Southern NM State Fair and Rodeo: The Rodeo

Above, as I was walking through the parking lot, I took this shot of
the rodeo arena through a chain-link fence. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

When I went to the Southern New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo yesterday, I went during the late morning for about 3 1/2 hours.

I went back to the fair that evening to attend the rodeo. It was a good thing that I went when I did, the fair had long lines of people waiting to buy tickets and to get in. 

The rodeo was set to begin at 7:00 and I arrived at 5:45. The grandstands were already beginning to be filled up with people. Later, there were long lines of people waiting to get in, but security kept them out until some left (five people leave, five were let in). It was equally as bad at the restrooms. Long lines of people were waiting to go in to take care of business. When I left the fair before the rodeo was over, hordes were still coming in. It seemed like half of Las Cruces were either in or waiting to get in. Compared to Gallup (population 21,000), Las Cruces has a population of 104,000.

The rodeo arena was named for ex-U.S. Senator Pete Domenici. It was a nice arena and had a big roof and a big screen for replays. My only gripe was that the seats had no backrests. 

After a while, my lower back was aching (much of it started earlier in the day) and so I moved from the bleachers to an area where I got a good ground-level view of the rodeo events. I forgot to bring my zoom lens.

Still, I had a good time and picked up a rodeo t-shirt.

Some photos:

Southern NM State Fair: Tractors

Since state and county fairs are agriculture-oriented, it is a given that farm equipment would be prominently displayed.

Such was the case of the Southern New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo down in Las Cruces. 

Outside lined up were tractors of various vintages and sizes. 

This should be of interest to one of my Jamestown friends, who has his own collection of tractors.

Here's some photos:

 

Southern NM State Fair: Livestock and Poultry

During my visit to the Southern New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo in Las Cruces, I seemed to have spent a lot of time in the livestock and poultry areas.

There were plenty of cows, goats, rabbits, sheep and poultry (chickens, turkeys, ducks). The only animals I didn't see were horses. I later found out that the horse stalls were in a stable area away from the others. Too bad. I would have liked to have looked them over.

Here's a sampling of the animals I did see:

 

Southern NM State Fair: Coleman Lantern and Model Railroad Displays

About an hour or so ago, I got back home from Las Cruces, New Mexico for attending the Southern New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo. 

I had a good time while there and it was worth the 300+ mile drive to and from there. 

Rather than blog one long blog about the fair, I will break it down into several shorter blog posts.

The first one should interest campers. It was a display of Coleman lanterns and stoves. The items dated back to the early 20th century to present times. The lanterns in the third photo were ones Coleman made for Sears, Roebuck and Co. 

I'll let the photos do the talking:

One building housed model railroad displays. These were 'N' gauge:

Today At The Southern New Mexico State Fair

Above, the rabbit pavilion. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Today, I spent three and a half hours at the Southern New Mexico State Fair in Las Cruces.

Above, this cow posed for me. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I spent much of my time in the livestock area where judging was taking place on goats, pigs and sheep. I also roamed the different pavilions of poultry and rabbits and the pens where cattle, pigs, goats and sheep were kept. I was disappointed not to see any horses. I guess we can't have anything.

Above, some of the vintage Coleman lanterns. Some were made for Sears. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The area where the rides are wasn't open, not that I was going on any.

One pavilion contained model railroad sets. The biggest was in 'N' gauge and quite elaborate. Another pavilion had Coleman lanterns and stoves dating back to the 1900s. That was interesting.

Above, a row of goats for judging. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The few photos here was from my phone camera. I have to upload the photos from my Canon camera either tonight or tomorrow. I will be attending the rodeo tonight. That starts at 7:00.

Above, some turkeys in the poultry pavilion. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

After the fair, I went in to Mesilla for lunch at the Cafe de Mesilla. I had an excellent chicken enchilada lunch. Following that, I went back to the KOA to rest up for a few hours.

Above, a collection of dairy cows. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

So far, it has been an enjoyable day.

Las Cruces KOA Kampground

A few minutes ago, I took a little stroll around the Las Cruces KOA.

It is a nice place set on a hilltop overlooking the city. It has the usual amenities that one expects from a KOA Kampground: pool, playground, store, restrooms and showers. It also has Kamping Kabins, a dog run and tent camping area.

I'll be at the Southern New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo today. It is about 8 miles down Interstate 10 from the KOA. It is expected to be clear and about 80° today.

I took a few photos during my walk:

Above, the usual A-frame KOA office building. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the scenic walk path and Las Cruces. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the campground was pretty much full. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, The Beast at center. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

 

Above, wide interior roads made navigating RVs easier. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Japan, Australia and Argentina Reveal Reopening Plans

Above, visitors can visit Godzilla again in Japan. But, there's some hoops to jump first. 

