Las Vegas (no not that one) & Ft. Union Natl. Monument

Ft. Union National Monument on the Sante Fe National Historic Trail was our goal for yesterday. Our neighbors told us, prior to our late departure, to be sure to go to Las Vegas, no not that one, and eat at Charlie's Spic n Span. The best Mexican food around.

Since we were late leaving, by the time we arrived near the turn off for the Fort, Dean announced he wanted to eat first, so on we drove to Las Vegas. The recommendation for Charlie's was a good one. Dean had two enchilada's and a tamale, beans and potato's. I had two enchilada's and a chili reano along with the potato's. They also served salsa & chips and fresh made flour tortilla's. Oh my, I never saw so much food and boy was it good. I do think that we will try to get there again before we leave New Mexico for good this year. They also have a bakery, but I was smart and didn't look until after I'd finished eating, so even though everything looked good, I didn't buy anything.

Since we were close to a Super Wal-Mart, we decided to make a quick stop for a few things that the regular Wal-Mart in Taos didn't have. That took an hour, of course. We finally got back on the road to Ft. Union around 2:00 p.m. The drive there took most of a hour so we arrived around 3 p.m. We walked through the museum, watched a 15 min. film and were told a little bit of the history of the fort by one of the rangers. Then we finally started the walking tour. We got to where the ruins started and don't you know, it started to rain. I did manage to get a few pictures, but we had to high tail it back to the Visitors Center. We waited around for a while, but it was obvious that the rain was not going to stop any time soon, so we made the decision to head on back to Eagle Nest.

About 30 miles up the interstate from the fort, the rain quit. The sky's ahead where clear so we decided to take a back road back to Cimarron.

Oh yes, I forgot to mention that on our way to the fort, we opted to take a back road as well. That particular back road had about 9 miles of dirt, rock and very little gravel. Parts of the "gravel" road where very scenic but it also spent a lot of time hugging the mountain side. The most scenic parts of Hwy 120 where after it went back to blacktop road. We saw so many antelope, we lost count!

Now, back to our return trip. We opted for the road less traveled, at least this had no gravel parts to it. The closer we got to the mountains, the more scenic it became. We also passed Philmont Boy Scout Camp, supposed one of the largest in the US. We didn't stop because it was around 6 p.m. when we arrived and the Visitor Center was closed. I did get a couple of pictures as we drove by and we hope to go back for a visit. From what I've been told, there are thousands of acres that make up this camp. If we do get back, I'll post more on it.

Coming through Cimarron Canyon we saw several deer right along the roadway. I tried to get a picture of the male's. One turned out! They just move to fast.

We returned home tired and ready to relax the rest of the evening.

Today we stayed home and did laundry - again! We leave Eagle Nest one week from tomorrow and have seen or visited most everything that was on our list. Do check back though, you never know where we may go next.

Pictures at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Capulin Volcano Natl. Monument

We drove off this morning in search of a volcano, thank goodness it's one that hasn't erupted for many, many years. Capulin Volcano Natl. Monument is one that is a must see, if only for the ride to the crater..

Let me back up a minute though, I'm getting ahead of myself. We drove Highway 64 through the Cimarron Canyon, to Cimarron where we stayed on Hwy 64 heading to Colfax and Raton.

Now, Colfax from what I remember reading, was at one time a small town and a stop on the Santa Fe Trail (Hwy 64). Colfax is now known as Cold Beer, NM! Why, because the only and I do mean only, building there is a tavern with a sign that reads "Cold Beer, NM". I've posted a picture to prove it!

We also passed, as we neared Raton, NRA Whittington, one of the largest and best equipped marksmanship ranges in the US. Not being into guns etc., we just passed on by.

The drive from Raton to Capulin was very interesting. The views ranged from flat range land, to large mesa's, and small hills and mountains - all with a very different look. We saw lots of antelope as well, but they seem to be camera shy. As we approached the town of Capulin, the volcano became visible - wow - a real volcano. Of course the fields where strewn with lava rock which also gave us the clue that we were near our destination.

