Texas Reflections Photography Journey: Stonehenge on Steroids...and another New Adventure with a Surprise

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Stonehenge on Steroids...and another New Adventure with a Surprise

Woke up around 0500 on the 10th…still a wee bit dark…made a large cup of java and sat outside to watch the sun rise over the horizon….since I wanted to get to City of the Rocks as early as possible I hitched up as soon as I could see…then got cleaned up, had a banana for breakfast and hit the road…its about a half hour drive north before you reach l-10…plus you have a Border Patrol Check Point…It’s a boring drive…speed limit 75 and or 80 and I have my blinkers on doing 55…..The wind started picking up and the flat dusty terrain was a break from the boredom….got to Deming, took exit 82? and headed North about 35 miles to City of Rocks State Park…..It’s a good thing I had decided to Dry Camp as all there “hookup” Sites where taken…in fact 90% of there Dry Camp sites where taken…I had forgotten about the National Holiday and 3 day weekend, I went around the loop, had referenced some other Blogs that provided what they thought where the best sites…of Course all where taken….I come to the last bend before being back at the Visitors Center….sitting up on a knoll, engulfed by Boulders, was campsite 45…..yes I had to back up hill, yes there was a couple obstructions, etc…..but what a find…when I parked it was like camping at Stonehenge…The structures wrapped themselves around Ms Casita as if to say…”while here I will protect you, little Egg”….

Took about 30 minutes or more to set up, unhitch and sit back and relax……a nice breeze was coming through the rocks..its has a tunnel effect…opened everything up and just RELAXED….initially I signed up to leave Monday morning, but decided to extend my stay until Tuesday…not that I was going to go on any great hikes or do a lot of stuff…just hang out, do the hikes in the Park and may venture out one day to see Gila National Forest area…..and what a great stay it was..Met a couple with a Casita of from Lubbock, Tx…. There was also an Oliver here, never so the folks…..

Monday I went on my drive to the Gila National Forest…what a treat that was…..within 30 miles from Gila monsters scorpions and rattlesnakes and lot of cacti and sand, I am in what first appeared to be similar to Glacier….and then it was a twin of the Smokey Mountains…it dropped 15 to 20 degrees,had tall Pine trees, I could just imagine Black Bears roaming the area…and the road just kept on climbing Emery Peak finally arrived..at 8228 feet…it sure seemed higher..I don’t think I have ever traveled on a mountain road with so many “switchbacks”. Along the way I so five Camp Grounds..most only had tent sites however Iron Creek CG had about 5 sites which could accommodate a small camper..surrounded by pines, pit toilet and isolation…oh and a mountain stream right next to you…I debated long and hard about that being my next stop….decided I didn’t want to pull a camper with all those switch backs up and down that road….but it was tempting…a couple of glasses of Merlot..and who knows…

So the 12th I leave for the back side of the Guadalupe Mountains National Park…with in interim stop somewhere in New Mexico…..more to follow…

It is now the evening of the 12th…my new camp Ground is Brantley Lake State Park, Nm..it sits on a lake…hookups for 14 dollars….It is Between Artesia and Carlsbad NM…and the icing on the Cake…

...Barney of OFM is here…..tomorrow he is going to take me to the back side of the Guadalupe Mountains(something I have wanted to see since stumbling upon this place last year) and then some Water Falls…looking forward to both!!……we had dinner at a BBQ place, good stuff, and got caught up swapping Lies about our adventures..Great start for a new Adventure...Thanks Barney....