Colorado River RV Park - Days 25-27

Our next stop was Colorado River RV Campground in Columbus, TX.  This is another Thousand Trails campground about 70 miles west of Houston.  We chose site D23.  It was a full hookup/30 amp site.  It was a good size site, with lots of trees for shade (which came back to haunt us when we decided we wanted to hook up the Dish for TV - yeah, that didn't happen!).  Plenty of room to put up the screen tent, too, which we needed, since there were mosquitos, being as close to the River as we were.

Shortly after we got there, I went to take the dog for a walk, and there was an armadillo just sauntering through our site.

Only time I've ever seen an armadillo was in a zoo, so that was pretty cool!

If we looked toward the back, this was our view:

And if we looked toward the front, across from us, we often saw deer.  They weren't as social as the ones at Medina Lake, so they didn't really come close, but you could watch them, especially as it got closed to evening.

Just a little ways behind our site was a boat ramp for the river.  We walked down to it to look at the river.

The restroom/shower house was a bit of a walk from our site, but the showers were clean and nice.  Last year, Hurricane Harvey totally flooded this park.  There is still a section by the river that is baracaded and blocked off, that used to be RV sites, but the bank of the river at that section was gone.  This sign is up by the bath house, which is up a small hill from the section by the river (even from where we were).

The laundry room was cute - it was in an older small cabin-like building.  There were chairs on the porch where you could wait while your laundry was washing or drying.  It was also right by the pool, so you could also swim, I guess, while you waited.

There was a small, fenced in dog park that was nice, but it was so far from our site we'd have had to drive the dog there!

We arrived on Thursday, and I worked on Friday.  I had planned to really explore the park, hike on some of the trails, maybe check out the pool, on Saturday. And they were having a pancake breakfast for on Saturday for Father's day.  However, on Friday afternoon, the door lock on the RV broke, and we got locked inside!  Well, we could get out, but had to climb over the seats to get out the doors of the truck.  We had to remove the lock from the door.  There was a Camping World in Katy, which is a little west of Houston.  I called them on Friday afternoon to see if they happened to have the lock in stock, and luckily they did, but we couldn't get there on before it closed, so we had to drive there on Saturday morning, as they were holding the part for us. It was about an hour drive each way.  By the time we got back it was too hot for hiking.  Not sure why I didn't go to the pool, probably  because I didn't want to go alone.  Instead, we did laundry (such fun!)

We did enjoy sitting in the screen room in the evenings.  It did the trick to keep the bugs away, but we could listen to all the noise that insects make!  It was really loud!  So many crickets, and I'm not even sure that else makes that noise.  Maybe cicadas?  And something else.  It seemed like there were 3 very distinct sounds.

This is another park I would love to come back to and stay a while.  I really enjoyed being here.  It was very peaceful (other than the broken lock!).

Next, off to Louisiana (to gain back any weight I had lost with all the walking)

Medina Lake RV Campground - Days 23-24

We spent two nights at Medina Lake RV campground in Lakehills, Texas - wow - I really had my reservations about coming here. It is a Thousand Trails park, and since we are members, we don't pay a nightly fee.  I'd heard both good and bad reviews, but decided that since we paid for the membership, we should at least try to check on some of the parks that were on (or at least close to) our route.  And I don't always believe reviews anyway.

The staff was great at check in.  At most Thousand Trails parks, sites are first come, first serve.  You just drive around until you find one that is available.  They provide you with a map that shows which ones have full hookups, which only have water/electric, which (if any) are 50 amp vs 30 amp.  This park was no different, but they did also tell me that they were pretty sure there were 2 pull-throughs available, and which ones they were.  The park is very big, with several different sections.  It was kind of difficult to figure out where we were going or what section we were in at times, but the drive though the park was fun anyway.  And yes, just like reviews mentioned, there were quite a few sites that were marked not to use them.  However, there were plenty of open sites.  We ended up in site F-26, which was a back in site.  It was a beautiful site, but it was not level at all.  It took us a while to get level.  (We have to use blocks - we do not have automatic levelers).   It was right next to the pull-through site they had told us about.  We liked this one better because it had more shade.  It was close to bathrooms/showers.

I loved it!  Felt like I was camping!  I love my RV, but I also love being out in nature, and enjoying the outdoors.  The sites were far enough apart that you weren't on top of each other, and definitely woodsy, and the deer all over the place was so cool.

The deer will come eat out of your hand if you have deer corn.  We didn't, but we ran into a lot of people that did.  I guess people that are staying there for a week or more go into town and buy these big bags of deer feed so they can feed them.  Most of them just through the corn on the ground and the deer just come to eat.  Its crazy to watch it!