After watching a interesting 10 min. film on the eruption of Capulin, we started our drive up to the crater. I must say, this is one time (I was driving) that my eyes stayed on the road and I didn't hardly glance away to see the magnificent scenery below - why? There where no guardrails most of the way up and the road was not a four-lane interstate if you get my drift! There was one pull-off, which I took advantage of to get some pictures. After looking out and down, I'm glad I was driving and not the passenger looking down.

Once we arrived at the top, all was well - nice big parking lot. We got out to check out the crater and sights and were immediately where attached by bugs. They did not bite, but attached themselves to everything and anything, clothes, hair, camera etc. (Note: I stopped on the way down at the Visitors Center and asked what they are, False Cinch Bugs - harmless though - just pesty). There are several trails that are available, including one to the bottom of the crater. A few people braved the bugs and where doing the trails, we opted not to.

We stopped for lunch in Raton and drove through town. They have a old Opera House there, but I don't know the story behind it. I did take a picture though.

Coming home, we decided to take another road off the Interstate to Colfax. We were glad we did, took us out into the country - I think we passed two other vehicles. There where antelope in the road, but again, they took off running as soon as they spotted the car. I'll get a picture yet! Getting closer to Colfax we noticed the weather was looking bad at the mountains, lots of lightning. We saw several dust devils, one big one, but alas, I was not in a good place to get a picture. Sure enough, by the time we got to Cimarron, it had began to rain and the further into the canyon we went the harder it rained. Driving was not much fun at this point as I was having to avoid rocks in the road along with running water and the idiots that where coming the opposite direction that would not slow down going through these puddles! Finally, as we were coming into Cimarron Canyon, the rain slowed down. About the time we arrived back at Weathers RV Park, the sky opened up again, but we managed to get inside without getting soaked!

All in all, it was a interesting day.

Pictures will be posted soon - http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Morphy Lake State Park & High Road to Taos

Yesterday morning about 12 of us from Weathers RV Park caravaned to Morphy Lake State Park which is near Mora, NM. Marti, the RV park owner put this together. Good thing because we probably would not have gone otherwise. Finding this park would not have been easy on our own.

A neat thing about this state park is that the lake is on the top of a mountain. There is camping there, but signs warn you that RV's bigger than 18 feet are not allowed. I can understand why. Not only are the sites small, but the road to the park just wouldn't accommodate anything larger. We saw several pop-up campers in the park, but nothing bigger.

After a picnic lunch, Dean and I left the group to drive the "High Road to Taos" one of the state's scenic drives. We were not disappointed - scenic it was. The only problem we encountered was that about half way to Taos we ran into some real heavy rain and it stayed with us till we almost reached Taos. To bad as there were several points that I would have liked to stop and take pictures, especially of a Inn the was nestled in a valley. Can't even tell you the name of it, but it was a pretty place.

Since we were going to Taos we offered to pick up the hot dogs and buns for a wiener roast that Marti is having tonight for the campers here at the park. That and s'mores - yum - I haven't had s'mores in a long time. I'll take a couple of pictures and post them tomorrow.

Today is laundry day, gosh it seems like I just did it, sure comes around fast! Other than that, I don't think we will go anywhere. Dean is going to put up my Internet dish. The wifi here is good except when it storms (which has been every night) then Marti turns it off.

See ya later.... as always - pictures are posted at http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

A Busy Saturday

The Taos Pueblo and the Rio Grande River Bridge were our goals for Saturday. We arrived at the Pueblo around 10:30 a.m., bought our tickets and ventured inside. The first thing that grabs your attention is the church. This is the most important building in the pueblo. Unfortunately, they do not allow photos to be taken inside the church, so I'll describe it as simple but elegant.

