Day 3

After two long days of travel, I allowed the children to sleep in.   In fact, I enjoyed sleeping in almost as much.  Sleeping in meant getting up at 0730 instead of 0600.  I got up and made some breakfast tacos for the gang.  I figured such food might provide the appropriate energy for our first hike of the trip.
I started the generator while we cooked to charge up the ships batteries a bit.  The trailhead was only about 5 minutes away at the next campground up the river from us.  We made the trip and pulled in next to what looked like a horse trailer.  To our amusement, tied to the side of the trailer were a pack of llamas.  Apparently you can hire a guide an take pack llama trips up into the mountains.  We set out on the hike, a relaxing but uphill hike 3 miles to a turnaround point.  On the way up, there was the usual whining but they kids quickly set into a rhythm.  I would occasionally carry the smaller two boys but it wasn't a bad hike. The first hike is always somewhat difficult with the altitude and such.  We found a turnaround point and had lunch at a water crossing. The kids enjoyed playing in the water and trying to spot salamanders.
The hike down was a different story.  The younger two children ran out of energy and devolved into crying messes. I ended up swapping the two of them on my shoulders to give them a break.  Halfway down we encountered another family.  They turned our attention to an abandoned gold mine that was sort of hidden up a rock slide.  Amy and Alex continued on, while myself and the boyse went to explore.  Harris had brought a head lamp and we ventured into the cave.  The temperature suddenly turned cold and damp.  We walked in about 50 yards and that was enough.  The kids became scared and my common sense got the better of me. No gold was found.
We completed the hike to find Alex and Amy waiting.  We decided to head into Taos, about 45 minutes away for some fly fishing supplies and dinner.  As we pulled out and headed West, the beatiful mountainside gave way to a barren waste land as the Forrest had been sold off to some sort of strip mine.  It was sad to see.  The children asked why that sort of thing would happen.  I explained that this was why I was so adamant about protecting our countries public lands.  Once they are taken in such aa way, they will never come back.
Taos was an interesting city with an interesting vib.  It felt like a Southwestern South Austin in a way.  We found the fly shop and I procured my flies for fishing tomorrow.  The shopkeeper informed me of a pond that was good for fishing with children near the local fish hatchery.  We had been given advice from a colleague to check out the up attached to the local NPR station.  KTAOS is an NPR affiliate that is completely solar powered on the edge of town.  The interesting part is that there is an attached pub with a kid friendly outdoor area.  The whole thing overlooks TAos mountain and had a spectacular view.  The station had an interesting assortment of hippies and local families.  The DJ was broadcasting live from a studio in the middle of the bar encased in soundproof glass.  We found the outside and the kids had fun hula hooping and playing tag while Amy and I absorbed the view and atmosphere.  This Friday was also a special family night.  They had a large movie screen set up in the pavilion in which they were going to show Jim Hensons's "Dark Crystal".  Families are encouraged to attend and bring a mat to lay down and enjoy the show. There was families, couples and dogs al enjoying the signature puppetry of Jim Henson.  We ate dinner while watching the show.  The kids were engrossed in the film and left with all smiles.
We headed bad with enough daylight to start a campfire.  Harris lit the fire today and they again enjoyed s'mores while Alex, Amy and myself provided music with the drums and ukele.  The kids were a bit hyper after all the soda at the pub, but all in all a fantastic day.  Taos seems to be worthy of a repeat visit in the future.

Day 2


The crew slept well.  I got up early and mad everyone cream of wheat.  I had the kids help me get ready to push off as they are getting old enough for that sort of thing.
The journey North carried us through the usual seemingly endless miles of high plains.  What once nourished millions of buffalo and Native People, now reduced to corporate farms.  What a thing it must have been to see, the endless prairie, uninterrupted by fences or large irrigated fields.
We decided to take a different route West this time.  We would skip the usual lunch spot at Capulin Volcano, and take a course directly West. The road was much smaller, but it seemed to travel along some parts of the old SantaFe trail.  There was really only one stop on the desolate stretch of road.  The "stop" was really just a collection of a couple of buildings and a local mercantile.  Amy had looked up this shop on her phone and multiple travelers had raved about the home cooking and hospitality.  This would be our lunch stop.  We pulled in, letting the travel weary children run about for a bit.  Inside the store was a motley collection of local, jams and honey, jewelry, blankets, soda, and a counter from which you could order food.  There was no menu.  The lady behind the counter simply responded, "We have burgers and brisket sandwiches today".  A quick query of the children revealed that all but Grant would opt for the burger.  They were made to order and we made our way outside where they had a lone picnic table that overlooked the interminable grassland.  There was an arid breeze blowing, providing a sort of relaxation that was simple and elegant.
As we had gone into the store, we encountered an elderly man.  He smiled at the antics of the children, pleased to remember the simple jubilance of childhood.  The food was delivered to the table, and even Luke, who is normally picky made short work of the mean.  The brisket sand which was delicious, and the pinto brand that accompanied the meal was just as good.  They had a hint of the green child flavor in that New Mexico way.
We finished our meal and headed back to the rig.  The old man stopped us and asked us where we were from.   We discussed our travels and inquired some about his history.  He had moved to the area 65 years ago as a boy and has lived there since.  His face was sun beaten, weathered and tough in that old rancher way.  He seemed to have a softness there as he discussed years of ranching and memories.  He still ranches, but said he is to old to get up on his horse anymore.  He asked us about Austin, all his life having never traveled further than the Northern part of Texas.  We finished the chat and he wished us a genuine safe trip, and we promised to stop back by in the future, should life carry us this way.  He eats lunch at the mercantile daily and has done so for the past 20 years.
The route then carried us along the plains until it slowly climbed into the New Mexico mountains. Various podcasts filled the speakers to the children's delight.  One podcast in particular from an NPR segment told the tragic tale of a young man who had a severe head injury and the emotional roller coaster as the family decided to withdraw care and let him die.  It was a powerful piece and made for some interesting conversation in the car.
As we finished our trip, we had one last climb up a steep grade.  The Endeavor struggled mightily with this, all the while I vocally coaxed her struggle.  A machine cannot hear, but it seemed the thing to do.  Our campsite sits along a flowing river and two small lakes.  We decided to take the kids fishing, but this ended in disaster as there were any tangled lines and tears.
We returned to the campsite and cooked dinner.  A nice quiet evening was relaxing and we ate our stomachs full. There was some bickering as the kids ran out of steam.  Alex has since learned to play the Ukelele.  We got the campfire going and Alex decided to play "Riptide" on her instrument. Harris joined in on the Bongo drum and the rest of the family on vocals.  It sounded surprisingly good and I just sat back and smiled.  Great family moment.  We allowed the fire to burn down and as I sit here typing, I wait for t

