We left Tucson early on Tuesday and headed for Texas. We had been over this part of the road before and were watching for familiar sights. I am still delighted to be near Cochise’s Stronghold and Tombstone. My childhood heroes were the cowboys and Indians of the western movies - Roy Rogers and Dale Evans; Gene Autry, the singing cowboy; Hopalong Cassidy and many more that came later.
Dan remembers unusual round rocks as we drive into New Mexico.
We have a strong tailwind and out fuel mileage jumps up to almost acceptable. Half way through New Mexico the strong wind creates sandstorms. We can see them blowing heavily in the distance but what we drive into is relatively light. Just enough to feel it in your throat and nose. Not enough to alter our visibility.
Many of the rest stops are closed. Apparently it is a cost cutting measure in states that are having trouble making ends meet. We are told California has stated that it has run out of money and is well into the emergency funds. That is a sobering thought.
We tick off the miles - Lordsburg, Deming, Las Cruces and then we cross into Texas at El Paso. It is early but we have decided to stop for the night at the Roadrunner RV Park. We are still in the city and there is nothing to do in our vicinity. It is really a working man’s RV park, more for living in than visiting. Oh well, it is just an overnight. We amuse our selves with reading, writing, sorting photographs and our computers. I Skype those at home and everyone seems closer.
We are up and ready to go early. We decide to have breakfast further down the road. A good decision! There is nothing visible but open land and the plants of the desert here are low to the ground. There is some green showing but not the bright colours of Arizona and New Mexico. There are Palmilla in bloom along the road and I would like to see one close up to get a picture. We stop at a rest stop just past Fabens, Texas to eat and I find the Palmilla I am looking for. They are much larger in this landscaped oasis than those in the distance. I go wandering to take pictures while Dan has a rest.
Refreshed we continue. We are in the area known as “West of the Pecos” and it still looks much like it must have in the days of the wild west. Once past the town of Pecos we are heading toward the “Odessa oil patch” and now we see the oil rigs - donkey engines slowly pumping day and night. Not much further, we have reached our destination for today. The town of Monahans and beyond it the Monahans Sand Hills.
Monahans Sand Hills is a State Park that covers 200 square miles of sand dunes. It sounded like something to see so we planned to stop early and spend time there. It was a good choice. We had one corner of the park all to ourselves and we wandered up hill and down with our cameras. The dunes are amazing. Their size, their shapes, their changing form, the light and then the shadows as the day drew to a close. The wind blew all afternoon and it was cool even in the bright sun. Small sandstorms were created over the ridges of the larger dunes. As we walked we could see individual grains rolling along by our feet. It seemed a shame to mar the landscape with footprints. I tried not to step on anything that might grow and stabilize a portion of the land. It did not take long for the footprints to be erased and there was no record of our adventure.
We ate a late dinner so we did not miss the sunset in this spectacular place. As we sat in the evening we realized the wind had stopped and the quiet is wonderful away from all the activity of towns and highways. We turned out all the lights and went out to see the night. The darkness is really black. I would not wander too far from the trailer on my own. Without it being lit up, I might not find my way back!
I am looking forward to seeing the changing light of morning! Then we will move on.
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