Carlsbad, NM

Campsite:

Brantley Lake State Park, Carlsbad NM

Site: 15

Wifi: Verizon - 20 down, 5 up, ATT - 20 down, 5 up

Cost: $208 for two weeks

Noise: Very aggressive birds

We loved Brantley Lake State Park. The views were great, the sites were fairly level, everything was spacious, and even with neighbors we never were disturbed. The bathrooms are under construction, but the outdoor concert style restrooms worked just fine. Our cell signals were strong, we didnt have to worry about overflowing dumpsters, and it was easy to access our site. The only downside (which may be an upside to some) was that we were half an hour away from any sort of store. That meant we had to be more aware of how much gas we had on our motorcycle before we went anywhere. We would definitely be back.

That’s a good boy

City:

Carlsbad, NM

Carlsbad is a town full of all the things you would need, probably not so much the things you would want. Not a lot of social things to do - not even a lot of bars. It fills a void and gets the job done, but don’t expect anything extra. It’s within driving distance (2 hours or so) to two national parks, as well as tourist town Roswell, NM, so it’s a good stopping point. 

Restaurant:

Antigua Cocina Mexicana

On a visit to Roswell, we stopped by the visitor’s center for a photo op and dinner recommendation. We were told to go see Antigua Cocina Mexicana. It was more north of the city than we had wanted to go, but we are so glad we went. The food was absolutely delicious, the prices were reasonable, and the servers were friendly. Ron enjoyed the shrimp cocktail and thought they nailed a Mexican shrimp cocktail perfectly. I loved their almond flan.

Tucumcari, NM

Site:

Tucumcari KOA

Site: 41

Wifi: Verizon - Pretty much nothing / ATT - 15 down, 5 up

Cost: $42/night

Noise: None

We were supposed to stay in Alamosa, but fate had us stuck in Santa Fe getting fixed longer than intended. We were done with the repairs around 3:30pm, but didnt want to drive around in the dark, so we needed someplace closer than Alamosa. Tucumcari KOA had open spots, and we love being able to book online so that is where life took us. The actual KOA is pretty standard. The spots were incredibly close together, and you shared green space with your neighbor. However the office was well stocked, with incredibly friendly hosts who didnt have the fake happy “WELCOME TO THE KOA!” like some of the bigger corporate ones do. It was nice to be able to talk to such genuine people. They offered local recommendations and chatted with me while I waited for food from their cafe. Our spot was right next to the restroom, and it was nicely renovated. The showers were a little odd in that the changing stalls were short - I could see over them, and I’m 5’7”. The laundry was on the more expensive side but that’s just a KOA for you. 

City

Tucumcari, NM

Tucumcari’s slogan is Tucumcari Tonight! We weren’t there for long, but it didnt look like there was much to do in the way of nightlife. It’s known for being a spot on Route 66, and they are very proud of that. There are a lot of buildings with art for Route 66 painted on the side. That said, a lot of the buildings were closed  or abandoned. It looks like the town had a rough time when the Route 66 road stopped being such a main attraction. The town itself had all the basic amenities, but again we didnt stay long enough to really find anything to do. 

Restaurant:

Watson’s BBQ

Tucumcari’s famous restaurant is Watson’s BBQ. It was snowing on our explore day, so Ron went and grabbed some to go. Pulled pork was delicious, as was the BBQ sauce, but the real star was the sugar cookies.  We would go back for the sugar cookies alone.

RV Spending - October 2019

I’m ready to write an article called “Why You Definitely Should(n’t) Live In An RV”, as I shiver from it being 30 degrees outside in Texas and our heater is suddenly broken. Every time we get one thing fixed, another breaks. Most of October was spent with a tinge of disappointment. We didnt really like the towns we visited and we were once again stuck somewhere while we were getting things repaired. We also had our most expensive repair to date. As we travel through Texas like the pretend snowbirds we are, we will be slowing down to lower gas and campground costs so that, God willing, we can bring back up our savings.

Food

We were pretty upset by how lousy October was being to us, and we took it out on our wallets with restaurants and groceries. When we hibernate next month that number should go down.

Groceries: $579

Eating Out: $620

Gas

While we had fewer trips, we went further on each trip. We also were bored in the towns we went to, and traveled up to two hours each way to larger towns for things to do.

Gas: $265

Entertainment

Albuquerque had an awesome zoo that we went to on a half priced weekend, and we saw a movie at Alamo Drafthouse (Joker) as well as went to MeowWolf. With the influx of video games coming out soon, we will probably spend less on entertainment as we nerd out.

Entertainment: $126

RV Repairs

We went to Hal Burns in Santa Fe for repairs. We replaced our front brake pads, calipers, and rotors. We also got our bearings repacked. We were originally quoted $3k for this service by the repair guy in Denver, and were pleasantly surprised when it was just over half of that. This also includes the registration for the motorcycle.