There are currently about 100 people still living in the pueblo. The buildings are handed down from generation to generation and they are having the same problems as other people, the young ones are moving off. Therefore some of the pueblo is in a more deteriorated condition than other areas. The natives now use some of the rooms as "shops" to sell their wares. While browsing one of the shops I entered into a interesting conversation with the lady. She was telling me how she had been married, had children, lost her husband and eventually decided to marry a man from Louisiana (not a Native American). She told me how this caused some trouble as they (the council) want you to marry within the tribe. She said she told her father that there was no one she wanted to marry there as they were all to closely related! She was married in the church with her husband in full native costume out of respect to her father. She also said that their way of life is like living in a communist country - they have to watch what they say and do or they will be called upon to report to the council and can possibly be incarcerated. In other words - The Council Rules! A very interesting conversation this was and I would have loved to talk and listen longer, but she had some paying customers so I hugged her goodbye and thanked her for sharing her story with me.

After finishing our tour of the pueblo, we drove to the Rio Grande River Bridge. We parked and walked out on the bridge to get another look at the Rio Grande. Funny it just don't look big, but in a few minutes I spotted some rafters coming down river and once we saw them below us it was evident that the river is bigger than it appears from the bridge.

Marti, the campground owner told us to continue on past the bridge to the Earthship Community. I said what? She explained that there is a community where part of the house is covered by dirt (which I've seen in other states) and that they recycle things and use them in the building of the houses. They also harvest water, use solar/thermal energy for heating and cooling, produce their own food and more. For more information on this community you can visit their web site at www.earthship.com Different to say the least.

By this time we were hungry and headed back to Taos to Michaels Kitchen that had been recommended to us by Marti. Well, it was great. I have to go back again as they also have a bakery and the items looked so yummy, but I was good and didn't get anything this time. I've posted a couple of pictures of the food from there - look for yourself.

After a quick stop at our favorite store - Wal-Mart, we drove off in search for San Francisco de Asis Catholic Church. This church was completed in 1815 and is well known in this area. You can't tell by the pictures that I took, but the entire church is in the shape of the cross, if viewed from the air. Very neat - again no pictures allowed inside.

Driving back to Eagle Nest we decided to take the Route 64 detour which is a dirt road. Well, we drove and drove and drove and kept getting deeper into the mountains. We had passed a road on the right that we discovered we should have taken. I finally did a turn-around and went back to that road - there where no signs! The drive on this dirt road was not bad even though we had a good bit of rain over the past week. There where some washed out areas but I managed to maneuver around them. The views from the side of the mountain where awesome. I've posted a few pictures that I took - yes, I did stop to take them!

That about completed our day yesterday. This morning we attended church at the United Church of Angel Fire. A very nice service and friendly people. We will go there while we are in the area.

Tuesday, we are going with others from the campground to a lake on top of a mountain - should be interesting. Check back to find out......

http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Stormy Thursday Night & Friday In Angle Fire

Last night a storm brewed up over the lake at Angle Fire. It gave us a beautiful sunset and then a little rain, not much though. The storm stayed on the south side of the lake.

This morning dawned another beautiful day. Dean wanted some donuts so we drove to Angle Fire and found a nice little cafe/bakery. Since we hadn't had breakfast, we went ahead and ate there and brought donuts home for tomorrow morning. They make one called the "pinecone" which looks like a dozen donut holes stuck together then fried and glazed. I took a bite of one when we got home and yummmy. Can't afford to go there to often though - the calories -arrrrh!

On our way back home we stopped at the local thrift store and browsed around then stopped at the farmers market but didn't buy anything there either. Was looking for some tomato's but all they had were green ones.

We arrived back home just in time as the sky opened again (seems to do that at least once a day) - just a passing shower. We are staying home the rest of the day and relaxing.

New pictures are posted at http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Red River & Wild Rivers Nat'l Rec. Area

Yesterday we decided to drive to Red River and then on over to Questa and Wild Rivers Nat'l Rec. Area. Good choice.

