Carlsbad

Tuesday, March 9th: High winds fought us as we traveled from Big Bend to Carlsbad and grew stronger when we arrived at Brantley Lake State Park in the afternoon. At 25 miles per hour, with 40 mph gusts, they buffeted the trailer and ripped doors from our grasps. Outdoor activities were next to impossible for several days, but the timing was alright because Bill had a bad cold and was happy to just curl up and sleep whenever he could. Apparently, high winds occur fairly frequently, as signs with flashing lights warn of their dangers.

The ranger who checked us in at Brantley Lake was very nice and helpful, as all the others have been on our journey. We've been extremely pleased with the State and National Parks. Our campsite at Brantley Lake:


A roadrunner at our campsite:


Every now and then he ruffled his feathers. It made him look like a completely different bird.



The main drag through Carlsbad (US-285, entering Carlsbad from the south) was disappointing, almost depressing, and definitely not welcoming. Many of the buildings are dilapidated, litter (sometimes in piles!) seemed to be everywhere, and it just felt dirty, with an overall air of neglect. Added to that are about 2000 traffic lights which always turn red upon a vehicle's approach. We drove the road three times: once to get to the state park where we stayed, once to get to Carlsbad Caverns, and once to get back to the park. So, we encountered traffic lights at least 60 times (no longer exaggerating) and made it through without stopping three times. THREE TIMES! (For two of the three, the light was actually red, but that's a different story.) Very little about the main road makes Carlsbad inviting, and that's a shame.

Two bright spots on the main drag are the court house and a hotel, whose name we can't remember. Unfortunately, the light wasn't quite right on any of our passes to get decent pictures of them. A road paralleling 285 to the east looked promising, with antique and gift shops and an old movie theater, as did a pedestrian/bike trail ran along the Pecos River, but the wind kept us from trying these.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park is beautiful. The drive winding up to the caverns reveals canyon after canyon full of cactus, yucca, and small trees, but the sun didn't cooperate for getting pictures. Of course, the caverns were wonderful. We took two self-guided tours with rented audio sticks - which looked like long TV remote controls - that enlightened us about how the caverns and their decorations were formed, the names of the various kinds of decorations (stalactite from the ceiling, stalagmite from the floor, columns, curtains, draperies, soda straws, etc.), Jim White, the caverns' early explorer and champion, and much more. For instance, there are no springs in the caverns; all the pools are made by rainwater seeping through the ground above, one drop at a time.



These looked like angel wings:


Draperies, with crystals in their folds:


The Lion's Tail:


This looked like the Michelin Man to us, but we didn't see a name for it:


The Chinese Theater:


Although Bill enjoyed the caverns, he liked the Caverns of Sonora better, because they were so alive - with water continuously dripping everywhere, so everything was growing - and colorful.

Sitting Bull Falls is in Lincoln National Forest, but we saw very few trees there. The falls are 180 feet tall, and don't always run, so we were in luck.


The pool and tufa formations, which are like the decorations in a cave, but made on the earth's surface.


Much of the land between the state park where we stayed and the falls is open range land, and it was odd to see cows grazing on the side of the road. The first one we saw was a bit scared by our presence, walked behind a (skimpy!) bush, and stayed there until we moved on.