THE BAYFIELD BUNCH ROLLS INTO RUSTY’S RV RANCH NEAR PORTAL, ARIZONA

 

 

OUR SITE AT RUSTY’S RV RANCH WITH THE CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS IN THE BACKGROUND

I must begin this blog by referring back to last night's blog & retracting my comments regarding my impression of the 'Columbus Best RV Park.  I had driven through that park 3 years ago & it was pretty shabby so had carelessly based my impression of the park in part on my memory without paying a lot of attention to our surroundings last night.  That all changed this morning when we took the dogs for a walk.  I began seeing a lot of improvements to the park & it was obvious the owners or maybe even new owners have been putting a lot of time & effort into making improvements.  I immediately came back to the rig, brought up last night's blog on Live Writer & re-wrote my opinions of the Park.  I then grabbed my camera & went out & took some photos.

 

COLUMBUS BEST RV PARK IN COLUMBUS, NEW MEXICO

A FEW PHOTOS AROUND THE ‘COLUMBUS BEST RV PARK’

That little walk around this morning reminded me that I did not yet have my southwest head on & I was still looking at things through Ontario eyes.  I have made that mistake every year we come here but at least this time I became aware of my error a lot sooner than in the past.  It's difficult to explain but where & how we live in Ontario is much different than our lifestyle while in the southwest.  Almost like 2 different planets because of the environmental changes alone.   And, to some extent, different cultures.  Foods are different, laws are different, people dress differently, attitudes are noticeably different, the coffee is even different  etc.  And, because of these differences a person has to be willing to adapt & go with their changed environment.  In other words we put away our Ontario hats & put on our southwest hats & we see clearly with our southwest eyes:))

LOTS OF BIG RIG ROOM HERE IN THIS COLUMBUS RV PARK

We were packed up & on the road by 8:20.  Said our good-byes to Columbus thanking her for our great memories 3 years ago & swung onto highway 9 & heading west.  This road runs parallel to the Mexican border just a few miles to the south & we had driven it once before on our western trek in 2006.  It's a nice quiet road & 7 of the 10 oncoming vehicles we met in the 80 mile drive were border control vehicles.  Looking across the barren scrubland to the distant mountains in Mexico one can't help but think of the days when Pancho Villa & his men rode these lands.  The only time the United States has ever been invaded was back in the little town of Columbus, New Mexico we had just left.  It was 1916 & it was Pancho Villa who led that invasion.  Yes, a lot of history in this area.

FIRST SIGHT OF THE CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS STRETCHED ACROSS THE HORIZON ABOVE THE HIGHWAY

Just west of a little town called Animas I finally caught sight of the mighty Chiricahua mountain range dead ahead.  What a great sight that was because it marked our first destination on this years trek.  We had decided last March while on a day trip to this area that we would like to come back & spend more time exploring around here.  It's right on the way to our ranch destination near Douglas Arizona in a few days so it fit perfectly into our travel plans.  We weren't sure about boondocking in these parts so a couple of months ago on the internet I came across an RV Park near the tiny town of Portal Arizona.  I'm not big on RV parks but it seemed the only likely spot around, so this morning about 11:35 the Bayfield Bunch rolled through the gates of RUSTY'S RV RANCH  Right off the bat we could see it was a nice looking place & I was bolstered by the fact there were only a few other rigs here.  It had been the same last night at Columbus Best & the night before at Boot Hill in Tularosa.  My biggest bug-a-boo about RV Parks is the way people are crammed in like sardines with little regard to privacy, quiet, or people comforts.  I could see right off the bat we were not going to have problems like that here.  So, with those thoughts in mind we checked in to the office & met Rusty her very self.  Now here is a gal with personality plus:))

