After
the evening balloon fest, we briefly thought about attending the
next morning's "mass assent" of the balloons but that would have
required being on-site by 0600 and that was just not in the
cards. Instead, we slept in and watched the assent from
our location in the Walmart parking lot. From Albuquerque,
NM we headed toward Timpas, CO to stay with a friend. The
weather forecast was for snow and high winds, so we hustled
through the high country and Raton Pass to beat the weather.
The photos below are what we saw.
From our
parking spot in the Walmart parking lot we could see the first
set of balloons launching just after sunrise.
The
balloons launched rather rapidly and soon the sky was crowded.
The
prevailing breeze pushed the balloons toward Santa Fe.
We
hustled north from ABQ to Timpas, CO and spent several nights
with our friends Billy and Dara. From Timpas, we headed
into La Junta to address an electrical problem that I caused
during the installation of additional solar panels on
Thor. Out of 200 square feet of roof area, I managed to
randomly put a screw through the one wire that took out Thor's
tail lights. With some insightful diagnostics, the problem
was identified and isolated in short order (if you will excuse
the pun). While the problem was being addressed, I took
some photos of the various Unimogs in the Terry Lee Enterprises
shop for repair or enhancements.
This
1300L-based expedition camper is new to the shop. Thor is
visible at the left of the photo above.
This
expedition camper has changed owners since we last rolled with
it in 2016.
A number
of the trucks were undergoing enhancements.
This
1550L has been heavily modified.
This
truck was used as a snow plow.
Properly
equipped, the newer U500 Unimogs can serve as an effective
implement platform. This one has a brush cutter.
The U500
is a large truck.
This
ex-military 1300L has the bed removed in anticipation of
mounting a camper. In the rear left of the photo above, a
1017A with GVX expedition box was recently sold to a new owner.
Once our
electrical repairs were completed, we headed east into
Kansas. Near the middle of the state we stopped for lunch
in a small town and spotted this cherry restoration of a mid-fifties
Chevy Bel Aire.
The car
was owned by an elderly lady that was eating in the nearby
Mexican restaurant.
Our
ultimate destination was Herrin, IL and the farm of our friends
Mark and Gail. Mark invited me to go fox hunting with him
and his hunt club. The club hunts with hounds and it is a
difficult endevour.
Mark
lent me one of his mounts named "Morgan" (like Captain
Morgan). Morgan is on the right.
Mark and
Gail have a large kennel and a special area for the puppies.
Alura,
one of the club members, gives the hounds some lovin'.
The
hounds were loaded into the trailer as were the horses.
Once loaded, the front of the trailer was a seething cauldron of
canines.
The hunt
site for the day was at a local state park. The hounds
were unloaded and they gathered around the huntmaster.
Other
trailers and horses arrived and the group prepared to depart.
I was
the odd man out because I rode a western saddle rather than
English. That was fine as I had always ridden western.
The day
was cool and the wind was blowing strong making coats a
necessity. Morgan was a strong-willed mount, but generally
well behaved.
Mark
called the hounds together with his horn and the group prepared
to depart.
Once the
hunt was afoot, Kathleen followed us in a truck. The hunt
area was a strip mine that was reclaimed.
The
hounds worked hard, but despite their efforts, no foxes or
coyotes were located.
The
group moved on to another area of the park to continue the hunt.
Previous Adventure | ||
Trip Home Page |
Photos and Text Copyright Bill Caid 2018, all rights
reserved.
For your enjoyment only, not for commercial use.