Exploring, Recurring Problem and Milk.

Our Location today is at the Alamogordo/White Sands K.O.A. NM.

Click on the pictures to Enlarge.

We both slept much better last night but I was still up nearly an Hour before Kathy this morning. With all the walking around the Space Museum yesterday we were both quite tired. Once I had as much as I could ready for breakfast I sat back at the table with plans to repair Kathy’s Computer Glasses. We picked up a Foster Grant repair kit at the Family Dollar yesterday so I opened it up found the length of Screw I needed to reattach the Arm. These kits even supply small Screwdrivers but they don’t work. The Blade of the Screwdriver is thicker then the Slot in the head of the Screw.

Putting that on hold I barely had time to start reading on my Computer when Kathy came downstairs. She cooked us Eggs over easy on Toast as a change of pace. 

When Kathy went to check for messages on her Computer I retrieved the Precision Screwdrivers stored under the bed and in less than a Minute I had Kathy’s Computer Glasses fixed.

We didn’t spend much time on the Computers this morning because we had a plan. Kathy made Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches along with pealing up some Clementines for our lunch. I packed our Cooler, some Gatorade and an Ice-Pack to keep things cool.

We were loaded up and on the road before 10:00 headed to see the White Sands National Monument just Twenty Miles down the road. Having seen the Dunes as we drove in the other day was still strange. They just seemed out of place when most of the ground is flat other then a few dozen mountains sticking up in the distance. We were soon at the Visitors Center where we checked out the exhibits and had to wait to see the Video explaining everything about the White Dunes. They are white because they are made from Gypsum that the Wind carries from the Mountains.

Leaving there we in towards the Park Gate. The cost was $5.00 each but when I presented my National Parks Pass we purchased last year we were handed a Brochure and told to have a “Good Day”. As we drove further into the Park the Grass Topped Dunes became less and we started seeing the White Dunes that made it look like there was Snow piled along the road.

Heading back to the truck.

We finally got to where there was a Nature Boardwalk to try and see some of Nature’s Beauty up close. With that out of the way we collected our Snow Disc from the Truck and climbed a Dune on the other side of the road. We had seen videos of others sliding down these Dunes like this before. You can actually purchase Snow Discs and Paraffin Wax back at the Visitor’s Center or in the Gift Shop.

I was applying the Paraffin Wax on the Snow Disc.

Kathy was very determined and tried repeatedly to slide down but it seemed that even Kids that didn’t have the density of our maturity were still having a hard time getting going on their Discs.

We started driving further into the Dunes but only made it to the first Pull-off after the road ended before we reluctantly turned around. The road in that section is only Gypsum and is plowed with a Road Grader at least once a day to make it smooth.

The other day I mentioned about having to monitor a problem we are having with the Truck. It seems to warm up perfectly but then other times it suddenly goes Cold. The newer Diesel Engines have Diesel Particulate Filters that need the heat of the Engine to clean themselves which is what I’ve referred to as Regen (Regeneration). There is plenty of Coolant but since this started happening it has us worried. We also don’t want to ruin the Engine so we thought it wise to head back to the Trailer.

A Family on the Dune taking a Selfie.

We were halfway back on Highway 70 when suddenly the Engine Heat increased and the Regen process. When that happens even if you are almost at your destination you keep driving so the DPF can clean itself out. We drove to the last Exit to Alamogordo before getting off the Highway.

There is no pavement here and that is not Snow.

We had never seen this part of town before and there were Two Stores we needed to go to. The first was Harbor Freight where we purchased a Zurich OBD2 Code Reader. This one only does Domestic Vehicles but it will help us know if we have a Minor or Major problem in the future. Before leaving the parking lot we ate a very late lunch.

The second store was Hobby Lobby where we walked through most of the store. They already have all the Christmas Decorations in the store at 50% Off. Good thing we don’t have a house. We also walked out with another Christmas Gift for 2019. As we were about to leave the parking lot we spotted a Water/Ice Dispenser. It cost a Dollar for Five Gallons of Reverse Osmosis Water. We use that for drinking and cooking.

When we arrived Home we needed to open the Windows and Door to cool the 63 F (17 C) down, An Hour later the Sun was setting and the Temperature started dropping.

With the very late lunch we didn’t have any supper but watched the movie “Milk” starring Sean Penn. Harvey Milk was an openly Gay Politician back in the 1970s that helped make changes to the Human Rights Act. This was an exceptionally well done movie.

We’ll see what happens tomorrow, there may be some changes to our plans. Thank you for following along and feel free to leave a comment.

Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

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