Shamrock, TX to Moriarty, NM
Waking up was easy today because some how the night before about 10 flies got into the camper before the storm began. Bear was doing his best to.. well eat them. That’s what he wanted to do. And the sound of him snapping at them early in the morning woke us up.
We did our best to get them out but our attempts were futile. Every time we opened the door to get one out several others got in. I decided it was time to shower and get away from this all. Opening the door, two more got in. Sigh.
The bathrooms here were not update at all yet. I met a few insect friends inside before I showered. Hello little guy, please don’t touch my leg! I got into the shower and the shower head was below my head…. Now I’m 5’3” so this has never happened to me before. I laughed thinking about how Jason would deal with this later in the morning.
Jason had taken the dogs for a walk around the park meeting the other animals. I started unhooking and packing to leave along side the camper van from Massachusetts. Turns out they were heading to Santa Fe too. Jason returned and the conversation went where it always does in this situation… what do you do that you are able to be traveling this summer? Well our camper van friends had similar careers! Their daughter was a teacher in Wisconsin, and the wife was an occupational therapist in a collaborative. She even went to BU like Jason and they knew and loved the same professors. Amazingly small world. I talked to their daughter about teaching in a non union friendly state like Wisconsin and it made me feel so much better knowing that everything I had done the summer and year before was not common in other places of this country. It puts a lot into perspective. She said they fought all year just to have a meeting with the Superintendent. I thought to myself about all of the meetings we had, all of the phone calls and text messages, and felt a small bit of relief and pride about the work we did the year before.
They gave us some suggestions on places to visit and then we were both on our way. New Mexico, here we come!
We searched on and off all night but to no avail. We had no idea where we were staying yet. We wanted to be in New Mexico for the entire week so the hardest part was the length of the stay. But also, we hadn’t decided between boondocking and staying at a campground. Most state park campgrounds didn’t seem to have toilets and showers so it would be basically boondocking anyways besides electric. Jason wanted an off the grid campsite with a short walk to a small town but close to Santa Fe. I was doing all that I could to make this happen but we were getting late into the day and still nothing. The GPS stayed set on Santa Fe and we kept moving.
I had some work calls to make today so I took over driving from Jason for awhile and let him look for a site. We stopped right over the border in NM at a town called Tucumcari. Jason saw a “lake” on the map which ended up not being a lake at all. He took the pups out for an adventure and I made my calls.
After visiting the disappointing lake of grass, we drove up Rt 66 a little while before getting back onto I-40 so we could get some pictures. Vastly different communities from what we live in but full of life and love all the same.
Jason drove again and directed us to Santa Rosa where there is the Blue Hole, basically a very small lake. It stays at a constant 61 degrees and people were swimming in it. While he went to explore it, I checked one last app called HipCamp….and a found a perfect place! Thing is- it wasn’t available until Tuesday but we could have it through Saturday. I can’t wait to show you this place because it is amazing. 5 minute walk from a quirky town (holy quirky!), 30 minutes from Santa Fe, but basically a straight shot (as straight as mountain roads can be) and it’s basically secluded on top of a mountain. Heaven.
Jason grabbed some pictures of the Blue Hole and came back to the camper filled with happy pups and a happy girlfriend. He was pretty excited about the find and we decided to go to a Harvest Host location for the night to save some cash. There were 3 possibilities, but one was only 1.5 hours away and we would be there by 3:30pm so it was a no brainer. GPS set to Sierra Blanca Brewery in Moriarty, NM!
I drove this part although I wish I hadn’t. We hit construction on the highway on the way there so it was stop and go for almost two miles. At home, we couldn’t taken a different exit and figured out a way to get where we wanted to be. In NM, that isn’t a reality. These exits are few and get between and the towns are even further. We stuck it out and got to the location around 4pm.
Our bartender was Matthew, someone who just moved to NM a month ago at the request of a friend, leaving the city of Chicago behind. He had great stories and was very kind. They had a green chile beer that I had to have. New Mexico is known for their hatch chile and I get it whenever it’s vegan. You’ll be hearing me talk about this lovely dish often.
Soon after two more Harvest Hosters came by, Barb and Craig from Tucson, AZ. They were heading to a pilot convention in Oshkosh, WI- with over 100,000 campers and pilots gathering together. I’m definitely not ready for a crowd of that size. They were extremely nice people and we hung out with them until closing. Craig even played tether ball with me because I never have, but he had a total unfair height advantage as he was well over a foot taller than me. We talked dogs, Disney movies, travel, and everything in between. Before the pandemic Jason and I would love to go sit at a bar and just talk to the people around us. This was the first time in a long time that I felt normalcy returning again.
Jason had gone out to the camper to get set up so it was ready when last call happened at 7:00pm. Crazy early, but these small towns can’t stay open late on weeknights.
We drove over to the local grocery store because we had no bread for burgers and honestly one of the weird things I like about traveling is going into grocery stores. Always different foods to look at and brands that we don’t have back east. Without a doubt I will buy more than I really need because I just want to try things out. I’ll find room in the camper for three things- vegan food, art, and puppies. (You knew I couldn’t leave that out- but trust me two dogs is enough walking through these cities!)
A third Harvest Hoster had pulled in right before closing and had bought a few growlers to drink outside and share with everyone. Jason stayed out and conversed but I was hungry. I got to work on the Beyond Meat burgers we had in the freezer and threw together a salad on the side. Totally not a pretty meal but functional all the way.
Since we were Harvest Hosting for the night we were also boondocking. No need for the AC tonight though! The nights in New Mexico get down to 60 degrees!! Windows open, a slight breeze, and we were fast asleep.
Vegan On the Rhode 