Going in Circles- New Mexico and Colorado (07-20-20)

Our friends Tom and Dianne used to be full timers, like us, but now have property in Bayfield, CO. We usually try to stop by and see them either on our way out for the summer, or on our way home (or both).















This time Around we were supposed to be combining the visit with picking up our new air conditioner , but after we ordered one from two different places, and neither company actually had one to ship to us, we decided to cancel the order all together and make do with what we have until we get home. The factory that makes them was shut down for a while so there are very few to be had. On the other hand getting the truck fixed is definitely a priority, so Paul made two appointments for that.


The bigger problem is the issue with the turbo and for that, he wants to go to his absolute favorite Ford diesel technicians, who happen to be only an hour away. So, having made an appointment, we had a few days to relax.


Meantime the Ford dealership in Durango confirmed that the brake issue was a sensor- Paul was so confident he had already ordered it, and they fixed the leak in the rear differential (I absolutely know that’s not exactly what it is and what they did, but oh well, my eyes glaze over pretty quick when talking about axles and such).

We spent a fun few days social distancing with Tom, Dianne, and their son and his family, who recently bought the house next door.
We got to watch them plant the new willow tree next to their pond and got together for a full moon “party”.















On the way to Bayfield we had passed Chimney Rock National monument. We had no idea what it was, but it’s open, so we drove over to check it out.
Chimney rock is one of the northernmost settlements of Puebloans attached to the Chaco Canyon settlements. Being situated above any water source means this area was likely used for ceremonial purposes only.

It is theorized that the Ceremonial kivas were built here because every 18.5 years, the moon rises between the two rock outcroppings and seems to pause there for about 3 years. In a normal year there would be full moon parties and such but most everything except self guided tours are canceled, of course.

Stolen from the web

We were very impressed with the volunteers who were on hand (masked) and eager to answer any questions. No one really knows why the natives left the area, but it is theorized that they went to The Mesa Verde area from here.

So, after our fun few days we left for Farmington NM to bring the truck in to the dealer. The county fairgrounds has 400 sites and we were the only ones here.

They are using one of the RV lots as a drive- in for a few weeks. The interview with the owner of the theater doing it was interesting... “These drive-ins have a place in nostalgia, but they don’t really have a place in the financial world,” he said. The company isn’t doing it to make money, it’s doing it to give families somewhere to go and something to do. Kinda nice.

This particular dealership is so busy they run two shifts, and have a shuttle, so Paul could come and go to the dealership easily. We had thought about renting a car, but really there is nothing to do anyway, plus its been in the high 90s so we are just hunkered down, waiting.

After a couple of days in the shop we thought they had it fixed the turbo, and we headed back to Tom and Dianne’s to help celebrate Tom's birthday.

The 4 of us had a properly distanced dinner, and afterwards their kids came over for dessert. Dianne had made my aunt's carrot cake recipe, and did an awesome job!

Like our house, there are always projects going on at Tom and Dianne's, and usually Paul loves to jump right in, but this time we had to maintain distances, and also, it was in the 90s, so he settled for doing some weeding in the garden for a bit.








Once the festivities we done we said goodbye and headed toward Salida CO, where we had reservations for a few days. We made it about 40 miles before the check engine light came on. We drove until we could turn around, called and canceled our reservations, and told the dealership we were on our way back.



So, after another day or so at the dealership they found issues with the new turbo and some of the components so they fixed/replaced things and we were on our way.....again.

This time we made it about 30 miles before the truck threw a code indicating there is an issue. Paul took some readings with his scan tool and called the tech to tell him what he saw. And, of course, we turned around and headed back. This time the tech wanted to take a test drive with the trailer attached so Paul dropped me at the dealership and off they went.








The good news (hopefully) is that the two of them seem to have pieced together what the issue is.












So, we have now left Farmington again.

We didn’t go far, just to the nearby town of Aztec. There is a new RV park that is kind of unique, and is doing some different kinds of things. It’s on a river and on the other side they are building a zip line and a climbing wall. It was weird to watch trucks drive thru the river.









It is very family oriented place but has two places that are “kid free” zones, and that's where you found us every evening.

Actually, the Monday after the weekend, there were no kids around, so Paul and I took over the fun stuff.  We used the stand up paddle boards in the pond, and went down the 60 ft water slide several times- it was actually a lot of fun.

We ended the evening watching the river go by.














We are close enough to Durango here that we drove in to town to do some hiking.

Our first trail was Sailing Hawk, it was a short two mile loop with interesting rock formations and somewhat of a view of the city.

Our 2nd hike was supposed to be the Animas Overlook trail, which is a trail that overlooks the Animas Mountain, but after driving 7 miles up a dirt road, our plans were thwarted by the weather.  

The second we stepped out of the truck, we were subjected to the sound of nonstop thunder.

 So, no hike for us but the views were still stunning!

Our stay  in Aztec was short- we are on the move looking for cooler weather!