Feb. 7, 2015
It had been about a month and a half since our last trip, a weekend adventure to Phoenix to get a Portillo's fix, and we were chomping on the bit to get out of town again. We had a few points of interest downstate that we wanted to visit with Hyla, so we planned on tackling New Mexico's southeastern quadrant. We wanted to leave by 7:30 Saturday morning, but as usual, we didn't make it out until about 8, heading east along I-40, and then south along 285. Our first stop was Roswell. We had a geocaching travel bug, Alian, with us. His goal was to visit Roswell, so we made it a point to take him there. Since we had him, we've taken him out east twice, visiting probably about 20 states, if not more. Finally the time had come to part ways. We first made sure to take a few pictures of him in front of the International UFO Museum, and then we found a geocache in which to place him so another geocacher can take him on his way. We'd hoped to drop off another travel bug, a tire, but it was too large to fit in the geocache, so we'll hold onto him for now. We did wind up grabbing a new travel bug that wants to see the peaceful nations of the world, so we'll do what we can with that. Good fun.
Lunch time was nearing, and while we'd hoped to do lunch at the Wellhead, a nice brew pub in Artesia, our time was running short. We had to be at Carlsbad Caverns by 2pm in order to hike down via the natural entrance, so we just grabbed a quick bite at the Taco Bell in Carlsbad before heading down to the national park. We arrived around 1:30 and had plenty of time to make it to the natural entrance. We got our permit and headed down.
Nathan and I had hiked the natural entrance the first time we'd visited together back in 2002, and it was just as stunning now as it was then. On our way down, Hyla walked much of the way, despite the steep decline. We talked, as we often do, about returning in summer to see the bats emerge from their roosts. As of now, there was nary a bat to be seen. We snaked lower and lower, watching as the daylight grew dimmer and dimmer and eventually couldn't be seen at all. The lighting in the cave mimics sunlight, so the colors we see, while dim, are as natural as possible, unlike many commercial caves that use colored lights. We enjoyed seeing the many amazing formations as we descended about 750 feet below the surface. Hyla tired of walking and always wanted to stop to grab the handrail or attempt to touch the rock, so Nathan wound up carrying her most of the way down. Once at the bottom, we did the entire loop. Hyla started getting really antsy, though, and started crying. Keep in mind, they want you to whisper down there, so we were anxious to get out once that started up. Still, we were able to see a lot of the cave and enjoy every bit of it. One neat thing about Carlsbad Caverns is that, unlike most cave experiences, you can go at your own pace. They do have guided tours for some of the other sections, but the main trail is self-guided. We were able to book it to the elevators and ride up to the surface pretty quickly.
Once we got to the top, we exited the visitor center and saw an couple getting engaged, which was nice. Then we made it back to the car with a somewhat upset and tired baby. It was close to her naptime, so we just drove back, snaking through the national park grounds and wondering if there was much to see on the surface. It's probably too hot much of the year to bother with that anyway, but it may be worth looking into for the cooler months. We were almost back to our motel when Hyla finally succumbed to sleep. Nathan checked us into our room while I sat in the car with her. I watched the go-karters zoom around the track next door...maybe one day we'll come back and try them. Once Nathan had brought our stuff to the room and returned, he suggested bringing Hyla up for a nap, but she was so comfortable I didn't want to move her. I suggested we do a little geocaching around town, taking turns, so we could see the sights and she could still rest. He agreed, and we headed up the road, finding a cache outside a vet clinic, and on a city disc golf course. We then headed toward the Pecos River.
For all the times we've driven through Carlsbad, we'd never actually seen the river, and honestly we just recently found out it even existed because of the annual holiday light show you can view from boats that float down the Pecos. We were greeted to a lovely riverside park. I ran out to find a geocache while Nate stayed with Hyla. By the time I returned, she was awake and raring to go. So the three of us took a nice stroll along the riverwalk, admiring the waterfowl and staying out of the way of some ornery geese. It was absolutely lovely! We'll have to come back for the holiday lights sometime.
From there, we decided we'd better get something to eat before it got too much later, if we wanted to make it to the drive-in movie this evening. So we decided to try the Yellow Brix restaurant, which we'd driven by earlier. It looked quite nice and had a pretty patio. We opted to eat outside because it was in the 70s and absolutely lovely. Eventually, we were joined by about 4 other tables, all with the same idea. Hyla enjoyed trying to shove food down through the mesh table, but she did eat a little, too. Nathan had a veggie pasta dish that looked so good (and that I would have gotten had he not), and I had tortilla soup and a caesar salad...way too much food, but still good. We got out a few minutes before the theater was slated to open, so we just headed straight there afterwards.
Nathan and I love drive-in theaters, and whenever we discover one, we make it a point to visit. There's just something so nostalgic and fun about them - what's not to love? We were somewhat surprised to find this one existed, and we were doubly excited because we always thought a drive-in would be a great first movie for Hyla. Not being sure if she'd be antsy or not, at least she'd be contained and couldn't bother anyone else. Plus, how many chances will she really have to see a movie this way?