Man feeding the deer (sorry, Jesus, that I cut off the top of your head I this photo!)

There was also a lake (hence the name of the campground?).  It was just down the road from our site. Sometimes there were boats on it, but mostly when we were there, no one was on it.

This was just a rest and relax few days, so we didn't really do much.  I worked one of the mornings, and we went to find a grocery store (strange little store that had decent fried chicken and pizza, as well).    The shower/restroom (at least the one by us) was clean and decent.

The pool was open, and looked fine, although we didn't use it.  It did have a laundry room as well, but we didn't do laundry here, either.

So, that was it.  We really enjoyed our short stay at this park.  If we come back through Texas, I would definitely want to come back.   I'd like to stay longer and have time to really explore the campground, and the area and towns around it.  I'll have to add that to my 'places to go/things to do' list.

Days 19 through 22 - just passing through

I can't believe we'd been on the road almost 3 full weeks by this time.  The longest road trip we have ever taken, in the RV or in a car, was 17 days.

These next 4 nights were spent just getting from Bernalillo, New Mexico to Medina Lake RV Campground in Lakehills, Texas.  We don't like to go more than about 250 miles a day, so these parks were all chosen based solely on location.

Elephant Butte - Day 19

The first night we camped at Elephant Butte Lake State Park, Lions Beach Campground, in New Mexico.  We had a beautiful view of the lake.   The site was large, with a large dirt area and a cement patio with a picnic table and a permanent canopy cover.  It was a  back-in site, but level (that's always a bonus!).  We had no sewer hookup, but since we were only here for 1 night, that wasn't a problem.  It was VERY hot when we arrived, about 100  And the price was right - $18 for the night, and that was including the $4 booking charge.  The only downside was that the bathrooms (and showers?) in the camping loop we were in were closed for some reason.

We took a drive around to see other areas of the lake.  There were RV's right up against the water on the beach.  Most were 5th wheels so we assume that the trucks pulling them were diesel and 4 wheel drive, because I couldn't imagine driving our RV down though that sand.  You can see some in this picture.

Sunset was very petty too, but my picture doesn't do it justice.

Van Horn, Texas - Day 20

We got up in the morning, had breakfast, and drove to our next destination - Van Horn RV Park in Van Horn, Texas.  It was a large park that I bet is just hoppin' during the winter when all the snowbirds are there.  In June, it was probably 3/4 empty.  The on-site café was closed for the summer.  The staff was wonderful, more than helpful.  I went back after we checked in to buy ice, and she said I could have just called and they'd have delivered it to my site. What?  Wow, that is service!

The sites were all pull-throughs, and pretty good size.  The fee for 1 night was $36.  They had a laundry room, showers, etc.  The restrooms/showers were clean and nice.  There was a fenced-in dog park, but apparently many people don't believe in picking up after their dog.  That was probably the only thing I didn't like about this park.

There was also a cute little 'fishing pond'.  It had picnic table there, and it was shady and a nice grassy area.

Ft. Stockton, Texas  - Day 21

We arrived at Ft. Stockton RV Park in the early afternoon.  It was a short driving day!   Ft. Stockton has some historical sites that we thought we'd go see, but almost nothing was open on Sunday.  We drove to the Ft. Stockton Visitor center, and pretty much got a picture of the sign.

We  did find out that the historic Gray Mule Saloon was open on Sunday.  It is now a wine tasting room!

After wine tasting, we went back to the RV park and had dinner at the Roadrunner Café.  Jesus nd David both had the chicken fried steak (Dave's with white gravy, Jesus's with brown. White was better!), and I just had a BLT.  After that, we just sat outside and enjoyed the sunset.

The RV park itself was nice.  I wouldn't have minded staying longer.  It had a HUGE fences in dog park, too.  The park was well kept.  There was a pool, but we didn't use it.  It looked nice.  Having the Roadrunner Café on the premise was convenient, and the food was really good.  I think we paid $36 for the night.  They also had fee cable and free internet.


South Llano River State Park  - Day 22

Our next stop was South Llano River State Park - again, just for the night.  I chose this campground because it was half-way between Ft. Stockton and Lakehills, Tx, which is our stop after this.  We pulled into this park, and we were so impressed.  This is a beautiful State Park.  Our site was great!  We had water and electric (but no sewer, which was fine for just 1 night).  Bathrooms and showers were a short walk away.  We paid $20 for the night, but also had to pay $5 per person to come into the park, so it ended up being $35 for the night.

There was also a firepit, and we were able to have a fire that night.  Dave cooked a butternut squash in the fire.  It turned out really, really good!

