2. New Mexico and Arizona

Day 4: Tuesday, July 15

Slept late and took care of various housekeeping chores such as getting the propane tank refilled, cleaning the cabin, and emptying the porta-potti. Didn't hit the road until 10:30 AM. The temperature had already climbed to 93F.

Continued on I-20 for another 250+ miles before jumping off on to US 87 at Big Spring. Switched over to US 180 at Lamesa, where I got gasoline for $1.459/gal. US 180 brought me to Seminole, Hobbs, NM and Carlsbad.

North of Carlsbad off US 285 is the Brantley Lake State Park. I had spent the night there on a previous trip and thought of doing it again. However, the outside temperature of 105F and the absence of shade trees made me go on.

Stayed on US 285 as far as Artesia, then turned west on US 82. Initially a very boring road with lots of construction sites, it turned very scenic on entering the Lincoln National Forest. Climbed up to 8,500' near Snowcroft and enjoyed seeing the thermometer drop down to 75F. Then came the very steep drop down to Alamogordo. Switched to US 54 to Tularosa and Carrizozo. From there it was US 380 west to I-25 and the short hop to Socorro and the Casey's Socorro RV Park. $19.89 got me a perfectly level site with water and electricity.

Was on the road for 10 1/2 hours and drove 580 miles. At 8 PM local time the temperature was still 95F.

Day 5: Wednesday, July 16

Again got off to a late start, mainly because I wanted to work on the computer to get chapter 1 of the journal ready for uploading. But also because of a new heat fighting strategy: Delay the departure until the summerization measures can no longer cope. Then get on the road and drive until sunset.

Worked well today. Hit the road shortly after 11 AM and enjoyed a somewhat scenic drive on US 60 westbound. At times good vistas of mountains and canyons. Visited such metropolitan areas as Magdalena, Datil, Pietown, Quemado, and Springerville. Datil has one of the few filling stations along US 60, and the per gallon price of $1.579 reflects it. Before driving through Pietown (where the other gas station along the way charges $1.89/gal) one crossed the Continental Divide at 7,796'. I don't remember what Quemado is famous for. In Springerville there is a Safeway supermarket. All in all, US 60 isn't an unpleasant road -- but after a while one wishes that one could put the van on autopilot and take a little nap.

From Springerville I took SR 260 to Indian Pine. Altitudes above 8,500' made for tall pine trees and temperatures below 85F.

SR 73 to Show Low was a rather busy highway. There is an incredible amount of road and residential construction all the way to Show Low -- I guess scenic beauty is being sacrificed for vacation homes.

Took US 60 and then SR 260 to Heber. This is an area where major fires decimated the forests in 2002. Much blame is placed at the feet of the environmentalists who insisted that forests be kept in their natural state, and that nature would clean up the underbrush.

West of Heber is the Canyon Point Campground, my destination for the day. It is owned by the National Forest Service, but managed by an outfit called Recreation Resource Management of America, Inc. Their prices are outrageous, but the sites are clean and level. Golden Age discount is available only for the non-electric sites. So I got a spot for $8.00 - would have had to pay $20 for an electric site. One bathhouse with showers for 117 sites, plenty of toilets of the non-flushing variety.

Open fires are not allowed, so I won't grill. Will have a small sandwich and lots of fruits for dinner.

The Fantastic Fan is doing a nice job of keeping the cabin about 2 degrees cooler than the outside.

It was 94F at departure, 88F when I made camp, and 78F for a few moments while in the Cibola National Forest. Drove 270 miles and was on the road for 5 hours. Bought gasoline in Datil, NM at $1.579/gal and got 16.6 mpg out of the last tank.

Day 6: Thursday, July 17

mostly with haze and smog

I had wondered yesterday why this campground seems to be so popular. It became clear to me during the night: the temperature dropped to 65F and pretty much stayed there until I departed at 9:00 this morning.

Should also mention that the altitude of 8,000' did not bother me in the slightest, while on previous trips I had a hard time getting enough oxygen above 6,000'. I guess that giving up smoking had something to do with this., Now, if I could just get rid of the extra 20 lbs I put on . . .

I had planned today's routes to include many scenic sections. SR 260 to Camp Verde via Payson, Pine, and Strawberry provided hints of beautiful vistas, but today totally obscured by the smog from forest fires. Similarly, the Prescott area and the challenging SR 89 west of Prescott were a total loss as far as my search for scenic beauty is concerned.

After Yarnell the dry mesas and desert took over, and I was relieved to finally hit I-10 and to see a little bit of green again along the Colorado River.

West of Blythe there are no campgrounds that one would want to spend the night at -- indeed there is nothing worth stopping for until one gets to Indio. That's where I found the Indian Wells RV Park with a small $29 site that is level and has full hook-ups, and is near one of the pools and spas. I used them both, just to get some relief from the 112F temperature that still prevailed at 7 PM.

Was on the road for 8 1/4 hours and drove 400 miles. Temperatures ranged from 73F in the morning to 112F when I called it a day. Bought gasoline in Quartsite, AZ for $1.519/gal. Only got 14.4 mpg out of the last tank.

All in all, my trip through New Mexico and Arizona was somewhat of a disappointment. This is because the smog from forest fires spoiled the views, irritated the eyes, and blurred the landscape. I think this area is best viewn in late March through early May.

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