Monday we drove about 75 miles north to Taos New Mexico. and stayed at a nice campground right in town. (Taos Valley RV Park and Campground) We stayed in Taos two nights, went to Rio Grande Gorge which is 700 feet deep, the downtown plaza in Taos, kind of like the Santee Fe plaza but smaller. Like Santee Fe you can buy authentic Indian made jewelry and tourist souvenirs. Taos also has many art gallery's. Besides being a ski resort, Taos is also noted for being an artist colony.
We drove thru a mountain pass to Angel fire to visit the Vietnam Veterans memorial. Originally built by the parents of a young Marine lieutenant who along with sixteen of his men where killed in an ambush in Vietnam. It is now a New Mexico state park and a memorial to all who served in Vietnam.
Wednesday we departed Taos and took the motorhome through the mountain pass to Angel fire and followed the route of the pioneer days Santee Fe trail north to Raton and continued following it east toward Oklahoma. Our destination for the day was Guymon Oklahoma a journey of a little less than 300 miles.
Without a doubt the most interesting aspect of Wednesdays drive is the landscape of Northeastern New Mexico. I am not capable of writing the words that would vividly describe this amazing landscape. Our journey started as a meandering two lane road through a mountain pass. Other than the asphalt roadway I'm sure it looked the same many years ago when wagon trains of pioneers gazed up at the towering snow capped mountains, some as high as 13000 feet. On the other side of the pass a wide valley stretches between mountain ranges. Covered in natural prairie grass it goes on for miles with no sign of human habitation. I stopped several times right in the middle of the road for several minutes at a time and no cars could be seen coming from either horizon. Mule deer graze on the shoulders, prairie dogs play in the road, why, I don't know. The town of Raton is like an oasis, our road (rt 64) and I-25 cross here and the small town has all the expected amenities modern travelers would want.
After lunch and refueling we traveled east leaving the little metropolis and once again entering a desolate landscape. slowly the land became grass covered rolling hills then flattened into irrigated farmland as we neared the Oklahoma border.
There is an interesting spot along rt 64 just a few miles shy of the Oklahoma border. There is a dirt road that angles up to meet rt 64. This intersection is the northwest border of the state of Texas. There is no marker, no souvenir shops, just an old livestock pen, but from here to the South Padre Island the extreme southern most point in Texas is 900 miles.
Soon after we entered Oklahoma the winds started picking up, coming from the north they were hitting us broadside before circling down and around to create the Santa Anna winds for California. Although it didn't seem that strong while driving a strong gust popped the fiberglass roof out of its aluminum channel for the entire length of the motorhome on the drivers side.
I stopped at Boise City and bought two rolls of duck tape at the John Deere tractor dealership. I parked the motorhome on a lot where an old building had been torn down and made a temporary repair. While I was on the roof putting the fiberglass roof sheeting back in the channel and securing it with duct tape, Millie found a 1900 quarter on the ground, that was pretty cool.
After the repair we drove another 45 miles to our overnight destination in Guymon Oklahoma. We are staying at a drive-in movie theater that has a section of the parking area converted into RV spaces. unfortunately for us they're not showing a movie until Friday.
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