February 3, 2025
This post covers the week or so since leaving Phoenix. Lots of territory, but in terms of adventures and experiences, not so much. I’m sitting in Van Horn, Texas tonight – 80 degrees upon arrival, but it’s cooling down nicely for a good night’s sleep at the Wild West RV Park. A little past its prime but reasonably priced for a dirt lot with full hook-ups and free wi-fi for a little TV watching tonight. Last night was broken sleep, Audy-wee decided to eat charcoal out of the fire ring where we were camped, and he woke me multiple times to purge his system. The good news is that Audy was fine and hungry by morning.
Of my trip to southern Arizona, the highlights were definitely Picacho Peak State Park and Saguaro National Park. At Picacho Peak, I was able to drink a Modelo while capturing sunset and an unbelievable night sky in the desert. I realized that a little past dusk, when there was still a little backlighting to the mountains, that the rock formation looked like a dragon or dinosaur, can you see it in the photos? Got in a long hike through the cactus, allowing me to work with Audy on the command “close” to navigate without picking up anything prickly. We were successful.
After 2 days in my desert camp, I headed into Tucson. Have to say, this wasn’t the best part of the trip for me, with one exception. I did love seeing the huge saguaro forest, and getting my national park passport stamped! Just for fun, last summer I bought my passport at the Painted Hills national park in Oregon. I now have 2 stamped pages! (Many more to come) Anyway, with the exception of the Maps program trying to take me down 15 miles of wash board road that was clearly marked “RVs not allowed”, I spent ½ day trying to find one of those funny tall saguaros people post online – gosh darn it, no luck, just couldn’t find one that looked like it was flipping people off! (Note: I’ve become very adept at maneuvering the rig around so I can turn around quickly and did not proceed down the authorized road!)
Tucson wasn’t too exciting; in fact, I scheduled 3 days there and by day 2, I was ready to leave. Did the other part of the Saguaro National Forest, not quite as exciting – it is the newer forest to the east of Tucson. By then, I was at the “if you seen one saguaro, you’ve seen them all”.
I also have decided that when I use the Harvest Host program, I will stick to wineries, maybe some breweries. I stayed two nights at farms/ranches under this program, and both required long drives (2 miles) on extremely wash boarded roads. I’ve had to tape, reattach and come up with some creative solutions for what got shook loose or detached. A penny under the strike plate on the bathroom door seems to keep it closed now. I also had a poor experience with a host who was attempting to charge for boon-docking on her property – a violation of the program’s ethics. My review of her property called out for her practice. Enough said. But even with these marginal experiences, I still was able to capture some awesome sunsets in the desert – and a faint rainbow over one of those grand cactuses.
I ended my stay in the Tucson area at the Fairground RV Park, where I got in early enough for an afternoon nap in front of the TV and continued just to chill as the temperature dropped to 30 degrees and rain pummeled Wandering Spirit – which was the universe’s answer to my unsuccessful search for a car wash where I could rinse her off. How I love that my rig is my sanctuary when I just want down time. (And she still needs a good wash).
My faith in Harvest Host was restored once I reached Deming, New Mexico and boondocked at Luna Rossa winery. Great Gewürztraminer wine! And engaging host, Joe. The tasting room became my haven, because when I arrived, I found I had a flat tire, one of my exterior dualies. Thankfully, the Good Sam Road Assistance program got someone out right away – I didn’t even get halfway through my first glass of wine before they showed up with a new tire. My tire had a 2-inch nail it. Where, when and how I picked that up is a mystery but add a new tire to the unexpected expense list. I would add the 2 bottles of wine I purchased also, but that is an expected expense for this trip, actually. And, yes, sunsets over vineyards are gorgeous as well.
On my way to my campsite, I took a side trip to Mesilla, NM to visit their old town plaza. Quaint, wasn’t busy – but finally I could do a little souvenir shopping. And came away with a colorful Baja actually made in Mexico. Love the way they lined the plaza with chilis. Had a delicious Mexican coffee, Tres Leches Latte, at El Chanate Coffee Company. (El Chanate is a small black bird). And found a soul mate in terms of opinions with the owner, a striking young female entrepreneur of Mexican decent, about what is happening in this country. I’ve trying to avoid being political in my posts, let’s just say we both agree that we both have ancestors who came to this country either to escape something bad or to make a better life for their families – we are not that different. And in both of our heritages, we have people who were here long before any of the current nations.
Finally, I took a few more days to camp at Caballo State Park north of Las Cruces, New Mexico. It wasn’t the most interesting spot, or scenic, but still got a few good shots of the lake and the rocky crags behind it. The site was big and level with ramada, grill and firepit (where Audy decided to eat the charcoals I’d discarded, as previously mentioned.) It provided some water play for Audy, and I finally hit days above 70 degrees and was able to sit in the sun in the afternoons. I’m definitely in shorts and sandals now, and I’m proud to say I stopped in Las Cruces to get new shorts. I am officially one size smaller now! Have bought 3 new pairs of pants/shorts at different locations to confirm it. So yes, adventures have many perks, including changing eating habits and increasing walking.
And the change of scenery? In three days, I will be on the Gulf Coast! Namaste.
