Confessions of a Hit and Run Tourist - Day Seven

[Riverbrian]

I have recently completed a solo 18 day road trip covering 8 ballparks, 9 games, 14 states, national parks, normal tourist traps and not so normal stops. My fairly new 2022 Kia Seltos had 6,400 miles on it before the trip and the journey tacked on 8,522 additional miles. Some of you may find this interesting and some may say what's the big deal, it's a crazy man with a torture filled vacation plan. I was encouraged to tell the story here by individual day because it would be a very lengthy post if not broken down by day. Some days are not that interesting, some days were more interesting than others and some days need a new adjective, but each day was different and they were days that I couldn't experience in my living room. 

Feel free to comment, shake your head at my moments of stupidity or tell your own experiences of the places I experienced. This is hit and run tourism... I didn't have a lot of time to hit all the stops but I wanted to hit all the stops because who knows if I would ever be back in any of the areas travelled. I researched and scheduled the trip to the minute and followed the schedule to the letter. 

Day Seven - August 4 - Big Bend National Park to Willcox, Arizona

I can't say that I was awoken by, I will say that I was in the process of waking up when I heard an airhorn blast signifying a bear nearby. I went out to the patio to try catch a glimpse of the bear but didn't so let's say, I went out to patio to just sit back, enjoy the mountains and comfortable morning temps one more time before getting ready to go. I really do wish that I could stayed just a little longer. They had a restaurant that was open for business but I had a different plan. If you consider that I didn't have any dinner last night and also consider that I was in the middle of nowhere with a long drive just to get somewhere, skipping the available breakfast here was risky, I was putting a lot of hope into the actual existence of a little food truck that North Dakota internet research suggested might be nearby. Real Texas Chili was the prize I was seeking. 

I drove south into the park and departed on a different road heading west. Still beautiful and I still seemingly had the park to myself as I departed. On the west edge of the park is a town called Terlingua population 100, I'm looking for an RV park with a food truck located in that RV park. As I enter the town, there are no RV's anywhere, no signs, it looked like a very small town that was still asleep. On the south side of the highway there was a lime green vehicle that looked like it might be a food truck with no signs of life around it, I almost drove on which would have meant no food until El Paso, there was no traffic to force me forward so I decided to investigate. As I got closer it looked like someone was in the truck and there was a paper menu taped to the side... it was indeed open for business. The menu with Chili under a Lunch header along with the time of day suggested that it was breakfast time but I asked if it was too early for Chili and she replied that it was "Never too early for Chili". It took a little longer than the typical food truck, because she prepared it. She took out a bag with a brown substance and I thought to myself that she was going to microwave it but she didn't, she was stirring in a pan and dropping spices and stuff in and stirring. She asked how I wanted it and I said I was looking for true Texas chili, prepared the way it is supposed to be and she affirmed that I came to the right place. She handed me a cup and I sat down at the only small patio table nearby and she came out and sat with me, there was no other business to attend to... so... why not? She was curious how someone from North Dakota was down here and I told her what I was doing and she told me that was exactly what she wants to do and then she told me her story. If I had to guess, she was probably my age... in her 50's? She was from Dallas and had won some chili competitions so her dream was to buy a food truck, travel around and sell her chili. She found a truck she could afford down here but it didn't travel well so she moved down to the food truck and she has been at this location for 7 years. Tiny town, remote location, she can't be doing big business, at least not while I was there, perhaps... all 100 people come to the food truck twice a day. She said that she enters the World Chili Championships every year and had finished 5th 3 times. I told her that "5th in the state of Texas was impressive" and she corrected me with "World". She KNEW without any doubt at all, that she was going to win it some day so she was going to keep entering. How was the Chili? Delicious!!! The best I have ever had, I can't imagine the 4th place chili being better. Although, I admit that I don't know, was it because of the amazing taste or the story that accompanied it? Either way, it was the best 10 bucks I ever spent on food. I understand that I'm the type of person who can find pleasure in things that others might think what's the big deal? it's just a cup of chili after all. However... I am not kidding when I say:  IF this cup of chili and the pleasure of hearing her story was the only thing that I would have accomplished during this road trip... it would have still been worth it. This road trip isn't about the Alamo, the baseball stadiums may have been the main reason for the trip, yet... from my way of looking at things, it is the things that you stumble across, like this early morning experience with a cup of chili, in a place you wouldn't expect that make a trip like this special. As I left... I told her "God I hope you win that thing because you deserve it! 

I have 4.5 hours to reach my next stop in El Paso, 3 hours before I reach Interstate roads, not that it mattered much because we are still dealing with low traffic and very few towns with stop lights to slow you down. The mountains lessen to lightly scattered as you drive onward as the western landscape transitions back to full desert with the hint of Mountains or larger things off in the distance. 

