So Bad It's Almost Funny

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Clayton Lake State Park, Clayton, New Mexico

We knew we were in no shape to drive all the way home yesterday. It would have been a long grueling 450 mile trip and we would have arrived to face the mountain road and docking the trailer at dusk. That didn't seem either fun or safe, so we decided to do a fairly long driving day and then a short one today, getting us in at a decent hour in the afternoon.

We took Interstate 40 west to Amarillo and stopped for lunch at one of the many steakhouses lining the frontage road. When in the Texas panhandle, you eat steak, of course, so I had a steak dinner for lunch. We ate on the patio and were able to bring the girls with us - it was a good family treat.

Assessing our situation, we determined things were looking good and decided to take the northern, less-traveled, route home. That takes us up to Clayton, New Mexico and from there it is just a three hour drive over to Cimarron and up and around the Enchanted Circle to home. Since we enjoy staying at State Parks, we decided to stop at Clayton Lake, a few miles north of Clayton.

Joan called ahead to make sure they had openings, specifically asking about sites with full hookups since we are exhausted and wanted the creature comforts. The person at the other end assured us that, although there were just two open sites with hookups, that everybody was going home after the Memorial Day weekend and we should have no problem getting one of them. Life was good and we headed north on US385 up to US87 and then over to Clayton.

As we headed north we watched the skyline change to a bruising black and blue bank of clouds. Once we arrived in Clayton, we started seeing lightening in the distance. That was OK except it was definitely headed in our direction. Because of bad signage, and GPS systems that don't work so well in this part of the world, we had some difficulty locating the right road. Finally, we headed out onto the New Mexican high plain directly towards the incoming storm. In the eery, purplish light, the landscape was interesting and a bit ominous. And the road, although only about 13 miles long, seemed like it was taking forever.

Finally, we arrived at the park entrance and there, right in front of us was another camper with a truck and a fifth wheel trailer obviously doing the same thing as us, looking for a campsite. With the campground office closed, picking campsites was now a first-come, first-serve option. That's fine when you are 'first', but not so good when you are 'second'!

We watched with increasing anxiety as the camper pulled into the last pullthrough campsite with an electrical box. Desperately, we looked around to see if there were other spots with electrical boxes. Yes, there was one just up the next hill, but there is a guy with just a pickup truck standing there, not even using the electrical box! We glared at him as we drove by and continued to look for hookup sites. There were no more. We missed getting a hookup campsite by just five minutes. I guess we should have ordered the smaller steaks!

Now mind you, the storm is coming in as we are searching, so a certain level of panic is starting to set in as we just don't want to have to setup camp in the driving rain. But we can dry camp for just one night - surely the batteries have recharged enough for just one night and, last I had checked, we had a about a quarter-tank of water. So we headed down a dirt road to the spot where tent campers usually go.

Luckily, we see a site with a somewhat level spot for the trailer. But it is going to require some tricky backing. I didn't feel I had any options, though. But this was going to be like parallel parking, on a curve, with a trailer, when you are tired. Let's just say, I had some difficulties. Joan, trying to direct me, is also getting very frustrated. And when I do get the damn thing in the slot and is reasonably off the road, Joan reports that there is no way she is going to get it level.

So I pull out of that site and move to the next one which is about the same difficulty, but looks a bit more level. And we start over. This time, I seem to back it in a bit easier and when Joan checks the levels, it is almost perfect. We are good to go.

But by this time, the storm had definitely come in. The rain, or was it sleet, was almost hurting when it hit us. Because everything was so level, we didn't need to unhitch the car, but we still had to lower the stabilizing jacks so the trailer was on solid footing. We have that down to a two person routine now - Joan puts plastic blocks on the ground, and I, using the electric drill, lower the jacks into place. The process works well, but isn't fun in the piercing rain as we both have to bend over quite a bit, and then repeat the process for all four jacks.

Anyway, we got that done and, sopping wet, we loaded the girls into the trailer. Fleur is doing OK, but Smooch is shaking like an Aspen leaf - she hates thunder. We do the best we can to comfort her, but have not found anything that works really well.

One last thing to do - roll out the slider! Joan hits the button and we hear the clunk! Clunk! Clunk! We had heard, a little quieter, the last couple of days. This time, however, it is much louder AND, significantly, the slider isn't moving. It seems that, on our last night of camping, the slider finally decides to stop working!.

There is both good and bad in that. The good thing is that it stopped working in the 'In' position, which means it is inside the trailer and not sticking out. That means that at least we can move the trailer and travel normally down the highway.

The bad thing is that it stopped working in the 'In' position, which means that it is taking up all the free space inside the trailer!. When the slider is 'In' it is almost impossible to move around. Joan can, depending on how much she has eaten, squirm through the small opening between the dinette table and the kitchen sink. I can, with great difficulty, push and pull various body parts through it, so I can make it to the bathroom if necessary. But mostly, I just stay in the roughly 9 square feet of space available on the bedroom side of the trailer.

With the thunderstorm right on top of us, we looked at each other and at the dogs, all scrunched into this tiny space. We didn't know whether to laugh or to cry, so we opened the wine and did a little of both. The thunderstorm eventually passed, Smooch calmed down, and we were able to go outside for a walk. After that huge steak lunch, we didn't need dinner, so we didn't need to cook anything. That would have been more than a little difficult. We played the final 3-13 card tournament (I won this time). Then brushed our teeth and hit the sack - there was still room for the bed.

Our poor trailer has taken a beating on this trip. We will need to get it in for some repair work. Besides the slider, the door threshold is broken as are the folding steps getting up to the door. On the whole, though, the trailer, our mobile motel room, has served us well over 83 days and nights. It is time to give it a rest.

Nothing on today's agenda except getting home. I'm in desperate need of a shower and can't wait to take one in our own home. And tonight, for the first time in twelve weeks, we get to sleep in our big bed with my legs fully stretched out. Can't wait to get home. (17.1.83)

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Photos

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Storm is Leaving

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Lot's of Room for our Last Night

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Parallel Parking with a Trailer

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Clayton Lake After the Storm