Day 1

Another year has come and gone. It seem the gap between The Escapes are growing shorter and shorter.  In that time, as I described last year, I started a new job.  It was a necessary evil.  The reset was nice, but as is usually the case, there is the good and the bad.  For the past year, I have worked primarily in a smaller town North of my old job.  It is a town that is full of poverty and despair and all of the problems that go along with that.  It is a stopover for most.  Many live there, but many do not call it home.
This environment makes for an interesting job in the ER.  It is quite a thing to provide compassion and care for those who provide none for themselves.  Do do this job properly, truly correctly, one must dedicate a part of their soul to the Light.  To deal with the Darkness that comes from such an environment of costs some of your Light with every encounter with it.  "Compassion Fatigue" I am told it is called.  I suppose that's what it is, although I am not much for labels.   Nonetheless it is difficult to sustain such an environment long term, while avoiding self and mental destruction in the process.
I am to move to a different hospital in August.  Perhaps, the change will again help.  I suspect I am nearing my shelf life in this thing and have begun to think of an exit strategy.    The annual mental reset of our adventures only grows more important year after year.

The Endeavor

The families vessel for our adventures of rebirth and self discovery was dubbed "The Endeavor" last year after Cpt.  James Cook's famous vessel.  Separately she is a Toyota Seqoia and a travel trailer, but once lashed together as a unit she constitutes "The Endeavor".
She has aged quite a bit, and this will likely be her last ship.  I often ponder fitting way to put an end to her.  I daydreamed about setting her afire, as if that would in some way be fitting.  A homage of sorts to the scuttling of a ship once she is no longer useful. She will likely be sold off and used for parts.
In preparation for the trip and the annual refitting, she required extensive work.  Hatches and pipes had dry rotted and crumbled, and seamed and studs gap and leak.  I studied the living quarters extensively noting the aged appearance of the aluminum, years of use leaving scars and pits, wounds from strikes from hundreds of tiny rocks.  The powerplant, of the ship stands at 264,000 miles.  Hard earned work in which she performed admirably.   As I went over the powerplant studying each wire and hose, studying the fluids, I smiled gently and asked her for one more trip.  As we set out, The Endeavor groaned and roared, feeling the weight of what was once an effortless job.  But she still pulls,  as the powerplant roars, God she still pulls.

The Trip

We attempted to pack lighter this year.  It will be a shorter trip and we plan to save on some weight for the engine.  We loaded up as usual, batteries charged and tanks filled.
My nephew is joining us on the trip this year.  He and Nate are three months apart and almost function as brothers.  Surely some extra fighting, but hopefully not too much.
The usual route carried us through the familiar Central Texas terrain.  Interestingly, there seems to be much for green vegetation this time around. I suppose there has been good rainfall.  The children behaved well on this leg.  They have discovered the age old wonder that is Mad Libs. Amy and I chuckled to ourselves as the children laughed hysterically at the often obscene and absurd concoctions of a story.  We stopped for lunch at the city park in Sweetwwater Tx as is usually the case.  It was slightly cooler and breezier than usual.  After some playground time, we loaded up and made the long and barren drive to Amarillo.
The first stop was Pablo Douro canyon.  We arrived early in the afternoon, arrived and checked in.  We made the winding descent into the canyon only to find our assigned campsite was already occupied.  We had to drive all the way back up for a new campsite.  Thankfully, the new site ended up in a better spot.  We noticed wild turkeys marching through the campground and a nice shaded picnic table.
We set up and Grant noticed another boy in the campsite across the road.  They made fast acquaintances and began to play, throwing a football and telling each other stories.  Meanwhile, Amy got dinner prepared in the electric pressure cooked.  Lentil tacos were on the menu.  I finished setting up the trailer and we went for a short hike along a creek that skirted the campground.  We returned and Grant asked to go and make s'mores with his new friend.  As we ate, the boy ran back over and invited the whole family to make s'mores. We finished dinner and made our way over.  They were a nice couple from Midland with two children.  I suspect he or perhaps both of them were a firefighters as she was wearing a fire department sweatshirt and he had the handlebar mouse ache common among firemen.  They offered the younger children marshmallows and s'mores and we traded stories about camping trips, past, present, and future.
We thanked them for their kindness and headed back to the trailer to put the children to bed.  There was only moderate fighting over the sleeping arrangements.  It was a long day, but tomorrow brings the mountains.