Vacation 2022

 Toby and I got our little Casita ready for a trip and took off last Sunday afternoon for Ft. Cobb, OK. Why Ft. Cobb? Well, our real goal was to head out to Albuquerque to visit friends and go to some clay shops, but we also wanted to do some camping and kayaking. After very little research, Toby found Ft. Cobb Reservoir, which is about two hours away from our home and not far from I-40 to Alb. It was a beautiful drive north of Apache, OK - beautiful farm land. We found our RV spot after driving around for quite a while - may have been the theme of our vacation :) The lake was full, and our spot was near the water's edge so that we could put the kayaks in easily. 

Since we are early risers, we got up each morning and kayaked around the little inlet where we were camped. We saw deer, raccoon, rabbit, crane, snakes, etc. We also spent a lot of time sitting outside watching the people. It was not crowded at all. There were quite a few large RVs around the campground with children and dogs, which are always entertaining. As long as we sat in the shade, the breeze kept us cool. 

After a couple of days, we loaded up and drove west through more beautiful farm land until we got to Sayer, OK, where we got on I-40. When we arrived at my sister's house in Amarillo, we unloaded the kayaks to leave there, since we would not need them in NM. My sister took us to eat some seriously good burgers down on 6th Street - Old Route 66 - at a place called Golden Light. I had the green chili cheeseburger, while Toby had the Waller Burger - jalapenos between two slices of cheese on a burger. Really good stuff!

My sister took me to Hobby Lobby to pick up a cheap watercolor kit, since I had packed paper and brushes, but left the paint at home.  I had wanted to paint while at the lake, and I had plenty of time, but no paint. Once again, Toby and I sat out at the campground (Ft. Amarillo Campgrounds on the west side of Amarillo near Camping World just off I-40). The night was so cool that we slept with the windows open and the fan going. The next morning, we met for a Mexican food breakfast before leaving Amarillo. Toby rode his bike to the restaurant risking his life in Amarillo traffic that does not seem biker friendly. He made it fine. Before we left, we picked up some bakery goods from the Blue Crane on 6th Street. Then we headed off to Albuquerque. We did stop in Tucumcari and split a green chili cheeseburger at Blake's Lotaburger simply because it was a tradition. 

As we came down into the valley, it started raining on us - Yay! Alb. could use the rain. The land up and down I-40 was so dry! We stayed at a campground up the Turquoise Trail toward Madrid, NM. The campground was in the foothills of the Sandias and was typical NM. - nice, but a little rustic! We set up the Casita and then headed into town to meet my old friend Kathleen, whom I had not seen in about 30 years, but have somewhat kept up with on Facebook.

We met Kathleen and her family at their club off Tramway. They live on the east side of Alb. so it was very convenient to get to. How do I explain my friendship with Kathleen? Her grandparents had a cabin in RR, which they built in the late 1940s. Kathleen had a little sister, Angela, whom I may have mentioned before on my blog. As children growing up in RR, we ran together and became good friends - but mostly just summer friends. Kathleen's mom was my mom's age and they were also friends, but my mom worked through the summers at the beauty shop and did not have much free time. Although Kathleen was several years older than me and not really my running buddy like her sister had been, there was still a shared childhood time. There were memories and experiences shared from 50 years ago - Red River memories. It was so good to see Kathleen!

The next morning Toby and I had time to kill before going into Alb. We decided to drive up to Madrid, NM, and see if the little art community had changed much. We got there about 9:45 and nothing was open except a coffee shop. The lady there said things should open up around 10 or possibly 11. Nothing had changed in Madrid - ha! We walked up and down the street and waited until a few shops opened. Some of the shops were serious art galleries and some just curios shops. It was interesting. We took pictures of the cactus and scenery for possible painting material as we drove back to the campground where we took a nap before heading into Alb. 

In Alb. we visited NM Clay, which was amazing. The place was huge with all sorts of clay, glazes, and other pottery stuff. The people were helpful and friendly. Then we drove to Coyote Clay. It was on Edith Street - kind of an older area. They make glazes at Coyote Clay, and it was more of a factory with a very small show room. But they were also friendly and helpful. We bought some glazes that have been difficult to find here in OK. 

Next we headed to Sadie's to meet my old friend, Kathy, for supper. Sadie's is a well known restaurant in Alb. - a place we used to eat at often. I did mention via text that we could meet at Casa de Benavidez, a restaurant, which Jo and Gene had suggested, but my friend did not respond to my text, so Sadie's was where we met and ate supper. I had the chili relleno, which was pretty delicious. Toby had stacked enchiladas, which he said were only so-so.  

Like my old friend Kathleen, Kathy is an old RR friend, and I have blogged about her before. It was really good to see her and catch up on lives. I had seen her a few years ago in Taos (she had lived there for years before recently moving to Alb) when we met her at Orlando's for supper (always eating, aren't we?) along with our friends, Jo and Gene. It is a bit more difficult to keep up with Kathy than Kathleen. Although Kathy is an amazing business woman, she is rather social media/computer illiterate. And let's face it, social media is only as good at keeping us informed as the people who use it are. We really only see what people want us to see. Getting to see my old friends in person was important to me. We aren't getting any younger. 

When we got back to the campground after our Alb. time, we relaxed and enjoyed the cool weather. Each night in NM was cool - almost cold. We slept with the windows open and the blankets pulled up on us. We also got packed up and ready to head home the next morning. Rather than making coffee the next morning, we stopped at a coffee shop that had beautiful hollyhocks. I do love them so! They always remind me of my home in El Rito. They should be the State Flower of New Mexico. 

We headed home and stopped in Amarillo for lunch and to pick up the kayaks, which we had left with my sister. The trip was smooth sailing all along the way. We arrived safely about 6 PM to unload the Casita.  Jesse showed up with my dogs. Some friends showed up with their family to swim (I had told them to enjoy our pool while we were gone, and they did not realize we were back already). So it was a bit of a circus with dogs and kids. But the circus is a fun place!