There was a chill in the air this morning. Yes, that’s right! I said a chill. The morning temp was a cool 57 degrees. That’s a switch! We turned on the fireplace for a bit to take the chill out of the air.
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We are a little off on our time frame with Mountain Time since we woke up at 6:40 this morning, but it was sure nice to gain that extra hour yesterday. Another day or so in Mountain Time and we’ll be back in sinc. When we set out this morning at 9:30, the temp had risen to a pleasant 68. The topography of eastern New Mexico is very similar to Texas–flat and dry.
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As we moved west towards Albuquerque, we started to see more hills and buttes.
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Why did the tarantula cross the road? Bob said to get to the other side and that’s when he saw it crawling across the road. He said it was black and about the size of an orange. No wonder he could see it on the road. Eeek! I’m glad I didn’t see it! The soil turned red and was pretty, mixed in with the greens and golds of the bushes and grasses.
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We started to see more wildlife–lots of antelope grazing and kestrels sitting on the wires and telephone poles. We also saw a a dead fox or coyote and an antelope or two along the side of the road. If you look real hard in this picture, you can see the antelope laying in the grasses.
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We crossed the Pecos River at Fort Sumner and then it paralleled the road north to Santa Rosa. The river was mostly dry where we saw it. We hopped on I-40 to Albuquerque with 100 miles to go. Prior to that we had been traveling on secondary roads through small, dying towns. This bus passed us with its slide still out and part of his side panel missing. I think he was having a very bad day!
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There had to be at least 50 of these billboards along the highway for miles advertising the Flying C Ranch.
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We finally got to it and it was the only business for miles. There were a few people inside doing some shopping. It just goes to show you what good marketing will do.
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Auggie normally sleeps quietly in the back seat in his bed as we travel, but for some reason he was getting antsy and started looking out the windows. He even stuck his head through the seat rest to tell me he wanted something.
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I guess he wanted a change of scenery with a view from the front seat, so I brought him up front and he laid on the console in his bed between us. It was his perch with a view out the front windshield and he loved it. We were climbing and climbing through the hills outside of Albuquerque with beautiful views of the mountains in the distance.
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Once we reached the top and went through the pass, we slowly made our descent into Albuquerque.
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It was a clear, blue sky day with a temp of 82 in town. I-40 takes you right through the middle of town, but traffic was light. Once we got to the west side of town we found our campground, American RV Park.
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After registering at the office, we were escorted to site #153 which we will have for the next 3 nights. We paid $37 a night with our Good Sam discount and that includes free breakfast.
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We settled in and checked out the facilities. We will explore the city of Albuquerque and Sante Fe in the time that we’re here. Of course, I researched the place that serves the best Indian tacos in the area, so we’ll eat there one night. I took Auggie for a walk around the campground before dinner while Bob relaxed after his drive of 229 miles today. We treated ourselves to steaks on the grill and enjoyed the rest of the evening. Tomorrow we’ll have a day of exploring the area.