Our elevation moved from a little over 2000 feet above sea level to almost 5000 feet during the day as we drove through the mountains of Texas. I never really new such large and beautiful mountains existed in Texas. For some reason, I just love mountains!
We quickly passed through El Paso. You can see that it is the center of export and imports between Mexico and the USA. Trucks and freight trains everywhere. A great deal of poverty is evident in the housing and some run down stores. The houses are practically stacked on top of each other. We could see the “WALL” running between Mexico and the US right by I-10. Also, we could see it was off in the distance for miles and miles. Eventually, we got a close up look in the city of El Paso.
The poor housing
Border wall
While driving through New Mexico, we saw many homes with dozens of solar panels on there roofs. Harnessing the sun!
There was snow on some of the higher peaks of the West Portello Mountains just inside New Mexico.
Soon after passing into Arizona, we drove through a truck weigh station type of building. We slowed way down and passed many cameras and some type of sensors. Finally a border patrol officer waved us on. Guess it was a drug scan or illegal alien search. No indication was given.
The bridges in NM and AZ are very colorful. They either paint designs on them or add a tile design. Makes the drive very pleasant.
About mid-afternoon, we reached our intended destination of Benson, AZ. We are about 45 miles east of Tuscon, AZ We are staying at a very nice park called I-10 Benson RV Park. The campground was clean and the manager was very friendly. We had to go to Wal Mart to get stocked up on groceries for Quartzsite. Much cheaper here than in the desert community of Quartzsite.
Monday, January 11 - We are heading out early again today intending to reach Quartzsite, AZ by mid-afternoon.
Temperature here in Benson, AZ is 32*....Jacksonville, FL ...22* and Miami ...32*. They said it would never happen….but, we are as warm as Miami for this time of the year. WOW!
The landscape out here can’t be captured by a camera. Marsha would say over and over, “This picture just doesn’t do this place justice. It is just too beautiful!”
We had a nice drive west, arriving in Quartzite about 1:30. We met up with our Escapee group, The Class of 2009. We met around the campfire for a covered dish dinner and grilled hamburgers. We talked until about 9:30 and then returned to the motor home and hit the sack.
We have a tremendous amount to learn about boondocking – that living without hookups for an extended period of time. My biggest concern is the use of battery power. I need to check the condition of our batteries. Of course, Marsha’s biggest concern is…”What do I turn on or off when I want to dry my hair?” Geesh….women!
Thanks for visiting. Hope to see you soon.