IN RUSTY’S GARDEN

Rusty led the way in a golf cart & put us in a spot just across from the dogging walking area which of course if very handy for us.  And the first order of the day was to get the doggies over there for some much needed walking of course.  The lots are 200 feet long with room on either side.  No Verizon or antennae television signals here but the park has a well working WiFi system & we were on-line immediately.  Re-organized the car, grabbed a shower & headed off to the office to do a load of laundry while Kelly took the car & headed for the new desert museum nearby that has just opened.  We'll go again to-morrow.  While the laundry was in the machines I took myself for a walk around the park taking pictures.  I will have those photos in Monday's blog.  Just too darned tired to-night to get at them.  Soaked up some sun in the late afternoon & decided around 5 to have a crack at setting up our new Star Choice satellite dish.  Well, needless to say that sure took us some doing.  I had to figure out the dish mechanics & co-ordinates while Kelly was inside figuring out the receiver & television configuration stuff.  With a flurry of Azimuth's, longitudes, latitudes, crazy horse dudes, elevations, & skews I finally had the dish pointed correctly in the vicinity of the unseen satellite somewhere up there in that big blue sky.  We finally locked onto the bird but Kelly was having trouble getting anything on the screen resembling programming.  Wasn't until our teamwork finally came to-gether & I remembered to switch the cable at the back of the TV to satellite cable from antennae that things started to make sense.  Kelly then remembered to set the remote for cable instead of TV & that really got things moving for us.  Last step was to call Star Choice & have the system activated which Kelly did.........& after about 2 hours of frustrated strugglings we were finally up & running with our new cable TV system.  Geeeezzzz, will wonders ever cease.

JUST GOT OUR STAR CHOICE DISH UP & RUNNING TO-NIGHT BEFORE SUNDOWN

That Star Choice set up put me a couple hours behind to-night so I'm going to wrap this & head for bed.  Both Max & the Motormouse are on there right now keeping the covers warm for me.  Oh the perks of having a furry family:))

P.S. It is a totally beautiful desert night with a full moon bathing the desert floor & nearby mountains in pastel moonlight.  And I caught my first glimpse of winter’s best known constellation too………Orion.

GROANER'S CORNER:((  It's hard to make a comeback when you haven't been anywhere.

FACEBOOK READERS GO HERE TO SEE OUR ACTUAL WEBSITE COMPLETE WITH PHOTOS & MORE INFO.

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The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

THE BAYFIELD BUNCH BRIEFLY RETURNS TO COLUMBUS, NEW MEXICO…….’SI SENOR’

 

BOOT HILL RV PARK WITH MOUNT SIERRA BLANCA IN BACKGROUND

(Click any photo to enlarge)

Kelly's Ontario body clock told her last night it was 10 o’clock so she headed for bed at 8.  Or, was it nine.  She was back up at 3 thinking it was 5.  I went to bed at 11 thinking it was 7 & was back up at 2 to shut the computer off because I had fallen asleep waiting for the blog to upload.  I was back up at 3:30 because Kelly was up at 3.....or was it 5 Ontario time.    We have passed through 2 time zones & one Texas time warp so far & our internal clocks are in turmoil.  To-night, or was it last night the clocks are turned back but to-morrow we'll be in Arizona where time never changes anyway so we haven't a clue if we’ll be on time, in time, or overtime for anything.  By the time we get up it might be time to go to bed again.   Right now I think it's 5 p.m. New Mexico time, or was it really 7 o’clock Arkansas time.  Well, whatever it is I’m sure it will be subject to change of course!!  About time I moved on to something else I’d say…………………………….

I TOT I TAW A PUDDY TAT!!

Neither one of us had enough energy to climb out our pajamas this morning until nearly 9 a.m.  And even then it was struggle as we puttered around in slow motion.  Finally got things organized enough to get the big wheels rolling again about 11:20.  Stopped at the office & signed up for a Passport America membership.  Geeeeez, could it be I'm coming down with a bad case of RV Parkitus!!  The nice Boot Hill folks gave us the Passport rate for our stay & less than 6 hours later we would use it again for additional mega savings....more about that later.

