Up and at 'im -- we had a 4 hour drive east on I-40 to Tucumcari, NM. This part of the country is still all prairie, from horizon to horizon. Although this prairie is mostly grasses, with some small shrubs. There must be more water here, as you don't see any red dirt between the shrubs, just grasses. You would think there would be lots of cattle grazing, but we didn't see any. Also, it is a more populated area, as you do see the occasional ranch house stuck in the middle of these huge prairies. Wide open skies and countryside. No wonder these folks feel claustrophobic when they go to New England.
This is a small RV campground, owned by a family. Another parking lot, but all gravel with nice full hook-up settings. They do cater to folks with horses and pets, though none are here at the present. We set up, had dinner, and walked the campgrounds. It was only 6:45pm, but already it was sunset, with nice colors in the sky. We walked over to the office, and borrowed a couple DVD's from their stash. We watched "The Game", with Michael Douglas. Ho, hum.
Tucumcari is a little town, originally settled as a railroad tent camp in 1904. It thrived for awhile until the depression, but got a bit revitalized with the creation of the historic Route 66 and the damming of a nearby river, creating a large lake for farmland irrigation and a State Park. However, it seems to currently now be known for its criminal activity, and doesn't seem to have a reputation as a "safe" area. We'll just stick to the RV campgrounds. The name, Tucumcari, refers to the nearby "mountain", which means Look Out, as it is the highest point in the surrounding prairie lands. After coming from seeing all of the mountain ranges further west, this one isn't so impressive.
Our campground photos:
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| Tucumcari "mountain" |
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