We took a drive to see what else was there.  Turns out that the So. Llano river runs through the park (hence the name).

The river is slow moving, so people get large innertubes and ride them down it.  They actually rent the tubes at the Visitor Center where you check in.  The first time we went, there were lots of people on tubes, but I didn't have my camera.  The next morning I want back, but only found one family enjoying the water.

I kept thinking how much the boys (Nathan and Jake) would have enjoyed this.  Heck,  I would have enjoyed it!  If I had owned a pair of water shoes and have another day to stay there, you know I'd have been on a tube going down that river!

However, it was another one-nighter, and in the morning we were off to our next destination.

Bernarillo, New Mexico - Days 16-18

Wow, am I behind on posting things or what?!?  As of tomorrow, we will have been on the road for 28 days.  It seems like it was just a few days ago that I was packing.  I can't believe how fast time goes.

We spent three nights at the Albuquerque North/Bernalillo KOA.   By the time we got here, we were just so tired from the prior 2 weeks.  We had done so much hiking and climbing and driving.  When we got here, all we wanted to do was just rest.   I didn't take hardly any pictures while we were here, either, so this post is going to be pretty boring.

There was a fence around the entire campground, but there was a pathway and a gate in the back by where our site was.

Of course, we had to go through that door! (Even though I can't stand beer).  It led to the Kaktus Brewing Company.  This place seems to be a well-known local hangout for pizza and beer.  They have pizzas made with wild game such as elk, wild boar and duck.   They do have pepperoni, too, though.  We went for dinner our first night and had the Wild Spicy Elk pizza (made with elk sausage) and the Red Pumpkin pizza (thin pumpkin slices, goat cheese and chili sauce).   Definitely interesting.  And good.  

Kaktus Brewing company is a nano-brewery.  They use a small, two barrel brewing system.   They offered several different types of beer.  According to the hubby and son, the beer was great too! 

I settled for a glass of New Mexico Riesling.  It was also very good.

The next day we visited the Coronado Historical Site in Bernalillo.  It is a small site where the ruins of the Kuaua Pueblo were excavated.

During the excavation in the 1930s,  they discovered a square kiva (ceremonial chamber) that had many layers of mural paintings.  These murals are some of the greatest examples of Pre-Columbian art found in the United States.  At the Visitor Center, they have volunteers who do a guided tour of sorts. They take you through the small visitor center which has on exhibit prehistoric and historic Puebloan and Spanish Colonial artifacts, and tell you some additional information about the artifacts as well as what was happening in that area during that time period.

The last part of the tour takes you outside (where it was very hot that afternoon!) and explain what ruins were found there and how the historic site got the name 'Coronado'  (In 1540, Francisco Vásquez de Coronado was in the area looking for the fabled ' Cities of Gold').  The painted kiva was reconstructed, and a local Native American artist was hired to recreate one of the mural layers.  The guide took us into this reconstructed Kiva (had to climb up a ladder to get to the top of it, then down a ladder to get inside).  You are not allowed to enter without one of the guides, and you aren't allowed to take any photos inside either.  There is also mural room that has 14 examples of the original art work that was recovered from the kiva walls.  (no pictures allowed in there, either).   

Part of the pueblo was reconstructed, as well.  The original was re-buried and lies under the reconstruction.

This was us standing on top of the reconstructed Kiva, next to the ladder that you had to climb down to get inside it. The guide wanted to take the picture for us, so we let her.  Nice view in the background, though.

The next day, I worked in the morning, and then we went to PetsMart and Albertsons.  I had hoped to drive into Old Town Albuquerque, but we were just too tired to do much of anything, so we just took it easy the rest of the day.

I had wanted to do my laundry that night, but their laundry room closed at 7:00 pm!  So, lucky me, I got to get up and do laundry at 7:30 Friday morning before we left for our next stop.

RV and campground info

This was a nice campground.  We had a pull-through site that was actually level!  It was the first totally level site we've had so far. Each site had a picnic table on a 'grassy' area, but the grass was artificial turf.  It was actually quite nice though.   There were also tent sites and cabins.  I don't know why I didn't take pictures, but I didn't.

The laundry room was ok.  It was clean and had 4 washers and 4 dryers that all worked.  Good price - $1.50 per wash and $1 to dry.  The only bad thing was the laundry closed at 7 pm

The Showers/restrooms were clean. The water pressure good.  And they stayed open 24 hours.

The pool looked nice, but was only open till 7:00 pm.

There were 2 dog parks (3 really, as one of them was really 2 separated areas side by side).  They were nice. They had tires and tunnels for the dogs to play in.  One side had a picnic table you could sit at while your dog played.  It was also in a mostly shady spot, which was a bonus.

