Mammoth's Arizona Adventure, Day 9

Thu 16 March
Rockhound State Park to Van Horn RV Park

It rained during the night--I woke up several times and heard the dripping, but I wasn't bothered enough to get up and see. When we awoke it was pretty much dry again, other than a fine dusting on the motorhome and the steps. The temperature had dropped (cold front came through) and the northwest wind was fierce. It got worse during the day.

The trip was uneventful, except for the hair-raising, butt-clenching ten miles through El Paso. Big city traffic and lots of it at high speeds; walls along both sides of the road in some sections; and lots of 18-wheeler trucks.

It was a pleasant surprise to cross the time zone in the mountains just West of Van Horn. We lost an hour again, but since we were expecting it, it was nice to finally get back in the same timezone as our families back home.

 Scenery on the road

After all the days in eaceful, scenic beauty, I wasn't expecting much out of our first stop. And I was not surprised.  See my review:

REVIEW
Van Horn RV Park, gravel, $40, more than long enough
Not expecting much except courtesy and convenience, and got exactly that.
They have a lot of dust out here, and Van Horn RV Park is right in the middle of it. Someone, sometime, has tried to clean the place up--to put in trees, a playground and a pond, but it was a long sometime ago. It's awful junky, dry and dusty now.

But the people at the desk were especially nice, the sites are long, and the utilities work fine. My only complaints are the price--$40 for one night--and the burs in my shoes and my dogs' feet. They have an especially bad crop of the tiny, round, sticker bur that we find in campgrounds all over. I suggest boots for the humans and booties for the dogs.

There's a bit of a view of mountains in the distance, but nothing you'd want to sit outside and ponder. There were a couple of teenage boys out riding four-wheelers at high speeds through the campground and stirring up a lot of dust. They weren't bothering anyone, it was just a little loud and annoying. No big deal, though.