March,  2001

Thursday March 1 dawned cool and cloudy in the valley.  We packed up our last few things and hooked up the car and headed north towards the San Antonio area.  The drive was through a slow steady rain all day.  We arrived in Seguin around 4:00 and checked in the the service department at Pro-Tech.  They got everything all set up for the next day and we got the Bounder parked behind their service center with electric hook-ups for the night.  We spent some time that evening at the local public library taking advantage of their free internet service to "surf the web."  On Friday morning the Bounder was moved into the service area where it spent the day having a "complete check-up and service."  There was quite a group of people in the waiting room and it was like a big party all day.  We compared travel and coach stories and played with all their pets.  We were lucky enough to be in-and-out in just one day.  Around 5:00 we headed out to the Thousand Trails Resort at Medina Lake, taking a circle route around the north side of San Antonio. We passed many large ranches with stately gates and miles of fencing.  However, we should know better than to get to a strange campground after dark...by 7:00 it was pitch black in the country and we were relieved when we finally pulled into the first campsite we came to inside the resort.  We listened to the pouring rain on the roof all night!            In the daylight on Saturday morning we took a driving tour of the resort and then moved to a different site that had full hookups.  We also attended the "manager's meeting" at the activity center where we caught up on Thousand Trail news and an ice cream social where we met a fun couple from Indiana.  Like the couples we'd met at Pro-Tech, they had spent February in the valley.  Around 2:00 the rain stopped and the sun came out, so we took a drive around the area to see some of what we'd passed (and missed) in the dark the night before.  On Saturday evening we enjoyed some music  by Johnny's One Man Can Band, and the rain returned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Monday we headed to the LBJ Ranch and Johnson City.  The tour of the ranch and the Texas White House area was quite interesting - and probably meant more than some of the other Presidential places we've been since we could relate to the time and events here so easily.  We saw where LBJ had his famous barbeques on the lawn and where he drove his guests around in his convertibles (which are still in the carport).  And since this really was his boyhood home we learned a lot about his family and background and why he was so proud of it.  We missed seeing Lady Bird as she had returned to Austin that morning.           We stopped in Fredericksburg on the way back to the RV, and again peeked in shops and enjoyed a German dinner in one of the restaurants.  I was disappointed in the shops as all the tourist information talked about the German heritage in the town.  All the shops were typical antique and souvenir shops - nothing German.

Tuesday was a laundry and travel day.  We would have enjoyed staying at the Thousand Trails Resort longer...it was quite beautiful with lots of trees and it was amazing to see dozens of deer and huge jack-rabbits just wandering around through the resort.  You really had to drive slowly!   Tuesday night, we ended up in Del Rio where we stayed in a small campground near the Amistad Recreation Area...a large lake created by a dam which spreads into Mexico.   On Wednesday we again traveled and stopped near the entrance to Big Bend National Park.  All of the National Park campgrounds were full, so we stayed at an RV "park" about 9 miles from the entrance.  During our drive on Wednesday across US-90 we passed only about two dozen cars.  We were in the middle of nowhere!  The Hallie Stillwell Ranch and RV Park had electric and water hookups, but there was no TV reception, no modem hookups and cell phones don't work...just 50 or so RV's all lined up next to each other facing into the mountains...quite peaceful!!  There is also a museum there to honor Hallie Stillwell who lived all of her 99 years in the area and was a cowgirl, teacher, rancher and Justice of the Peace while raising three children.  The National Park Rangers put on a program about the National Park right at the museum, which worked out great for us...it gave us ideas of things to do and see in the park before we got there.  That 's good, because from one interesting area in the park to another can be 60 miles one way.  You don't want to make a mistake!       About 25 miles down the road from the RV park, the road ends at the Mexican border where the bridge has been totally barricaded by the US Customs agents.  It seems they were having too much trouble with goods being illegally taken out of the US into Mexico.

San Antonio's River Walk was our destination on Sunday (March 3).  The rain had passed and the weather was gorgeous.  First we took a ride on one of the tour boats covering the majority of the river area and learned a few things about it all in the process.  Then, we headed out on foot, peeking in some of the shops and enjoying the walk along the beautifully landscaped riverside.  When we ventured off the River Walk and over to the Alamo we found ourselves in the middle of some ceremonies and re-enactments.  Texas Independence Day is March 1 and the anniversary of the fall of the Alamo is March 6.  So, there were people in costumes and cannons firing all afternoon.  The Alamo is really quite a small place.   Returning to the River Walk we enjoyed lunch in an outdoor cafe.  On the way back to Thousand Trails we found a Kinko's and downloaded our e-mail.

