dogs and our shoes were a muddy mess when we left the next day, although the dogs loved the snow, they romped, rolled, ate the snow and tried to chase the geese which were everywhere! This park has very nice level sites with little shelters over the picnic tables, is a very popular fishing spot, even this time of year we saw many fishermen trying their luck. The road into the park is supposed to upgraded next year according the park attendant but with all the budget cuts who knows if that will happen, if not we may have to make a different choice on the trip home, sure hope not though, this is a great place to stop!
I didn’t take any pictures this year, but you can see what a nice park it is here:
http://parks.state.co.us/Parks/StVrain

Hardin, MT to Casper, WY

Good trip, saw many antelope in Wyoming, Sheridan, WY was buried in snow, everything was white but highway was clear and dry, we drove out the snow area thankfully before we hit Casper, WY, although the mountains were covered in snow and still lots of snow around where the sun had not had a chance to melt it, the Campground was mostly dry with a little snow here and there. We camped again at Ft. Casper on the North Platte River. The park has a large area to walk the dogs, which is important to us, although getting into the park is a little tricky as they landscaped the entrance with huge boulders on both sides and down the middle at the entrance road, creating a one way only, but they should have left the large boulders out! The park is home to many species of wildlife and tons of rabbits, we saw many deer tracks, no deer though, but when we walked the dogs the rabbits were every where! The wind kicked up the next day so we hung out Monday, hopeful the wind would die down. The Ft. Casper Museum is within walking distance but it was closed on Monday so we did a little driving around and shopping. Tuesday, still windy with gusts, not a strong as yesterday, after checking the weather down the road, we decided to leave, the wind was predicted to calm down as we headed south and there more bad weather on the way.
You can read the history and other information here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casper,_Wyoming

Hardin, MT

Today is a bit warmer than yesterday, partly cloudy, no rain or snow, we figured we would not be able to travel until Monday but looks like we can leave tomorrow as the nasty weather is moving a little faster south than predicted.

Our campsite in Grandview Campground in Hardin. All sites have a little shed for the people that are staying long term. This is a nice campground, in town, clean, well kept and managed by three ladies they do have a laundry, showers and games room, the games room is only open in the summer, very good stop.

Cannot see the mountains today due to cloud but they are visible on a clear day.

While hanging out I thought I would look up some information on the town of Hardin, if you care to read here is a link. http://www.travelmt.com/mt-cities-Hardin.html
Basically a small town of around 3000, surrounded by ranches, farms and sits on the banks of the Bighorn River. In the distance are the Bighorn and Pryor Mountains which are actually on the Crow Indian Reservation that is right on the edge of town. The town celebrates Custer’s Last Stand and the battle that took place June, 1876 in this area with a huge celebration and re-enactment. You can read more here: http://www.custerslaststand.org/
For the past six years, the Re-enactment has been listed in the top 100 events in the nation in Destinations magazine, so obviously the town does a fabulous job, too bad we can’t be here in June to enjoy it! Well if all goes well, we will off to Casper, WY tomorrow.

In Lewistown, MT

The trip so far has been pretty good, stopped at Whispering Spruce Campground in Balzac the first night, not a campground we like nor would I recommend it to anyone but it is open all year, easy on and off the highway so suits our purpose. We were unable to connect with our granddaughter, Jennifer other than via a phone call, she had previous plans for the evening, but hopefully we can meet on the way home. I talked to our friend Floss and she was suffering from a nasty cold, so again maybe a visit will happen on our way home.

Our second night was spent at Under 8 Flags campground in Milk River, they are doing some major renovations there, and hopeful all will be ready by spring. This campground is a major stopover for Snowbirds every spring and fall due to it’s proximity to the border.
We got off to late start due to Woody helping a fellow camper with a hitch problem he had with the tow behind car, with some assistance from the guys that were working on the construction project this issue was solved, gotta love it when you meet people so willing to lend a hand. We crossed the border with no problem, just took a long time because they were so busy. There was a SW west blowing which killed our fuel economy and this trip was longer than the previous days, I was very tense wondering if we would make our destination before we ran out of fuel although Woody kept assuring me that we would be okay and he did have a jerry can in the back of the truck in case we needed it. The highway we take to Lewistown is quite desolate, no cell coverage most of the way and we ran into construction. Well needless to say we made it but later than we have ever arrived at the campsite; set up in the dark is not the best even though the fifth does have lights to accommodate such happenings. We were both happy to be set up and settled in the fifth that evening. The campground has Wi-Fi but very poor speed and it keeps dropping so almost useless but it is a decent campground and on our route. Next morning we decided we needed to do some laundry and replenish the larder. We do not carry much fresh food when crossing the border, you cannot take fresh fruit at all and the list always changes when it comes to eggs, cheese, veggies etc., so we find it easier to load up after crossing. Meat other than any lamb product is okay, we found out on a previous trip that even dog food with lamb is not allowed and always keep the container of any dog food in case the guards want confirmation of contents.




We have a nice view of the mountains while walking the dogs at Mountain Acres Campground in Lewistown. As you can see the weather is beautiful and we feel very blessed as we walk the dogs.



We got off to a good start as check out time at Mountain Acres Campground is 10:30 am, no exceptions made, we made good time, weather was nice, partly cloudy, little wind, so were set up early at Grandview Campground in Hardin and able to enjoy the nice weather the day we arrived it was 54F (12c). Excellent Wi-Fi here and cable TV, even with the Outdoor Channel so Woody was very happy that he could watch hunting shows and I could watch a few game shows! We checked the weather and not a good report, temps dropping, snow and rain predicted here as well as down the road so we decided we would stay put for at least a couple of days. Good decision, next morning was raining which turned to snow later in the day, cool, foggy and wet until today around noon. The sun is shinning now and it is about 41F (5c) as I write this. The weather moved south towards Casper, WY and all the way down our route to Santa Fe, NM so we think we may be able to leave tomorrow and just stay behind the nasty stuff, once we get to Las Cruces, NM the weather is warm, no worries of snow usually. We are very thankful that we have a safe journey thus far and pray for a continued safe journey to AZ. Will see what tomorrow brings!