Before we left Durango, Logan invited us during a Facetime call to his 5th birthday party, so naturally we had to make that happen. Stopping in Carrollton would allow us to celebrate with Logan and family, stop by our storage unit and remove the bulk of our heavy tools (lighten Sid’s load for Alaska next year), and take care of some personal errands. Downloading the tools of course means we won’t be doing projects any time soon. Carrollton was 848 miles away from Durango and required three stops: Santa Fe, Vega, and Wichita Falls.
We stopped again at the Trailer Ranch RV Park in Santa Fe. I spent some time researching the price of real estate, which might satisfy requirements we’ve discussed for our future there once we stop traveling. This gave us a general feel for the current prices by location in and around Santa Fe. Other than this and several morning hikes, we returned to our favorite breakfast joints and tried some new ones too. Here’s what we recommend:
Tribes Coffee House – Varied and tasty Mexican cuisine with flavorful coffee and pastries. The service was great; the staff always personable; and many interesting, for-sale local art pieces provided class to the interior decor.
The Pantry (original one on Cerritos Rd.) – Another delicious Mexican menu. We went for the food not the coffee per se. So popular it got pretty crowded, so we sat at the counter and found their normally fast service was even better. We always shared a single order because of their substantial portions.
The Teahouse – Quaint place in the historic Canyon Road residential neighborhood adjacent to downtown. We sat in the outside garden area. Tea was their claim to fame; however, our customized americanos were perfect, and we enjoyed our eclectic meals. Don’t go if you have a time crunch though, as the parking situation was (and always is) abysmal because of the location.
The Pantry Rio – Wide range of American and Mexican breakfast dishes in a downtown setting. They also had tables for colorful garden seating. Both our meal and coffee were excellent. I particularly liked the large scenic southwest painting hung where we sat in solitude near the coffee bar.
We next spent one unremarkable and unmemorable night in Vegas, TX before driving to Wichita Falls for three nights at the Wichita Falls RV Park. We’ve stayed there previously. Other than some hiking, we just bided our time before heading to Carrollton. In Carrollton, we stayed in Sun RV Communities, Sandy Lake, which is where we spent last year’s winter season.
Logan’s party was held in the city park across from Kat’s parent’s house (Kevin and Mary) in Richardson. The weather was very pleasant, and many of Logan’s school classmates attended. We played with the boys, helped ensure everybody was safe, and ate our share of cupcakes. For the remainder of our stay, we went to Jon and Kat’s whenever the boys were home, maximizing the time we spent with the entire family.
Leaving them is fraught with sadness, and Logan in particular always asks when we’ll be coming back. We look forward to when they are older and can spend some time on the road with us. They’re going to love camping on vacation with Papa and Gigi.
