(jazzy music)
♪ I'm riding, riding, riding ♪
♪ Riding with my RV, my RV ♪
♪ Wherever I want to be ♪
♪ Because I'm free in my RV ♪
♪ Yeah ♪
(upbeat music)
- [Robert] We are going south on I-25.
Then at San Antonio, New Mexico,
here which if you blink,
you missed it, we turn
onto US 380 East.
It is such a beautiful drive.
I mean we all know I have
a thing for the mountains
and the deserts right?
This darker area up ahead is
the Carrizozo Malpais lava flow
which was caused by an
eruption about 5,000 years ago.
See how it looks on the satellite image?
Valley of Fires Recreation
Area is here towards the end.
And, what a desolate place this is.
We arrive by the town of Carrizozo,
where we are going to
refuel and join US 54 South.
As you can see, the landscape
is starting to change.
And here we are, this adobe
style building under renovations
is the visitor center.
Hi, how are ya?
- [Man] Your turn.
- [Robert] Thank you.
I have the annual pass.
- [Man] There you are.
- Alright, thank you so much.
Oh, no drones, okay.
Yep, drones are forbidden here too.
And here it kind of makes sense,
since we are so close to
several military facilities.
Most notably the White
Sands Missile Range,
home of the Trinity site,
where on July 16th, 1945,
they detonated Gadget, the
first nuclear weapon ever.
(epic music)
Alright, let's stop at
this trail head here.
It's Minitini in the house.
Or on the sand rather.
Oh let's take this boardwalk.
It is called the Interdune Boardwalk.
White place.
Here's some of the plant
life we might be seeing here
in the sand dunes.
Let's continue.
Here we have more infographics and signs
talking about the fauna and the flora
of this very interesting place.
(mysterious music)
We continue, immersing ourselves
into this surreal otherworldly landscape.
Well let's go for a little hike.
Well, it is a five mile trail.
I'm obviously not gonna
do the whole thing.
But let's just walk, you
know over the dunes and back.
And this is the Alkali Flat Trail.
Amazing.
What we're seeing here is gypsum sand.
And the bright dots are selenite crystals.
This type of sand, I've learned,
is quite rare because it is water soluble.
Good thing it doesn't rain here very much.
These sand dunes are also very popular
for downhill sledding.
And because of its composition,
the sand never gets very hot,
not even on the hottest summer days.
(mysterious music)
People from all over the world
come visit this marvelous place.
Well let me just give you a 360 here
of the White Sands National Monument.
And as the name indicates,
it's all white sand.
It's kind of off white,
but those sand dunes,
it's amazing how they look.
Especially those back there.
That's pretty cool with
the mountains behind them.
Really cool place.
But Texas awaits.
So we're gonna continue on our journey.
Next time I come though, I'm
doing that five mile loop,
is it five miles?
Three miles.
I forgot.
Bring some water.
Well yeah, it's pretty amazing.
(mysterious music)
Well yeah, amazing place,
the White Sands National Monument.
I mean look at it, look at it.
It's like we are in the...
I don't know, I don't know where we are,
but it's, it's not Earth for sure.
(bright country music)
Let's continue towards the
land not to be messed with.
The Lone Star State, Texas.
- [Woman] Welcome to Texas.
- Well, it was bound to happen.
I get stuck in some
rush hour traffic here,
just west of El Paso.
My next stop is Cattleman's
Ranch Steakhouse,
which I've heard great things about.
And while it is going to be a
little bit on the pricey side,
I figured, you've gotta have
at least one great steak
while in Texas, right?
So I've decided to splurge tonight.
Well when nature calls.
Yes, the ranch is a
little bit out of the way
of the Indian Cliffs Ranch, a
good 10 miles north of I-10.
I arrive right at sunset.
It is a huge property.
Very pretty, very well maintained.
Luckily they have RV parking.
So they direct me to park
right behind this class A diesel pusher.
Beautiful.
I'm here at the Cattleman's
Ranch and I'm parked here
with another RV.
Check out these guys.
They're very well nourished here.
It is a beautiful evening
here in western Texas.
Let's go inside.
(bright music)
I feel particularly odd
being here by myself,
especially since there
is no cell phone signal.
So my only entertainment is
other people conversations
and the menu.
Wow, my ribeye here with baked potato,
cole slaw, bread and um, baked beans.
Well yeah, I knew this was
going to be an expensive meal.
My last restaurant meal of the whole trip.
Well this place is huge.
But they got a pretty good steak.
I approve.
Of course there's a horse.
And we're parked there,
the RV bus parking area.
Okay, here's the plan.
There is a Walmart nearby at
a town called Horizon City.
I have to backtrack about, hmm, 10 miles.
Not the end of the world.
And then the idea is to drive
to San Antonio tomorrow.
And maybe spend a day there.
But hmm, my plans are about to change.
Anyways here we are at the Walmart.
(techno music)
- [Woman] Turn left
towards Horizon Boulevard,
then turn right.
- Well out of all the places
I've ever stayed overnight,
tonight for the first time,
I feel uncomfortable at
this place, so I'm leaving.
This is the Walmart at Horizon City.
- [Woman] Turn right
towards Horizon Boulevard,
then turn left onto Horizon Boulevard.
- This is the Walmart at
Horizon City in Texas.
- [Woman] Turn left
onto Horizon Boulevard.
- It's just east of El Paso.
It is a very busy shopping area.
It is Friday night.