We got in line behind a number of other cars, eager to see "Paddington Bear." We were lucky to find a spot in the front row with no obstructions. Then we made our way over to the snack bar where we got popcorn, a big pickle, and some water. The line went extremely slowly, and by the time we got out, the movie had already started. We missed maybe the first 5 minutes, which set the scene, but we were able to deduce what happened as the movie went on. Hyla sat on my lap in the front seat, mesmerized throughout, occasionally pointing to things that intereted her (like when the monkey appeared, she pointed to it and said "Ape!"). She also steadily fed herself popcorn and eventually took to munching on the pickle, which she originally turned her nose up to but wound up loving.
At the end of the movie was the moment of truth - will the car run? Most old drive-ins provided speakers with which to hear the movie, but nowadays you're expected to listen via your car radio. As a result, often times cars are drained of their battery power. We've been lucky, but this time our luck ran out. After several attempts to get it started, I headed back toward the snack bar to ask for help. I noticed two cars were still behind us, and upon further inspection, one was giving the other a jump. I asked them if they wouldn't mind doing ours next, and they were so friendly and helpful. They came over right away, and while Nate was doing the honors, I talked to the lady who would help us. We talked about the theater, and she was saying how she thought it was expensive to see a movie here, but they have a good deal where you see 5 (I think) movies and get one free. The movie was $4 a person, which wound up being $8 for our car - cheaper than a movie for one up in Albuquerque, so I thought it was a great deal. I guess things are quite a bit cheaper downstate. Anyway, I enjoyed talking with her and was most appreciative of her help.
From there, we were all pretty tired. We returned to our motel and got settled for a good night's sleep.
February 8, 2015
I didn't really sleep all that well, but at least Nathan did. Hyla seemed ok, too, so that was good. We were glad to not be rushed this morning. We had sights to see, but no real time frame to which to adhere. We got dressed and packed the car and were out of there a little after 9. We headed north to Artesia where we then headed west through the expansive desert. Looking out, one would never expect the route to eventually change to an alpine environment. The only hint of such was a snow-capped mountain we could see way off in the distance. Once we were high enough, we were treated to beautiful mountain scenery and towns, lush fields, and cute homesteads. The town of Cloudcroft, New Mexico's highest, still had some snow in places. So lovely. Sadly, it wasn't long before the road brought us down, down, down into the desert town of Alamogordo.
We reached Alamogordo around 11:30 and grabbed lunch at the Alamo Grill Pancake and Steakhouse. Then we headed out to White Sands National Monument. I'd been there once before, but I hadn't started collecting patches yet, so we had to go to the visitor center to get one as well as to get Hyla another coveted passport stamp. Then we drove to a short boardwalk hike to stretch our legs. Hyla really wanted to climb down to the sand, but we tried to explain that we'd get to that next. Nathan and I enjoyed walking along, dragging our hands along the handrail and getting zapped, sometimes pretty intensely, by the intermittent metal screws. Even in the blinding sun, I swear I could actually see a spark on occasion. Good times.
We returned to the car and headed deeper into the park until we reached an area that was very sparse in vegetation - the recreational sand dunes! People often bring saucer sleds and ride down them just as though it were snow. One day we'll have to try that. We parked next to the plowed-up sand piles and headed up one of the dunes. Hyla had such a fun time playing in the sand - and sometimes trying to eat it, much to our chagrin. She played out there for about a half an hour before we had to hit the road again. I really wish we had something similar closer so she could enjoy it. I know she would sit there for hours if given the chance. And what a great way to explore one's world!
After a big struggle, we got Hyla back in the car, and it wasn't long before she fell asleep again. As luck would have it, she woke up just as we reached our next destination - McGinn's Pistachio Tree Ranch, home of the world's largest pistachio and some very unique wines and nuts. As luck wouldn't have it, she woke up really upset and cried all the way over to the giant pistachio. It took a while to console her, but eventually she was happy wandering around inside the store. I did a quick wine tasting (they have several pure fruit wines - I tried the apricot, pomegranite, blackberry, and one other that mixed red wine with a fruit of some sort, cherry, perhaps - I remember having liked the strawberry and peach wines, but sadly they were currently out of those), and got a bottle of the apricot and several types of nuts before hitting the road yet again.
Nathan suggested stopping for ice cream, should we see a spot. I agreed, though I couldn't really imagine where we'd find such a place along our route. Eventually, we made it to the little crossroads town of Carrizozo. I really didn't expect to see much, but I kept my eyes open. Then, much to my shock, as we were driving through the extremely small main street area, I saw an old building that said "Ice Cream" and "open." No way! I alerted Nate, and we quickly made a U-turn right back to the place.
Situated in an old, two-story brick building was none other than an old-fashioned soda fountain! I LOVE discovering these rare gems, and I was so surprised to find this one! According to the lady working, the building was originally a hospital and pharmacy, but it turned into an ice cream parlour about 60 years ago and has been one ever since. Wow! It appeared to be a protected icon, due to its history, so that's even more wonderful! Nathan got a scoop of chocolate ice cream and tried to enjoy that with a fussy Hyla, and I got a chocolate shake which she absolutely loved. We'll definitely have to stop again next time we're in Carrizozo.
Hitting the road again, we continued westward, driving past much desert and eventually the Trinity site, where they detonated the first atomic bomb. It was starting to get dark once we reached I-25. We'd considered stopping for gas in Socorro, but once we determined we could make it home without, we just aimed for that. Driving after dark in NM is just asking to be a drunk driver's target, so getting back safely was all that mattered. We made it home just after 7, exhausted, but also invigorated from a much-needed adventure.
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