FAREWELL TO CLOUDCROFT

We left Cloudcroft a few days ago - what a wonderful time of year to be there! We left with many trails yet to hike, and many roads yet to explore!

A view from the Mexican Canyon Trestle Trail

Darell took this photo of me on the trail amongst the trees

And now, we are at Santa Rosa Lake State Park, in Santa Rosa, New Mexico. It was sunny and warm the first two days, and today it has been cloudy and spritzy and colder. The full moon over the lake was a sight to behold, and last night there was a lightning show behind the clouds that lasted as long as I've ever seen one last! The sunrises and sunsets here are beautiful, and we've seen butterflies, jack-rabbits, deer, a snake, and a tarantula crossing the road!

Two Butterflies, along the Shoreline Trail

An open seedpod, also along the Shoreline Trail

More seedpods.

Sunrise over Santa Rosa Lake, from our campsite

Sunset over the lake (this is the reflection only; the sun was going down 180 degrees in the other direction!)

Full moon over the lake

Tarantulas are big!

BACK ON THE ROAD

The Chinook is out of drydock, the newly-rented home-base apartment has sheets on the furniture and the fridge turned down to "just don't make mold," and we're back on the road! We're in Cloudcroft, New Mexico (last Spring we were here right before the campgrounds opened, now they're just shutting down) staying at the last open campground, Silver Campground. The weather couldn't be better; the Fall colors are gorgeous, and the hiking trails are perfect!

Blog posting will be somewhat limited this time around, but I hope to check in at least once a week with some photos.

Since it's Friday, here are some photos of Fallen Leaves, Fall Colors, and Fellow beings:

Yep, No Way.

Well, it's taken us eleven months to say:
2 peeps in a Chinook? Full Time? No Way.

Our full-timing is over; we've rented a "home base" apartment, and are settling in (do you have any idea how much stuff one needs to outfit a "real" kitchen? The mind boggles.).  Since we'd shuffled off our mortal belongings before we left, we're now doubling up on many items (no cannibalizing the Chinook, since we want to be able to hop in the rig at a moment's notice, when adventure calls!). As soon as I acquire a colander and a pair of tongs, and the new Lynx Blocks arrive from amazon, we'll start planning our next trip on the road.  Northern New Mexico, here we come!

RUBBER TRAMPIN'

We're still hanging around the Olympia area; the weather's been nice and we've now exhausted our 10 days of staying in the Capitol State Forest campgrounds. So tonight we're back at the Scatter Creek rest area (Northbound), because the State campground costs a pretty penny. Tomorrow we'll check in for a night at the campground, and then hopefully will meet up with the youngest scion of our family tree as he winds up his freshman year at Evergreen State College and we'll all head back down I-5 to Northern California to visit family and friends for a couple of weeks.

A note about the Washington State "Discover Pass" that is required for all campgrounds and state day use areas - you have to buy one ($10.00 for one day. $30.00 for a whole year) for EACH vehicle you have. So we had to buy one for the tow car, too. You have to buy one for an RV, a tow car, trailer, an ATV, and any vehicle you want to use on state owned lands. Just an FYI.

NOT MUCH BLOGGING GOIN' ON

We're currently criss-crossing Washington state, looking for good campgrounds and sunshine. Stayed at an I-5 Rest Area last night, then drove south, then drove back north, and ended up in Littlerock, WA at a campground where we stayed way back in September. The price is right: Free.

We're both pretty tired and a bit road-weary, so we're just taking it easy for a while. If you don't hear from me for awhile, I'm probably just taking a nap...

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND!

The campground is filling up for Memorial Day Weekend and we're settling in for some rainy weather.

Happy 3-Day Weekend!

CAMPGROUND RECONNAISSANCE

Spent today checking out 5 different campgrounds around the Port Angeles area, both within Olympic National Park and around it. We will be here until Memorial Day weekend is over (it seems as if campgrounds are going to packed for the weekend), and then we'll likely move on to one of the c.g.s we saw today...