Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Today is a “down day”, which doesn’t necessarily mean “don’t go anywhere”. After a few quick errands this morning, we met Jack at the famous “Kreuz Market” for Texas barbeque. This was a neat experience and extraordinary food. We learned that Texas barbeque has no sauce, because they claim they have nothing to hide!

We have no need for any more food today and are very happy to relax at our campsite. I will visit with some of the neighbors and set up my satellite dish, even though Curt has warned us that he and Yvonne like to go “satellite tipping” late at night.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

We arrived in Lockhart, TX, this afternoon and settled in at the State Park campground. We have a view of the golf course from the front window and are surrounded by lovely woods. Curt’s cousin, Jack and his wife, Elfreide, invited us to their home for dinner tonight. They are long time residents of Lockhart and great folks….Elfriede with her German charm and Jack who has wonderful stories that we could never tire of hearing. It is such a treat to be with them.

I have to mention the wildflowers…massive fields at each turn in every color. Randi said she has never seen anything like this and cannot contain her delight. I have a feeling I will be hearing these exclamations on a regular basis.

Monday, April 26, 2010

It is a beautiful drive along rolling green hills, wildflowers along the highway and blooming cacti on left and right. We stopped in Langtry, TX to visit the Judge Roy Beam Museum. Remember him? He was “the law west of the Pecos”. He was quite a character and would deserve a “google search” to get the story.

We thoroughly enjoyed the visit there before moving on, crossing the Pecos River and stopping for the night at Fort Clark, TX. Here we drove around Fort Clark, est. 1852, taking in yet more history. This is a beautiful campground. We’ve seen lots of deer and wild turkey within 50’ of our sites. Heading for Lockhart, TX, tomorrow.

We apologize for any misunderstanding on our comment of “killing bugs” at the beginning of the trip. That’s an RV term for driving and collecting bugs on the front of the vehicle. No….we don’t have bugs inside our RV.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

We left Carlsbad early in calm winds (finally) and headed for Ft. Davis where we spent a couple of hours wandering the grounds and buildings of this historic national site…a key frontier military post from 1854 to 1891. Standing in the now vacant parade grounds, looking at the poll where our country’s flag proudly waved, it wasn’t difficult to imaging the scene where brave men fought so long ago.

We decided to go on the 60 miles to Marathon, TX for the night. Happy hour with Curt and Yvonne, then in for the night.

Wind Delay

Saturday, April 24. Today we will take advantage of the “down day” and do laundry and housekeeping. The strong winds are predicted to subside tonight, so we will leave for Ft. Davis, Texas early Sunday AM.

Friday, April 23. It is quite windy this morning, but we will be 750’ below ground most of the day in the incredible Carlsbad Caverns. The beauty and wonderment is indescribable and should be on everyone’s list of places to see. Back to the RV in a rapidly increasing wind, we decide to stay an extra night. Good thing…..we bring in the slides and rock with the 60mph gusts all afternoon and night.

Thursday, April 22. Before leaving Las Crucis, we said goodbye to our neighbors, Frog and Frogette, (yes, that’s the names they really go by, since the 60’s). Frog built the Mustang trike pictured. We left in a slight drizzle, which soon gave way to bright sun. Our route took us up a grade greater than 10% before reaching the Guadalupe Mountains National Park in Texas. When I saw the climb ahead, I could only think “I hope we make it”. A stop at the visitor’s center was very informative and the views were beautiful. Back on the road, we head for Carlsbad, NM, where we have reservations for two nights. The wind has picked up a bit but we’re able to grill hot dogs for dinner.

Wednesday, the 21st, we drove the car 60 miles to the White Sands Missile Testing Grounds and National Monument.

Tuesday, April the 20th, we arrived in Las Crucis, New Mexico with time to visit the historic district. Our short tour included a local winery and the Basilica of St. Albino, built in 1904.

April 18. TODAY?.....We kill bugs!

Left Yuma and headed for Tombstone, AZ. It’s a great drive with beautiful wildflowers blooming along the highway.

Typically, our position is following Rosie. Yvonne cooked our evening meal in her crock pot as we were driving to Tombstone (this camping stuff is tough).

We arrive in Tombstone at 1:00 PM and get situated at the RV park. It is only ½ block from town where so many historic gunfights took place. We walked through the very same doors that the Earps walked through and had a beer at “Big Nose Kate’s Saloon”.

April 19. Queen Mine Tour and historic Bisbee, AZ
We’re geared up for the mine. The train will take us 1500 feet into the mountain and 300 feet below the surface. It was an awesome experience.

For my biking buddies: This is a picture of the Bisbee Bicycle Brothel. The brothel was closed so I could only get a picture through the window. Lots of vintage bikes.

Day 1

Finally, everything is packed and Ivan is hooking up our car to tow.

Lined up and ready to depart home on a warm day in our valley, still with snow on our surrounding mountains. Curt and Yvonne in the lead with us following, we are excited to begin our adventure.

We arrived in Yuma, AZ at 5:00 PM and will stay in the Paradise Casino parking lot tonight. Most casinos, including this one, allow RV’s to park free (casino in background). We are all tired, so it will be an early bedtime and a 7:00 AM departure tomorrow.

Trip Delay

Well.....Buddy is still in the shop; however, the word is that he will be ready this afternoon, Friday, April 16. It will be a relief to start loading for take-off tomorrow, one day behind schedule.

Finally, a stress relief. Buddy's jacks are working properly and we brought him home from repair at 6 PM today. We gave him a bath and we are packing now and preparing to leave tomorrow, April 17. Though there is still much to do in the AM, we feel that we've made good progress tonight. Ivan has even secured his bicycle in the car, which we will be towing. He will miss his group rides 3 days/week with his buddies, but plans to keep up the routine when we are on the road. Yuma, AZ tomorrow night.

GETTING READY TO GO

Randi is hard at work organizing and preparing for the trip. This shows her at one of the high stress moments, trying to decide what move she should make next.

Last Saturday, the 10th, I discovered the jacks on our coach, named "Buddy", didn’t work, so Buddy is in the shop. I felt that I was well prepared with advanced maintenance for the trip, so this was a surprise. We were planning to leave on Friday the 16th, but now, only if the jacks on our couch are fixed in time.

Our next door neighbors, Curt & Yvonne, have been traveling in their motorhome for many years and have greatly influenced our love for “following them” in ours. We have had many great camping experiences together (if you can call what we do camping). We have been discussing and planning this trip for a couple of years and Curt and Yvonne are patiently waiting to see if Friday is a go for us. Curt said if Buddy is not ready in time they will wait for us. He has painstakingly outlined our route which is going to take us across the southern states, up the east coast, across the northern states and then back home. The trip should take about 4 months with all the stops he has planned. Pictured are Curt and Yvonne in front of their rig, Rosie.

We are not going to bore you now with a lot of detail. That will come as we post our progress on this blog along the way.