It's not a slow car, it's a fast house

January 2022

Remember when we were house sitting in New Mexico? We shared a photo of a huge radio dish that appeared to be on top of our camper. That photo was taken near a geocache in Pie Town, New Mexico.  Here is a link to that post

https://slowcarfasthouse.com/2023/01/03/question-what-to-do-now/

Pie Town, New Mexico has been on Geneva’s mind for many, many years. She used to say, “If I ever disappear, I just might be hiding in Pie Town.” And as with so many things that we say aloud and begin to believe, they can come true!

With the extra time on our hands we started looking at property to purchase. The Arizona market seemed ridiculously inflated, so we widened our search to New Mexico. The area around Pie Town offered many of the features we were seeking, including high elevation, trees, small town services and maintained roads.

During our time in Albuquerque we narrowed our search down to a few properties that interested us. We were looking at minimum 5 acre parcels and there were several in our price range. We drove out to look at them, and while there we met a wonderful man named John. He mentioned that he knew of an unlisted property that might interest us and sent us over to take a look. We fell in love. These are some of the photos they sent to show us what the parcel had to offer.

 

After a bit of communicating with the owners we reached an agreement and purchased not one, but two parcels of land in Pie Town, New Mexico. We were the new owners of approximately 22 acres of tree covered land on the Continental Divide. We tried to visit in January of 2022- but the realities of winter kept us at bay. The dogs played in the snow and we met many of our neighbors at the local café, The Pie-O-Neer. But due to the recent snowstorm, the roads in the area of our new property were not safely accessible by big, heavy, Fat Amy.

 

We returned about a month later with Fat Amy and some basic items to help us settle in. We were thrilled with what we found. The property includes a large metal building with a concrete floor, a wooden loft area and a wonderful workshop bench area.

 

The other buildings on site are a 70’s restored travel trailer, a brand new travel trailer a pump house, an outhouse and an insulated wooden shed.

 

 

We had a lot of work ahead of us to develop this into what we saw possible. But we took the work in small bites and built in lots of time for relaxing and enjoying the beautiful setting.  We called on many friends to come for a visit and lend a hand with a project. And somewhere during all this we made an offer on the adjoining parcel, taking our land to 33+ acres.  Whew, we need to relax!

One of our first projects was the outhouse. We confirmed its practical functionality and then started decorating the inside and outside. It is now the cutest, most interesting outhouse we have ever owned. And since it is our daily toilet facility, it matters.

Geneva turned the old travel trailer into a sewing room and also set up the beds as a guest room. Mike confirmed all the pipes and systems for the well and pump house. The water system is a bit rare in this area, as most people haul water from community wells.

We sold the fancy new travel trailer to one of the sons. Another one of the sons bought HiHoSilver. So we parked Fat Amy on the land to serve as our bedroom and kitchen.

Time was spent filling bird feeders, installing shelves and a sink and refrigerators and pegboards. We trimmed trees, moved branches, planted trees, planted flower seeds and generally fixed up the place.  An outdoor gazebo was gifted to us and it became the perfect space for our living room!  We learned about the animals, plants, trees and weather of our new place.

 

 

 

One of our favorite developments was the installation of a semi-outdoor shower. We found a non-functioning wood and glass sauna to use as the shower stall. Then installed a propane, on-demand, hot water heater and water lines. With an extension on the pump house roof, some careful rock placement and decoration, the area is complete and very functional.  (thanks Jessica  and Richard)

 

 

None of the work could have been completed without the generous efforts of Jessica (Geneva’s sister) and her hubby, Richard (Brother in law). You may remember them from a visit to Costa Rica many years ago. (they rented a roof top tent and traveled with us in this blog post.   https://slowcarfasthouse.com/2018/07/01/costa-rica-a-family-visit-with-a-fun-fj-camping-unit-from-nomad-america/      Since that time they have also retired and gone mobile. They travel in a large fifth wheel RV with their three dogs. They enjoy volunteering as camp hosts and traveling the USA. We were so happy to have them come spend time with us in Pie Town. In addition to their work on the shower, they created the crown jewel and naming inspiration for our property- The Pie Town Playground.

Richard saw a downed tree on the back end of the property and had a vision. With some chainsaws and rakes and sweat he and Jessica created a wonderful play area. It is perfect for climbing and jumping and hiding and swinging. We added a tire swing, a slide, and a climbing rope a mini-trampoline and a steering wheel. This will be a center of activity for years to come. Thanks, Uncle Richard!

Many friends and family came to visit during this period of time. Everyone contributed some improvement, from solar lights to water catchment, and from canopy building to license plate donation and many, many donations of items to make this a comfortable place to be for adults, kids, hikers and us.

The biggest crowd arrived for the 40th Anniversary Pie Festival. This event includes music, booths, games, pie-eating contests (duh?) and a horned toad race! All of our guests had a blast at the small town gathering in the local park.  But the true memories were made back at the Pie Town Playground.

 

Swinging in hammocks with babies. Climbing trees with dads. Playing on the playground. Using the outhouse. Cooking huge meals. Eating huge meals. Relaxing under the clear skies and fresh air of a mountain town. It was a beautiful time and our hearts are full of love for these people!

 

The Pie Town Playground has since been packed up, boxed up, locked up and snowed in. We look forward to returning there as our “home-base” between our travels. We welcome family and friends to stop by whenever they are in the area.

If you, dear reader, are headed to the Continental Divide town of Pie Town, New Mexico, please get in touch with us. Slowcarfasthouse would love to have you enjoy our property. And maybe, just maybe, we will see you there!