The drive to Red River was really pretty, with green meadows and mountain peaks with snow still visible. Getting to Red River meant going over a pass, nothing new in this area, but it was so neat when we started down the pass and there was Red River, off in the distance, like a oasis in the desert. Getting into town, we soon discovered that Red River is a big ski area and tourist town. Other than stopping at the chamber office to get some info, we kept on driving on the Enchanted Loop, heading toward Questa and the Wild Rivers Nat'l Rec. Area. This drive kept us along side the Red River and in the valley. Very scenic indeed.

We stopped for lunch in Questa at the Wildcat Drive-Inn and had a very good hamburger. Then we headed off for Wild Rivers Nat'l Rec. Area.

Wild Rivers Nat'l Rec. Area is located in a high desert area and is pretty barren, but you almost immediately notice the high cliff across the gorge. Pulling off at one of the overview's you realize just how deep the gorge is. There are signs everywhere warning people not to get close to the edge - it would be a long fall down to the Rio Grande River! We drove the entire loop and throughly enjoyed the drive and walks to the overlooks. Especially where the Red River and the Rio Grande meet.

We decided to continue on to Taos to do a little shopping at our favorite store - Wal-Mart! I was driving so didn't get a chance to take pictures but the vistas where breathtaking - you could see forever it seemed.

Back over the pass to Angle Fire and then on to Eagle Nest and our day was completed and so was the drive on the Enchanted Circle - we have now drove the entire circle in one day. Not to worry though, there is still much to see in this area, so we are not done exploring.

Pictures are, as always, at http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Enjoy....

Taos, NM & The Taos Pow-Wow

On Saturday morning we drove to Angle Fire to the ACE Hardware store. Our jacks had sunk in the ground about 6" and Dean wanted to get some heavy boards to put under them before we sank to China! After getting the boards, we decided to take a drive over the pass to Taos just to check out the drive and Taos. The drive begins with a steep up-hill and then a semi-steep down hill which starts to level off even though it's still down hill - the kicker is all the curves. Go 50 - 100 feet and another curve - it's this way almost the entire drive to Taos. It's not really bad except for the locals that drive this road every day think that the speed limit signs are not there for them (maybe they aren't). Fortunately there are a lot of pull outs which I used to let the tailgater's go on past.

The highway takes you right into the heart of Taos which is good. We found a parking place and walked around the plaza, looking in several of the shops which surround it. There are some really neat stores and galleries with lots of artsy items like paintings, pottery, weaving and jewelry. After walking the plaza and taking a short break for a drink and chips-n-salsa, we headed back over the pass toward Eagle Nest. Driving back was more relaxed as I was more aware of the curves etc. I will be posting a few pictures from this trip at Picasa - see below for the web site.

Sunday morning we followed Roger & Brenda back to Taos for the Annual Taos Pow-Wow. After a quick detour to the Pueblo, which we will be going back to see, we made it to the Pow-Wow grounds. The Grand Circle was to begin at 1:00 p.m. and we arrived around 11:30 a.m. so there was plenty of time to visit all the vendors that circled the main arena area. We saw some really nice turquoise and silver jewelry. One item in particular was a man's ring that was absolutely stunning. The artist explained the symbols on the ring to me and told me what the stones where. When it was in the sunlight, wow! I then asked how much it was - prepared for several hundred but not for the $1000 that was quoted. I thanked him for explaining the ring to me and walked away. I must say that I've never seen anything that grabbed my attention like that ring did, but unless someone bought it after we left, he still has it. It was exquisite!

Roger & Brenda decided not to wait for the Grand Circle to begin so we said see ya later after borrowing their chairs (yes, we forgot ours). We found a place in the shade to sit just as the announcer was calling for those participating to line up. We had fairly good seats as far as seeing except for two ladies that were in front of us who would not sit down. Made picture taking very hard, but I think I got some pretty good ones. I took over 140 pictures there, but have selected the cream of the crop, so to speak, to post. I hope you can, in your mind, hear the drums as you view the pictures of the dancers! It was a great experience for us.

