Day 6 - New Mexico

It's the first day on my own. This morning I say good-bye to Mia and Andy, [sniff], and drove off into the Tucson sunrise with a course for New Mexico. I opened another one of the gifts from my stash, a pink and white "New York" baseball cap - love it. I stopped off at The Thing, a service station/tourist trap, and then headed into the Gila National Forest. I arrived just in time for the tour of the Gila Cave dwellings (pictures here). Interesting, and a good dose of culture for the day. I had a no idea corn cobs weren't biodegradable.

There was a bit of a scare when the gas tank hit empty and I was miles from civilization, but the good news is that a) I was going downhill for a significant part of the journey, so just popped the clutch and coasted, b) my car can apparently do 40+ miles once the light comes on, c) Dave from AAA stayed on the phone with me for almost 20 miles, d) I did make it to a gas station (I'd never been so happy to spend $50+ on gas).

I had planned on going to one of the local mineral baths, but after the almost-running-out-of-gas-in-the-middle-of-the-desert I just wanted to get to my hotel. I know rule #1 of traveling is to keep an open mind, but this afternoon left me feeling slightly jaded towards rural areas. Instead, I have opted for a night of room service, tv and internet. Elephant Butte, NM, has a nice view, but it's about as exciting as, well, the backside of a large pachyderm.