The rest of the trip this summer...

It's been three months since we returned from our adventure in Mabel, and seeing as Fall is upon us I really need to blog the rest of our adventure!  We traveled from Austin to Palo Duro, then on to Cimarron, Eagle's Nest, and Angel Fire, then through New Mexico to our next stop: Caprock Canyon State Park in Quitaque. 

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After leaving Bubbie In Cimarron, we headed back to Angel Fire and enjoyed some beer and calzone from a local joint. We spent the rest of the evening relaxing at he RV resort - hung out at the lodge listening to Dale and Gayle (live music), enjoyed being the only ones in the very large hot tub where we watched the sun go down, then headed to the firepit to enjoy adult beverages until about 10 p.m.  We probably shouldn't have stayed up that late as we had to hit the road so early the next day - July 4th!

We got up in the morning (to temps in the 30's!) and cooked up some leftover pork chops and eggs in Mabel - I love that we have a functioning kitchen with fridge - makes breakfast easy and relaxing.

Leaving Angel Fire, even when it was overcast, it was still pretty.  At each drop in elevation I was able to breathe a little easier - I never did adjust to the elevation, sadly.  Hubby kept saying "wouldn't this be a beautiful place to retire?".  Not without an oxygen tank for me!

 Pretty soon, we were out of the mountains and back into wide open spaces.

 It was a lot like West Texas - miles of flat scenery, the two lane highways bordered by ranches.  But we actually saw very little cattle - or other vehicles, even.

I think this is Lake Sumner - we traveled through Las Vegas, Santa Rosa, Fort Sumner, Clovis...we pretty much powered through until we got to the canyons.  We had only stopped for gas along the way ans there was very little choice in the way of places to eat.  So, we snacked on almonds and Gardetto's until Muleshoe, then stopped at a grocery store for things to fix for dinner.

We cooked pan sauteed salmon, some leftover potatoes with bacon and red pepper, and a chopped salad, with white wine.  It was soooo good after a long day of driving.

Both of us, utterly exhausted, cleaned the kitchen up, finished the wine, and passed out!  At some point during the night I remember hearing it raining hard, but I barely moved the whole night.  Hubby said there was torrential rain, wind, and lightening!  The next morning we awoke to a peaceful scene:

There were bunnies hopping around and birds chirping and it was peaceful and calm.  I wish we could have stayed here longer.  It's such a beautiful park.  But we were trying to get to Austin in time to pick up Bubbie from the trip.

We loaded up the trailer and took ourselves to the showers to clean up.  And just down the road from the showers...

 ...we saw the resident bison herd.

 A calf was perilously close to the road!  There are signs everywhere telling you not to fool with the bison - they weigh up to 350 pounds and can outrun you.  Um...you don't have to tell me twice.

Hello, Mr. Bull Bison - I will only take your picture, not daring to exit the vehicle!

Caprock is as beautiful as Palo Duro, in my opinion.  And the park was far less crowded, even with it being a holiday weekend.

 We stopped at a scenic overlook to admire the view:

 

It was hot as blazes for the trip back, and due to a problem with the trailer connections we were late getting Bubbie.  All of us were hot, sweaty, and tired when we got home, so all of that is a blur!  We made notes along the way about what we will do differently next time - no hard and fast timelines for one - cleaned and stored everything back in Mabel, go ready for the week ahead.  Whew - what a trip! 
So, where can we go next summer?