They did offer breakfast (for a price) on Friday, Sat and Sun.  We did not eat there, though, since we were leaving on Friday morning.

Colorado - Days 13 - 15

Saturday

We arrived around 4:00 pm at Ancient Cedars Mesa Verde RV Park located just outside of Mancos, Colorado, directly across the highway from the entrance to Mesa Verde National Park.  We were in a pull through site, way in the back.  The pull-through sites were definitely a little close to each other, but the view was great!

We decided to go to the Visitor Center at Mesa Verde National Park and spend some time there looking around, and get our National Park Passports stamped. However, since it was getting late, we decided not to drive the rest of the way through the park until the next day.

We needed to make a Wal Mart run and get groceries, and there was a Wal Mart in Cortez (about 10 miles away).  Since we were going there, we decided to pay a visit to the Cortez Cultural Center.  It is a museum/art gallery/gift shop.  The side of the building had an amphitheater, and the entire side of the building was painted to make it look like a pueblo, but it was actually a flat wall.  

They have Native American dancers in the amphitheater every night except Sunday in the summer, and we arrived about 15 minutes before they were to start.   The dancers we saw were a husband and wife.  In addition to dancing, they also explained  lot about the various dances and traditions.

After that, we went to Wal Mart.  Always having to restock.  RV refrigerators and freezers are so small. The don't hold much!

Sunday

We got up early, as David has signed up for a tour of the Cliff House at Mesa Verde.  Jesus and I decided not to try the tour, since it involved climbing several ladders.  Later David said it was actually pretty easy and we could have totally done it.  Maybe next time.  We were impressed with the view of Cliff House, just from the overlook.  (this was without a zoom lens)


Cliff Palace

Cliff Palace overlook was in the Cliff Palace loop, so when David was done, we drove that loop.  I so wish I hadn't left my telephoto lens back in the RV.  But, If you look really close, you can see some of the dwellings in the cliffs.

House of Many Windows

Cliff Canyon Overlook

Soda Canyon Overlook

Another cliff dwelling view from Soda Canyon Overlook

After that, we drove the Mesa Top Loop.  Mesa top look is about a 6 mile drive with 12 sites.  Most of them are either very close to the road or a short hike away.

Pit House (A.D 600)

Navajo Canyon View

Square Tower House (A.D. 1200-1300)

Pit Houses and Pueblos (A.D. 700-950)

Mesa Top Sites (A.D. 900-1100)

Sun Pont Pueblo (A.D. 1200s)

Sun Point View (A.D. 1200-1300)

Oak Tree House (A.D. 1250)

Fire Temple/New Fire House (A.D. 1250)

Cliff Palace View

Monday

The next day we came back to visit the Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum.   We walked down the path that would have been to the Spruce Tree House, but you can no longer get all the way there.  It used to be a self-guided tour, but due to the falling rock, no one is allowed there now.  Luckily, there were still good views of Spruce Tree House from that accessible part of the trail.

Then we drove to the Far View Sites.  The Far View Sites include the Far View House, four other villages, and a dry reservoir (you have to hike 3/4 of a mile to see this).

Far View House

Pipe Shrine House

Coyote Village

I wish we had more time to spend here.  I would have liked to have come back and seen the other side - Wetherill Mesa.  I guess I need to plan to come back to Colorado again, too.  I really, really enjoyed visiting this park.  I found the cliff houses to be absolutely amazing.  The detail that went into these ancient buildings just amazes me.


RV and Camper Info

Overall, this was a pretty nice park.  Owners bought it 5 years ago and have made many improvements.  The free Wifi was great!  They had 3 towers throughout the park, and you connected to the one you were closest too.

 As I said above the views were beautiful, but in the pull-through sites, you were really close to your neighbor. There were no trees in that area, but they have planted some, so in a few years (if they are fast growing) there may be some shade.

Had really nice sites for tents, and for smaller RVs (back in sites).  There was plenty of open space, and a large playground for kids.

Tent Site

Playground

The office also hosted a cute little store.  The showers were nice.  The laundry room was nice, but a bit pricey ($2 for wash and $2 for dry)   They also had a pool, hot tub, and a really nice miniature golf course (but we did not play).  Miniature golf was $3 per person to play. 

Location was everything, as it is directly across the highway from the entrance to Mesa Verde National Park.  The pull-through site was $39 a night (plus tax, etc., of course!)

There was no cable tv, but TV from the antenna was great.  

There was a large dog park, but it was clear at the front of the park and we were clear at the back, so we never actually took Mari to it.