The Road Leads Underground at Carlsbad

Photos/Video by the Zimmers

Beware flying bats

CARLSBAD, NM,_We left here on Thursday morning and headed to Carlsbad Caverns National Park, just a 30 minute drive south. The pictures don’t do the Caverns justice.

You can walk down to the caverns from its natural opening or take an elevator down. Yes, an elevator. You can also take a ranger-guided tour of the caverns for a charge of $8 or be a cheapskate and do the self-guided tour for free. We took the . . .the self-guided tour 🤑.

Whichever tour you decide, you always need to book a reservation on the nps.org website, which is only $1 per person. In preparing for the hike, be sure to bring a small flashlight, even though the trails and cavern are well lit. Also bring a light jacket in that the temperature is always 56 degrees, plus good walking shoes.

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Cave formations

​The hike takes up to 1 1/2 hours, but you can extend for an extra hour by touring the perimeter of the Great Room, an extra mile hike.

We recommend seeing the caverns. You will see many stalagmites and stalactites. Remember our elementary teaching? Stalactites hang tight to the ceiling while stalagmites might reach the ceiling.
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Upon leaving the park, we began our drive to Las Cruces, NM via El Paso and route 62. It's 138 miles with no gas stations, so gas up as you leave the national park.

For the next three hours, you have a beautiful view of the Guadalupe Mountains, but plenty of windshield time and plenty of time to your thoughts. Like, “Why haven’t geologists discovered a bald-headed Neanderthal man. There must of been some. The Bible references baldies from 3,000 years ago. I wonder if Neanderthals invented the combover?“ But I digress.

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Guadalupe Mountain

Salt Dunes Basin

​On the drive down Route 62 we spotted in the distance a large expanse of white. Our first thoughts were it looked like the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. When we arrived, it was the Salt Dunes Basin -- 2,000 acres of salt and gypsum. If we had the time, we would have stopped for a hike and photos.

Upon arriving in Las Cruces, we checked Into our hotel and then off for a quick tour and dinner. We drove through New Mexico State University, an agricultural school, then a terrible rainstorm with hail came down on us, ending our evening.

Take care and as our friend Bijan says, “Don't just have a good day. Make it a good day.”

The bats in action