Day 14 - Alamogordo NM to Las Cruces NM

A short drive from Alamogordo to our first stop: the White Sands National Monument. This is a 275 square mile area of desert made up of white gypsum sand. What a beautiful place! We drove through part of the area and took a hike of about an hour back into the dunes. The first picture shows some typical vegetation in the area. The second shows a bunch of kids pretending that it is really snow. We were fortunate to be there in the morning because the temperature was in the mid-60's. I'd hate to be in there if it were in the 90's. Next we drove through the White Sands Missile Range. We didn't take any hits. On to Las Cruces where we went to the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum. It told the story of 3,000 years of agriculture in the area through displays of animals, equipment, etc. We saw one guy give a demo on water dowsing. Then we saw a blacksmith turn a metal rod into an old style nail. Dorothy got to keep the nail as a souvenir. There is a beautiful cactus garden outside the museum and the last picture shows a cactus in bloom. A nice quiet but fun day.

Day 13 - Albuquerque NM to Alamogordo NM

Had a great stay in Albuquerque. Left 9-ish and decided to drive to the top of the mountain that overlooks town, even though it was clouded in at the time - we had rain overnight. After we started up the mountain, we noticed some white stuff above us. It kept getting deeper on the trees and roadsides as we went up the 19 mile road. We were near the top before there was any on the road and it wasn't slippery, but there was about 3-4 inches of snow on the ground and it was 27 degrees at the top. Quite a surprise! We went south on a scenic highway and passed several bike club groups on Saturday morning outings. Must have seen 50 cyclists. Drove back roads, all paved, across country. That's how you really get to see what an area is like, rather than zooming down an interstate. We were about ready for a rest and saw a sign for some Pueblo ruins. On a whim we followed the sign and found a real gem. It was called the Quarai site and was built by the Indians in the 1600's, using a Spanish design. The Park Service has an interesting method of crowd control. They have a sign that says: "Respect the privacy of our rattlesnakes. Stay on the footpaths." We did. Followed a walking trail and had lunch out of the trunk before moving on. Using the same formula, we drove for quite a while, got tired of riding and stopped at a place called the Valley of Fires. It's a 127 square mile area of black lava and we followed a walking trail through the lava field. One of the pictures shows a 400 year old Juniper tree. So we got some good exercise today. Drove through a bunch of pistachio farms before stopping at Alamogordo.

Day 12 - 4/28/06 - Albuquerque NM

We liked this area and motel so much that we decided to stay another night. Last night we ate at Cracker Barrel, for a touch of home. We've been pigging out on Mexican cuisine so much that I may not be able to eat at Taco Bell again. There's a big Indian Powwow in Albuquerque now and we were lucky to get a motel room. We spent about 5 hours downtown this morning where many of the area's activities are clustered. Started out with the NM Museum of Natural History (see dinosaur picture) and it was fabulous. Loads of school kids were there making good use of the interactive exhibits. Then went across the street to the Albuquerque Art Museum, which had lots of sculpture including a goofy guy outside who apparently needed a goofy companion. Right next to the art museums was a place called Old Town, which is about 300 years old and has lots of gift shops and restaurants. We had some of that good Mexican cuisine there. Dorothy explored the gift shops (damage not too bad) while I kept the park benches across the street from floating away. The San Miguel church shown in picture is part of Old Town. Albuquerque was great and we're heading south in the morning.

