Where are Cheryl and Dennis?: Truth or Consequences

December 12-6-2017 thru 12-10-2017

Wednesday – Took a walk down to Elephant Butte Lake and around the park this morning. Then we drove over to the local Walmart to pick up a few more groceries and get fuel. The fuel prices here are as high as we have seen on our travels. We paid $2.99 at a Valero Station for diesel. Other places the price is $3.09. The rest of the day we puttered around the camper. It warmed up to around 58 degrees in the afternoon so I took advantage and sat outside to read for a while.

Thursday – The forecast called for highs only in the upper 30's today. We decided to take a road trip. First we headed into Truth or Consequences to check out a few of the bathhouses. We stopped at Indian Springs and looked at it. It is one of the old bathhouses and looked a little run down. We also stopped at Riverbend Hotsprings. It looked very nice and is located right on the Rio Grande River.

From there we headed north and west toward the old mining towns of Chloride and Winston located between the Sierra Cuchillo and Black Range Mountains. It was a pretty drive on two lane road (Hwy 52). A few curves and steep grades but not real scary.

Chloride was the most interesting. When we arrived we were met on the street by two ladies who welcomed us and opened the doors to the museum. Heather recently moved to Chloride after her and her husband “discovered” the place while hiking the Continental Divide Trail. We also met Linda who is the daughter of the Edmunds family who purchased and is renovating most of the buildings in the town.

The museum used to be the general store and was closed in 1923 with all its contents sealed inside. It was not opened again until the 1970's after the Edmund's purchased it and started the restoration. Most of the contents are original to the building and are displayed in their original location. We also checked out the gift shop next door which used to serve as a bar, a school and a dance hall. The Edmund's have purchased and restored many of the other buildings in town. It was like stepping back in time.

We started to drive up a dirt road out of Chloride that Linda told us about. It would take us into the Gila National Forest and to the Continental Divide. However after bumping along for about 10 minutes we decided it was too rough and turned around.

We then decided to take Hwy 59 west to the Continental Divide. The drive was beautiful. Even though it is winter I thoroughly enjoyed the scenery. The dark green of the junipers contrasting with the grasses, tawny and golden. There were clouds and snow showers in the upper elevations with peeks of sun and blue sky. Despite the cold it was a wonderful day.

Friday – Today we visited the Riverbend Hotsprings located on the shore of the Rio Grande River in T or C. While soaking in the pools we had a view of the Rio Grande and the Turtleback Mountains. The mineral water is pumped directly into the pool from the hotspring aquifer and varies in temperature from 100 to 107 degrees. The cost was $12 per person for a 50 minute soak. So awesome!!!!

Saturday – It has warmed up a little with daytime temps reaching into the upper 50's and low 60's and much less windy. Today we took walks around the park and down by the marina. We met the manager who is originally from Pewaukee and is the son of Jack Safro, the car dealer. He manages the marina on Elephant Butte Lake. In the evening we attended the Luminaries Beach Party. This is an annual event held in the Park sponsored by the friends of Elephant Butte Lake State Park (EBLSP) is used to raise money for the EBLSP July Fireworks and the Make-A-Wish foundation. The roads leading into the park and beach were lined with paper luminaries. On the beach near the marina there were several campers parked and they were offering samples of soups, stews, hot beverages and sweet treats for donations. It was a great time as we met and talked to several locals.

Sunday – Spent most of the day at the park. The Packer game was not televised here nor was it on any of the Sirius channels. But because it went into overtime we were able to catch the winning play. Go Pack! After the game we went for an early supper. We wanted to experience the baths at Riverbend again only at night so we headed over there after we ate. The baths were awesome and the lighting was magical.

Where we are parked: Elephant Butte Lake State Park – Truth or Consequences – Lion Beach Campground – Site 72. 173 developed campsites, 144 with water and electric, 8 with water, electric and sewer, RV dump station. $14 per night for water and electric site.

CHLORIDE, NM