Farmington

Some 41 years ago, Maureen, our daughter Crystal, and I spend some two months at Chaco Canyon while I gathered my research data for my Master's thesis.  Each weekend meant a trip to Farmington for groceries, fill the fresh water jerry cans, laundry, and have a "store-bought" lunch!

Farmington was an eclectic mix of New Mexico country, Navajo, petroleum industry, and tourist.  The downtown was a busy place.  And it was a small "small city" that just captured the imagination.  In those "our early days", we wanted to find jobs in Farmington and move!

Fast forward to present day!  We had set up camp in Angel Peak RV Park and couldn't wait to drive through Farmington "to recall".  That was a mistake!  Downtown was a ghost town.  All the area around downtown had become very economically depressed!  On the drive into Farmington, it was just oil supplier lot after oil supplier lot - and some of those were vacant!  Down right depressing!  But it did seem as though Farmington had grown.  So where was "downtown"?

As we drove the highway through downtown, we kept wondering, where was the "shopping area" that supported Farmington?  Luckily we kept driving the highway instead of heading back to the RV.  What used to be the "old road" heading to Aztec was now "THE" area.  What the downtown had lost, the new northern area of Farmington had found!  Beyond this area, the road returned to just oil field supplier lot after another.

As hindsight is usually 20/20, though for as much as we wished to move to Farmington, I have to say that I'm glad we didn't.  Farmington is great to visit today!