Picked Kam up and on our way.....

October 8 – Up at 8 and on the road at 9 to the planned Wal-mart.  Traffic was light since it was Sunday morning and we breezed through.  Bill drove the car and I drove the RV since once we got there I left in the car for the airport.  A right and 2 lefts and I arrived at the tiny Santa Fe Municipal Airport.  The terminal looks like a house and Kam confirmed it was tiny from the air and you walk into the terminal.  She said she’d never been in such a small airport.  I received a text from Kam on my way that she had landed.  It was so close that I was waiting for her to come out.

Kam and Bill

We zipped back to Wal-mart and Bill was in the process of cleaning up a little mess.  Some food items had shifted and although he had a hand ready to catch anything that was falling, there were 2 things and one got him:  salsa!  Good thing I have another jar in case we need it! 

We decided not to hook up the car since it was only about 20 miles to where we were getting off to visit Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument.  We left the RV behind the gas station and lit out for the adventure.  It was maybe another 20 miles to the entrance where there was quite a line formed.  We sat for a bit waiting and a ranger paid a call on each car in line letting us know it could be 1 – 2 hours due to the limited parking at the trail heads and it’s Balloon Fiesta

Field of tent rocks

week.  I knew if we didn’t go now we’d never go and Kam and I suggested we give it a few minutes to see how much the line moved.  Once the ranger made it to the end of the line, the cars ahead of us started turning around.  So we moved up!  Then a couple more cars turned around and we moved up again.  Then we’d see a couple of cars exiting and we’d move up again.  Kam got out after a while and counted and after moving up several times we were still behind 13 cars.  Then things got to moving faster and we figured the first wave of the morning was leaving.  Overall our wait was about 30 minutes.  I brought granola bars so Bill and I had a snack and Kam saved hers for on the way back.

It’s 4 miles from the entrance to the parking area where they have a ranger you follow to the

LOOK OUT BELOW!

space since they are dotted in the woods.  We chose the Cave Loop Trail which is 1.2 miles (half of it is uphill).  The trail grants an excellent view of cone shaped rock formations as well as boulder caps perched on top of tapering hoodoos.  I could have sworn if the 3 of us stood and jumped up and down for a few minutes we could make one of the boulders fall.  The cave is about half way at the highest point of the trail.  You can’t go in it and it is man made but we didn’t determine the age of the cave.   There’s an overlook but since you must drive on a section of gravel road AND it was well past lunch time, we passed on it.

The café at the truck stop was closed so we just ate in the RV.  I had plenty of ham and chicken, as well as an assortment of fruits and vegetables.  It was only max 30 miles to Albuquerque so we drove separately again.  Other than Bill missed one turn after we exited the interstate all went well, well except the speedometer was not working again.  At least I was following him and he wasn’t going to be speeding for fear of me losing him.  The Sheriff’s Posse Arena was rather full this year.  Our space was closer to the end than the beginning but that’s fine.  We share a water hook up so Bill had to get a splitter out.

We had our afternoon iced coffee and Bill took a nap and Kam and I read.  I did a bit of typing and then got some dinner ready.  I steamed some shrimp and chilled them and made stuffed zucchini and leftover corn.  For dessert we had the only pint of huckleberry ice cream we had left for dessert.  It was yummy.

At 7 we watched TV and at 8 we stepped outside and watched the laser light show and the fireworks from the Balloon Fiesta.  That’s the convenience of parking at the arena.  We’re ¼ mile as the crow flies.  Kam booked Uber to pick us up at 5:30 in the morning so we can go to all of the morning events.  Tomorrow will be a short day!!