Today was going to be a relatively short and flat day so we all slept in, but  I was in the breakfast room by 6:30am. The rest dwindled in until about 8:00am. So far Best Westerns seem to have very competitive rates AND a really nice breakfast spread. Eggs, sausages, toast, waffles, potatoes’, biscuits and gravy . . .  the whole works! As much as you care to eat!!!

We finally all assembled in the parking lot about 10:00am. We can’t get into the motel in El Paso until 2:00pm so there is really no rush today.

Here is a nice place for sale on the outskirts of Las Cruces. They make a BIG deal down here about homes having solar system’s. Cheap electricity!!

Looks like a nice local winery  . . . to bad its not the weekend when the tasting room is open!

More pecan planation’s. We have ridden by them continuously since we hit the Rio Grande at Lake Carroll. Not sure how they keep the soil so bare . . .hope it’s not with herbicides!

Not much water moving as we cross the Rio Grande again . . .

. . .  in fact not a drop!!

mmmmmmmm . . .I wonder if that includes the ones that drop over the fence onto the road ROW?

Nice stone church in Mesa.

Not sure what this figure was supposed to represent but thought it was photo worthy,

Here was a ‘highrider’ with quite a unique undercarriage!

This place reminded me of WI. Greenest yard, hedge and flower beds we have seen since CA. They must REALLY pour on the water!!

We soon passed into Texas, although never saw a ‘Welcome to Texas’ sign.Time for lunch so we stopped at Emiliano’s. It was the REAL thing and VERY busy . . .

. . . menu was in Spanish so I ordered a picadillo burrito. Since they were only $2, I thought they would be small so ordered two. Big  mistake . . . TOO much food (although I did eat them both)!!!

El Paso county and city have a nice 6 mile bike  path along the Rio Grande that we took to Mesa Ave, the location of our motel for tonight.

At one of the road crossings was this cute vet supply van waiting for a train to cross. Great marketing . . .

You might think this was a large field on our ride into town but it is the Rio Grande river bed. There must be water in it at sometime of the year!!!

Some people have evidently done VERY well in the pecan business!!!!

Mesa Road to the hotel was blocked for traffic, but the crew was nice enough to let us through the 1/2 mile construction area.

It seems like we have been living out of Tom’s truck . . . so Gina got us a special plate!!!

Guess whose room this is? (Tom wanted everyone to know it isn’t his!).

Things were a little more ‘orderly’ in this room. Time to hang out the wash.

Soon by brother in law, Uncle Mark, arrived with the wealth of home made brews.

He has become quite the brewer and is very knowledgeable of brews made around the work. It was very entertaining, educational and thirst quenching as we sample the six varieties.

Some needed a ‘little’ more than the hop and yeast to make them ‘mellow out’ for the night.

The Belgian Brown was the biggest hit.

Soon Laurel, Mark’s wife, arrived and we headed out for dinner at Avila’s, a 60 year old local traditional Mexican restaurant in El Paso. Diana, thanks for the restaurant tip!! Soon it was the bewitching hour of 9:00am and about bed time. We bid Laurel, Ruth and Mark a good bye and were tucked in bed by 9:30pm. Thanks to them for being such great hosts in El Paso. Rain predicted for tomorrow as we exit the metro area.