New Mexico Samboree

Red Rock State Park in Gallup was a beautiful setting for the New Mexico Samboree. Unfortunately it was full of sand burrs.  They got stuck in tires, shoes, rugs, mats and the poor Quark’s feet.  He had to be carried to a “safe” spot to go potty.  Harley and Romeo were not bothered as much. 

We were parked as far as you can be from the activities.  We are the green dot and the activities are the purple x, light blue square is the park office, red x is balloon glow location and dark blue rectangle is where Jim and Sherry took off for their balloon ride. The highlighted roadways make things look really neat but, in truth,  there was sand everywhere.  They use bobcats to keep roads and campsites clear, for sand burr abatement and prairie dog control.  The place was riddled with prairie dog holes and the little critters were always around.  Locals don’t think to highly of them, but us flatlanders thought they were cute.

It was quite hot during the day and nights were cool.  We had to use the furnace each night. Days were hot and our AC was not working right.  Don’t know why.  So we used the roof fan and a small fan that made the temperature bearable.  Tom checked the voltage to the RV and it was okay.  As I write this we are in a different park and our AC seems to be working fine.

There were two RV dealers present, with about 15 RVs to tour.  That occupied our time for a while and really just made us want a new to us RV. I know they sold at least one so that should have made it worthwhile.  

The Samboree was very well organized but too long.  There were only 131 rigs.  Everyone was friendly.  There were many games and participation was high.  We put the dogs in the dog parade and there were 27 individuals participating.  Some, like us, had more than one. One couple had a pair of Cocker Spaniels and a litter of 2-week old puppies.

The attendees really spent a lot of money in town. You write your rig number on your receipt and put it into a drum for drawings each evening.  The drum was completely full.  We were amazed by the number of prizes each evening.  There were also other drawings throughout the day.

There was entertainment each evening.  There was a jam session one night and the talent was amazing.  Another night they had Sarah Getto, a very talented young lady who sang and played the piano, violin and Native American flute.  She is blind since birth. 

Sherry and I took line dancing lessons.  Sherry has had lessons previously and is good.  I managed to barely keep up for two different dance routines. 

There was a craft show where entries were judged.  I didn’t see the entries, but Jim said that Sherry and I could have won. But Sherry’s pumpkin sweater was not finished and I, trusting soul that I am, was afraid someone might walk off with my jewelry.

Saturday night they had a balloon glow with five balloons after the entertainment.  It was beautiful. It was good practice taking pictures for the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta.

All-in-all, it was a good time.