5/20 What Makes an Ideal Campsite? Cochiti Lake Recreation Area, NM

I arrived at one of my favorite places late yesterday--Cochiti Lake Campground, built and operated by the U.S. Corps of Engineering.  The Corps of Engineering builds hundreds of dams and lakes across the country and nearly all of them have recreation areas built into them, as well as campgrounds.  A real plus for people over 62 like me is that we get half off the camping fee, which adds up over a year.  In addition, they are nearly all well built and very well maintained, especially compared to most state parks.

This is one of my favorite campgrounds.  What makes it ideal for me? First, it has a view.  I like long views with mountains and lakes in the distance, and this place has both.  Also, I picked a site on a hill so I get a good view of everything. 



Next, the sites are well spread apart, so I do not have close neighbors.  

I don't tow an extra vehicle, but if I did, I would have a separate spot to park it.

My site is on a curve, but it is still very large.  I am parked at the back of the site and also have enough room to step out my door while staying on the pavement.

 Very importantly, I have 5 bars on both my Verizon cell phone and jetpack or mobile hotspot!  Yea!  Strangely, a lot of COE parks and also Indian reservations (which this is next to) have excellent Verizon service.

Also, I have electric and water service, and the hookups are not rusted and ancient, meaning they actually work! 

 

 And each site has a covered picnic table on a cement slab and all are in good condition. A real plus is the solar powered lamppost!  Have never seen one of those in a campground before, but here, every site has one. 

OK, new subject. when I bought my motorhome, one of the selling points was this large corner kitchen storage area.  I keep my nesting pots with their lids, teakettle, and a ton of plastic containers.  I use a lot of these containers because I often make a large batch of something and then freeze portions for days when I just want to heat something up.

Lately, things keep moving around and rattling as I drive down the road.  When I stop and open the door, everything falls out. So a couple of weeks ago, I cleaned it out and tossed unneeded stuff.  Yesterday, I picked up some non-slide liner and also got another small shelf unit.  Today I put it all together.  So this is the BEFORE picture. I am driving to Santa Fe tomorrow, so will see how everything stays in place when I come back. 

YES!  I just got back from driving 60 into Santa Fe, and when I came back everything in this cabinet is in exactly the same place.  Yea!