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Winter Wanderings


rickeieio

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We're starting to put together plans for a trip of approximately 4-6 weeks this winter. We plan to spend the bulk of the time in west Texas and New Mexico, but will likely stop in Louisiana, the RGV, Big Bend, Ft. Davis, Carlsbad, and possibly as far as Tucson, AZ.

 

I'm familiar with Big Bend and Ft. Davis, but know nothing of the other places. Sooooo, I'd like some gentle guidance from the folks who've spent time in the above mentioned areas.

 

Our interests are motorcycling, nature, discovering good road food, motorcycling, micro-breweries, motorcycling, ice cream.............

 

We prefer out of the way campgrounds, don't need anything plush, just clean. Elbow room is far more important than cable tv.

 

Thanks in advance.

KW T-680, POPEMOBILE
Newmar X-Aire, VATICAN
Lots of old motorcycles, Moto Guzzi Griso and Spyder F3 currently in the front row
Young enough to play in the dirt as a retired farmer.
contact me at rickeieio1@comcast.net

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We're starting to put together plans for a trip of approximately 4-6 weeks this winter. We plan to spend the bulk of the time in west Texas and New Mexico, but will likely stop in Louisiana, the RGV, Big Bend, Ft. Davis, Carlsbad, and possibly as far as Tucson, AZ.

 

I'm familiar with Big Bend and Ft. Davis, but know nothing of the other places. Sooooo, I'd like some gentle guidance from the folks who've spent time in the above mentioned areas.

 

Our interests are motorcycling, nature, discovering good road food, motorcycling, micro-breweries, motorcycling, ice cream.............

 

We prefer out of the way campgrounds, don't need anything plush, just clean. Elbow room is far more important than cable tv.

 

Thanks in advance.

Out of the way and clean, check out Rusty's RV Ranch in Rodeo, NM. 100 foot pull thrus....

Left there a week or so ago and Rusty is a great host(ess). Stock up before you go.

Did I say out of the way yet?

Ray & Deb - Shelbi the Aussie & Lexington the cat
2004 Volvo 630 500HP ISX "Bertha D" - 10 Speed-MaxBrake -ET hitch.SOLD
2009 Designer 35RLSA SOLD
Fulltiming since '07 - stopped 2016

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Out of the way and clean, check out Rusty's RV Ranch in Rodeo, NM. 100 foot pull thrus....

Left there a week or so ago and Rusty is a great host(ess). Stock up before you go.

Did I say out of the way yet?

Ray, would you please input that into the HHRV Campgrounds Location? We could all use that info. Thanks.

Rocky & Sheri Rhoades
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Take notes - We could probably use a bit of guidance in those areas ourselves.

 

Doing anything this weekend? Headed to Corbin area for a quick weekend with 2 other campers. Give us a call

 

Paul & Paula

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We're starting to put together plans for a trip of approximately 4-6 weeks this winter. We plan to spend the bulk of the time in west Texas and New Mexico...Our interests are ...nature...micro-breweries...We prefer out of the way campgrounds, don't need anything plush, just clean...

A lot of New Mexico may be pretty cold during much of the winter, Deming, Las Cruces and South would be my choices with maybe a short trip to Alamogordo if the weather forecast was good. Near Deming, Rockhound and City of Rocks State Parks are both nice, but getting a site that will work for your rig may not be possible. Hidden Valley Ranch RV Resort is about 10 miles North of Deming and at the end of a 7 mile well maintained gravel road. They have a number of long sites. It is a Passport America Park. Oliver Lee Memorial State Park is South of Alamogordo. It has some large sites that will likely work as long as you unhook. There are also some long sites in the dry camping area. White Sands National Monument is not far from Alamogordo. In Las Cruces, Sunny Acres RV Park has some large sites. We saw an HDT and lots of large Motorhomes with trailers there in October. Caballo Lake and Elephant Butte State Parks may have some sites that will work for you and both have dispersed camping areas. There are Escapees parks/coops in Deming and near Carlsbad.

 

As for microbreweries, De La Vegas, Spotted Dog, Bosque Brewing and High Desert Brewery are in Las Cruces. Unfortunately the Mimbres Brewery in Deming which was located on Gold Street has closed. Here is a link to the New Mexico Brewers Guild.

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So I spent the last hour scouting the area around Rusty's RV Ranch. Looks very promising, and inviting.

 

The NM climate should be fine for us, cool enough so we don't sweat, but warm enough for some dual sport rides. If it's cooler than that, we take the smart.

 

The list of breweries is pretty impressive. It will take me several days to sip my way through them.

KW T-680, POPEMOBILE
Newmar X-Aire, VATICAN
Lots of old motorcycles, Moto Guzzi Griso and Spyder F3 currently in the front row
Young enough to play in the dirt as a retired farmer.
contact me at rickeieio1@comcast.net

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I can't answer your request , as we haven't been there , yet .

