After a cold night at the Cimarron National Grassland, we were treated to a delicious dawn with a blending of the rising light and the brilliant night sky. One planet gleamed above the rising light. Stars filled the still-black sky. Meadow Larks and Juncos (Snow Birds) were singing.
Unfortunately we did not see the most sought-after bird by birders to this area, the Lesser Prairie Chicken.
"The Lesser Prairie Chicken is adorable, with patterned feathers that would earn raves on Project Runway. It has a flamboyant love life, too, with males gathering in a mating ground to strut, puff out their chests, and “boom”—expel air from bright orange air sacs on the sides of their heads. All this is done in hopes of thrilling female prairie chickens."
A simple stop in town to get coffee before we hit the road has given us a great idea for our remodeling/finishing project in the basement. The Unisex bathroom in this little family-owned restaurant, The Flying Monkey, has two simple sliding fabric-covered panels hiding the furnace and water heater. Just what we need to hide the furnace and water heaters in our basement hallway to the bedroom! Thanks Flying Monkey!!
https://www.facebook.com/The-Flying-Monkey-132756703480035/
We took the road less travelled as we left the camping area. It seemed like a reasonable alternative to finding a place to turn around. Not our best idea so far. The road was narrow and we ran over a number of tumbleweeds. They returned the favor by breaking off the water tank and water heater drain lines and valves that extended out the bottom of the trailer. Now we have a self-draining fresh-water tank and water heater. No worries about hauling around extra weight now.
I did manage to catch a tumbleweed:
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| No hunting license required! |
We did actually make it to Albuquerque, NM this afternoon, but not before detouring about 40 miles around an entrance to a highway and underpass that was all jammed up with trucks. Turns out the ice-covered roads caused more than just slow traffic. We think there was a head-on collision right in the underpass. After sitting in our car for 15-20 minutes with no movement or even a clue about what was really the holdup, we turned around and took a different route.
Here are a few pictures Mari took along the drive today:
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| Dawn at Cimarron |
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| Footprints in the snow |
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| Windmill |
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| Cheap Gas |
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| Lotta Cattle |
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