Friday, November 23, 2018

Windy, but scenic drive today....



Our Location: Rest Area, Lordsburg, NM



A belated Happy Thanksgiving to our American readers. Sorry I didn’t post yesterday I was lazy and just couldn’t make myself do it. We spent a quiet day at the White’s City BLM, the sun was out, the warmth in the air allowed me some reading time outside as well. We roasted a chicken, had mashed potatoes, stuffing and acorn squash for our feast. We had no complaints of any kind. 
 
Some sights along the way. Stop at a Texas picnic area.

High winds last night through the night had us rocking and rolling until around 4 AM, but then they quieted as quickly as they arrived. This morning we woke to pretty warm temperatures and needed only a zip up hoodie to be outside. We quickly packed up and we were pulling out of the area before 8 AM. It was a bit of a white knuckle drive through the Guadeloupe Mountain Range as the winds are rough in the area, cross winds, head winds, side and tail winds, some all at the same time, or so it felt anyway. We moved along steadily and crossed into Texas pretty quickly after leaving the BLM land. Uneventful drive took us through El Paso, Texas and westward through Las Cruces,  Deming and finally Lordsburg, all of course in New Mexico. We pulled off at Exit 20 at the Lordsburg Rest area where I had read that one could pull up to a little picnic area and spend the night. Ummmm..not quite. It’s at Gage, NM that one can do that, NOT the Lordsburg rest area. So for future reference, I-10 GAGE, NEW MEXICO both directions have nice little rest areas which have picnic areas that include a road way to the little covered area. Areas look big enough to turn a rig around and one can stay for 24 hours at either of these stops. The Lordsburg Rest Area is just long slots like most truck parking at rest areas. FYI, a train track runs past both areas and trains can be heard, both are located right beside I -10 was well.
 
Sorry for the fuzzy pic but it was an action shot, we were driving. Roadrunner at Las Cruces, NM.
 
We did stop in Deming to check out the Walmart parking lot as we have plans for only one night stopping tonight. The lot was full and the empty lot beside where we stayed last time has a ‘Code of Conduct’ sign which says No overnight parking, but a few people looked to be parked there anyway. We however opted to continue after a fill up of Diesel for $3.07 per gallon.
 
Some mountains we seen today on our drive.
 
We pulled into our Lordsburg Rest Area around 2:30 MT, dropped the feet so we aren’t as prone to Rock ’n Roll, and had some lunch. I called Dad, chatted for 20 minutes or so catching up on the deer hunt. Two deer, Rick and his son  Jason were the lucky shots. After that Riley and I took a few loops around the rest area to get some leg stretch in before coming inside and closing the curtains for the night.

 
Signs along the roadway today.
 
Some sad news from sister in law Janet yesterday. Their friend Peter passed away yesterday. Peter and his wife Vicki are wonderful people and I am certain Peter will be missed. Peter has been battling a very aggressive type of cancer for a while, his passing is still a shock of sorts. Vicki and family are in our thoughts. Janet and Dennis flew back to Toronto today but will return to Indian Wells in the near future. 
 
A few sights including El Paso from the downward side of the mountain, top right picture.
 
There you have it, our last couple of days. I hope you enjoyed your visit.

 
Some more views of our scenic drive today.
 
Until next time…. take care, be safe,

Deb

6 comments:

  1. You are making good time and soon be in Arizona, we are looking forward to getting that way as well in a couple off weeks. The Deming Walmart was probably full for the Black friday sales, it is a popular stopping spot for rv'ers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We have indeed arrived today in Arizona, and are at Quail Ridge RV for a week. Looking forward to sitting in a comfortable place for a few days and getting some chores accomplished too. The Walmart in Deming is always busy but there was also a number of big rigs in the lot which took up a lot of space. I'm sure we could have parked next door but it wasn't far to Lordsburg and so we just kept going.

      Take care, be safe,
      Deb

      Delete
  2. The winds can rock you to sleep or do the opposite and keep you awake. I hope it was a good night for you.
    Often now, we prefer places other than Walmarts, they are making it difficult to get in a lot of them.
    Nice pictures Deb of your travels. So exciting to see the mountain views for the first time each winter!
    Nice picture of Riley with your rig at the beginning of your post. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Patsy. I'm not sure I'll ever get used to the winds out here but they certainly do get ones attention. We like Walmart as it's convenient but like you we are finding it easier to stay other places as well. For a quick over night I think there are a number of places we could probably stop with no troubles and I think we'll be looking for more of those in the future.

      Take care, be safe,
      Deb

      Delete
  3. Glad you enjoyed your southern trip through the Guadeloupe Mountain Range. The views are beautiful! Thanks for the information on the I-10 GAGE rest area. We might be making use of it.
    Hopefully our paths will cross this winter so we can all say Hello.
    Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are welcome Rick. The views are wonderful but the windy currents are a bit shocking at times but with a steady hand and being alert it's not an extremely rough drive. We will certainly be looking into the Gage, NM rest area on our next time through this area. I'll be interested to hear about them if you and Kathy should stop there.

      Take care, be safe,
      Deb

      Delete