Maybe an hour into the drive, I run across something that I didn't know existed, Border Inspection Stations. The highway will lead you to a check point and stopping is the only option unless you want to plow through, taking your chances for the adventure. I hit a total of 4 of them on my trip, two in Texas and two in New Mexico. The first stop, the agent asked me for my I.D. and to pop my trunk just in case I had someone really small back there, the 2nd one asked for my I.D. and then asked me to roll down my back window for a better look inside, the New Mexico ones didn't ask for anything, they just waved me through. When I talk about having the road to myself, yeah, it was me along with a bunch of green and white border patrol vehicles. You see enough of them down in these parts to conclude that it must be a pretty big job that they are tasked with. At one point, I saw 4 vehicles parked in a ditch next to a farm field and it looked like about 5 agents walking the field. The two at the check points that did ask for my I.D. both said to me "North Dakota?" in the exact same inflected surprised tone. One asked if I was lost.  

Arriving in El Paso, I have the GPS programmed to take me to L&J's café, El Paso's oldest restaurant established in 1927. I'm happy to report that the place was old but the food was fresh. The place was packed and I had the enchilada plate at the suggestion of my server. 

El Paso has that desert beauty to it augmented by a mountain range that dominates the North Side of the Interstate and as I-10 swings North to Las Cruces it hugs that mountain range to the right, which makes that drive beautiful. 

Las Cruces, New Mexico was a decent looking place, you think to yourself... "I must be driving through the good parts". The drive continues Northeast now through a mountain pass that reveals an impressive valley below. This valley, is host to an Air Force Base, Missile Test Range and White Sands National Park. I was able to dodge all of the missiles fired in my direction to reach the White Sands. It's odd that this place is just... sitting here... for whatever geological reason. When I was younger, a mere child, I remember spilling an entire bag of sugar on the kitchen floor because I was going to have some rhubarb. That's what White Sands looks like to me, like someone poured sugar all over the floor, with Def Leppard as the soundtrack.... It must have been a lot of rhubarb. To make sure I experienced White Sands to the fullest, I found a spot to lay down to make a sand angel before I left. It was 100 degrees once again, the sun was about 8 inches from my face as I lay down. In my hurry to get back to my air conditioned vehicle, I did not brush off very well and there is still white sand in my cup holders to this very day. 

This rest of the day was 3.5 more hours of driving to land in Willcox, Arizona. I arrived an hour earlier than I planned and this kind of pissed me off. You must understand that I have a schedule to follow to avoid missing anything. Throughout this trip I have been leaving and arriving very close to the times that I planned, it has worked like a charm. Arriving an hour early in Arizona was not my fault. I planned for mountain time, Arizona does not recognize daylight savings time so it's... now... I don't know anymore... I'm on Pacific Time Now? Greenwich Mean Time? Is it still Thursday? My Kia doesn't recognize Arizona time, it was telling me that I was on schedule the whole way. When I checked into the hotel, I thought the clock was wrong until it dawned on me. Now I gotta do math to keep my schedule together, it is sure to be chaos now. 

The Hotel was nice, the Holiday Inn Express is consistent and my choice when possible. I will depart at 8:19AM or 7:19 or 9:19. 

[Squirrel]

2 hours ago, Riverbrian said:

One asked if I was lost.  

This made me laugh.

When I read you reached Las Cruces and was thinking ... 'Wonder if he'll head up to White Sands?' Kept reading, yep. Then I thought, 'Hope he makes a sand angel.' yep. Well done, Brian!

Are you heading to Chiricahua National Monument tomorrow? Skip Tombstone if that's on your list. But, you've already done, so, guess this advice is late.

[Riverbrian]

3 hours ago, Squirrel said:

This made me laugh.

When I read you reached Las Cruces and was thinking ... 'Wonder if he'll head up to White Sands?' Kept reading, yep. Then I thought, 'Hope he makes a sand angel.' yep. Well done, Brian!

Are you heading to Chiricahua National Monument tomorrow? Skip Tombstone if that's on your list. But, you've already done, so, guess this advice is late.

I wasn't aware of Chiricahua and now I wish that I would have swung through because I had the time. 

I honestly like seeing everything, even if it's a tourist trap, I'll go just to say that I've been there, good or bad. I'm just trying to trip over something along the way. 

For example, I liked the train to Wrigley more than I liked Wrigley.  

I wish I would have known about Chiricahua it looks like a nice scenery change. 

[Squirrel]

15 hours ago, Riverbrian said:

For example, I liked the train to Wrigley more than I liked Wrigley.  

Me, too ... 

[Nine of twelve]

Arizona stays on Mountain Standard Time all year. Except the Reservations, which switch to Mountain Daylight Time. So it's completely understandable that you wouldn't know what time it was. I don't think the people who live there know for sure themselves.