Day 2, Farmington Bound

Apparently I missed the message annoucing departure time for this morning. I have been informed that it was set for 0700hrs. and when I was found slacking off in the lobby and holding up this wagon train west, the wagon master was none too happy. No horse and wagon for us; Dodge RAM. It's 2010.
I asked "What's the hurry? I'm on vacation." He said "I'm not. I'm working". It did make for a quick trip to the room to shower and get dressed, packed and loaded up. No sense in angering the bearer of a free trip westward. I can suck up with the best of em.

0800 and on the road. The iPod is cranked up and John Hiatt is wailing. We just passed the Cadillac Ranch. Just on the off chance that you have never scheduled your vacation trip to include a visit, don't bother. I don't know what the justification was for planting 8 Cadillacs nose down into the earth and lined up in a straight line but there they were; a sight not to be missed. I have to say, I've seen it before and as hard as this is to believe, I have never shot a picture of them.

Feed lots, cattle and the aroma is tickling the nostrils. Am I in Texas or WHAT?? All I need is the hat, belt buckle and boots to complete the scene. I love me some Texas!

Miles and miles of open range; wind farms lining the horizon, their blades spinning silently or at least from this distance I can't hear them humming and we are Farmington Bound. When the scenery gets a little more exciting, I'll be back to finish this post. FYI: it was 71 degrees this morning and as we head northwest, the temperature has dropped to 67 degrees and my body is happy all over!

0900hrs

45 minutes to Tucumcari. The earth has started to reddened up and the mountains, snow tipped, can be seen in the distance. To the right, the view is so flat that one can detect the earth's curve. A few Longhorns, horses and sage brush flash by. We haven't decided if we will go through Albuquerque or Santa Fe. I would prefer Santa Fe; I also would prefer to spend a day or two there but freeloaders will not be accomodated on this trip.

0930hrs

New Mexico/Land of Enchantment/You are now entering Mountain Time Zone. Roll those clocks back one hour. Aerosmith, old tunes bringing back memories has randomly arrived on the iPod. Fun times, memories that legally shouldn't be shared.

1100hrs

54 miles from Albuquerque and the landscape has changed to gentle rolling hills, grass covered and dotted with sage brush and mesquite. The soil is sandy and dry. The mountains appear closer now, and ringing our vision in the horizon seen through the windshield of the truck; temperature is 78 degrees. The altitude change is causing my ears to crackle and pop. We will stop in Albuquerque for lunch at the Frontier. June 14th we were at the Frontier for dinner and an overnight stay in Albuquerque. We have racked up some miles in the past three months with the trip to Arizona and now to New Mexico. The best part of this trip right now? I've learned to spell "Albuquerque".

1330hrs

Lunch at The Frontier and back on the road. ETA Farmington, 1630 hrs.

I'm closing this down and publishing after we get checked into the room in Farmington, unless something news worthy should happen and since I started this post, it hasn't.