Monday, October 4, 2010
Dreamcatcher RV Park, Deming, NM - April 3-9
This is an SKP park and as such is very friendly with nice people & a few activities. That is the only reason to stay here, since it is located near I-10 and also near train tracks.
Deming is centrally located for lots of interesting sightseeing. We first drove north to Silver City and took what is called the Inner Loop Scenic Byway through the Gila National Forest. We passed through the lovely little town of Pinos Altos, which looks like a great place to spend some time in the future. It's located at about 6000 feet and has a lovely RV park which straddles the Continental Divide. Further along, we had lunch at an overlook where we saw smoke from a forest fire that had already consumed 14,000 acres of timber, and chatted with a couple about fulltime RVing. 
We then came to Gila Cliff Dwellings NM, where we went to the Visitor Center and took the hike through the cliff dwellings. They are small but interesting to see & learn about. The road continued back to Silver City through the Mimbres River Valley, again crossing the Continental Divide with spectacular scenery the entire way. When we arrived back in Silver City, we were able to meet up with Doug's brother Bob, who was in town for firefighter training with the Forest Service. We found a wonderful Mexican restaurant and had a good visit.
Back in Deming, we visited the local museum, which houses an amazing collection of memorabilia from the region. We also visited the St Clair Vineyards, one of the top 75 wineries in the US. They currently have 54 acres planted and plan to expand to 100 acres by 2005.
We went south to Columbus, NM, and Palomas, Mexico, a small border town with almost no pushy street vendors. You can stroll around and look to your heart's content. We met up with an SKP group for lunch at a good restaurant & then crossed back to the US. In Columbus, we visited Pancho Villa SP, where there is a lovely cactus garden, an attractive CG, and historic buildings from Camp Furlong, with information on Pancho Villa's notorious attack in 1916. Gen Pershing started the first US Army mechanized force in a punitive mission deep into Mexico in fruitless pursuit of Villa & his revolutionaries. While unsuccessful, it was a good test of the more modern equipment, enabling their use in WWI. Assisting Pershing was a very young George Patton.
On our way back to Deming, we also stopped at Rockhound SP, whose main claim to fame is that you can "collect" up to 15 lb of rock, which is unusual for protected lands. It is well known for its unique rocks & minerals. It also has a lovely cg.
All along the border we had been seeing white balloon-like objects, shaped sort of like blimps. In Deming, we learned that they are the Aerostat, US Customs surveillance radar balloons, which are used all along the northern Mexican border.
Deming is centrally located for lots of interesting sightseeing. We first drove north to Silver City and took what is called the Inner Loop Scenic Byway through the Gila National Forest. We passed through the lovely little town of Pinos Altos, which looks like a great place to spend some time in the future. It's located at about 6000 feet and has a lovely RV park which straddles the Continental Divide. Further along, we had lunch at an overlook where we saw smoke from a forest fire that had already consumed 14,000 acres of timber, and chatted with a couple about fulltime RVing. 
We then came to Gila Cliff Dwellings NM, where we went to the Visitor Center and took the hike through the cliff dwellings. They are small but interesting to see & learn about. The road continued back to Silver City through the Mimbres River Valley, again crossing the Continental Divide with spectacular scenery the entire way. When we arrived back in Silver City, we were able to meet up with Doug's brother Bob, who was in town for firefighter training with the Forest Service. We found a wonderful Mexican restaurant and had a good visit.Back in Deming, we visited the local museum, which houses an amazing collection of memorabilia from the region. We also visited the St Clair Vineyards, one of the top 75 wineries in the US. They currently have 54 acres planted and plan to expand to 100 acres by 2005.
We went south to Columbus, NM, and Palomas, Mexico, a small border town with almost no pushy street vendors. You can stroll around and look to your heart's content. We met up with an SKP group for lunch at a good restaurant & then crossed back to the US. In Columbus, we visited Pancho Villa SP, where there is a lovely cactus garden, an attractive CG, and historic buildings from Camp Furlong, with information on Pancho Villa's notorious attack in 1916. Gen Pershing started the first US Army mechanized force in a punitive mission deep into Mexico in fruitless pursuit of Villa & his revolutionaries. While unsuccessful, it was a good test of the more modern equipment, enabling their use in WWI. Assisting Pershing was a very young George Patton.On our way back to Deming, we also stopped at Rockhound SP, whose main claim to fame is that you can "collect" up to 15 lb of rock, which is unusual for protected lands. It is well known for its unique rocks & minerals. It also has a lovely cg.
All along the border we had been seeing white balloon-like objects, shaped sort of like blimps. In Deming, we learned that they are the Aerostat, US Customs surveillance radar balloons, which are used all along the northern Mexican border.
# posted by Doug and Willie @ 9:46 PM 