 

DON’T HAVE A DINETTE SO WE EAT ANYWHERE WE CAN

Should mention that we had a great Verizon connection at Boot Hill & were able to get 4 channels with the rigs TV antennae.  Directly across from Boot Hill is McGinn's Pistachio Tree Ranch so when your cruising along number 70 just look for the huge Pistachio out front on the west side of the road.  Your Boot Hill turn off is across from the big Pistachio:))

THE BIG PISTACHIO ACROSS FROM THE BOOT HILL RV PARK

(HOVER YOUR MOUSE OVER ABOVE PHOTOS FOR CAPTIONS & CLICK TO ENLARGE)

We slipped around busy Alamogordo on the by-pass & headed southwest past White Sands National Monument.  We were there last year so have a look at our photos at  WHITE SANDS.  Between Alamogordo & Las Cruces just south west of White Sands lies the jagged peaked San Adreas mountain range.  Highway 70 runs up & over the mountains through the San Augustin pass & it's a long haul of a grade to reach the peak.  Luckily it's two & 3 lanes.  By the time we crested the peak we were down to 35 mph with Kelly out behind pushing.  The descent on the west side is steep so we had to deploy the drag shute to slow our descent into Las Cruces:))

DESCENDING INTO LAS CRUCES NEW MEXICO

It's pretty straight forward rolling through Las Cruces, just pay attention to the road signs, swear at the appropriate times, & keep your foot on the gas.  By 2:30 we were.....or was it 3:30 we were rolling into Deming New Mexico for a fuel stop ($2.89 a gallon) & Wal-Mart groceries.   Parking lot was really jammed up with big 18 wheeler rigs so had to park next door at K-Mart.  Parking lot there was so empty you could have landed a Jumbo Jet sideways..........twice!!

THESE ARE SOME OF THE GREAT BOOKS WE USE IN OUR TRAVELS

Decided at this point to head down to Columbus New Mexico near the Mexican border.  We have fond memories of our previous 2 times there 3 years ago.  That is where we both got to sit on Santa's knee on Christmas Day 2006.  We also had some dental work done & eye glasses made over the border in Palomas.  And, of course we totally loved the Pink Store.  I blogged & included photos of our time at the PINK STORE just this past April 26th & for the day we got to sit on Santa’s knee just click HERE:))

FULL HOOK-UPS FOR $7 AT ‘BEST RV PARK’ IN COLUMBUS NEW MEXICO

Had originally planned to boondock near the train station museum but Kelly noticed in our new Passport America book that there was an RV Park affiliate right here in Columbus.  So, because we now have joined PM the site would be half price.  And half price it was at $7 with full hook-ups.  I remember driving through this park 3 years ago & I wasn’t too impressed but there has been a big change.  I seem to recall old trailers before but they are gone now.  It was a tired old park but the tired has been replaced with new energy & this park has really been cleaned up.  Young pine trees have been planted with attention paid to watering.   They have 55 RV sites & the park is large enough to accomodate any rig.  Big turn around area.  14 full hook-up pull through sites, 41 water/sewer sites ,& 30 amp electric.  Excellent Verizon coverage here though & we can get  about 14 clear television channels with the rigs antennae & about half of them are in English.   Free Wifi as well plus showers & laundry.  Something tells me we are going to have a rooster getting us up early to-morrow morning or maybe, just maybe, it will be us getting up that rooster.  Now, let me see..........what time is it anyway!!

“BOO!!”        “TRICK OR TREAT:))”

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Old people shouldn't eat health foods. They need all the preservatives they can get!!

FACEBOOK READERS GO HERE TO SEE OUR ACTUAL WEBSITE COMPLETE WITH PHOTOS & MORE INFO.  BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

BROWNFIELD TEXAS-THROUGH THE APACHE PASS-TO TULAROSA NEW MEXICO

 

A BIT OF SNOW IN THE APACHE PASS

It was the coldest night of our trip so far & we realized that when we couldn't wind our TV antennae all the way down this morning because of ice on the moving parts.  Told Kelly a hammer would make short work of that ice & she told me waiting half an hour for the sun to melt the ice would work batter.  We waited for the sun!!  Heavy frost on the cars windshield & I'm surprised our outside water hose didn't freeze up.  It was 8:20 when we waved good-bye to Brownfield Texas & headed west to-wards the mountains of New Mexico.