 

I just happen to notice that maybe you enjoy old bikes and motorcycling ? ;)

 

Same here . ride.gif

Yes, we like motorcycling. We mostly ride road bikes, but have dual sports too. Our current street rides are a pair of oil head BMWs. The old bikes include the likes of a Honda 90 like the one we rode while dating, my old CB750 hot rod, some CBXs, and a '27 Henderson.

 

I'm hopeful that we can haul the smart and 4 bikes on this trip.

KW T-680, POPEMOBILE
Newmar X-Aire, VATICAN
Lots of old motorcycles, Moto Guzzi Griso and Spyder F3 currently in the front row
Young enough to play in the dirt as a retired farmer.
contact me at rickeieio1@comcast.net

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Yes, we like motorcycling. We mostly ride road bikes, but have dual sports too. Our current street rides are a pair of oil head BMWs. The old bikes include the likes of a Honda 90 like the one we rode while dating, my old CB750 hot rod, some CBXs, and a '27 Henderson.

 

I'm hopeful that we can haul the smart and 4 bikes on this trip.

 

We only have 3 bikes with us : '89 Yamaha XT350 ; '84 Suzuki FA50 and my '57 Simplex Automatic . The XT and the 50 get most of the use . :) I actually wore the 50 out ... it now needs an oversize piston set and a bore job .

Goes around , comes around .

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Clumsy lumbering RV's are merely an appliance to facilitate canyon bikes, road bikes, dual sports, track bikes, old bikes...

 

AND using bikes as wheels limits the amount of crao 'scuse me "shopping" that gets hauled back to base camp ?

"Are we there yet?" asked no motorcycle rider, ever. 

 

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Ray, would you please input that into the HHRV Campgrounds Location? We could all use that info. Thanks.

I'd almost forgotten to do this. I have a few to input. Thanks for the remiinder

Ray & Deb - Shelbi the Aussie & Lexington the cat
2004 Volvo 630 500HP ISX "Bertha D" - 10 Speed-MaxBrake -ET hitch.SOLD
2009 Designer 35RLSA SOLD
Fulltiming since '07 - stopped 2016

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Rick, when you get your plans firmed up a bit, if you're still planning to hit the RGV, send me a PM. I may have a spot available where you'd be welcome to "drop anchor" for a while.

Phil

 

2002 Teton Royal Aspen

2003 Kenworth T2000 - Cat C12 380/430 1450/1650, FreedomLine, 3.36 - TOTO . . . he's not in Kansas anymore.

ET Air Hitch

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Clumsy lumbering RV's are merely an appliance to facilitate canyon bikes, road bikes, dual sports, track bikes, old bikes...

 

AND using bikes as wheels limits the amount of crao 'scuse me "shopping" that gets hauled back to base camp

Considering that her bike will haul double the cargo of a smart, I'm hosed. Those BMW bags are huge, plus she has a Givi top trunk. Fortunately, she hates to shop. ;)

 

Rick, when you get your plans firmed up a bit, if you're still planning to hit the RGV, send me a PM. I may have a spot available where you'd be welcome to "drop anchor" for a while.

Thanks Phil. We will certainly be in touch.

KW T-680, POPEMOBILE
Newmar X-Aire, VATICAN
Lots of old motorcycles, Moto Guzzi Griso and Spyder F3 currently in the front row
Young enough to play in the dirt as a retired farmer.
contact me at rickeieio1@comcast.net

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Some nice two lanes through the swamp in Louisiana. Hwy 1 all the way to grand isle, a little busy though, and the road through the Atchafalaya basin from Morgan City towards Thibodaux. Nice beverage stop in the middle, right at the bridge. Tables out on the water front. Nice road from Chackbay heading east- curvy and quiet.

 

There are some campgrounds near Houma, but i have no personal experience with them.

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  • 2 months later...

Plans are coming together. We look to pull out about Saturday and arrive in the RGV perhaps on Monday or Tuesday. I hope there's room for us somewhere.

 

We're hoping to stay in the RGV perhaps a week before moving on to Big Bend, then maybe Las Cruces or Rodeo, NM.

KW T-680, POPEMOBILE
Newmar X-Aire, VATICAN
Lots of old motorcycles, Moto Guzzi Griso and Spyder F3 currently in the front row
Young enough to play in the dirt as a retired farmer.
contact me at rickeieio1@comcast.net

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Yes, we like motorcycling. We mostly ride road bikes, but have dual sports too. Our current street rides are a pair of oil head BMWs. The old bikes include the likes of a Honda 90 like the one we rode while dating, my old CB750 hot rod, some CBXs, and a '27 Henderson.

 

I'm hopeful that we can haul the smart and 4 bikes on this trip.

Sent you a PM.