We left the grounds around 3:30 p.m. on a mission to locate the local Wal-Mart knowing that we will be making a trip back there in a week or so to re-stock. There was a Applebee's in front of Wal-Mart so we decided to get some grub there. Bad idea! Starting with bad service, something in my iced tea, not getting silverware or napkins prior to food coming out and having bad indigestion (or innergestion as my sweet daughter-in-law from Louisiana says) after eating, it will be awhile before we visit another Applebee's.

The drive back was uneventful and we continued past Eagle Nest to Cimarron Canyon to return the chairs to our friends. Come to find out that about a hour prior to our arrival they had a bear in the campground. Roger went on a bear chase (in the car) and did manage to get a picture of him in the woods. He was a pretty big feller - glad it was their campground that he decided to visit and not ours. We bid them farewell again, as they are leaving for Colorado in the morning. I hope that we will catch up with them before they head back to Oklahoma - we'll see.

View pictures (as soon as I get them posted) at http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Vietnam Memorial at Angle Fire, NM

After a really bad nights sleep, I was awoke by my phone at 9 a.m. - it was Brenda asking me what time the Farmers Market in Eagle Nest started. I wasn't sure so she was going to make a call to the campground where it was held. She called me back and said it started at noon - I had remarked that I wanted to be sure and go check out the produce. Since I had plenty of time, I decided this morning was cleaning day. Ugh, what a job, but someone has to do it.

At noon we went to the Farmers Market and found no produce! We were told that they should show up soon. Well, we waited about 40 minutes and gave up. We decided that we would drive to the Vietnam Memorial.

How interesting this place is. It was constructed by the family of Dr. Victor Westphall who son was killed in Vietnam in a 1968 enemy ambush. This was the first Vietnam memorial built in the U.S. If you visit, be sure to watch the film. Even though it is long, it is very interesting and touching. It covers by year, the Vietnam War.

After our tour, we drove on into Angle Fire to pick up a few groceries and encountered rain. That took care of photo ops there on this trip. I did get some at the Memorial so check them out at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

We're Parked At Eagle Nest, NM

Shhhh, I don't want to many rv'ers to know about this place. All I can say is WOW! Dean and I found what we've been missing. A great big thanks to our Escapee friends, Brenda & Roger for allowing us to tag along with them to this location.

Let me back track for a few minutes and catch you up with our travels. We left Shamrock with Dumas, TX as our destination. I'm not going to say much about Dumas, except I was surprised at the size of the town. I figured it would be another Shamrock - not.

Wednesday morning we left early (8 a.m.) heading for Cimarron, NM with all of us forgetting that we would be crossing into Mountain Time and gaining a hour. Had we remembered, we would have slept in another hour. The drive to Cimarron State Park was beautiful with the sighting of lots of antelope along the way. We stopped in the town of Springer, NM right in front of the old courthouse without realizing it until we got out of the coach - how lucky we were. Some interesting history here but we didn't stay long enough to really get the scoop. We decided to fill the fuel tank even though we were only a quarter of a tank down and boy did they see us coming - $4.98 per gallon for diesel. We arrived at Cimarron State Park close to noon and found the campground for boondocking (they are all boondocking campgrounds I believe). After setting up we drove to Eagle Nest to check out the full hook-up campgrounds and I found my spot at the first one we stopped at - Weathers RV Park. After ensuring a site for the morning, we went back home for a relaxing and very cool evening. I hadn't mentioned that the high yesterday was about 68 and the low last night was 54. Nice! This was our first night to boondock and maybe our last. We just don't think it's for us - we like the comforts that having the plug in a outlet, and the water hose hooked up provide.

This morning we moved to Weathers RV Park at Eagle Nest and are now at home for at least one week, maybe two. There is so much to do on the Enchanted Circle, which is the name for the loop that includes Taos and Angle Fire, if we don't do it in a week, we'll just stay put. One thing we need to do is get acclimated to the higher altitude - we are at 8,200 feet.