Day 11 - Los Alamos NM to Albuquerque NM

Left the back way out of Los Alamos to go over the mountain to the Jemez recreation area. On the way we drove through an area near Los Alamos that had experienced a major forest fire within the last year or so. It was already starting to come back. More beautiful scenery in the Jemez area (see first picture) including a high country valley that was very nice. From there went to the Petroglyph National Monument and saw quite a few examples of petroglyphs that were made somewhere between 1000 B.C. and 1600 A.D. They are on a little hill overlooking Albuquerque - that's the scenic overlook picture. At the motel this morning I called the Olympus camera support staff to try to determine what to do with my non-functioning camera. After describing the symptoms, he told me to "send it in to the factory for repairs". I told him that I was on my way to an Elderhostel on digital photography and I had to have a camera. He said "send it in to the factory for repairs". So we stopped at a Best Buy and bought a new camera for me to use at the course - it wasn't an Olympus. I'll get the old one repaired and sell it on E-Bay. One observation on New Mexico: houses come in four colors - beige, cream, tan and ecru. Also public buildings, businesses, highway overpasses, bridges, etc. An interesting combination but I like it. The last picture shown is actually left over from yesterday - I didn't want you to miss the snow-covered peaks. FROM GHOST: this is short for Ghostwriter and I will tell it like it really happened. One day on the way to Taos we were taking the scenic road and the driver missed the turn and pretty soon we were on a dirt road.The driver decided to turn around.......good thing. The driver thought we should turn around after we forded 2 streams. The driver hates to give up the wheel, especially in the mountains. His knuckles were white the day I came down the mountain. And he tried to sleep when I drive because then one can not see what is going on. The road signs are hard to get used to. Maybe the state decided to warn one of an approaching turn and maybe not. We have passed many a corner and had to circle back. So far there have been no big arguments. GHOST

Day 10 - Santa Fe NM to Los Alamos NM

A cool crisp morning start from Santa Fe. The first picture is an attempt to show how New Mexico designs their overpasses using the adobe theme. Really cool. We decided to take a scenic drive loop around Taos. Just before we got to Taos we saw a sign warning of elk crossing the road in this area. Just after that we had an animal cross in front of us but it wasn't an elk, it was a bear. He was going at full speed from the left side so I honked and hit the brakes. He kept coming so I did more of same, but harder. The brakes just won out but we both had a scare. Continued on the scenic drive and found some high country with ski lodges and some snow still on the mountains. Drove through a high country valley with a lake in the middle. After the scenic loop we went on to Los Alamos and toured the Bradbury museum, which told the story of building the two atomic bombs that were dropped on Japan. While in the area we went to the Bandolier National Monument, which was about some early cliff dwellers in this area. By then we were too tired to continue so came back to Los Alamos for the night. My new camera that I got for the Elderhostel broke today so will see if I can get it repaired tomorrow. Fortunately brought my old one along.

GHOST'S STORY

i was beginning to think that all motels, rest stops and restaurants had sandpaper provided for no extra charge. thought we would have to stop at walmart for some good old soft potty paper but Santa Fe has come through with the soft goods....................................GHOST

Day 9 - Roswell NM to Santa Fe NM

Now in Mountain Time Zone. Roswell seems to quite a prosperous community. Much business activity and a strong agricultural sector. Roswell is a dairy production center and also is a major producer of mozzarella cheese. We headed out on a long and quiet drive towards Santa Fe. Saw many ranches with lots of cattle, with quite a few deer mixed in. There was much variation in the geology as well as the vegetative cover, so it wasn't a boring drive. Beautiful country with very little traffic. In one of the towns we passed through Dorothy saw a business advertising sign that she wanted included: "We Scoop the Poop - Dog Janitor - $7 a week". Also crossed US Route 70 (Kingston Pike extended) and the famous Route 66. We arrived in Santa Fe early enough to get a room and walk to the downtown area. I had forgotten my history about how old Santa Fe is. We saw the oldest public building in the US - the Palace of the Governors - (low building in picture) and the oldest church in the US - San Miguel Mission - which was first built in the 1600's (pictured outside and inside). Toured the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum as well as the one in the Palace of Governors, which told the long history of New Mexico. Stopped by the NM State Capitol Building to look at some art displayed - Dorothy found some new friends to play with there. Also heard that the NM legislature met only 30 days this last year - might be a good idea for Tennessee.

