Elephant Butte Lake State Park

As we leave Elephant Butte Lake State Park, there is little evidence of the driving wind and snow from the day before. We wait until 9:30 a.m. before hitting the road. We want to make sure any snow and ice further to the north has had an opportunity to melt. Near as we can tell, Elephant Butte received a fraction of snow fall in comparison to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Seems like we were at the southern end of this massive storm reaching north into Colorado and Wyoming.

After two hours of travel, we pass through Albuquerque, New Mexico, and past the Sandia Casino. With as many times as we travel between our home in Colorado and our son’s home in Arizona, the Sandia Casino is usually a favorite overnight boondock spot for us. During this trip, we’ll just wave as we pass. The Sandia Casino has a huge parking lot dedicated for RV’s….no trucks. The casino offers a couple of good restaurants, nice bar, RV parking next to the golf course, and a beautiful view of Sandia Peak. Feeling lazy? There’s even a shuttle bus roaming the parking lot.

We continue our drive north of Albuquerque. After an hour, we arrive in Santa Fe. We pull into the Santa Fe Skies RV Park and are assigned a nice pull-thru site. There’s barely a hand full of us camped here, and I appreciate management spreading us out so none of us are in the same row – no neighbors. The park is very conveniently located; just one mile off Interstate 25 and close to just about everything. Even though they offer FULL hook-ups year round, we just hook up to electric. We have plenty of water in our holding tank that we’ll use. I’ll have to do another post on our winter camping routine.

After a quick-lunch, Al and I head back over to the office to scour the racks of literature and brochures on the Santa Fe area. With an arm full of propaganda we return to the rig and make a plan for the following day. The weather forecast is iffy….oh, joy! So I want to make sure we prioritize.

If there is only one thing I am able to see during this stay in Santa Fe, it is the Loretto Chapel. I’ve seen this Chapel featured on numerous TV shows over the years. I believe it’s the former “homebuilder” in me that puts this particular Chapel at the top of my list.

The Loretto Chapel is formerly a Roman Catholic church, but today functions as a museum and wedding chapel. The chapel’s “miraculous” spiral staircase is an architectural wonder; its construction is the subject of a lot of speculation. Two mysteries surround the spiral staircase in the Loretto Chapel; the identity of its builder and the physics of its construction.

Al and I were both moved by this visit. The craftsmanship and spirit are beyond words. We were fortunate to have visited this amazing structure with very few other visitors. We found it simply breathtaking; the marble altar, the stained glass, the statues, the overall structure, and then of course the staircase…..stunning!

If we weren’t able to see anything else that day, Al and I would have been just fine. But alas, the weather held out just long enough for us to see a few more sites…..

For now I’ll leave you with more images of the Loretto Chapel. Click on any photo to view a slide show in a larger format.

Loretto Chapel, Santa Fe, New Mexico

The snow started blowing late Monday afternoon here in southern Colorado. By Tuesday morning we awoke to a blanket of white. With a chuckle I say to Al, “Looks like Tucson”. That snowstorm in Tucson, Arizona, was a rare sight to behold, and I responded to the Tucson snow like an exuberant child.

Snow in Colorado? Well, that’s to be expected. As is the ten degree temperature at 7:00 a.m. Therefore, I do NOT respond with any exuberance. I ponder….”why aren’t we still in Arizona hiking and photographing the blooming desert?” Oh those darn responsibilities and obligations. At least this Colorado snowstorm blew through southern Colorado quick and by Tuesday afternoon the snow was gone.

RVing — a snow covered Pikes Peak can be seen from our deck

Our RV & Truck covered in snow sitting on the side of our house

Our departure from Tucson took us on a five-hour drive to Elephant Butte Lake State Park, New Mexico. We paid careful attention to the weather forecast before hitting the road, in particular to the wind speeds. Interstate 10 can get dicey with high winds that are known to cause brown out conditions. We picked a beautiful day for travel and our drive was uneventful and pleasant.

Interstate 10 — Bear gets a walk at a rest stop west of the New Mexico border

We arrive in the town of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico and stop at Walmart to stock up with groceries before heading to the state park entrance. We know inclement weather is in the forecast and we want to be well stocked and prepared. We’ve driven past Elephant Butte Lake State Park numerous times over the years, but this was our first stop and layover.

Nina over at Wheeling It piqued my interest with her rave review of this State Park. I also had the pleasure of meeting Nina and Paul while camped at Quartzsite and we discussed some of the must see sites in this part of New Mexico. Boy, that “must see” list has a funny way of getting longer. I never realized how much there is to see and do in New Mexico.

After checking out the campgrounds near the town of Truth or Consequences, we take the ten-mile twisty, curvy Rock Canyon Road to the Monticello area and quickly settle into site #34. At this time of year, the lake level is very low, its also still winter, thus camping at the northern part of the lake is less popular….right up our alley. As usual, Nina was spot on with this recommendation. We much preferred this campground over the ones closer to town.

The bath house is heated, clean, and the showers provide plenty of hot water, which Al and I take full advantage of. The views are vast. The hiking and biking endless…. providing you don’t encounter a driving snowstorm like we did. Yep, snow again. We enjoy plenty of heat, food, and drink as we watch the weather roll in, then out. Internet service is good, allowing Al and I to keep tabs on the weather forecast.

The original plan was to hang out here for a few days exploring the surrounding area. Ah….Mother Nature has other plans with a series of storms intermixed with high wind warnings in the forecast. We opt for Plan B: After a two night stay at Elephant Butte, we’ll depart for Santa Fe.

Initially I was somewhat disappointed with the early departure. However, I’d rather be safe than sorry and roll with the weather. Elephant Butte Lake State Park is an easy eight-hour drive south from Pueblo, Colorado. Thus, we can return to the area when the weather is more amenable and explore that list of places I wanted to see. I’ll admit, I was pretty eager to get to Santa Fe anyway.