Off To Carlsbad, New Mexico

We decided to break camp at Midway R.V. Park near Roswell, New Mexico to head almost due south to Carlsbad . I did not realize there was a Carlsbad, New Mexico. I thought we would be about 12 miles from the entrance to the National Park. To my surprise the cavern entrance was 50 Miles away. Carlsbad is actually a separate  city.  We stayed at Brantley Lake State Park. It was a beautiful spot surrounded by desert plants, plenty of sunshine and spectacular sunsets. There were only 40 some campsites, electric and water and a beautiful shower building. We were frequently visited by Jack rabbits, bunnies and really, a roadrunner.

The first day we just hung at the campground and caught up on some of the odd things we wanted to do on the camper. But on Tuesday we went to the Living Desert State Park. We hiked around, looking at desert landscape and some of the native wildlife that can survive in this arid area. We were about two weeks early, as the buds were just beginning to plump up and the cactus would be in full bloom in a very short time. Too bad because some of them don't even look real. It is hard to imagine a flower coming from a prickly plant.

The next day we were off to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. The sun was shining,and we wanted to get an early start. We discovered that the elevator into the cave was out of service and we would have to walk in. The Natural Entrance is just a short walk from the visitors center . The first part of the hike is down a switchback path about one mile long. They estimate it will take us about an hour and a half to hike it. There is a 20 percent grade down. I kept thinking that at the end of the path we would  be at "It's a small world".

It was cool and when we entered the Big Room we were awed by the Stalactites, Stalagmites, Columns and the enormous size. It is like 14 football fields. Pictures can't accurately give one a true sense of how enormous the caverns are.  Oh yes, and they have Bats. They have their own Bat Room. The bats migrate up from Mexico and thousands settle in the cave during the day, Then at sunset they leave the cave to feast all night long. They eat small bugs like mosquitoes and lots of them.

We walked around the Big Room for about one hour. The paths are lit. We took flashlights too. I am glad we did because some crevices were dark and this helped us see.  Now we could point things out that we wanted each other to see. Mr Bill was in his glory pointing.  He brought extra batteries so we wouldn't run out of power. He'd make a great usher if he wanted to get a job. Anyway, the trail was about  one and a half miles long.  You really feel alone. I don't know where the other people went but we rarely ran into anyone else.

The rangers were around and were interesting to chat with. Because the elevator is out, they have to walk down and up at the end of their shifts. But they loved their jobs and wanted us to love the caverns as well. We had a bite to eat down there in their designated lunch room . We made a quick potty stop and then began the trek up. The rangers  cautioned us to take our time due to the steep path and allow ninety minutes for the trip up. We did it and even spent time walking around the grounds around the Park. It was just Beautiful. It was a great day.

Back to the campground we went. We took the pups for a walk and then enjoyed the sunset over the Capitan Peak just to the west of our campsite.

We plan to head to Alamogordo New Mexico in the  morning to go to White Sands National Monument. We have our campground picked out and will probably catch up on laundry, pick up some groceries, and visit the worlds largest Pistachio said to be close by.

Hope all is well there and you are done digging out.