Day 8 - Van Horn TX to Roswell NM

Yes, we had to stay in Roswell NM to see if Dorothy could find any of her relatives. Just kidding!!! We started the day in Van Horn TX. We heard on TV that they had a 10% chance of rain today. We had never heard of predicting only a 10% chance of rain but when it's this dry I guess you have to have hope. Once we started, we quickly got involved in a highway repair project. Sat on the road for 20-30 minutes while they did whatever they had to do. Went to Guadalupe Mountain National Park for a relatively quick stop. That picture is of a mountain called El Capitan and it was a sentinel for pioneers going west through here. It was very impressive. This area sure has a lot of wind. Saw some more wind turbines on tops of hills or mesas. We went by a station from the old Butterfield Overland Stage, which promised a St Louis to San Francisco trip in 25 days. I don't think that their stagecoaches had shock absorbers either. Then moved on to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Neither of us had ever been there and we had no idea of the magnitude of the caverns. We did a self-guiding tour and went at a leisurely pace. It's hard to believe that water could have created all that beauty. Capped the day by stopping in Roswell NM and visiting the International UFO Museum. It was quite ,em, interesting. But a real good tourist attraction. On to Santa Fe tomorrow.

Day 7 - Big Bend Natl Park to Van Horn TX

After a robust breakfast at the Park Lodge restaurant, we went on a short walk called the Window View Trail, which goes out to a beautiful point in a natural amphitheater. As the sun was rising on this Sunday morning, that was our church service. Our impression of the Big Bend National Park was very positive - it's a huge natural area that is a geologist's dream - and also a birder's we heard. We also saw lots of bicyclists and motorcyclists in the area. Some of the mountains and landforms were really awe-inspiring. We didn't do the Park justice by being there only one day. From there we headed across country to Fort Davis TX. This was another pre-Civil War outpost that is in various stages of restoration. Just a few miles away was our next stop - the McDonald Observatory, a world-famous astronomy research facility. We took the tour and were very impressed, although they didn't let us look out the telescope. They have night programs three nights a week and we missed them. Our evening meal was at John Madden's favorite restaurant. He's a famous football announcer so the restaurant was full of sports memoribilia. Now for Dorothy's Health status report. After one full week on the road, I am happy to report that she is doing fine. At the Observatory, we had to climb 70 steps (at 6500 feet elevation) to get to one area for the presentation. She wasn't puffing as much as I was when we got there. Of course when she really felt good was when a young mother told her this morning that she didn't think that Dorothy was old enough to be retired and just cruising around the West. She can live off that one for a few days.

Day 6 - Fort Stockdale TX to Big Bend Natl Park TX

No internet service last night because.... we were fortunate enough to get a space in a lodge in the Park. Started out in Fort Stockdale and went off-interstate on a less-traveled road that had lots of wildlife. We saw jack rabbits, mule deer, road runners, quail and lots of ugly red-headed buzzards, who seemed to think that Route 385 was their dining table. We stopped at Park headquarters and got our lodging, then went on a scenic drive that took about three hours. The back part of the drive went right along the Rio Grande River and we went on a short hike to an overlook with a nice view. The cliffs on the Mexican side were awesome. The return trip was on a mostly-gravel road that hadn't been maintained in a while. Back at the Lodge, we experienced a rare treat - it rained for about 45 minutes. In this kind of desert environment that's pretty special. They told us that the desert will now "bloom" in about two days. Sorry we won't be there to experience it. While we didn't have internet service, we also didn't have telephone or television service in the rooms last night. That lead to a nice quiet evening of reading, watching the mule deer behind our place, and seeing a beautiful sunset just as the rain finished.

Day 5 - San Antonio TX to Fort Stockdale TX

Left San Antonio at 9-ish to head west into the Texas Hill country. Not a lot of noteworthy sights except we did pass through the town of Welfare, TX. The next town to it was Comfort TX. Don't know if they are related. Texas has road signs all over the state that say "Drive Friendly", whatever that means. Passed through an area where there was a grass seed farm then into an area where they raise sheep and goats for wool and mohair. Saw a few oil wells but this does not seem to be much of a production area. Stopped at an interstate picnic area for lunch then stopped later at Fort Lancaster, an Army outpost before the Civil War. Wasn't much left of it. Probably the most impressive sight today was near McCamey TX, where they have a bunch of wind turbines that produce electricity. They were one to three deep and went on for about 20 miles. Quite impressive. Again, everything is bigger. . . . . Got into Fort Stockton fairly early and went to a local museum. Fort Stockton is famous as the site of a statue of a giant roadrunner. Hope to get up early and head for the Big Bend National Park in the morning. If we stay in the Park tomorrow night we may not have internet service. We'll wait and see.

