Friday, April 29

“Great to be moving again, isn’t it, crew?”

North on Route 180 between Glenwood and Reserve, New Mexico

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I can’t believe we camped at Bighorn for seven days and I never unhitched.  I should rename that campground Bigsleep.  Well, the rest was good.  I’m feeling much —

Uh oh.  What’s this?

Panic shoots through me.

An approaching car blinks its headlights at us, on, off, on, off, on . . ..  Immediately I wonder what’s wrong with the Perfect Tow Vehicle or the Best Little Trailer.  Then I see the driver, a woman, her mouth open with excitement. 

Oh, it must be someone who likes Casitas or knows my blog . . . .  Whew!  That gave me a fright.

Overcast skies, a dark morning, easy driving with no glare

A sign along the roadway says “Reserve 29 miles.”

Wow, we have a big journey ahead of us.  I used to drive farther to go to work.  Apache Creek Campground is only twelve miles beyond the town of Reserve and here we are on the road bright and early.  It’s only about 8 o’clock.  Well, I wanted to beat the wind.

Seems like yesterday we were camped among cactus blooms!

Soon we’ll be under Ponderosa pine boughs again.  Looks like snow on those mountains up ahead . . . .

I hope the town of Reserve has a grocery store.  It’s been a week and it’d be nice to pick up some fresh items . . . .

A mailbox . . . We must be almost there.

The town of Reserve sits a few miles past the junction of Routes 180 and 12.

A statue of Elfego Baca greets visitors and residents.

Who was Elfego Baca?

Here are two interesting accounts:  “Elfego Baca battles Anglo cowboys” and “Elfego Baca- One tough old New Mexico sheriff”.

(Also — If you don’t know what a jacal is, follow the second link and scroll down to the photo.)

Suddenly a pick-up truck barrels around the curve of the main street toward us.

A black dog chases, running full-out.  He realizes he can’t keep up and quits.

“You two are never left behind,”I remind my pampered crew.

I bring the window down in order to take photos and Reggie stands on his hind legs to check things out.

A few houses cling to the main street.  Bright colors seem “right” in the Southwest.

Uncle Bill’s Bar is next door to Jake’s General Merchandise.

I’m the only customer at Jake’s this early Friday morning.  I strike up a conversation with the woman checking out my purchases.

“I’m on my way to Apache Creek.  What’s it like?”

“Oh, Apache Creek is beautiful!  My daughter had her wedding there. We hung streamers between the trees . . . . .”

She hands me my two bags of groceries.

“The campground is right before the store. You make a right turn.  The road to the campground goes over a bridge.  You’ll like it there.”

“Thanks!” I reply as I head for the door.  “I’ll think of your daughter while there.”

Tularosa Mountains (seen when we go the “wrong” way on Route 435)

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We arrive at Apache Creek Campground!

I park at a campsite and let out the crew.

Wow!  So many birds!  And these trees!  Magnificent!

Reggie and Bridget scurry from one sniff to another, obviously enjoying this new, aromatic environment.   While walking the campground lane searching for the perfect campsite, we pass a site occupied by two women and a child around two years old.

“Hi!” one of the women calls out. “Could you bring your dog over for my little girl?”

She means Reggie, of course.  Reggie scampers around the girl, thoroughly enchanting her, while Bridget sits quietly and watches.  I ask the women about the lay-out of the campground.  It’s confusing at first because the dirt roads wiggle around the Ponderosa pines.

One woman remarks, “It was really cold last night.  The water iced over.”

They’re camping in a tent. 

It’s still cold out, probably barely reaching into the 60s.  The little girl wears a coat and a knit cap that covers her ears. Her cheeks are ruddy, but she doesn’t seem to mind the cold.

“Gee . . . Do you have enough blankets?” I ask.  “I have some spares.”

She says they have enough.  This is their fifth day at Apache Creek.

Apache Creek (elevation 6,432 feet), about 98 driving miles north of Silver City, NM

“Did you notice all the birds?” she asks.

The other woman chimes in. “We’ve seen loads of wildlife, too.  Deer, coyotes . . . . Elk walk through during the night and we saw the tracks of a cat over there . . . .”

In the next post . . . .

I’ll show you more of this free, national forest campground.

Plus . . . “RVSue and her canine crew” join a search-and-rescue operation!

rvsue

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