After leaving Carlsbad, we headed a little further west and into the mountains where we settled for a time in Ruidoso, NM, some 7,000 feet above our normal sea level. We parked ourselves at the Twin Spruce RV Park, surrounded by mountains and located on Hwy 70 on the southwest corner of town. The park is run by a really nice family. Breakfasts are provided daily, they have a pool, WiFi, and numerous other amenities.
Afternoon rain and fog cooled things off. Things steamed up by 6:00 PM.
Ruidoso is a mecca for shoppers interested in all things Native American, including large carved wooden objects, especially bears. The traffic on weekends and “rush” hour is terrible. They are overrun with pedestrian traffic on weekends. Take a look at the Ruidoso Web-cam. It is quite a good one.
For AT&T users, if you stand near the corner of the Dodge dealership parking lot at the corner of Hwy 70 and Mescalero Rd. you may get a signal. Try standing on one foot if you have difficulty.
Ruidoso Downs is a horse race track that is just southeast of town, also on Hwy 70. We’re still waiting for our horse to cross the finish line.
On the other end of the gambling spectrum, The Inn of the Mountain Gods is a casino and resort located on the Mescalero-Apache reservation just east of Ruidoso. The slot machines were much friendlier to our finances. Headliners at the resort include stars like the Temptations, Merle Haggard, and Vince Gill.
There is a lake and a beautiful golf course on the property.
Ruidoso is a retirement and vacation area with homes a little on the pricey side. Rio Ruidoso is the river that runs through town and a few years ago floods knocked out some of the small bridges and flooded many of the homes built in the valley.
It is very picturesque.
Many homeowners along the river maintain a fairly nice lifestyle.
This is a beautiful area with moderate temperatures. Rick isn’t a big fan of the altitude.