Day Four: Caves and Sand
We headed out from Stevens Inn in Carlsbad, NM, straight to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Let me preface by saying that I’m claustrophobic. I’ve managed my anxiety through many caves, including Mammoth Cave National Park, Ruby Falls Cave, Fantastic Caverns and a half-dozen roadside cave attractions over the years. It’s not my favorite thing to explore.
So it wasn’t looking good for me when the first thing one must do to enter the cavern is to take a long elevator ride from the visitor center at the top of the mountain to the cavern below. If memory serves, it was something like 900 feet, so it’s a very similar experience to riding an elevator to the top of a city’s largest skyscraper – except down.
Once the doors open and we made our way through the expository displays, we were greeted with the most expansive underground view imaginable.
I’m glad I brought my DSLR camera, because it was a great place to practice low-light photography and there were just so many incredible sites, aided by artistically placed lighting throughout. I never felt claustrophobic inside Carlsbad Caverns, and I was overwhelmed with the sacred silence of the ages. The cave was filled with wonder, and the wonder filled me fully. I had to remind myself to take it in without the camera and be present in the moment to appreciate the awe. Also, low-light photography is difficult, so I should have lowered my expectations.
That dramatic lighting, though…
Much like landscapes, cave formations are better appreciated in all their glory in person. I highly recommend a visit to Carlsbad Caverns. Do it already.
After an exit through the gift shop for tacky tourist Christmas ornaments and postcards, we were back on the road. We gassed up and hit one of those fabulous little gift shops on the edge of National Park entrances. They’re usually fun, and this one earned a few of our dollars.
White Sands National Park
The drive to White Sands National Park wasn’t too far, so these two are definitely do-able on the same or subsequent days, unless your the type to hike every trail, climb every mountain and ford every stream. We’re okay with just hitting the highlights, though, and if a site is worth a second visit for further exploration – we will return.
White Sand NP is named after the white sand dunes throughout the area. We used the National Park app over the bluetooth connection in our car to take the driving tour and learned all about the history, geology and ecosystem of the White Sands. We then set out to find the easiest hike. We had learned the lesson about how difficult it is to hike in sand at the Great Sand Dunes National Park late last year. The Great Sand Dunes and White Sands’ dunes are made up of different sand, though, and this was a bit more firm.
Because these dunes are smaller, people are more capable of getting lost, and we explored the land following blue trail markers standing up in the sand. It felt like a scene out of the Legend of Zelda. My bottle had water and not a fairy, though.
Like Great Sand Dunes, some people – especially those with children – opted for sand sledding. The gift store even sold saucer sleds for such occasion. We, being of middle age, opted out of that experience.
We chose the trail that highlighted the ecosystems of desert and grassland colliding, which is where I found this tree that looks like he’s trying to escape. I may paint this guy soon:
The sun was setting after our hike, and we had to make it to our dinner plans in Las Cruces, where a former employer of mine lives. We had a lovely time catching up over dinner at Luna Rossa Winery, where my husband and I sampled a flight of their red wines, which were worthy of revisit.
After all that driving, all that hiking, all that visiting and all that wine, we made it to bed very early, as Santa Fe was calling…
Up Next: Day Five: Santa Fe
Previously: Day Three: Terlingua to Carlsbad