OH OH….DID WE BREAK A WINDOW……NO, ICE OFF THE AWNING	FROST ON THE WINDSHIELD THIS MORNING
FIRST GLIMPSE OF THE MOUNTAINS
APACHE PASS

It was 10:30 about 45 miles east of Roswell when I first caught sight of the mountains.  Came around a slight curve on the highway, over a rise, & there nearly a hundred miles away, low on the horizon barely visible, a dark object.  To the left of the highway many miles further south another peaked object but light colored.  Snow on Sierra Blanca mountain.  All the way to Roswell I watched these two mountains slowly growing.  The high snow covered peak of Sierra Blanca had a slight cream color & appeared as it would in a fairy tale painting.

IT WAS IN THIS DIRECTION THAT THE ‘ROSWELL UFO INCIDENT’ HAPPENED!!

We had decided earlier not to stop in Roswell so at 11:30 we rolled right through town & out the other side steadily climbing into the foothills of the Sacramento mountain range.  It was a beautiful sunny day so we knew the roads would be clear in the mountains.  A scenic four lane highway led us through Ruidoso & into the Apache Pass.  We had been expecting to see snow piled high alongside the roads but there was barely an inch on the ground & it was melting fast.  This is probably the most we will see of winter this year & it was really pretty to spend the 20 minutes it took to drive through it.  Now that's the kind of winter I don't mind. 

The descent from the 7500 foot Apache Pass peak is a gentle glide to the Tularosa Valley floor below.  As we rounded a bend I could see the Oregon Mountain range in the far distant haze with the the white sands of Alamogordo stretching out before them in a long thin band from north to south.  This marked the true beginning of our return to the American southwest & I felt like we had finally reached our second home at last.  With the crossing of this mountain range comes the notable change in landscape, flora & fauna & by the time we reached the valley floor we were seeing agave, yucca, prickly pear cacti. trees, mountain ranges, & desert.  A total change from the past 3 days crossing the great barren flat plains of the American west.

IT’S JIM FROM THE BOOT HILL RV PARK IN TULAROSA, NEW MEXICO

We had friends waiting for us in Tularosa.  Two years ago we met another RV couple at the HICKIWAN TRAILS RV PARK in Why, Arizona.  We have kept in touch via email & when John & Pat Mattoon knew we were headed their way they invited us out for supper.  The highway from Tularosa to Alamogordo runs about a quarter mile from their house & on that corner is large new RV Park which John helped the new owners to build. He had pre-arranged a site for us there close to the dog run.  We rolled into the BOOT HILL RV PARK  about 2 p.m. & met owners Cindy & Jim Livers.  This is one mighty nice park they have here & I will post a photo album of the park shortly.  Just not enough energy left to do it to-night. 

View Full Album

Jim led us to our easy pull through site & it wasn't long & I was headed for the camps showers while Kelly took the furry guys over to the spacious dog walking area.  The 2 shower rooms were a surprise because they were large & complete with toilet & sink.  And, lots of hooks to hang things on.  Everything was spotless & new.  The shower stall had a fold down seat as well.  Didn't take me long to have that boiling water just bubbling out of that shower head.  I had it so hot in there it peeled the paint of the walls & it took me over half an hour to find my clothes in the heavy pea souper of a steamy fog.  Yep, I was needin a good long hot shower fix real bad!!

Later took myself for a walk around the Park taking photos.  These folks have sure put a lot of work into this park & I would recommend it as fine stop if your ever traveling through this area.  The word 'quality' comes to mind here. 

SIERRA BLANCA MOUNTAIN AS SEEN FROM THE RV PARK (with a telephoto lens:)

Our friends John & Pat just live around the corner so Kelly & I walked over to their place about 3:30 to meet them & their daughter Kelly.  Kelly is an artsy person & has used some of my photos in her artwork.  Two of them were hanging in the gift shop of the main RV park lobby.  Kelly takes the photos, has them printed in black & white & then paints them.  She does a terrific job & it's nice to know that I am a small part of the finished product.  I don't have a real good track record for doing things right but every once in awhile it's nice to see something I've done giving inspiration to someone else.  Had ourselves a visit & then everybody piled into Kelly's car & John drove us to Margo's Mexican restaurant in Alamogordo.  As most of you know I am not an adventurous eater so it took me awhile to scan the menu for familiar words.  Finally, after what seemed an eternity I found a 'gravy' word, then 'chicken steak.'  And what really excited me were the words 'Texas toast.'  When the waitress uttered the magic words, 'French fries' I knew I was home.  I don't know what all the other guys ate but it was kinda orange, yellow, green & soupy looking.  I'm sure they were all envious of my Texas toast & fries but it was too late for them......I wasn't sharing!!!!

