When we left the Albluequerque Balloon Fiesta on

Tuesday, 6 October, we took a southern route with

our friend Sandy in tow, following I-25 south to

Socorro, NM where we exited the Interstatr and

headed west toward Arizona on Highway 60. We had

wanted to take this route because it would be new territory (at last with the Bambi) and we also wanted to stop at the VLA … the Very Large Array of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. It’s out in the middle of the west central part of New Mexico, 50 miles west of Socorro. The observatory consists of 27 independent radio dish antennas, each 82 feet in diameter and weighing 230 tons. The antennas are positioned along the three 13-mile-long arms in a y-shape. Using railroad tracks that follow each of these arms and a specially designed lifting locomotive, the antennas can be physically relocated to a number of positions, which then allows the array to act in chorus as a single antenna with very large diameter. The VLR is a scientific research facility first and foremost of course, but it also became part of the pop culture when it was used as the location to film the opening scenes of the movie “Contact” staring Jodie Foster. Remember that? (It has actually been seen in a number of productions ranging from a Carl Sagan documentary to several science fiction films.)

As you drive across the wide-open spaces of west central NM, you think you are never going to get there. Then suddenly in the distance south of the highway you see what looks like a row of white disks angled toward the skies. That’s the VLA!  If you chose not to leave the highway there is a visitor’s pull out along the highway where you can stop and take pictures, but we wanted to get a closer look. We missed the turn the first time, but Sandy, who was behind us didn’t miss it. We stopped, turned around, and headed back. The road south from the main highway is paved all the way to the VLA. It’s maybe 3 miles south then about a mile west. It really is out in the middle of nowhere in terms of what’s around … nothing but open space centered in a shallow, sweeping valley with mountains in the distance on all sides. It’s the perfect place to scan the sky with a radio telescope! And it’s very other-worldly. No wonder it shows up in science fictions movies! It’s the sort of place you feel as though you should be whispering rather than talk out loud … or the guys in white lab jackets might come out and take you away.

We didn’t see many personnel during our visit. The Visitor’s Center is open to

                         all, with a short film, interesting dispays to explain what it is

                                they do there, and a self-guided walking tour of the grounds

                                 … at least as far as the public is allowed to venture. The

                                   scale of the dishes is amazing, and the fact that they can

                                  be moved is mind boggling. We weren’t lucky enough to

                                 see any of the telescope dishes moving while we were

                                    there, but one can easily imagine how strange it must be to see the 27 monstrous dishes being shuffled around to focus on a single point in the sky … listening. (Can you hear me now?) It’s an interesting place, so if you’re ever passing by you really should stop and take it in. It’s one of those places that you’ll never forget, and every time you see a radio telescope dish in one of those science fiction movies, you’ll remember your visit at the VLA, and you can say “We’ve been there!”

After a couple of hours of absorbing the VLA we headed back to the highway and on west. Our 4CU Airstream friends Louis & Sergio and Julianne had returned home to Phoenix via this route from the Heron Lake Rally a couple weeks before. They had stayed over night at a BLM camping ground called Datil Wells Campground just west the VLA, 1 mile west of the small town of Datil, south of Highway 60. We looked forward to staying there the night. It had been a long day!

We found the Datil Wells Campground easily. It was less than a mile south of the main road in a plesant hilly area spotted with piñon pines, scrub oak and ponderosa pines. Being a BLM campground it was very inexpensive — $5 per night — with toilets and water spigots sprinkled through the campground. Each of the 22 sites is spacious with a picnic table, shelter and a fire ring. They even provide fire wood! It was a very nice little campground and we will definitely stay there again sometime when we are heading that direction.

We could see spending a few days there just to explore

and relax. There’s not much else around there, so it’s

not really a “destination” campground but it’s a really

good place to stop over on your way to somewhere

else. We highly recommend it if you are trailering

east or west on Highway 60.

We stayed at Datil Wells jsut the one night and

headed on toward Show Low on Wednesday. Sandy decided to stay another day at Datil Wells and catch up with us the following day in Show Low. We had plans to meet up with our 4CU Airstream friends Bob & Lou from CO who were on their way to Quartzsite, AZ for the winter — along with Louis & Sergio from Phx, and Mark & Ron from Tucson — for an extended campout for us and a long weekend with them. In recent years we have tried to get to Fool Hollow for a week in the spring before it got too busy and another week in the fall after the crush of summer was over. The Balloon Fiesta being at the beginning of October turned out to be good timing for us to extend our Albuquerque trip and make our fall visit to Fool Hollow ... and what a great place to spend time with friends!

We were the first ones to arrive at Fool Hollow Lake State Park — our old stomping grounds — and where we were meeting everyone else. None form this group but Sandy and us had been to the Balloon Fiesta, so this was going to be a whole new “post-rally mini rally.” It wasn’t too busy the day we arrived, being mid-wek, but Columbus Day weekend was coming up, so we didn’t know what the situation would be by the weekend. We were hoping to snag a coupel of “buddy sites” (double sites that share a common pad but have separate hookups). We were glad to finally be able to dump our holding tanks! Fool Hollow has full hookups, so we had the luxury of electric, water and sewer hookups for the rest of our stay. Sandy arrived the next day, Thursday, and took a site near the lake in the same loop we were in. That evening Louis & Sergio pulled in after hours. We had taken a “buddy site” in the park so Louis & Sergio stayed in the other half of our buddy site that night. It’s always such a reunion when we meet up. They didn’t even unhitch that night because they thought they may move to another buddy site the next morning so that we could stake out our territory for the others yet to arrive.

When we got up Friday morning, Louis & Sergio were gone! We never heard a thing! The park was beginning to get busier and all the buddy sites in our loop

                                were occupied by at least one rig. So Louis & Sergio had

                                         moved up the hill to another loop and found a buddy

                                            another site. There was a second buddy site next to

                                             the one where Louis & Sergio landed, so we did a

                                            “quick pack” (which means throwing everything

                                            into the Bambi and truck — literally — just to make

                                             the short move… you can’t really call it “packing”)

                                             … and moved up to the buddy site next to them. They would try to hold the the other half of their site for Mark & Ron, who were coming in Friday afternoon ... and we were hoping to hold the othe rhalf of our site for Bob & Lou. There was an open single site across the road from us that we tought Sandy could move into, but she opted to stay where she was down by the lake in a different loop.

The sites in the park are all first come first served, and the management won’t let you “save” a site for friends who are arriving later. Of course in a buddy site, there’s a good chance that nobody is going to pull in next to you unless there is nothing else open. But it was a holiday weekend — the last long weekend before Thanksgiving, so we weren’t sure how it would work out.

Ron & Mark arrived Friday afternoon as planned, and joined Louis & Sergio in their buddy site. And we had another reunion! (It’s such great fun.) By this time the park was getting busier and we were getting nervous. We tried to “subtly” stake our claim to the other half of our buddy site by putting our flamingos out by the road by the site number post — but nay! The ranger stopped by and was gong to take our falmingos away with him! But we rushed out and

rescued them and he told us the only way we could hold the space

open was to pay for the night. Hmmm. We didn’t know exactly when

Bob & Lou were going to get there because they had truck problems

just before they left CO. When we callled them that afternoon they

had just left CO, so we didn’t really expect them until sometime

Saturday, if then. We all thought we’d be risking it if we didn’t act,

so we decided to go ahead and pay for the buddy space for Friday night, hoping they’d arrive Saturday before checkout time. So we did, and then set out to have an evening of snacks and beverages.

Later that night — about 11 PM — we were in the Bambi watching a movie when the cell phone rang. It was Bob & Lou! There were sitting outside the closed gates to the park! They had arrived! Terry gave them the key code to open the gates to the park and threw on some clothes so he could drive down to the gate and guide them in. The park is a pretty big place, and since they had never been there, we thought it would be easier for them to find us if we just went and got them. When Terry got there they had come inside the gates and were waiting for their “guide.” It was so good to see them, and they were glad to finally be there as well.

