After a week in Texas, we pressed on and west to New Mexico! Originally we were going to go north from Mart to Dallas and then on to Oklahoma, but we had a change of plans and decided to embrace it and add on a few more national parks. So, our sights were set on Carlsbad, New Mexico so that we could hit not just one, but two more parks…Carlsbad Caverns National Park and Guadalupe National Park.
First, a 7 hour and 45 minute drive though. But honestly, these kids are amazing at sitting in a van for hours. And the scenery through the hill country of Texas and then the oil fields of Texas and New Mexico were just very interesting. And then there was the audio book we all enjoyed…
Felt good to finally earn another state card! We all cheer whenever we enter a new state. Texas is so big, it felt like a long time before accomplishing another state crossing!
We decided since we made such great time, that rather than cram two parks into a day the following day, that we would drive straight to Carlsbad Caverns and stretch our legs and explore. We started with the visitors center which was interesting and fun! Look at my cavers!
Practicing on the exhibit because we didn’t have the time or the desire to actually go into the cave on a tour. They are deep, dark, dirty (and not to mention stinky and Douglas does not like tight, enclosed spaces!).
This picture should really be viewed upside down. My little bats! The bats fleeing the cavern is actually how the cavern was found. And the park has a night show of the bats leaving the cavern (we also aren’t huge fans of bats or late nights, so we didn’t do that either).
The entrance to the cavern is amazing, it is huge! This picture does not do it justice. Apparently from the bottom of the cavern’s base, to the top of the rock formation is as tall as the Empire State Building!
Family photo in front of the cavern entrance (staring into the sun, always a fun shot!). We did a timer for this photo and it was hilarious because Tavin was sneezing and somehow we still ended up with him smiling here.
The surrounding environment is incredible. Such a difference in vegetation! In the picture below, the spikey plant in the background is especially interesting. It only turns green after rain and stays that way for twenty four hours and then goes back to a grayish brown.
After the quick nature trail from the natural entrance back up to the visitor’s center we headed back to the van. It had been a long day (and man, it was really hot!) so we headed back to the hotel to get settled and take a dip in the pool before dinner and bedtime.
The next day we got a pretty early start out of the hotel and headed south to Guadalupe National Park. The drive there was exciting as the Guadalupes came into fuller view and their grandeur became more obvious. Beautiful.
We definitely made the right choice getting to the park on the early side (9:15am exactly (well, actually we kept going over the time zone line throughout the park, I think our phones were confused!), we were one of two cars in the visitor center parking lot and the weather was amazing! Ten degrees cooler than in Carlsbad and a strong breeze. What a delight to get out of the car and it feel comfortable, may I dare say, refreshing?!
The visitor had some great displays to help us learn about the fauna in the park. Tavin, Penn and Jansen are such big animal fans (thank you Wild Kratts and library books!) that they knew so many interesting facts about most of the animals on display, it was as if I had my own little park rangers showing me around. I loved it. In the picture below Tavin is next to a display of an animal he thinks he may have spotted yesterday at Carlsbad Caverns National Park.
Since we started at the Pine Springs visitors center, we took the short trail from there to The Pinery Butterfield Stage Station ruins. It’s pretty incredible thinking about a stagecoach coming through this area to deliver the mail. I feel it’s impressive to drive the minivan here! Although the end of the trail had the ruins of the old station, we found so many creatures and cool plants along the path, it was pretty rewarding. This was literally like a half mile and I think we saw dozens of new flora species and at least 7 new fauna species (including lizards, bugs, toads and spiders).
Back at the visitor’s center a very nice gentleman took our family picture. I just love it when you ask someone to take your picture and they take it really seriously. He took so many shots from different angles. Thank you fellow tourist whoever you are!
We jumped back in the minivan (which we have since named the Venture Van) for a quick drive to the Frijole Ranch History Museum and a quick jaunt on the Smith Spring Trail. I just even love the views from the dashboard!
The ranch was an amazing sight. I mean, I just can’t imagine starting a homestead, a living in such an intense wilderness. The family that lived here found a spring and harnessed the water to support their lives and livelihood. Amazing amidst what appears to be an inhospitable environment for human, everyday life. Here’s a shot of the farmhouse (the real one, still standing!).
From there we walked to the spring (which really appears more like a marsh right now). Doug caught these candids and I love them…walking with my biggest and littlest.
Doug also got this one of me and the boys. I LOVE it. Now, please know that we are great at smiling for the cameras at times and these adventures are a lot of fun, but we also have many a moment of correction, frustration, tears, brother disagreements, child disobedience, etc. I don’t like taking pictures of my kids when they are sad or upset just to be able to post about the reality of life, so take this all-smiles picture with a grain of salt. It’s not all smiles, but it’s 100% worth it.
Penn was so observant, interested and engaged on these short nature hikes. He spotted so many creatures and sights. I just love it when the kids appreciate creation. Here Penn found a lizard/toad looking thing. Can you even see it? It was about as big as his hand, but it is camouflaged well!
After that little walk we drove back north to the McKittrick canyon entrance. We briefly walked through the visitor’s center there and then did the McKittrick Nature Trail. This was my favorite of the day. The others had been paved, just a stroll. Amazing surroundings, but a little light on the exercise. This 0.9 mile trail was actually like a short, engaging hike. We were immersed in the rocky environment and the scratchy plants that call it home. More lizards and insects and spiders were spotted, but most of all, we were at the cusp of the canyon and it is beautiful.
Family selfie at my request and this time, Penn was on the verge of a sneeze. Love it.
My adventure partner. He is bearing the brunt of this journey with all the driving, but I’m so grateful he is up for these long drives and long days to be exploring the country with our boys.
Ah, the canyon. Here’s hoping Doug and I can come back someday for some really, really long hikes. I was amazed by this place. And we were so glad we ended up deciding to make this addition to our trip!
No comments:
Post a Comment