 

Because we were in places without modem hookups for several days, our February page was not finished until March.  You might want to check it out if you haven't done so recently.
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Thursday, March 8 

BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK is an amazing place.  It is in the Chihuahuan Desert.  The mountains surrounding it protect it from getting much rain.  Years ago it was occupied at various times by Apache and Comanche Indians, Mexicans and Pancho Villa and settlers from different parts of the US.  It is difficult to understand why anyone thought this was a great place to come to or to live, and why they fought over the land.  It is hot, dry and barren.  We drove for miles without seeing any signs of human life.  To have crossed the land on horseback would have taken days.  There is an area that has a natural hot spring and there was a "resort" there from the 20's to the 50's, and although the resort has crumbled and been washed away, people still come and hike 1/2 mile to sit in the ruins and enjoy the hot water.  The plant life consists of many varieties of cactus and yucca plants and this year, luckily for us, wildflowers.  Apparently the rainfall this past year has been unusual, and the result of that is fantastic flower blooms.  It looks like the park service planted a carpet of bluebonnets along each side the highway for miles.  But it is all due to the rain they had last November.  There are also fields of yellow, white and lavender flowers.  And they say there weren't any of them for several years back.  The only trees in the park are in a few places where there is a small water source and where the man who started the hot spring resort hauled in date palms (they look really out of place.)  We hiked up to the hot spring and also to Boquillas Canyon which is a narrow and high rock canyon where the Rio Grande had carved its way through. Mexico is on one side and the US on the other.  A few miles back from the canyon we had our adventure for the day.  We took another trip to Mexico...this time on a rowboat from a sandy cliff on the US side to a rocky bank on the Mexican side.  There we were met by a group of anxious men waiting to escort us to the village of Boquillas.  We could choose from a fleet of old Ford pick-up trucks or a herd of donkeys.  Always looking for excitement, we chose they donkeys.  Tom and I climbed up and then were led to the village by a friendly guide named Antonio.  He said he's been doing this for many years and he speaks decent English.  At the end of the uphill 20 minute ride we came to the village of 200 people.  It has no electricity except what they get from some solar panels.  According to a pleasant young lady in the cafe where we had a cold drink and 3 burritos for $2, they haul propane and gasoline from a town 160 miles away on a mostly dirt road.  One of the park volunteers told us that they often come and buy things from the store here in the park. There were several little gift shops in the village and many young children trying to get us to buy jewelry or small scorpions made from twisted wire.  The guide showed us the small church and school in the village, and other than some adobe block houses, that was it!  It doesn't sound like we did much in the park, but it took us all day.  We did stop at some of the scenic overlooks and historical markers - and made it back to the RV just in time to attend another evening program by some park volunteers.  We've decided that we'll move on from here, and hopefully visit the park again next year.  Much of what we still would like to see is on the other side of the park, and would mean even more driving from where we are camped.  So next time, we'll camp on the west side of the park and see what is over there.

March,  2001 page 2
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March,  2001 page 3
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Friday, March 9      We left Stillwell's RV Park near Big Bend National Park and headed to Carlsbad, New Mexico.  The drive was much the same every inch of the way....cactus, sand and rocks.  The mountains disappeared as we drove north.  There was very little traffic and the road stretched ahead of us for miles.  We found an RV park right at the entrance to Carlsbad Caverns National Park and were all set by late afternoon.  Again, we had no internet connections so we headed to the public library to check our e-mail and then out to dinner for a change. 

Saturday, March 10 we headed into the CARLSBAD CAVERNS NATIONAL PARK.  After a five minute orientation we started down into the caverns wearing a headset/tape player which pointed out interesting items as we went.  Unfortunately we were about a month too early to see the bat flights.   Thousands of Mexican Free-tail bats make the caverns their summer home.  Each evening at dusk they swarm out of the cave while people sit in the amphitheater to watch.  We just got to visit underground and see the magnificent stalactites and stalagmites and other rock and crystal formations.  It is amazing to think that back in the '20s they used to lower people down with ropes, buckets and ladders carrying lanterns to make light.  They also used to harvest the bat "guano" to use as fertilizer.  We walked on a paved path and the theater style lighting is very dramatic.  It took about 3 hours to walk down to the bottom at a leisurely pace and then take an elevator back to the top.  But, would you believe they have restrooms, snack bar and book store at the bottom?  It is about 56* in the caverns all the time.  It was very peaceful and beautiful as we walked...looking at the ceilings, walls and openings as we went.