White 2000/2010Volvo VNL 770 with 7' Drom box with opposing doors,  JOST slider hitch. 600 HP Cummins Signature 18 Speed three pedal auto shift.

1999 Isuzu VehiCross retired to a sticks and bricks garage. Brought out of storage the summer of 2022

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The Gold Volvo is still running and being emptied in July. 

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Well, I've been looking at the maps, trying to determine the best route from Cincinnati to McAllen. Which is the lesser evil, going through Houston, and risking loosing a case of Dr. Pepper, or trying to miss the congestion of Dallas and San Antonio?

KW T-680, POPEMOBILE
Newmar X-Aire, VATICAN
Lots of old motorcycles, Moto Guzzi Griso and Spyder F3 currently in the front row
Young enough to play in the dirt as a retired farmer.
contact me at rickeieio1@comcast.net

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I say come through Houston :ph34r: and if you do it next week you can save the Dr. Pepper, I'll be on vacation a bit north of San Antonio

MY PEOPLE SKILLS ARE JUST FINE.
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2005 Volvo 780 VED12 465hp / Freedomline transmission
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Rick -

If anywhere near San Antonio, I highly recommend this place:

http://rvcoutdoors.com/medina-highpoint-resort/

 

As you may already know, a fantastic riding area.

 

Hmmm...on edit, is this the RVC you spoke of? I'm not a biker, but we did visit.

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Rick, I've never tried to pass through Dallas going east or west, so my list may be missing something, but in my experience the two worst cities in Texas for traffic congestion on their expressways are, by far, Houston and Austin. San Antonio can be heavy at times, but not nearly as bad as Houston and Austin.

 

Houston traffic can be mitigated somewhat by passing through mid-day (say, between 10 AM and 2 PM) or after 7 PM. All other hours are a crapshoot, and likely to not work out in your favor. Also, an evening trip through Houston has an additional benefit -- the Harris County Sheriff's Department Commercial Enforcement deputies are off the clock and at home, consuming copious amounts of Dr. Pepper. :D

Phil

 

2002 Teton Royal Aspen

2003 Kenworth T2000 - Cat C12 380/430 1450/1650, FreedomLine, 3.36 - TOTO . . . he's not in Kansas anymore.

ET Air Hitch

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Rick -

If anywhere near San Antonio, I highly recommend this place:

http://rvcoutdoors.com/medina-highpoint-resort/

 

As you may already know, a fantastic riding area.

 

Hmmm...on edit, is this the RVC you spoke of? I'm not a biker, but we did visit.

Thanks Tom. We're familiar with the riding in the Hill Country, but didn't know about that place. It might be a nice place to visit on the trip home, when it's a bit warmer. Oh, and I mentioned RGV, or Rio Grande Valley.

 

Phil, thanks for the tip on Houston. I normally try to avoid big towns. Been bit a few times, the worst being downtown Calgary on a Friday afternoon.

KW T-680, POPEMOBILE
Newmar X-Aire, VATICAN
Lots of old motorcycles, Moto Guzzi Griso and Spyder F3 currently in the front row
Young enough to play in the dirt as a retired farmer.
contact me at rickeieio1@comcast.net

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Thanks Tom. We're familiar with the riding in the Hill Country, but didn't know about that place. It might be a nice place to visit on the trip home, when it's a bit warmer. Oh, and I mentioned RGV, or Rio Grande Valley.

 

Phil, thanks for the tip on Houston. I normally try to avoid big towns. Been bit a few times, the worst being downtown Calgary on a Friday afternoon.

 

Unfortunately, the Valley is "guarded" by big towns, Rick. Realistically, there are only three ways in and out of the Valley. You can get to/from the eastern third of the US via Houston, to/from the central US via San Antonio, and to/from the western US via Laredo, unless you take back roads -- and to get around any of those three cities, they'll be really remote and out of the way back roads.

 

Coming via the I-35 corridor Austin and San Antonio can be bypassed, but to do so requires the use of very nice but outrageously expensive (especially for rigs like ours) toll roads, and from the direction you're coming, especially since you'd want to avoid a northern route this time of year, you'd likely end up having to pass through Metroplex traffic to access it, which defeats the purpose of bypassing the other two cities.

Phil

 

2002 Teton Royal Aspen

2003 Kenworth T2000 - Cat C12 380/430 1450/1650, FreedomLine, 3.36 - TOTO . . . he's not in Kansas anymore.

ET Air Hitch

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We stayed in Columbus NM, out of the way place and very quite. Some history there also.

Pancho Villa State Park

Located at the border of Mexico, the park exhibit hall and historic structures capture the history of the Pancho Villa Raid and historic Camp Furlong. The large campground offers utility hookups for campers with RVs, and a playground for the kids.

 

http://newmexicostateparks.reserveamerica.com/camping/pancho-villa/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=NM&parkId=430022

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