And there were a bunch of youngsters
jumping off my rear bumper.
I mean,
I think I'm gonna stay
at a rest area on I-10.
I brew me some coffee.
It's still relatively early, it's 8:30.
I can drive for a couple
more nights on I-10.
And look for a better place.
I drive late into the night.
Finding all the rest
areas filled to capacity
with semi trucks.
So eventually I end up
at the Pilot in Van Horn.
I wake up at six a.m. now
in the Central time zone.
So I've lost one hour.
The sunrise still about an hour away.
(mystical music)
(techno music)
Hey look, there was an RV park.
The crack of dawn is starting to crack.
There's that faint bluish
glow on the horizon,
indicating it is going
to be daybreak soon.
Now even more visible
and check out the moon.
Well it is the crack of dawn.
The crack of dawn.
I think I'm losing my mind.
(techno music)
Well to make a short story even shorter,
as I told you last night
I left that Walmart.
The eastern outskirts of El Paso.
It is not I felt unsafe, but
I didn't feel comfortable.
It was not quiet, there
were a bunch of youngsters,
you know partying and even some kids
that starting jumping on my rear bumper.
So yeah, so I decided to leave.
And I was hoping to find
one of these rest areas
or picnic areas out on the road.
But they were all, you know
all already full by the time.
It was 9:30 ish.
You know truckers, late at
night all these rest areas
are insufficient compared
to the large amount
of truckers in the area.
So I drove around 90 miles to Van Horn
and I stayed at the Pilot truck stop.
I arrived around 11 p.m.
But actually it was midnight because
I changed into Central time zone now.
So I slept about six hours.
I put my alarm clock for six a.m.
And around 6:30, it was
still nighttime, I left.
It is now 7:30 so I've been
driving for about an hour.
And it's gonna be a beautiful sunrise.
And it's actually everything works out
because now I expect to
get to San Antonio today.
And not tomorrow.
So I may be a day earlier than usual.
I mean than expected.
So I put my home address into the GPS.
And it says it's gonna take
me one day and one hour
to get home.
So if I were to drive nonstop,
I didn't have to put
gas, I didn't have to eat
or go to the bathroom, I would
arrive tomorrow at 8:30 a.m.
In Miami, Florida.
Of course it's gonna take
a lot longer than that.
And check out, the sunrise
is about to happen.
(ominous, yet expectant music)
All of a sudden, a drastic climate change
as we start driving into this thick fog.
Guess we're not in the desert anymore.
Well this is actually the bad
weather I was trying to avoid.
The reason I changed my travel
plans back in Albuquerque.
Better to tackle the storm
down here in the south
than up in Oklahoma or Kansas
where they were forecasting
snow and sleet and all
kinds of crazy weather.
(bright music)
Yep, it is really foggy out here.
Let's continue.
It's too early.
This is exactly where I put
gas, right about two weeks ago.
Well, I'm hungry.
Let's make some breakfast.
Well here cooking some
quick breakfast on the road.
Some spinach and mushrooms here.
And some eggs, scrambling.
We'll see how this comes out.
We'll add a little bit of paprika here.
Oops, too much paprika.
It doesn't matter, I love paprika.
Salt, pepper.
There we go, spinach and mushrooms
and very soon we're gonna
put the eggs in there.
There we go, put an egg on it.
Or two.
I was able to flip it over.
Now is that pretty or what?
(bright music)
It is for the most part
a long and boring drive.
And the gray, gloomy weather
certainly doesn't help matters.
But some areas, oo some areas
are absolutely breath taking.
Let's exit here by Sonora, Texas for gas.
The GSP has decided to take
me through the middle of town,
so let's do that.
I can certainly use a change of scenery,
even the most beautiful
landscapes can become tedious
after so many hours on the road.
(jazzy music)
Now passing by Junction,
where they have the park
that offers three nights of free camping.
♪ Riding, riding in my RV ♪
♪ Wherever I want to be ♪
♪ Because I'm free in my RV ♪
♪ Yeah ♪
♪ I'm riding, riding, riding ♪
♪ I'm riding in my RV ♪
- Well here's the scenic view.
I guess.
Well that scenic view
wasn't so scenic after all.
(sighs) I'm really tired.
I started driving at 6:30 a.m.
And it is now 1:30 p.m.
One more hour to go.
♪ Riding, riding, oh riding in my RV ♪
♪ My RV ♪
- [Robert] We're getting close here.
We're getting kind of close.
Approaching the Texas Hill Country.
♪ I'm free in my RV ♪
♪ Yeah riding, riding, riding ♪
♪ Riding in my RV, my RV ♪
- [Robert] Well here we are.
We have arrived in San Antonio.
And we have a few hours
here until sundown.
So let's take advantage of
them as much as possible.
First, let's go to the
campground and unhitch.
♪ Riding in my RV, my RV ♪
♪ Wherever I want to be ♪
♪ Yeah because I'm free ♪
♪ In my RV ♪
♪ Riding, riding from
Florida to Tennessee ♪
♪ My RV ♪
♪ Wherever I want to be ♪
♪ Because I'm free in my RV ♪
♪ Yeah riding, riding in my RV ♪
♪ Wherever I want to be ♪
♪ 'Cause I'm free in my RV ♪
(upbeat music)
- [Robert] If you have
enjoyed traveling with us
then make sure you're subscribed.
And check out my other videos.
Also share it with your friends.
Spread the word and leave me a comment.
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As always, thank you so much for watching
and see you on the road.