That about brings me up to date other than to tell you that I've posted some more pictures at picasa. http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Shamrock, TX on old Route 66

This cute bug parked next to us last night - wanted you to see it!

Back in the 60's I drove a good bit of Route 66 on my way from California to Pennsylvania - sure glad we have the interstates now. See pictures for explanation.

We are staying two nights at 40 West RV Park just west of Shamrock, TX on Route 66. I suspect that it used to be a "cabin" motel based on what the owner told us upon check-in and the way the trees are spaced near the road. He now has 30 and 50 amp full hookup sites. We have a drive through 50 amp site that must be 90 - 100 feet long.

I have to tell you that I-40 through Oklahoma City and about 10 - 15 miles on either side is horrible. It got so bad on the west side of town that our electric sunshade on the driver's side came down again! Dean now has to figure out how to get it back up so that it stays put! If you can avoid this area, do so.

I've posted a few pictures of Shamrock, TX and also a couple of fireworks pictures from the 4th of July at Firelake Casino. I will need to practice the firework pictures, they didn't turn out very well. First thing I need to get is a tripod for my camera.

That's about all for now, see ya later.....

http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY

Because today is a holiday, we decided it would be a good day to drive back to Oklahoma City and visit the Murrah Memorial and Bricktown.

Traffic was light and our GPS took us right to the Murrah Memorial. The first thing we saw was the fence with all the mementos on it. That caused the first lump in my throat as it was a hint of what was to come. I'm sure all my readers remember the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building at 9:02 a.m., April 19, 1995. I'm not going into deep history of the event here, but I'll let the pictures that I post do most of the talking of that event.

Entering through the Eastern Gate of Time the first thing you see is the reflection pool and the Western Gate of Time. Each gate has a time cut into the inner wall so to reflect the time off of the lighter color wall behind. The East Gate has 9:01 a.m. - representing the innocence of the city before the attack. The West Gate has 9:03 a.m. - the moment we were changed forever. Unfortunately, my pictures don't really show the time well, the sun just didn't cooperate with me. As you begin the walk around the pool, you see the memorial chairs. Here is where I lost it. You see, there are two sizes of chairs, large ones representing each adult who was killed here and small ones representing each child who was killed here. I use the word killed as that is what happened - they where murdered by a evil person who had no regard for human life. You can hear about these type of events on TV and feel shocked, sorrow and numerous other emotions, but nothing can prepare you for being at the actual site. There is a silence, a reverence, that settles in your heart. All of a sudden you are a part of what happened and it really comes home. This could have happened anywhere, but for the Grace of God, it didn't happen where we were.

After walking the Memorial Park, we went to the museum. Much to my dismay, but totally understanding why, they allow no pictures to be taken inside. Each exhibit is profound in it's own way. One allows you to experience what it was like at a meeting in the very building of the Oklahoma Water Resources Board when the bomb went off. They have the actual tape (the meeting was being taped) and it is played and when the bomb goes off the lights go out and it's like you were there. The other area is the Gallery Of Honor which honors the 168 who were killed by displaying photographs and personal artifacts of each one. You look at the faces and know that this was someone's mother, father, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, cousin and child. Very touching. All you can ask is why? Why did this happen?

It was a hard place to leave, but Bricktown awaited our arrival - right! What can I say about Bricktown - hummmm. Touristy, that's a good word. It is a lot like San Antonia riverwalk area. We did the boat ride through the area, decided we saw enough and headed for the Spaghetti Warehouse for a late lunch. It was delicious, but so much food that we brought half of it home. Now I don't have to cook tomorrow - yippee.

Our July 4th night will conclude with fireworks here at the casino. I'm going to attempt to get some pictures. This will be my first try at taking fireworks pictures, but my camera has a setting for fireworks, so we'll see. If they do turn out, I'll post them.

