Dust, Guns and Cactus

After Austin, we settled in for the night at Abeline State Park. It was pretty amazing how quickly it got dry and cool just north of Austin. We set up camp and got a toasty fire crackling just as dusk rolled in. We made a little campfire music and listened to the coyotes howl all around. In the morning, we headed into Buffalo Gap to the Buffalo Gap Cafe and general store, where we enjoyed the most delicious breakfast we had had in a while. If you ever pass through this part of the world, stop in, because it is an incredibly sweet establishment, with lots of cute stray kittens and cats and a whole lot of small town charm. After we got our coffee quota and our bellies full, we high-tailed through the rest of Texas and into New Mexico. Just a few miles over the border noticed a profound difference in the landscape. It was still desert, but the land started to rise, and it became considerably more desolate between towns. The dust turned reddish and we knew we were finally in the west. Our ultimate goal that day was to make it to Santa Fe. That, however fell by the wayside as late afternoon crept in and we neared Santa Rosa, a town with a tripartite state campground. We pulled into the park, which was little more then sand, scrub and scorched earth, around four. In the morning, the three of us took a walk down the horse trail and got a breathtaking sunrise view of Santa Rosa Lake. Then, we went into town for huevos rancheros New Mexico style that rivaled breakfast in Buffalo Gap, and hopped on old route 66 to Santa Fe. It was interesting how relatively low and homogenous the city is. It seemed like nothing in Santa Fe was above three or four stories and everything was made of fake adobe. That being said, the lack of height made it feel like less of a city and more of a smaller desert town. this perception was probably heightened by the relative isolation of the region. There really isn't anything but desert between habitations in New Mexico. The highlight of Santa Fe was going shooting with our buddy Jesse. I made the mistake of drinking a late afternoon cup of coffee on our way out of town, resulting in us driving six hours through the night to Navajo Lake, where we are currently camped. Apparently it's trout season, so the campground is surprisingly full of fishermen. We are looking forward seeing the lake in the morning light! Ben and his six shooter