W18: Adios, New Mexico

Sunrise View

I was up early, and it was pretty at Brantley State Park near Carlsbad, New Mexico:

Day 30: March 11

Funny who you might meet at the Dump Station: some Gambrel’s Quail:

We stuck to Highway 9 to El Paso, hugging the Mexican border. In 70 miles, all we saw was two Border Patrol pickups. Here’s some wall!

We looped around El Paso through the Franklin Mountains then this “volcano”:

At the Guadalupe National Park, known for its mountain trails, we nabbed one of the last “parking lot RV sites” (#39, $8.00 unserviced). It was cold for our mini hikes:

…and we spent the rest of the late afternoon watching people go up and down the trail. My knees are not meant for climbing.

Here’s the view of our campsite from above:

Day 31: March 12

After a very quiet night, we headed to Carlsbad Caverns. Getting there before 9:00 proved to be wise. The single elevator was available immediately for both going down and coming back up, and there were very few people inside. Our second visit, and we love it here:

As we left the park, there was a steady stream of vehicles coming in, so we timed things perfectly for a March Break visit.

We got supplies in Carlsbad and pulled into the Brantley Lake State Park and got one of the last water and electric sites (#51, $14). We have been very lucky getting places during this busy week.

I hiked some and we, once again, enjoyed a quiet afternoon looking at these Scaled Quail (no longer furtive) and Desert Cottontails:

…and this view of our site:

Day 32: March 13

We got up to the sound of a whining dog, we thought. David discovered it was, in fact, this Roadrunner in a bush right outside our back window. Best pictures ever:

As we headed out, we saw several hawks (hard to get pictures for identification) and wondered why so many until we saw the “Bunny Buffet” on the road (guess they’re not really quick!). But, they DO breed like rabbits, so…

Our route went through Artesia, a very prosperous oil town. The Shell station is prosperous enough for this statue:

We saw signs for “Water for Sale” then miles of Pecan Groves that are watered by flooding.

Next stop, Roswell. Enough time for a stroll, some t-shirts, aliens and BBQ:

David always says that whisky is the best medicine when you’re sore or have a cold. This Walgreens proves it:

We followed the road to the Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge, ate our BBQ lunch and drove the loop checking out hundreds of geese, an Avocet and some water birds:

As we approached the Oasis State Park, we noticed that the desert has become grasslands very quickly. There was no problem finding a site (#13-on the 13th-$14 E/W), more Scaled Quail and this view (complete with horses) from my chair: