Out of Signal Range

I'm posting from an Internet Cafe in Socorro, NM. Cathy and I have been at a camp ground 65 miles east of here on BLM land. We're at Datil Well. It's a little village in the middle of pinion pines and juniper trees high on the New Mexico Plateau. It is high here at 7,500 feet.

The camp ground has no amenities other than a few fresh water faucets and typical camp ground rest rooms. Camp fees are $5.00 per night and is the honor system. There isn't a signal for cell phone or Internet. Occasionally, I will get a faint "one bar" indicator on my cell phone and I once was able to get my email. This is modern isolation.

A tight fit in a pull through site.

Cathy needed to make a snail mail pickup in Socorro today. We brought our computers with us and are doing our necessary online business.

It has been very casual for us. We are both getting acquainted with our on board systems. Cathy is relatively new to it and I have forgotten a lot of it. This is the first time I've used propane so extensively. My furnace is in use. My water heater is on. My generator is running about three hours a day. My refrigerator is going. Of course my stove is in use too. All of these things are running off of propane. I can understand how most of it works, but I just don't get how a refrigerator runs off of propane.


The only real concern I have is to find a place to dump my tanks. It is hard on the tanks to drive while they are full of fluids. Not to mention the extra weight when towing. I haven't been using my black water tank much at all. My showers have been extra quick and I've stretched the time between dish washings.

A foot bridge near the start of the hiking trail.

Not the typical desert scenery. Junipers are all over the place.

To quickly recap our last four days in Datil Well: There is a nice little hiking trail of three miles in a loop above the camp ground. We, of course, hit the trail at our first opportunity. It is taking a while for us to get used to other scenery than the Sonoran Desert. It is quiet beautiful. The coyotes are not here. At least we haven't heard a single howl! Only the wind, which gusts through the boughs of the trees.

Quiet time in front of the fire.

Last post I told about the antelope we spotted while driving. Check this guy out. He was next to the highway while we were on our way to see the radio telescopes. The Prong Horn Antelope are active during the day. I'm finding I have to keep my eyes going side to side while driving to avoid the possibility of hitting them.


During the week days, we are virtually the only ones in the camp ground. Only three other sites have been occupied. I felt confident Emily would be safe if I let her play outside for a while. She has found a friend. There is a Western Scrub Jay that comes down within a few feet of her and teases and scolds her. It's quite comical to watch.

Emily's buddy

The antelope I was able to get a pic of was outside the VLA (Very Large Array). It's a government radio observatory. The telescopes are arrange in a "Y" fashion. Each leg is equidistant and a leg can be as long as 13 miles. The legs vary, depending on the resolution the telescopes are set at.


Any way, it is a very interesting place to visit and tourists are welcome. I have to say that because we just didn't know. There isn't much in the way of marketing for this facility other than what you can find online. Here is a photo tour:

The dishes in the background extend across highway 60. Cathy remarked they remind her of giant Morning Glories.

To get an idea of scale; that's Cathy and Rose standing in front of one of them.

There is a very nice visitors center here with quite a bit of information and a gift store too.

The assembly building. The individual scopes travel on a double railroad track to get to the foundations they are bolted to.

As long as we are on the interstellar theme, I'll leave you with a pic of last night's full moon. I'm on my fifth cup of coffee, counting the coffee I had at the trailer this morning. I better sign off before I come unglued!