Elephant Butte State Park January 2012

Well, here it is 2012. This month I thought I would start back to when we decided to become gypsies and do a little review about what we have been up to so far. We've been asked "what the heck made you decide to do this"?  Well, 10-12 years ago we started to talk about how great it would be to take off in the motor home and travel. Over the years we have spent our vacations traveling this wonderful country of ours. We have seen so many great things and have been able to meet many different and interesting people.  We've talked to scores of people already full timing on the road. We talked, asked questions, bought books and even read some of them (Holly reads the ones with the big words and explains them to me).

After all of this we started to talk about work camping.  We both knew that we wouldn't be happy just sitting home and doing nothing.  Work camping is where you work a set number of hours or days per week for a full hookup site. The amount of time that you work can vary from 20-40 hours per week. We knew we didn't want to work more than 20-24 hours per week, which would give us time to explore and enjoy the area we were working in.  I will say that when we volunteered at the two lighthouses, we worked 5 days per week but we enjoyed it so much that it didn't seem like work. Over the years  we started with a 13-foot trailer with no toilet and an ice box. Then we went up to a 17-foot trailer with a toilet and a refrigerator and 3 kids. In 1986 we bought our first Honey, That was a 26-foot Honey, Class C motor home. That little motor home made trips to Seattle, Washington; Bar Harbor, Maine; Miami, Florida and several areas in the western states with the 3 kids.

In 2000 we bought our first Class A motor home. It had a fridge, stove, oven, shower, toilet, a lot of storage, two slide outs and no kids. After a few years we realized that it didn't have the storage that we wanted along with a few other things we felt we would like. We decided if we were going to live the life style we planned, we were going to have to go shopping again. In 2006 we found THE ONE. It had everything that we were looking for plus a fireplace and no kids. As soon as we walked into it we knew that this would be the one we could live in. Krista called it our rolling condo when we brought it home. We traveled some more and talked some more and then the big day came. At the end of June 2011 we both retired.

Our first volunteer position was at North Pier Head Lighthouse in Ludington, MI. We have visited many different lighthouses in our travels and thought this would be a great way to start our adventures. We spent a week as volunteer lighthouse keepers. We shared our duties with three bright and wonderful women. We didn't use our motor home for this due to fact that housing was provided by the lighthouse keepers association. We had a great time, made new friends and met people from all over the world.

Our next position was as lighthouse keepers at 40-Mile-Point Lighthouse on Lake Huron by Rogers City, MI. At this lighthouse, the association provided a full hookup RV site for the keepers to park their camping units.  There were three other couples that we worked with. We had a campfire most nights and had a chance to sit around and get to know everyone and enjoy the evening on the shore of Lake Huron. We volunteered here for two weeks. The lighthouse was closed on Mondays and we had one other day off per week.

This gave us time to explore the area and visit other lighthouses  that we had not been to before. We also had a chance to go up to Mackinac City, take a tour of the retired Coast Guard Icebreaker Mackinaw. It was a lot nicer then the icebreaker that I was on in Alaska but it was also newer. It did bring back some memories, especially when we got down to the engine room. Oh, we also made it to the casino a couple times to make our contributions to the Native American College Fund!

After we left 40-Mile-Point we went to Traverse City State Park to relax and meet our friends Jack and Lynn. They both recently retired, too.  They drove their motor home up  from Florida to visit family and friends. We spent 5 days doing the wine tour thing and just sitting around and catching up.

After a short stop back home it was off we go again. This time it was to Young State Park in Boyne City, MI as campground hosts. Every state has different requirements for their hosts. In Michigan they want the hosts to be on site on weekends and to be available 30 hours per week. This includes having a weekly craft hour for the kids in the park and a coffee hour once a week for the campers. The coffee thing didn't worry us too much. The park supplies the pot, coffee, cups, cream and sugar. All we had to do was make it and sit around and talk...easy breezy. Now the craft hour was a whole different thing.

Holly did a great job of getting ideas for crafts and picking up supplies. She also went and bought a bunch of little trinkets we could give away to the kids. We fretted about the craft hour for months.  When the big craft day came, two girls showed up. We did our craft that we had planned. They had a good time and went on their way and it was done. All that to do over nothing. But we did make some great skeletons and spider web.
The grand kids enjoyed making the crafts too.

While there we had many opportunities to visit with our friends Jim and Terri. They live right next to the park so it is a short drive. Terri made us many wonderful meals and it was nice that we were able to do laundry at their place when we visited them (we are on a fixed income you know). We went out on their boat several times and when the kids came up, they had a chance to go as well.  Seems funny we have been here in New Mexico for 3 months and they have yet to visit...maybe I should get a boat! We  spent one month at Young State Park and again,  met many nice people over coffee.  The park staff were great to work with as well.
We left Young State Park and made a swing home to change out some clothes and a few things we found we didn't need and loaded up stuff we felt we did need. After a couple of days and a chance to visit with the kids we left for New Mexico. After a few days on the road, some rain storms and only one problem with a tire, we made it to Albuquerque N.M. We had a chance to be there for the last day of the balloon fiesta and were able to see some beautiful balloons. This is one of those events that I had always wished that I could see but it was never at a time when we were on vacation.....so nice to be retired.

After we left Albuquerque we headed down to Elephant Butte Lake State Park. Upon our arrival we were greeted by Don. Don and Enid were the hosts in our loop. They were at the park until the end of October and then headed back to their home in Arizona. They ran out before it started to get cold.  We are happy to welcome them into our circle of friends.  Shortly after arriving we also became friends with Richard and Betty. They were volunteers at Lions Beach, which is another campground in the park. We enjoyed an outing to Chloride, an old silver mining town, had several dinners  and numerous visits. They ran off to Quartsite, AZ the first of January.  They were ready for warmer weather than what we are experiencing here in New Mexico.  We will miss them.

Everyone here has been so nice from the other volunteers and staff to the campers that we have come to know. There are many campers here who come to get out of the big snows up north. With the annual camping pass it's a pretty inexpensive way to live.

January 6 was the New Mexico Centennial celebration. Elephant Butte Dam has been closed to traffic since 2001 but it was opened to foot traffic for a few hours on the 7th to celebrate the centennial.   We volunteered to help and they had around 1,200 people show up. They were only expecting 200-300.  It was a fun day.
We have been in New Mexico since Oct. 9, 2011 and have loved our travels so far. We feel we've made a good choice for us even though we do miss the kids and grand kids (did I really say that?).

We've met so many wonderful people and made some good friends along the way.  We are here until April 1st, then will head home for a couple of weeks.  Our next adventure will be in Sequim, Washington.  We'll be there May 1st - October 15th. Both Holly and I are excited because we both have family In Washington.  It will be great to see everyone again.

Elephant Butte State Park December Part 2

Good thing we have sun glasses, these candles are bright.

Here is part two of our December blog.  When we arrived at Elephant Butte, we helped fold paper bags for luminaries whenever we worked at the visitor center. In all, that totaled 4000 bags. On Dec. 8 the volunteers and the rangers on duty got together to put sand and candles in 4000 bags. It took a while, but we finally figured out a system to efficiently put the bags together.  In addition to the rangers we had extra help from the local school kids.  After the bags were filled and candles inserted we loaded all of the 4000 bags on trailers and on the floor of the maintenance building.  The annual luminary beach walk was on Dec. 10.  Roads were plowed along the beach and different groups and businesses from Elephant Butte and Truth or Consequences set up trailers along the beach roads. They decorate the sites, have huge bonfires and pass out all kinds of food and drinks. Most popular was a Mexican soup called posole, which is made with green chiles (of course) and hominy.  Delicious!  All donations went to Make A Wish Foundation. I'm getting ahead of myself...on Saturday morning we all met up and started to place the 4000 bags out 4 steps apart and in as straight a line as possible.We lined the roads and parking lots in the campground with the 4000 luminaries. We also lined the beach walk and the road coming from town. .  This took about three hours and then we all got together again around 4 P.M. to light all 4000 of them. When it was dark with all of the decorations and fires it was beautiful and well worth the work. On Sunday morning we had to go pick them all up.  Did I mention there were 4000 of them?                                                  

Now which one needs that candle?

 All of the night shots were taken by a couple that were camping here.  They gave us permission to use these great shots in our blog.

It was a beautiful nite, the sky was clear and we had the most beautiful full moon.  We had a great turnout. Most of the male volunteers helped park cars and direct traffic. By the time I had a chance to walk around  and enjoy the festivities a lot of the food was already gone but I did manage to get some green chile stew, some kind of Frito burrito, as well as some green chile soup. I didn't go away hungry. Love those green chiles!

These shots were taken at the entrance to the park and at the park office. Did I mention there were 4000 luminaries?

Really this is New Mexico not Michigan.

I know this looks like Michigan but it really is New Mexico. The Friday before Christmas we had a winter storm that covered the whole state. We had heavy snow (6 inches here), high winds and cold temps. The main highways, I-40 east and west, I-25 north and south were closed. We had snow drifts across the roads here in the park. I even managed to get hung up on one but was able to get out by myself thanks to my training from back home. I even had to break down and shovel the snow in front of the door because I was tired of having wet floors.

Well that just about covers December. As you can tell we stayed busy. Holly made "puppy chow" and we gave it to the other volunteers and the rangers and staff for Christmas and it was enjoyed by all. To the right is a picture of our tree, it was a little different having Christmas with just the two of us but it didn't take nearly as long to open the gifts. The best part is that when it is time to take down the tree all I have to do is fold the branches up and slide it back in the box and put it back under the bed.  In 2012 New Mexico will celebrate their centennial and will have the road over Elephant Butte Dam open to foot traffic. We have volunteered to help with that on Jan. 7.  I should be a big help because I am so knowledgeable about dams and am such a great public speaker. We've been here three months now with three more months to go. We will head home for a few weeks before we take off again. Hope to see some of you when we are home. That's it for this month. We wish everyone a Happy New Year and the very best to all.

Elephant Butte State Park December 2011

Well, here it is December already. We can hardly believe that we have been retired since the end of June. We have volunteered at two lighthouses and at Young State Park in Michigan. We arrived here in Elephant Butte State Park in early October and have been having a great time. We work our combined 24 hours plus every week and then we go out and explore the area. We've traveled to some pretty nice places and have seen some interesting things. We've also had some great Mexican food and even had a pretty good green chile cheese burger.  It's all the rage here, you know!                     






One day we took a trip to Chloride, which is an old silver mining town.  This once was a booming town when the silver mines in the area were producing silver. When the silver ran out so did the people. The town is being restored by a family of three; Mom, Dad and a daughter. They have done a great job so far. The picture on the upper left is from the general store. They said that when the owner left he boarded up the windows and locked the doors. When the people restoring the town went in the first time they found out that he left everything on the shelves. They just had to clean and polish due to the fact the rats and bats left a mess on everything.

The picture on the right is also in the general store. The people shown doing their Christmas shopping is Richard and Betty. They are also volunteers at the park and were nice enough to invite us along on this trip. There is a cabin that is being restored, the bank is being turned into a cafe and  there is a gift shop. There is also a small (4 space) campground and a cabin that they rent out. The lady that showed us around was very knowledgeable about everything there. She is also 81 and full of energy.

This tree is right in the center of the road coming into Chloride. It is called the hanging tree even though there is no proof that anyone was ever hung from this tree. The tree is said to be 200 years old. I think that it is a good thing that the town is so far out and away from anything and has not had to worry about any drunks hitting it. We visited a "gringo" cemetery located way up on a hill. It is a good thing that Richard drove and has four wheel drive or we would not have been able to see it. There are graves from the 1800's to the present. It was interesting to walk around and read some of the grave markers. They were made from wood, stone, granite and metal.

On another day we took a ride out to see the Very Large Array which is a radio telescope. It consists of a large number of dishes that pick up radio waves out of the sky and uses computers to put them into useable form to create a picture of the universe. The dishes are mounted on railroad tracks so they can be moved to different configurations to see different parts of the sky. It is located far from any town and is in a high valley to prevent any interference.

As you can see, they use several of these dishes (26, I think) and they move as the earth rotates so that they can study a certain area and collect all of their data. There's a nice visitor center that explains what is going on but it's still a mystery how they do what they do.

If you look at the picture to the right you can see in the lower left side Holly, Ron and Lois, our new found friends from Canada who went with us. More on Ron and Lois later! The day we went was cold and rainy that turned to sleet but it was still a nice day trip.

We had heard about a nature preserve from one of our campers. It is called Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. It is known for it's large number of Sand Cranes. There are also large numbers of other birds due to all of the lagoons and ponds that are located there. We visited during the famous Crane festival. We took the driving tour around the refuge and it was interesting to see and hear all of the different birds that call the area home during the winter. We even saw some "snow birds".  We went back one day just before dark when the majority of them come back to roost for the night.

It was really cool to see large flocks of sand cranes coming in to land. They just seem to come flying in and then they slow down and just float down to the water. We were told that during the day the cranes are on land to feed and at night they move to the water so they can hear any predator trying to sneak up on them.

We had taken the dogs with us but they were not allowed out of the car and as you can see Reggie was not very happy about that. I believe he had more on his mind then bird "watching".

This is Ron and Lois, they are from Alberta Canada. They came in one day while we were working at the visitor center. When we were going back to the camp ground that evening we saw them stopped on the road and Ron was out walking around the car. We stopped to see if they needed any help and Ron thought they would be ok. Turned out they had a bad wheel bearing and a sick dog they were trying to get to a vet. I took them into town and waited to bring them home. Turns out the dog had a tumor that they knew about for a while and had finally gotten so sick that they had to put her down. It was a very sad day for them and us being the dog lovers we are. The next day I tried to help Ron fix the Mustang (1966) but the bearing had welded on the spindle so he had to order a new one and have it hooked into town to be fixed. They were stuck in Elephant Butte for about a week but made the best of it. We had a chance to spend some time with them and enjoyed several happy hours...we had a super time. They were great people and we hope to run into them again in our travels.