So it was World Tourism Day on September 27. Well, I and probably many others, weren't even aware of this.

But, that aside, some nations have revealed reopening plans and this includes Japan.

KION reported:

It was World Tourism Day on September 27 this week, but it’s safe to say it’s been another bad year for tourism globally. If you’re wondering where it’s safe to go and when, and what you need to do to get there, CNN Travel is on hand with these weekly round-ups.

Here’s what we learned in pandemic travel this week:

Along with Japan, other nations include Australia and Argentina.

To read more, go here.

The 10-Year-Old RV Campground Discrimination Rule

Above, the intent was to keep out RVs that look similar to this. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

My 2015 Winnebago Minnie Winnie is six years old now. I have read about some RV parks and "resorts" turning away RVs that are ten years old and older, so I don't have to worry. For now. 

The original intent of this policy of some parks was to keep out riff raff (the Cousin Eddies of the world) in beat-up old rigs. But what if the older RV is in excellent shape?

RV Travel asked its readers if this policy should be allowed.

They start with:

As a massive number of RVers scour the country for a place to camp, more and more RV parks are turning away folks with RVs 10 years old or older. Several years ago we had to send photos of our newly custom-painted Coachmen motorhome to an RV park in Florida before they would let us book. Then, I was so proud of our motorhome I didn’t have a problem sending in the photos. Now, I am not so sure. Do I really want to stay there?

A couple of weeks ago we ran a poll asking if folks had ever been turned away from a campground or service center because of their rig’s age. We got a lot of responses. Here are a few of them:

To see what the RV Travel readers had to say, go here. 

In Las Cruces

Above, The Beast at the Las Cruces KOA. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Right now, I am at the Las Cruces (New Mexico) KOA Kampground.

It was a six-hour drive from home and it rained part of the time and I drove right into a horrendous hailstorm near Soccoro. If the hailstones were any larger, I would have damages on the motorhome. Fortunately, the hail was on the soft side.

Above, the KOA is on a hilltop and has nice views of Las Cruces. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I will be at the Southern New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo in Las Cruces tomorrow. It is only a few miles from the KOA off of Interstate 10. This was a spur-of-the-moment trip. I only decided to go last night.

It was an interesting drive. Much of the scenery resembled the Mojave Desert of California. Otherwise, much was ranch and farmland with a couple of big lakes along the way (including Elephant Butte Lake). Spaceport America was near Truth or Consequences, but I didn't see it.

I am looking forward to the fair tomorrow.

Lassen Volcanic National Park Reopening Monday

Above, The Beast at Manzanita Lake Campground. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

There's some good news coming out of Northern California.

Parts of Lassen Volcanic National Park will reopen to visitors starting Monday.

KRCR-TV reported:

LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK, Calif. — Part of Lassen Volcanic National Park will reopen Monday following a nearly two-month-long closure due to the Dixie Fire.

The majority of the park will remain closed and only the far western portion will be accessible to the public next week.

Eight miles of Lassen National Park Highway will reopen from the southwest entrance to the Lassen Peak parking area.

The highway will also reopen from the northeast entrance through Manzanita Lake to Loomis Plaza.

Camping will be allowed at Manzanita Lake Campground, but only two loops (A & B) will be open.

To read more, go here. 

Hawaii Visitor and Spending Down From Pre-Pandemic Levels In August

Above, a Waikiki sunset. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Well, this certainly was not unexpected.

Tourism and spending in Hawaii was down in August from pre-pandemic levels according to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. 

They wrote:

A lack of international visitors to Hawaii combined with a COVID-19 surge and Gov. David Ige’s plea for travelers to avoid non-essential trips to the state contributed to a 22% drop in August visitor arrivals from pre-pandemic times.

In August, 722,393 visitors arrived by air to the islands, up significantly from the 23,356 visitors who came to Hawaii in August 2020, but down from the 926,417 who traveled to Hawaii in August 2019, according to preliminary statistics released today by the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.

On any given day in August, there were 211,269 visitors in the Hawaii up significantly from 22,625 visitors a day in 2020, but below the 252,916 in August 2019.

To read more, go here. 

Dollar Weakens Below ¥111.30 In Tokyo

With the possibility that Japan may be re-opening to foreign tourism in the not-too-distant future and now that we're in a new month, a peek at how the U.S. dollar is doing against the Japanese yen in Tokyo foreign exchange trading.

According to Jiji Press:

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)--The dollar weakened to levels below 111.30 yen in Tokyo Friday, weighed down by drops in Japanese stocks and long-term U.S. Treasury bond yields.

At 5 p.m., the dollar stood at 111.25-25 yen, down from 111.86-87 yen at the same time Thursday.

To read more, go here.