A Beautiful morning in San Antonio. A front moved through last night, brought some overnight rainfall and cooled off the place. They have an IMAX theater near the Alamo so we went to two shows. In the morning we went to see a re-creation of the Lewis & Clark expedition, since we had gone on the whole trail last year. It brought back a lot of memories and added a few new insights. After lunch we saw the story of the falling of the Alamo. Pretty bloody. They apparently give group discounts to the school systems because we had several hundred kids at each performance. Pretty well behaved too. In between we had lunch and went for the boat ride around the Riverwalk. That was much fun and we learned quite a bit about San Antonio history in the process. We then walked for quite a while around the downtown area and saw lots of interesting activities and people. Interesting isn't quite the word for some of the people. We saw one old old church and stepped inside to check out the architecture. We accidently happened in on a mass and I think the priest blessed both of us. The picture with all the bright colored flags is called Market Place and by that time our legs were getting rather tired. An evening on the Riverwalk again and two tired puppies ready for a driving day tomorrow.

Day 3 - Winnie TX to San Antonio TX

We started out early after a light breakfast to drive across Texas. When we came into Texas on the interstate, the first interchange was number 878. This means that the state is almost 900 miles across. Like they say, everything is bigger in Texas. Other unique Texas sights included a crop duster at work, a school bus farm, and spaghetti piles of interstate passovers in Houston. We also got involved in an early morning Houston traffic jam (think Atlanta). Our first stop was just north of Houston at a guest ranch which was for many years owned by Dorothy's father's cousin. She hadn't been back for many years and she said that it had been improved dramatically since she was a little girl. We got to meet the managers and they let us take a golf cart around the ranch to see all the facilities. From there, we headed for San Antonio, with lunch at a picnic area along the interstate. I thought it might be interesting to go back to the place I took Air Force OTS, which was at Lackland AFB. After going all the way out to the base, I found out that you had to have an appointment to get on the base and the next one available is in the middle of May. We decided not to wait. My memories of that place aren't that favorable anyway. After driving around downtown San Antonio, we settled in at a Travelodge. Went for a walk to the Alamo, then had a bite at a sidewalk cafe along the Riverwalk. It is very warm - must be over 90 degrees. Will try to do outside stuff early tomorrow to avoid the heat. Glen

Day 2 - Forest MS to Winnie TX

Had a big hot breakfast in MS and got on the road by 7:00. Traveled through lots of Mississippi, and if anyone ever tells you that there is a world shortage of trees, you need to send them to Mississippi. We usually couldn't see beyond the line of trees along the interstate. Entered Louisiana where we saw more trees, bayous and 10-15 mile long bridge or elevated roadway going over a swamp. Had some really good cajun cuisine in Lafayette - I had crawfish for the first time. After lunch we looked for an acadian village exhibit in Lafayette but couldn't find it. We stopped and asked for directions from a local resident and you know how that went. So much for the acadian village. We drove on to Beaumont TX and were getting tired so we stopped at a motel. Actually we stopped at four motels and nobody had any room. That's why we're spending the night in Winnie TX, which is about 50 miles east of Houston. Today was a day of strange place names: Bogue Chitto, Tickfaw, Breaux Bridge, and the Atchafalaya swamp - also passed through Orange TX. Passed by some rice paddies today, also saw some live oaks. We've driven about 450 miles each of the first two days. There wasn't much to take photos of today.

Day 1 Knoxville to Forest Mississippi

Left home at 8:07, drove through Chattanooga to Desoto State Park in Alabama. Saw some beautiful scenery driving along the ridge of Lookout Mountain. Also a couple of really nice waterfalls. We didn't know that Alabama had that kind of scenery. We had a picnic at one of the overlooks - Dorothy took lots of food. Drove on through Birmingham and Tuscaloosa Al on to spend the night at Forest MS, about 40 miles east of Jackson. It was 91 degrees when we stopped, and it's still April. I had some really great Mississippi catfish tonight. I'm having trouble getting pictures loaded into the blog so I'll be imageless until I get it figured out. Maybe I can add them later. Glen