KELLY, KELLY, PAT & JOHN

We were back to our rig for good-byes around 6 p.m. & John hung around for a bit trying to help out with our non working hydraulic levelers but our coach set up was different than his & neither one of us could find the solenoid switches, power disconnects & stuff.  Power levelers....bah humbug, who needs em anyway!!  Said good-bye to John & we hope to see them in January over at Hickiwan Trails near Why Arizona.  All & all it was nice to see Pat & John again & to meet their lovely daughter Kelly. (kelsiphoto at etsy.com)  Nice folks & a big thanks for supper guys:))

Ok, it's late & I'm wrecked.  These time zone changes have really zonked us.  I'm oughta here!!

GROANER'S CORNER:((  A car mechanic received a repair order that said to check for a clanking noise when going around corners so he took the car out for a test drive and made a right turn, then a left turn, each time hearing a loud clunk.When he arrived back at the garage he returned the car to the service manager with this note: 'Removed bowling ball from trunk.'

FACEBOOK READERS GO HERE TO SEE OUR ACTUAL WEBSITE COMPLETE WITH PHOTOS & MORE INFO.

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

WAITING IN TEXAS FOR THE SNOW TO CLEAR IN NEW MEXICO’S SACRAMENTO MOUNTAINS

 

HERE’S THE BEST PARTS OF THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))

The day dawned cloudy, windy, wet, & cold.  Not a nice RV weather day!!  There is snow & bad weather in the mountains west of Roswell New Mexico & friends in Tularosa on the other side of the mountains said the Apache Pass can be nasty.  Weatherman said they had 13 inches of snow in Ruidoso & that is right on our way.  Decided to spend the day here in Brownfield Texas because we have free water & electricity, nobody else here, & they have a large sports complex area for walking the doggy guys.  Might un-hook the car later & do a mall crawl as well because they have a Wally World here.  I'm feeling like a people fix so just walking around in Wal-Mart for half an hour should fix me up real good for another month.

THE WHOLE GANG WAS POOPED TO-DAY

Ever had one of those really rotten RV days from hell??  Rene & Jim did a few days ago.  Check out their miserable ordeal at LIVE-WORK-DREAM.  We met Rene & Jim last winter at the ranch.  Nice folks.  I used Googles search gadget on our blogger site for the first time to find the Rene & Jim post I did last FEB 13TH & it worked fine.  Sure makes for finding things in previous posts much easier.  Jerry, go to your blogger dashboard & click layout.  Click 'add a gadget' & you will see the Google search gadget in the menu near top.  Click on that & 'poof' it's on your site.  Then, flushed with new confidence & success, get your blender out & try one of my yummy-yukking shakes while your at it:)) 

 

		COLD WIND BLOWING ALL DAY
	WHAT??

HOVER YOUR MOUSE OVER THE PHOTOS FOR CAPTIONS & CLICK THEM TO ENLARGE

4p.m.   We are back from our Wal-mart excursion & I was a bit disappointed in the store.  It's old, not very big, & reminds me of an old Kresge's or Woolworths store from years ago.  Needless to say I didn't walk out of there with my usual Wally World high.  Next it was a grocery store & than back to the rig in the pouring rain with a slight bit of sleet mixed in.  Just not a nice weather day.  Took the panel off the hydraulic leveler box looking for the big red 'easy fix' button but it didn't have one.  I think those 'easy fix buttons are only installed in those high end coaches.  Rest of our day has been spent sitting around reading, ambient music, TV, & slow motion computer stuff.  Air card isn't as fast as we are used to but it helps pass the time waiting for pages to come up.  Kelly also snuck up & gave me a haircut to-day after I fell asleep in the computer chair waiting for a website to open.................:))

HURRY BACK FROM GROCERY SHOPPING MOM & DAD

And welcome to new follower....John Souza Sr:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  I got in a fight with my wife last night and it was totally my fault.  She asked me what was on the TV and I said............"dust."

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.