By the numbers:
- 375 miles from Farmington to Roswell, NM – 2047 total miles
- highest temp: 99.
- highest elevation: 7380 feet at the Continental Divide on Highway 550. We drove for several hours at or above 7000 feet and then for more above 6000 feet. At Roswell we are down to about 3500 feet. I think the high altitude was harder on us than we realized. Of course its hard to tell when you also have temperatures near 100. We live in Seattle at an elevation of less than 100 feet, the highest point in the city is about 500, and the ski areas nearby are only a bit above 3000, so we don’t see 7000 feet elevation very often.
- 1 state : New Mexico all day. Total for the trip: stays at 7
- Licence plates spotted: just 1 – Kentucky – 37 total for the trip
- The list of states still to spot in the order I expect to find them are: MS LA AL SC WV DC DE NJ NY RI CT NH VT ME MN HI – That last one might be a challenge!
- no new National Parks today
Nothing particularly exciting to report today. Listened to part of an excellent book but will report on that when finished. Feels like we are starting phase 2 of our trip. Phase one was mostly a scouting expedition for future trips through the Southern Rocky Mountain region. Today we are on the western edge of the middle part of the country. Saw a very pretty prairie sunset today. Different than the quick sunsets when you are in the mountains. Also, can tell we are getting closer to the south as we got our first “Y’all have a nice day” from a waitress. From here we are totally in parts of the country we have never been before. We have a long list of parks, historic sites, and museums we want to see. One last number: Our 6 year old 90,000 mile Prius is averaging 52.5 mpg for the trip.
Well that’s all from Roswell – If we figure out what’s going on with the strange green light and unusual noises coming out from under the door down the hall are, we will let you know tomorrow.