On The Meandering Road: March 30, 2016 - Roswell, NM to Taos, NM

We had another gorgeous day, but it was still very windy (in opposite direction). We spent the morning setting up/cleaning our Lil' Home (LH). Just like cleaning a house, but much quicker. We got everything prepped for our next trip.

Mourning Dove with the Moon in the background

We left Bottomless Lake State Park campground at 9:15 am. We really liked the state park and hope to camp there again if and when we do visit Roswell, NM.

We stopped at Office Max on Main Street, so Edith can fax a document to House Insurance Company for home insurance cancellation, since we sold the old house and did not need to continue paying on the remainder of the yearly premium. There was this bearded clerk, who helped Edith, that could sign and mentioned that his father was deaf!

Now on Highway 285 North, rolling plains. Clouds were starting to build up. Wind was very strong coming from west pushing the LH a bit.

Lots of pronghorns in the plains and a herd of sheep that were recently shaven were seen.

We had a lunch/rest break at Conco Gas Station/Truck Stop in Vaughn, NM at Hwys 285/54. It was very cold and windy. After the break we got on Highway 54 North to Santa Rosa, NM. We could see lots of wind turbines in the distance. At that point we had not decided where we were camp at tonight. Either Las Vegas or Taos, NM.

Taking a break for lunch!

A wasp was buzzing around inside the LH. How did it get in here, we wondered? We had to wait until we found a safe place to pull over and tried to get the wasp killed or removed.

We turned left on NM 219 to Las Vegas, NM. The route was more scenic than Hwy 285. Rolling roads, terrains, mesas. Deer Xing for 12 miles.

We are always excited to see what lies before us once we get to the top of the mountains.

First sight of snowcapped mountains on NM 219 after crossing I-40 Interstate.

Erwin said it was hard to handle the LH when the winds were blowing hard. Sometimes it felt like the western wind wanted to push us off the road. Sometimes it felt like the left tires were off the road.

Edith told Erwin that she saw one cloud that looked like an UFO spaceship. Maybe she is brainwashed after staying in Roswell?

We got on I-25 North to Las Vegas, NM. We changed our mind and decided not to spend the night in Las Vegas, continued on to Taos, NM. While in Las Vegas Erwin made a couple calls to campgrounds in Taos. Most of them were not open until May 1st. Next choice is to stay at Taos Walmart, which allows overnight stay.

We reached 7,000’ north of Las Vegas on NM 518. We had diesel fill-up at Conoco in Mora, NM. We can clearly see snowcapped mountains from the gas station. $2.04 g $95 for 46.364 gallons

The elevation reached 8,000’ while we went up on Sipapu Mtns (Carson National Forest). The temperature before reaching the top was 41˚, but quickly dropped to 31˚ when we were at 9,000’ Roads were very twisty. There were light flurries for a short while.

We saw 4-5 elk when we were about 10 miles away from Taos Walmart.

Elk

We arrived Taos, NM around 5 pm. To be sure Erwin talked to the manager at Walmart if it was okay to stay at the parking lot overnight and the manager said that will not be a problem. The parking lot is not exactly big and there was already one RV parked at the end. Behind it was a car and that did not leave enough room for us to park there. We looked around and found one on the other side of the lot. We had to unhook the Jeep first, so Erwin can back in the LH into a space that is near the fenced lot that had bags of mulch.

After supper we went out for a drive, went to Taos Pueblo, NM. As soon as we got to the area there was a sign notifying tourists that it is closed. Instead of making a left turn to leave the town she went right. Oh!!! Oh!!! A police car was after her with sirens and lights on! The police officer was very polite after Edith explained to him that she is deaf. He explained that we were not allowed on that road (only for residents), told us to turn around and go back the same way we came in. Taos Pueblo is not open for tourism until April 25th.

After turning right on Hwy 64 from Taos Pueblo we continued driving for few miles. Edith found a good spot to get pictures of Wheeler Peak and surrounding peaks. There was another photographer there and he showed Edith the exact spot he stood on. Edith graciously thanked him for the information and took pictures.

We stopped at a shopping district, but most stores were already closed. There were many interesting sculptures and we decided that we will come visit it tomorrow.