After touring the caverns, we returned to the Bounder and headed north again.  We stopped in Roswell, New Mexico in a quiet RV park that had a very clean laundry, cable TV and  AOL hookup.  We decided to stay two nights as we were a little ahead of our projected schedule and could use some time to "chill out", do laundry and catch up on e-mail and the web-page.   Sunday afternoon, though, we toured the INTERNATIONAL UFO MUSEUM in Roswell.  We learned all about the supposed UFO crash there in 1947 and all the efforts the US Government has made to cover it up.  Their motto is "The Truth is Here."  It certainly gave us something to think about!  Supposedly, the remains are now in Dayton at Wright-Patterson AFB.      From here we'll be heading to Albuquerque

On Friday, March 16 we closed up the Bounder but left the heat on and a light burning in the utility bay, and drove the car to Colorado Springs.  We planned to meet son Reid there rather than drive to his place in Summit County because of the large amount of accumulated and predicted snow and the number of spring break skiers there.  It was a 6 hour drive for us and Reid drove 2 hours down to meet us on Saturday.  Since it was snowing, we elected to do "inside things" on Saturday afternoon and went to the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.  It turned out to be a really interesting place to visit and we spent about three hours there.  We all learned a lot about rodeos and the people involved in them.  Reid wrote a great column for the Summit Daily News about our afternoon when he got back home.  And when we were "channel surfing" back at the motel later that night and came across a rodeo broadcast, we understood what was going on and why.  Amazing!                    On Sunday we went to the GARDEN OF THE GODS....a most unusual park operated by the city at the base of Pike's Peak.  The rock formations often create optical illusions and are mostly of bright red rock.  The snow was melting in the intense sun and we enjoyed a walk and drive through the park.  We also took a drive through the Air Force Academy.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21

We've been in the Albuquerque area since Monday, March 12.  The drive from Roswell was an "experience" as the winds were really blowing.  We stopped for the night at the Hidden Valley RV Park a little east of town and found it accepted one of our camping membership discounts.  The park is fairly large, but had few sites in use.  It is built on the side of a mountain with each site terraced, and we had quite a time getting the coach level.  And although daytime temperatures are near 70, we discovered that nighttime temperatures go down into the 20's.  The water connections are all heated, but we had to bring our hose in at night.  We're about a 15 minute drive to Tom's Aunt Dorothy's apartment on the east side of Albuquerque, and we've been there most days.  Dorothy is 90, but very "sharp" and enjoys getting out, seeing changes in the city and eating out.  One day we drove her to SantaFe to visit the National Veteran's Cemetery where Uncle John is buried...much like Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia but on a slightly smaller scale.  We also spent some time catching up on errands...getting information at the AAA and trying to get our problems with one of the cell phones worked out with Verizon.

 

