Nov 9 - 10 Carlsbad KOA, New Mexico

Nov 9
Last night was really tough. We sat in the rig and talked about our time in Penticton with my sister Margi. How incredibly fortunate we are to have this freedom to change our plans in a heartbeat and be able to enjoy time with her. We will miss her and think about her often as we travel. She told us that she was very excited about our plan to move around with the rig and we should live life to the fullest. Well Margi, we'll do our best and God bless.

Back to the road. We are just north of Tularosa, New Mexico and the couple from Texas that we met at Grand Canyon had told us about this highway across to Carlsbad. They warned us it would be a steep climb out of this valley to the summit in the Lincoln National Forest. They weren't kidding on that one!

Heading up the mountain.

Wasn't expecting this guy! Leslie loves tunnels.

Highway 82 starts at Alamogordo and goes over the mountain to Artesia. Cloudcroft is a small town at the top of the mountain and has a ski hill just outside of town on the side of the highway. The highway peaks at just over 8600 feet and we are starting out at about 4300 feet. This elevation change happens in the next 20 miles!

The weather this morning is cloudy and by the time we get up top it is 0C/32F and there is a fine mist falling. Not my favourite road conditions but we know it is nicer farther ahead as we descend back down on the other side.

We know how high the clouds are .

Not a store you see everyday.

It's a winding road and a little narrow but a beauty drive. Lots of really nice log homes and small farms. It wasn't long before the road was dry again and other than a few clouds it's a great day. We got to see more areas with leaves changing colours, we have seen fall leaves since we left Pineridge almost six weeks ago. Never get tired of it.

More fall colours.

In a little while we arrived at the town of Artesia, NM.

Hey wait a minute... Edmonton is the city of Champions ???

This is where we turn south towards Carlsbad KOA campground, our destination for a few days. We had messaged Steve & Dianne and we should be there at almost the same time. It will be great to see them again! 

I didn't know this but New Mexico has a lot of oil wells. We saw lots of pumpjacks and tank clusters on the way in and it continues as we travel south. I noticed a pretty large processing plant on the edge of Artesia and could you ever smell it. Their air quality regulations must be a little different than ours because I could smell the plant for a few miles.

It didn't take long and we arrived at Carlsbad KOA. Dianne had reserved two sites earlier this week for both of us. Thanks Dianne. We have a few questions for them when we get a chance. They have been on the road for more than eight years now and are real pros in our books. With the magic of a good cell signal we knew that they had just checked in. Good timing on both sides! (link to their blog) Living the Dream

Umm nice welcome committee ? You gotta love New Mexico humor.

We did our check in and were instructed to follow the cart to our site. They had set us up so that we are door to door with Dianne & Steve. Awesome! Full hookups and great company. What time is happy hour!!

There's a familiar rig! 

With big hugs and handshakes we said hello in person, finally. After the terrible news yesterday it's so good to be able to hang out with friends and smile. We're doing what we want to be doing and we are all so fortunate. Just what Les and I need.

We both got right at our set up routine. We got everything set and the clouds moved off to give us a cool but sunny afternoon. You know what time it is ? Happy hour ! Yayy! Leslie had noticed an intriguing brew at our fuel stop earlier and it's time to try it.

Alien Amber Ale, sure let's try it. It's actually really good :)

Margaret with Auntie Treats lol. (aka Dianne)

Dianne and Steve around the fireplace in a can.

We enjoyed a couple cold drinks outside and then headed into their house for supper. Dianne had enough chilli for all of us and garlic toast. Les added a salad and we brought over the pies we had from Pie Town. A great dinner and pie with ice cream for the three of them. I can't do ice cream due to a lactose thing. 

Dinner with great friends.

They get ice cream... I'm eating pie already ;)

Nov 10

We had decided yesterday to go to Carlsbad Caverns today so after our morning routine we loaded up in our truck and drove about 45 minutes to the Caverns. We left Margaret in the rig which was a smart thing to do. Signs in the parking lot that dogs shouldn't be left in vehicles. There is a kennel onsite that can be rented. First time I have seen that. Leslie and I bought the "America the Beautiful" one year pass at Zion and it worked for all 4 of us at Carlsbad! Nice ! This is the first time Les and I have been in a cave, Steve & Diane have done others but not this one. The only way to describe it is with pictures so be aware there are lots coming.

Park gate

Windy day! Dressed way too warm for the cave.

After a short look around at the exhibits we lined up for the elevator to the cavern. You can walk down but it is a long walk downhill. Can get really tough on the knees. Dianne paid for all of us to get the little phones that give info as you walk along for a self guided tour. Great idea and lots of information that you wouldn't get otherwise. The elevator trip was about 1 1/2 minutes and you go down 750 feet into the cavern. Ears pop a couple times!

The cafeteria as you come off the elevator!! Huge.

Walking in, it's so huge that Leslie isn't even having claustrophobia trouble.

Explains further where we are walking.

Massive columns, stalactite from the roof.

Popcorn formations

Stalagmites grow from the floor up, stalactites hang roof down.

Draperies are wider formations

Amazing column.

The lighting is spectacular! They make the experience even better.

Reflection in the pool...love it!

A massive column that is named "Rock of Ages"

Last one for now. We could go on forever.

Use the link above to Steve & Dianne's blog when they do their post. Steve does amazing pictures and I'm sure they will be great.

We completed the tour and took the elevator back to the surface. We were down there a couple hours and it was fantastic! For our first cave it was 100% worth it. Awesome!

We were all hungry so we drove back to Carlsbad and Dianne googled a pub for lunch. We decided on the Lucky Bull Grill.

Hmm not so lucky to be on the grill??

We learned that Steve doesn't normally carry his ID when the server asked all of us for ID! Seems it's a state law that they ID everyone when you order alcohol. Steve pointed to his hair and asked the young lady if she thought he was old enough but she said she couldn't serve him. That sucks buddy. Of course the rest of us had ID and got our beers. That's mean right? Well, as we are waiting for our food, Steve feels the pocket of his coat and exclaims "I do have my frickin wallet!" So he showed our waitress and we cheered as he ordered a pint haha.

Yay! Steve gets a pint lol.

Lunch was okay, nothing to rave about but alright for sure. Leslie ordered nachos and the plate was big enough to feed us for supper! She took some to go but that turned into a gooey mess, the rest went in the trash. 

That's a lot of nachos! 

On the drive back to KOA we stopped at Brantley Lake State Park which was one of our choices instead of KOA. The sites were a little small for our rigs and it was really open to the wind up on a hill so we made the right choice. It looked quite dry but there is a dam on the Pecos River that makes the Brantley Lake Reservoir. Not very big but there was some water flow.

Very close to KOA and a few miles closer to Carlsbad.

Tough to see water but there is some flowing.

We had a happy hour back at our place this time. Not very hungry of course. We pulled out the laser pointer for Dianne & Steve to play with Margaret. They both get a laugh out of the way she darts around so fast chasing the light. Of course Dianne has a pocket full of treats for Margaret so she is a very happy dog when they visit. She gets to play with the light and she gets multiple treats. That's how we ended up nick naming them Auntie Treats & Uncle Laser haha. Margaret stands in front of Steve and stares at the ground with her tail wagging waiting for the light. She's not incredibly smart lol.

Not sure who has more fun?

The rest of the evening we just relaxed and watched a little TV. Tomorrow is bit of a chore day and I want to get a run in. Lots of room on the trails in a big field behind the KOA.