Friday 3rd February – DIY and driving day

In contrast to yesterday morning, today was a very relaxed affair.  Check out time was midday…. We drove off our pitch at 1155am!  However, we both had a productive morning in very different ways.  I mastered how to upload our Go Pro footage to this laptop and select it for the blog…. If only my camera skills were anywhere near as good as the subject matter I have tried to film.  

Feeling suitably pleased with myself I went for a stroll to see the Coronado State Monument, taking some scenic pics on the way:

Sandia Mountain

The Rio Grande - running just below our campsite

I didn’t take any cash with me so when I discovered that it was $5 to gain entry to the museum and trails I had to make do with the photos that I could get from the entrance paths.  I wouldn’t of had time to view the museum properly in any case as it was almost time to hit the road.

Our Pueblo-themed campsite spot

We had no idea where we were heading to today.  We knew which direction we were going in, we just weren’t going to set an end point, not knowing how many stops we would want to do along the way.  No mad rush, the freedom to go as far as we wanted.  

Which is why, when I spotted a Home Depot I pulled straight in!  My attempted silicon repair of the shower has failed.  We are still getting leaks.  The kitchen drawer catch broke and it now slides open each time we move a couple of feet which can’t be good for the runners.  Home depot is the spitting image of B&Q in the UK basically, but the staff are a lot friendlier and more helpful!  In no time we were shown where to find a replacement catch (and a spare), a set of fuses we wanted for back-up and two rolls of that tape with a crease in the middle to stop the water leaking at the edge of the shower tray.  The drawer was fixed before we hit the road so by then it was more like 1pm by the time we left Bernalillo.

It was certainly fresh today.  Simon had been woken by the cold in the night which is a rarity.  He needs to take note of how I manage to cocoon myself inside the duvet whilst still being able to breathe! As we climbed steadily on Highway 550 towards the North-west corner of New Mexico the snow on the slopes and then the roadside became more plentiful:

The next week or so is going to be cold but the route we are now doing is hopefully a safer bet than trying to head through the Rockies.  The weather hasn’t predicted any more snow so we’ll just have to cross our fingers that we can reach Nevada before any more cold fronts pass our way. 

There was more stunning scenery to behold today:

From one of our AAA books I was hoping we would be able to stop at the Bisti de-na-zin wilderness as the colours in the rock layers there looked breath-taking in their photograph.  However, as we approached we found access was via a 12 mile stretch of unpaved road.  Hmmm, 24 miles of bumps and vibration?  Pass!  Back-up plan was a half mile unmade road to Angel Peak recreation area. Unbelievable that such a short deviation on your route can lead to such a jaw-dropping vista!  Hopefully that is the closest that Harvey will get to a) the edge of the cliff and b) snow!

A swift bit of research on the edge of that cliff led to us finding an RV Park right next to our next attraction – the Aztec ruins National Monument in…. Aztec.  Only 30 minutes’ drive from Angel peak, we headed there to stay the night and then see the ruins in the morning before making further ground.