HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CAROL! WE HOPE YOUR BIRTHDAY BRINGS YOU SNOW FOR THE HOLIDAYS!
TRAVEL DAY
From: Ute Lake State Park, Logan, NM
To: Oasis State Park, Portales, NM.
Day 71 – A little warmer this morning – 28 degrees, partly cloudy, and no wind. We’re heading south for an appointment in Roswell to get the Honda’s windshield repaired. But there are several other reasons for us to go south: it will be warmer at night, the area we’re headed may have less wind, and several of the best wildlife refuges lie in our path. Today’s drive will be fairly short and will take us to a one-night stopover near Portales, NM.
After dumping tanks, we departed Ute Lake State Park at 10:25 a.m. It was 43 degrees and partly cloudy with no wind. We had a good stay at this Park; it was peaceful and quiet with nice scenery plus lots of birds. We headed south, again on two-lane highways with very few towns to pass through. The one bigger city was Clovis. It turned out to be a railroad hub. We think that, and the nearby Air Force Base, are what keep this town going. Everything is really out in the middle of nowhere. Not too long after leaving the State Park, we began to climb in elevation. The highest we got was 4,900 feet. (The route we were originally going to take north, would’ve taken us above 9,000 feet.) After Clovis we saw more dairy cows than beef cows. The whole trip we did not see any oil wells. The sights are changing again. What doesn’t seem to change is the quirkiness of some of the signs and buildings. Keeps it interesting.
We arrived at our campground at Oasis State Park at 12:30 p.m. It was 63 degrees, partly cloudy, and a little windy. This State Park is about five miles from Portales. It is again out in the middle of nowhere. There were three campsites occupied. We drove through, picked the site we wanted, put our $14 fee in the envelope provided and dropped it off at the iron ranger. Don’t know what an iron ranger is? A picture follows. We chose site #29 with water and electric hook-ups (although we aren’t going to use their water since there were high-nitrate level warnings and we don’t feel like boiling it down). Our site was private and the campground was small. Our picnic table was on a concrete slab, surrounded on more than half it sides by a concrete wall to protect from wind, and covered with a metal roof to protect from sun. It came with its own tumbleweed, which was stuck under the table.
Tomorrow morning we head for Roswell, another fairly short drive, and we’ll probably be there for several days to a week or more. There’s plenty to see in that area. Maybe some aliens from outer space? Grin.
For more detailed information about Oasis State Park, click here.