A Day with RVillage Friends

This past Saturday we drove to Socorro, NM about 70 miles south of Albuquerque to meet with RVillage friends, Bob and Trish whom we met here in Albuquerque last May before leaving on our travels.  Trish and Bob were from New Jersey and had been on the road for about a year before we met them heading back to the east coast for the summer. 

They also have a Tiffin motorhome so we had much to talk about when we met.  Trish writes an almost daily blog so we have kept up with their travels though had not been close together since last year.  They are currently volunteering at a dog/cat rescue facility in T or C (for those outside New Mexico, that stands for Truth or Consequences.  Yes, named after the once TV program.  Check on the internet for info regarding how the name came about.).  Since it is over 100 miles between the two cities, we agreed to meet half way to show them the sites in the Socorro area before they leave on the southern route into Arizona. 

We met at the Bosque Del Apache Wildlife Refuge which is located about 18 miles south of Socoro and near the Rio Grande River.  Wildlife such as Sandhill Cranes, Snow and Canadian Guess, Egrets, ducks and other birds migrate from the north in Canada to this area and south for the winter each year beginning in about October through December and return starting in about March.  There are also lots of other kinds of wildlife in the refuge such as coyotes, roadrunners, bobcats, rabbits, etc.  On any given day you never know if or where you will see such wildlife and unfortunately, today was one of the days when we saw little.  We did manage to see this eagle sitting on an old dead tree in the middle of the marsh,

some snow geese in a pond,

 an assortment of birds outside the Visitor Center feeding at the feeders, an egret, but no Sandhill Cranes.  While Ron and I see them here in Albuquerque and we did see some prior to arriving at the Bosque, none were in the areas we traveled through the area.

After our visit to the Bosque we travelled 8 miles north to have lunch at the Buckhorn Restaurant in San Antonio, a favorite of Ron and me.  The owner won a throwdown with Bobby Flay back in about 2004 and has been written up in Sunset Magazine as well as others..  The parking lot was busy and we did have to wait a few minutes for a table since it was right at the lunch hour.  We all ordered the Buckhorn Burger consisting of a hamburger, chopped green chili, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle and mustard (a specialty of the house) as well as fries and a drink.  While the wait is long for the meal, it is worth it.  They advertise that they are not a fast food restaurant and they are right.  The owner visited with us several times and is there overseeing things at all times.  He is quite a character.

With our tummies full, we headed to Socorro (9 miles north) to take in the sites there.  Even though Ron and I have travelled through Socorro many, many times, purchased gas and even stopped at the local McDonald’s, we had never taken in the sites there. 

Socorro got its name in 1598 from explorer Juan de Onate whose tired and hungry men were given food and shelter by the Piros Indians.  He named the Pilabo pueblo “Socorro” which means “help” or “succor” in Spanish.  In the 1600’s Franciscan friars built mission at Socorro and other nearby communities.  It was not until the early 1800’s that the actual settlement of Socorro began.  In 1815, 21 families were given land grants to settle there.    A Civil War battle was fought a short distance south of Socorro on February 21, 1862.  After the Civil War, lead and zince mining as well as silver and the arrival of the railroad made the area a center for diverse mining activity.  In 1889 the government chose Socorro as the site for its new School of Mines (now known as the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology).

Arriving in town, we attempted to find some addresses for places I had seen on line, but to no avail.  In a small town, even the Visitor Center is closed on Saturday so no help there to find the locations.  The one place we did see; however, was the old San Miguel Mission Church (founded in 1598) which recently underwent a renovation.  Much to our delight, the Church is now open and we were able to take a look inside. 

We also came across this very old house with the turret.  You all know by now that Ron and I have a fascination for old homes.

It was getting late in the afternoon, so we returned Bob and Trish to their car in San Antonio and we began our trek back to Albuquerque but not before stopping in the town of Lemitar to take a picture of this old Mission church.  It is called “La Sagrada Familia” which in Spanish means “Holy Family.”

It was a wonderful day full of conversation, catching up and learning more about Bob and Trish while sharing a meal and seeing the sights.  We hope to see them again this year if they pass through this way on their way to San Antonio in June.  Thanks to RVillage for giving us the opportunity to meet more RVers and share experiences with others living the RV lifestyle.