RV Repairs: $2,380

RV Parks

We were lucky enough to stay in the parking lot for free while we were waiting for our repairs in Santa Fe, but because of the uncertainty of when we would get fixed, we were stuck with expensive same day KOAs. Most of November we prepaid back in September as they are state parks, so next month will be cheaper. This month we stayed at an RV park 24 days, with an average of $37/site.

RV Parks: $749

Propane

As we had hookups almost the entire time, most of our propane usage was for the stove. Our electric heater only works over 50 degrees, so the nights it got really cold we used propane heaters instead.

Propane: $57

Grand total for October: $4,776

Santa Fe, NM

Site:

Hal Burns Truck & Equipment Service

Site: None

Wifi: Verizon - 26 down, 14 up / ATT - 35 down, 26 up / Sprint - 3.75 down, 3.3 up

Cost: None, they let us stay while getting fixed

Noise: None

When we got our brake line fixed in Denver, the technician let us know that our front brakes were shot (shout out to the folks who fixed her up in WI who said they were fiiiiiine) and we needed to get her in ASAP. Ron did some research and came up with Hal Burns Truck & Equipment Service in Santa Fe. We called a few weeks ahead of time and were told it was first come first served. When we arrived, we were told it would probably be at least a week until we were even seen, much less have parts ordered. We were pretty distraught, as our silly minds thought it would only be a few days (HAHAHAHAHA, what idiots). Luckily, they have a lot of full time RVers come in, and while we could stay in their parking lot during the day while they worked on those that came before us, at night we were able to hook up to electric and water on their lot. The place is also gated, which helped with security as well. They were able to fit us in before the projected date and got the parts quickly. We are incredibly grateful for them letting us stay here while we waited. 

City

Santa Fe, NM

Santa Fe feels like a very large suburb. It is sprawling, and there is very little height to the town. Everywhere we went, people were incredibly friendly. It also is another art and history haven, but offer enough additional activities to have things to do for everyone. We also took a day trip to Albuquerque to the zoo where we saw what could be the most magnificent penguin exhibit ever. 

We also stopped at Meow Wolf, which was described to us as an eclectic art museum. And really, there is no good way to describe it other than it’s an experience. Ron and I both loved it, and when we go back to Denver and they have the installation in 2021, we will be the first ones in line. Definitely something to check out. 

Playing the light harp at Meow Wolf

Restaurant:

Puerto Penasco

We were given the recommendation for this local restaurant by one of the folks at Hal Burns (the first place she offered was known for its spicy food, so clearly we were not going there). We went in on a Friday night, and the place was pretty empty. It was shocking, because the food was DELICIOUS. It’s a Mexican restaurant with a ton of options. There was a distinct lack of green chile on the menu. Ron’s tacos came with a side of fries that we agreed were possibly the BEST FRIES WE HAD EVER EATEN. At a Mexican restaurant. It was really weird. My tacos were also flavorful without being spicy, and we both ordered the perfect flan. After our shit food experiences in Taos, we were ecstatic with how great the food has been in Santa Fe.

Taos, NM

Site:

Taos Valley RV Park

Site: 15

Wifi: Verizon - 1 down, 3 up / ATT - 60 down, 95 up

Cost: $225/week

Noise: No noise at all, minus the loud neighbors

When we pulled in to the office to check in, our host asked us how long we were when handing us our site info. That is never a good sign, I’ve found. The Taos Valley RV Park is situated at the south end of Taos, in a great location. You have beautiful views of the mountains, you are near the main road but get none of the noise, and all the essentials are nearby. The sites themselves vary wildly, and since there are no indicators on the website when booking, you may get stuck with a smaller spot than your RV can handle. This happened multiple times as evidenced by the trucks parked in the main roadways of the park as well as when I was getting the mail and a couple came in and said they needed a new spot because they didnt fit. We were lucky - our RV fit perfectly and our motorcycle is small. The pathways and roads are craggy, and instead of gravel you have small rocks that are painful to step on in flip flops. We also didnt have rocks all the way up our site, and when it rained the first night the front end of our RV sank into mud. The bathroom is small considering how many sites they have, and feels very dated. The showers have yet another case of Missing Showerhead Syndrome (common in many parks and clearly contagious) and the toilet in the middle stall of the women’s room isn't bolted down to the floor, making for a terrifying experience. Though in need of some TLC and updating, the park is the nicest one in the area, and were we to come back we would probably stay again. 

City

Taos, NM

Taos was listed on many sites as being one of the best hidden gems in the US. If you are into art, I completely agree. Unfortunately for us, streets lined with galleries do nothing to keep our interest. Taos has a lot of amenities, and many restaurants with New Mexican food. There is a lot of history in the area, as well as hiking trails in Carson National Forest and is within driving distance to larger cities. 

Restaurant:

We ate at three restaurants in Taos, and had horrible experiences with all of them, so we will not be putting a restaurant review on this one.