We used our solar outdoor lights to light the path like runway lights and we, along with Lou, helped guide Bob as he backed their Airstream into the buddy

                       site next to us. I’s a long one, so it wasn’t easy because of the

                              angle of the pad. But eventually Bob prevailed and they were

                                  in. Finally, we were all there and ready to enjoy the

                                    weekend together. Yea! At that point we were glad that

                                    we had paid for Bob & Lou’s site ahead of time. It

                                    worked our perfectly. We were a little surprised that they

                                 got there that night, but apparently they just hit the road

                                    and drove like heck. They both tow, so when Bob gets

                                      tired Lou takes over for a while. Louis & Sergio and Mark & Ron never did wake up while Bob & Lou got themselves parked, which was surprising with all the headlights and commotion. With them there safe and sound, we all went to bed for a much-needed rest.

The next day, Saturday, was a relaxed, social day. We gathered and regrouped and gathered again through the day. Mark & Ron and Louis & Sergio drove into town to hit the resale shops in the afternoon. We had already been to them the day before, so we stayed back at the campground to hold down the fort with Bob & Lou and Sandy. By this time the campground was very full. When we arrived Wednesday there were lots of open sites in the park. But by the end of Friday the place was virtually full — busier than we had ever seen it, so we were gald we’d saved Bob & Lou’s space. And the weather was gorgeous …

we couldn’t have asked for nicer weather. Even the nights were mild.

Ron & Mark had planned a special “event” for Saturday night that we were all looking forward to … “Oktoberfest” complete with beer and BBQ’d brats for all. Late in the afternoon we began getting ready for the communal dinner. It was quite festive, something you can alwasy count on with this group. Everybody contributed to the meal and Mark provided the music — non-stop polka music befitting the occasion. Mark has a great music collection and loves to bring the music (and we love him to bring it). We had a great dinner together at Mark & Ron’s campsite … no one went hungry, that’s for sure. After dinner we gathered around the campfire. We’d met some other folks camping in our loop, and they came by to share our campfire for a while. It’s always nice to meet new folks when we go camping.

Louis & Sergio and Mark & Ron had to leave Sunday. It seemed like our time with everyone had been too short, but it was already coming to an end. So Sunday morning we hung out with Bob & Lou while Mark & Ron and Louis & Sergio began to break camp and pack up. One of the things I like about

Louis & Sergio and Mark & Ron is that they never rush home on

the last day like some folks seem compelled to do … they take

their time getting ready to leave, so we have time to visit more

and say goodbyes … and frequently the trip is not over until

all the resale shops and antique stores between the campground

and home are scouted! Around noontime we said our final

goodbyes and Ron & Mark and Louis & Sergio hit the road

for home. After they left we had a relaxing rest of the afternoon visiting with Bob & Lou and enjoying the nice weather. That evening we gathered again with them and Sandy at Bob & Lou’s for “the last supper,” so to speak.

We and Sandy were planning to head south toward Tucson on our own schedules, and Bob & Lou planned to stay for several more days on the Rim before they hit the road for Quartzsite for the winter. So Monday morning we packed up the Bambi, said our goodbyes to Bob & Lou and Sandy, and headed out. All in all, we had been on the road for 13 days and 12 nights and done a full blown rally plus an informal “mini rally” gathering of friends at Fool Hollow. And we had a great time of it.

We took the Highway 60 south from Show Low through Salt River Canyon to Globe and headed home via Winkleman on Route 77. We had not made the trip over the road between Globe and Winkleman since it had gone under construction the spring before. The road was open finally, though there were a few construction zones that were still active. For the most part the construction involved straightening out some of the curves and making repairs. We’re glad it’s done so we once again have that option for traveling between Tucson and Globe. As usual, on the road home we talked about where we’d like to go next, and we thought we’d like to visit some of our local southern Arizona haunts and make a few shorter trips.

We arrived safe and sound late in the afternoon, got the Bambi put away in the Bambi Port and unpacked … and settled in for a cozy evening at home, tackling the stack of mail had accumulated and generally basking in the afterglow of this great trip.

Enjoy the “Slide Show” below. You can also go to previous trips by hitting the “Other Trips” button at the end of the photo section. We hope yo enjoy your visit nad we’ll see yo down the road.

Until then ... Happy Trails!