Yesterday, we confirmed that the replacement fireplace had arrived at the Lowes Home Improvement store in Española, and was ready to pick it up. Since the weather was suspect, we didn't go yesterday. We decided that since the weather later in the week was going to be sketchy, we had better go and get it today.
Tony first went in search of propane locally. There was a place not far from us, so he went. Unfortunately, no one was there that was authorized to fill tanks, so he just paid and left the tank there. We also decided that since Christmas was coming, it was likely we'd need more propane, and might be in a pinch, so he bought an additional tank as well. Both would be waiting on us when we got back from Española.
We headed out towards Taos, through the mountains -- the views were very pretty, snow covered everything but the road, but it was very curvy, hilly and lots of blind curves. We made it to Taos and on through the Rio Grande Gorge, to Española. Just before town, there was some construction which narrowed the road to one lane, so they would hold traffic and alternate directions of traffic flow. Going was very little wait, but the return trip the line of waiting traffic looked longer.
We got to town and found the Lowes, but realized it was just about lunchtime. We decided to stop in at the Chili's Bar and Grill, right there in the same parking lot. It all looked fairly recently constructed.
We had a good meal at Chili's and even had leftovers! So we took them and headed over to Lowes. We did some other shopping, then got the fireplace. To recap why we have a new fireplace, well, back in 2013 we bought a "scratch and dent" Dimplex fireplace insert, and installed it in the Mammoth. Since then, we've had to replace the blower/heater assembly twice, under warranty. Well, it went out again, so we decided there must be more wrong with the unit than we thought, so we decided to replace it.
The new fireplace is also a Dimplex, but newer technology. it uses LED lights (with a variety of choices of hues) for the flames, as well as a ceramic heating technology. It also displays a temperature setting for a few seconds so that you can see what temperature the fireplace thermostat will maintain. We also decided to stick with Dimplex because the unit was the exact size to fit the space. Other brands would have required major alteration.
We finished loading our items, then Tony decided to try out the auxiliary pump, since it was in the 40s in Española. It ran fine! So he took the opportunity to add some of the PS Diesel 911, so hopefully we won't have issues in the future.
After that, we headed back to Angel Fire. Remember that construction? Well, we ended up waiting about 30 minutes in line to get our turn down the road. While we waited, we happened to see a pair of Bald Eagles flying near the river! How amazing!
We stopped briefly in Taos at the Visitor Center to use the restroom, and got to see a lot of local artist's work on display and for sale there. If you get the chance, stop and look!
Once back driving, we made good time, until we got back into the mountains between Taos and Angel Fire. It started to snow, so the road became a little more sketchy, as the temps dropped into the 20s. Not frozen, but getting there. We got to Angel Fire about 4:15, stopped by the Propane place and picked up our tanks, then headed home. It continued to snow for a while. We ate dinner and relaxed a bit, then worked to install the new fireplace. It went in exactly in the space, and worked great!
Tony enjoying the new fireplace
Tomorrow, we hope to go skiing!!!
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