Hope everyone had a great 4th of July.

Pictures at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Stockyard City, Oklahoma City, OK

I have heard about the Cattlemen's Cafe. I think it was on the Food channel maybe "The Best Steaks in American" or something like that, anyway, yesterday was the day to go try it out. It is located in an area of Oklahoma City called "Stockyard City". As the name implies, the stockyards are located there and are still active with auctions every Monday and Tuesday. The town is very western looking and stores sell everything "western". We strolled through one big store and I was surprised to find that there where so many different brands and cuts of jeans. I'm not sure how you would pick out a pair. The clerks where very helpful explaining the different cuts and why they were made that way. They also had some really nice looking boots, but we left them there as we don't need them.

We were hungry so off to Cattlemen's Cafe we went. This restaurant has quite a history - it seems the original owner like to play dice. One evening in the 1940's I think, he met another gentleman who also loved the game. Well, they sat down for a friendly game of dice and the restaurant owner eventually lost his bankroll. He then made a bet that the other gentleman could not roll two 3's and put the restaurant up as the ante. This was made against the other man's life savings. Well, luck was not with the original owner as the other man rolled two 3's and won the restaurant. It is still the original building that was build in the early 1900's but there have been some additions made. Dean and I both had filet's that were fork tender and soooo good. If you should happen to go there, be sure and have the house dressing on your salad. It is a garlic/cheese dressing and is wonderful. Even though our waitress tempted us with a great line-up of homemade pies, we had to pass as we both were full. End note here - great service, great food, just a bit pricey. I can at least say "I've ate there".

The drive through Oklahoma City is hectic to say the least. I'm not looking forward to Monday morning when we leave here heading for Dumas, TX. I will breath a sigh of relief when we get to the other side of the city for sure!

We spent part of the evening back at Firelake Grand Casino, trying our luck on the slots again. Dean lost a couple of $$ while I came out ahead a few. All in all, we are not out any $$ but I think we are about even. Hope we can leave here that way! Of course, I had my dish of free delicious creamy ice cream before coming back to the motorhome.

Today we are heading out looking for a barber for Dean and doing a little shopping at Wal-Mart. We may try to find a catfish restaurant that we were told about - Catfish Roundup.

Time to get Dean up, so will catch y'all later.....oh yes, pictures have been posted.

www.picasaweb.google.com/SchultzTravelPhotos

Firelake Grand Casino, Shawnee, OK

We arrived yesterday at Firelake Grand Casino, Shawnee, OK, a bit shaken, rattled and everything else that goes along with some terrible highway. I've come to the conclusion that I-40 is just bad for the most part - at least through Arkansas and Oklahoma.

Back to where we are. Rumor had it that this casino offers "free" campsites with electric and water. Well, it's true although I wouldn't go so far as to call it a campground. But hey, it's FREE! There are 20 or so slots to back into that are wide enough for slides to be put out. No room for awnings unless your lucky enough to have a empty slot next to you. There is a nice grassy area behind with some picnic tables and a stream that I'm told has fish in it. Looks muddy to me, but might be because of the rain. They offer free shuttle service via a golf cart to the casino. Everyone we've talked to has been very friendly and welcoming. I was told that there was a three night limit, but when we checked in, nothing was said about time limits so we are planning on staying here until next Tuesday. It's not a COE park, but then again, like I said, it's FREE, until you go into the casino and sit down at a slot machine - LOL!

The only drawback that I can see is that there is truck parking in front of us. Not bad unless you get one that leaves the engine running or the cooler on the trailer running. We had one of those last night, but once we were in the bedroom, we didn't hear it.

I'll be posting pictures soon.

There are several things we want to do while in this area. The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum - a tribute to those who died in the Murrah building bombing. The National Cowboy Museum and a trip to Bricktown, a area downtown that resembles the Riverwalk in San Antonio. We just need to get ourselves organized then off we go.

Come on back in a day or so, I should have some updates.