On the Road to Albuquerque

We left Mesa on Friday, the 3rd and headed for Gallup, NM to spend the night there.  Before we left Mesa, a road sign indicated that SR 87 was closed at Payson, AZ, about 100 miles north.  We were headed to Payson but would be getting on SR 260 there.  We were somewhat concerned that snow would be blocking the road.  But we kept going.  Great scenery along the way.

For you, Bailey.

At Payson we found out why the road was blocked - a tanker had overturned. And the exit for SR 260 was a half mile past the blockage.  So we were stuck in almost stopped traffic and it took us over an hour to get around the blockage thru neighborhood streets!  We did finally make it and got on our way again.

North and East of Payson is the Mogollon Rim, the southern boundary of the Colorado Plateau, with elevations exceeding 7,500 feet.  There are many cold water lakes on top of the rim.

 This area did have a lot of snow on the Monday before but the roads were clear and dry.  But there was snow!

Saw four of these signs within a mile.  Did we see any?

Got to Gallup around 4 and got set up for the night.  Nice CG but cold.

Saturday we got back on the road again (I-40) and made it to Albuquerque around noon.

Got set up in the CG - Enchanted Trails RV Park.  These old cars/RVs apparently can be rented out.

After getting setup we drove into town to see my cousin, Judy Lee, whom we haven't seen in several years.

She lives in an assisted-living home.  Nice place.  We had a good time catching up.  We visited for a couple of hours and then drove back to the CG for the night. On Sunday we drove into town again and went to "Old Town Albuquerque."  Walked around the square and went into some of the shops.  Nothing jumped out at us so we left with money still in our pockets!

This church occupies one corner.

We had lunch here.

Sign on a jewelry store.

This car pulled up as we were walking by.

Another car parked along the Square.

Later on it got cloudy and cold, so we went back to the CG.

A cold front was on the way.  We had planned to leave on Monday morning for Amarillo, TX but the winds   (30-40 MPH) were so bad we decided to stay put for another day.  We hunkered down and waited it out.  By Tuesday morning the winds had died down but the temp was in the 20's and the water hose was frozen.  Fortunately, we carry some water in a tank so we could use that.  So, when we left, the hose ended up in the bed of the truck to thaw out!

This picture was taken as we drive from our CG on I-40 down into Albuquerque.

Winds were much lower and from the West so we had a nice tail wind.  When crossed into Texas, we started seeing windmills, and, they must have gone on for 20 miles!

About 50 miles from Amarillo the winds started coming from the North and I had to fight it.  But we made it.  Nice CG and got the Dish set up for TV for the night.  Palo Duro Canyon is on tap for tomorrow.