We spent Thanksgiving with three other volunteers. Francis, Jo Ann and George. Jo Ann is from Louisiana and made most of the dinner. We had plenty of food which included turkey, rice, sweet potato casserole, cornbread stuffing and fruit salad (it was nothing like the fruit salad we are used to). Holly made deviled eggs, green bean casserole and a carrot cake. I did miss mashed potatoes and gravy but I didn't go away hungry. We ate outside in one of the shelters and the weather was great  during the day. Later that night the rain started and kept up for a couple of days.


On another day we went to visit a ghost town but unfortunately, it was closed.  We run into that a lot here, but we did get to see Lizard Mountain. Look at the picture and see if you can see why they call it that. I will give you one hint--look on the right side of the mountain.

With the holiday season approaching, it was time to put up the lights. I spent a day decorating the Mesquite tree by us as well as our shelter and the palm tree. It was sunny and warm and everything went very well. Holly has decorated the inside of the motor home and put up a tree.  It's looking a lot like Christmas here.

The lights look nice, don't they?                           

How is this for a Christmas tree?                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Everything was just great. The lights were up, the weather was warm and sunny then it snowed. That's right SNOW, three inches of that heavy, wet, cold stuff. It even had the nerve to break one of the leaves on our palm tree.  It had stopped by morning and I was able to take the tree down to the shop here at the park and use the welder to fix it.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

It was so pretty outside when the sun came up. I took a walk around the park and took a few pictures. The one below is my favorite. It's a picture of Elephant Butte Lake with Kettle Top Butte in the back ground. As I am working on this, it is snowing again. The temp is 23 and the wind chill is 5 degrees and it's suppose to get down to 13 tonight and down to 9 tomorrow night. The bright side is it's going to start warming up after that and the furnace works!

Well that's it for now. We want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas from New Mexico. I will probably do a update later on in the month. There are a few things coming up and I will have to see if I get any good pictures. As I said, it's been an adventure, even with the snow and cold, but when you are at 4800 feet in the high desert surrounded by mountains, you have to expect some kind of  weather. Anyway, how can we be snow birds without snow?

Elephant Butte Lake State Park Nov. 2011

 Well, we've been here almost a month now and finally feeling that we have figured out the system. Just to review, we work at the visitor center collecting fees and answering questions (this is the part of our job where I have to be nice to people). We have also adopted a hiking trail that's about one and a half miles long. When we started working on this it was overgrown, had some washouts, and was rough. We spent several hours cutting back brush and filling in holes and washouts.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              We  were supplied with rakes, shovels and loppers to cut the brush back. We also have the use of a Polaris and Holly does a nice job of driving it over the trail (and some rocks). We're very proud of the trail now and feel good about all the work we have put into it.

After cutting all the brush we had to load it up and haul it out to a dumpster. Now I know you are all saying "Oh that sounds so hard poor baby" let me tell you, out in the desert everything has some thing that will scratch you or stab you. Some of these had thorns that are between one to four inches long and sharp. I had on leather palm gloves and was still bleeding all over the place. OK, maybe not all over but I did have some nasty scratches.

We have basically finished the major work on the trail. We've trimmed, filled and pulled the drag over it to smooth it out. We've gone through and aligned all of the rocks that line it and added some.  We had a request from our volunteer coordinator Manny to add  a cutoff to the visitor center. We're so good at this that it only took us about two hours to grade it, add some fill and line it with rocks. I can hardly wait to see how Holly adds this to our resume... "experienced at trail reclamation" sounds good to me. 

We also pick up litter in the park and down on the beach. Believe me there's a lot of beach here. I thought that we should just drive back and forth on the beach and pick up the trash with the grabbers they supplied us with. But noooooo, Holly thinks we should get out and walk to pick it up. Man, that is a lot of walking. So our first day on litter duty we go down to the beach, park the Polaris and start walking. Holly goes one way I go the other. It isn't long and I have half a bag of trash, I turn around to see how Holly is doing and there she is sitting down on the beach. Now she says she was picking up a bunch of broken glass but I think she was resting.

Last month they had a potluck with the volunteers and some of the park staff. It was nice to meet and visit with everyone. Holly made deviled eggs  and her pudding dessert (we didn't tell anyone what we really call it). There was some really good food there. They are planning another one for this month, I can hardly wait. In case anyone is wondering what our dogs do when we are working, just take a look to the right.  That's right, they sit and worry about us all the time we are gone.

                                                                                                                                      The picture to the left is a Cholla and is very large...this is a very small tip of it. The other night it got a little cold. Holly got up in the morning and woke me up to tell we didn't have any water. The water hose froze. I thought about disconnecting it the night before but I thought they were kidding when they said it was going to get down to 30. It warmed up to 50 in a couple of hours and the hose thawed out. We just used the water in our tank until then. I can hardly wait for winter here. That's all for now see ya all next month.