Reid in the rodeo clown's barrel.
Tom and Mary at "Balanced Rock" in the Garden of the Gods
On Monday, March 19, after getting Reid's car jumpstarted, he returned to Summit County and we drove to Sadalia, CO.  There we toured the factory and met the owner/inventor of the "Brake Buddy."  He explained how they invented the device after his father had a "close call" towing his car with an RV.  They started producing and marketing it, and now have a good business.  It took about an hour to install the Brake Buddy on our car and we were headed back to Albuquerque.
March,  2001 page 4
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On Tuesday we picked up Aunt Dorothy with plans to pick up photos that had been developed, the cell phone that had been repaired, the AAA material we'd ordered and go out to dinner on our last day in Albuquerque.  But, as luck would have it, our plans were changed.  We had a "close encounter of the wrong kind"  with a delivery van in the parking lot at the AAA.  Nobody was hurt and damage to the Olds is mostly parts that popped off and were broken.  With the help of the AAA Insurance Claim representative the rear bumper was tied up making it possible for us to get to the GM body shop he'd suggested.  We were able to arrange for insurance coverage and a parts order.  On Wednesday morning Tom delivered the car back to the repair facility, got a rental car and a promise that the car should be finished and ready to travel by Thursday the 29th.  Obviously we didn't leave Albuquerque on Wednesday as previously planned.  We still hope to get to Deming, NM next week for the Steer Safe installation but will perhaps pass up a visit to Cochise County, AZ.  We hope to be in Mesa to attend an RV Rally by April 1.  An extra week in Albuquerque will perhaps give us the opportunity to do some of the tourist things we haven't taken time to do in the past.
SATURDAY, MARCH 31       Quality Collision in Albuquerque did an excellent job of getting our car back on the road in just a week.  They worked with the insurance company and parts suppliers, got their crew working and had things all in order for us on Wednesday the 28th.  Meanwhile, we used a rental car and spent some time with Aunt Dorothy.  One day we drove to the top of Sandia Peak where we could look down on the whole city of Albuquerque.  We had to walk through snow to get to the observation point.  On another trip we drove up to Taos where we drove through the art colony shops and the park where old west pioneer, Kit Carson, is buried. We tried to tour the Indian pueblos there, but they are closed for Spring ceremonies.  From Taos we headed to Angel Fire which is a resort town.  We enjoyed lunch at the base of the ski mountain where we watched the skiers and snowboarders come down from several directions on the slopes.  They were enjoying the sun, warm temperatures and the last weekend for the ski resort.  The various scenery as we changed elevations was beautiful, and for us "city slickers" it's amazing how many miles of "nothing" there is out in the county around here.  We also spent some time running errands and catching up on paper work, laundry and maintenance and trying out various restaurants in the area with Dorothy.
Tom's Aunt Dorothy

After leaving Albuquerque Wednesday noon, we drove to Deming.  We arrived at the Steer-Safe factory just as they were closing up for the evening and were parked right in front of their overhead door for the night with an electric hookup.  Our instructions were that the door would go up at 7:30am the next morning and that we should be ready to drive inside.  There were two other coaches spending the night there as well.  We all had appointments the next morning to have the "Steer-Safe" mechanism installed on our coaches.  In the morning the door did indeed go up right at 7:30 and we met the inventor/owner, a 91 year old gentleman, who explained exactly how the "Steer-Safe"  worked and gave us a tour of the factory while his employees did the installation.  By 8:00 we were back on the road!  Tom said he could definitely tell the difference in handling as he drove.                  Driving across I-10, we stopped at Steins, NM which is a ghost town and had been written up in an article in one of the RV magazines.  They were right...it is a ghost town!  Not much to see other than some falling apart buildings and weeds and a small gift shop.   From there we headed to Huachuca City and Sierra Vista, AZ.  We hadn't been there since we moved away from the first home of our married life almost 33 years ago.  The mobile home park that we lived in is still there...looking a little sad and now fenced off from the highway.  The school where Mary taught is still there and greatly enlarged in size.  The town of Huachuca City has grown some, but still isn't a thriving place.  Sierra Vista, on the other hand, at the main gate of Ft. Huachuca has grown to a town of 40,000.  It is a thriving place and now even has a mall and a new Target and Wall-Mart....definite changes in 33 years!   We didn't drive through the Fort as we weren't sure about space for the big RV.  As it was, we turned off the highway to look at an RV park and ended up having to unhook the car in order to turn around on a dead-end road.              We headed on into Tucson and spent Thursday and Friday nights at the Beaudry RV Resort behind the Beaudry RV dealership.  The resort is extremely nice...wonderful wide sites with concrete patios and wrought iron tables and chairs.  We even had a phone hookup.  And we were right across from a great swimming pool and a clean laundry.                     

Saturday morning we drove north to Gold Canyon, AZ east of the Phoenix/Mesa area.  Here we set up camp at the Canyon Vistas Resort with a view of Superstition Mountain.  Again we have a nice wide site with plenty of room for the slide and the awning and also a phone hookup.  We'll be here for a week to attend the RV America Rally.  In just our first several hours here we met some really friendly people, and exchanged tales of travel experiences and adventures around a "fireless" campfire.   One couple , we discovered, lived in Jackson, MI at the same time we did 25 years ago!  Judging from the people we've met and looking at the agenda for the rally, it looks like we'll have a great time here.  So, check our April page later to see what all we've been doing.