Austin or Bust

We hit the road to Austin, taking our time to enjoy some stops along the way. First stop was White Sands National Park. We arrived after dinnertime and didn't really give much of any expectations for the boys although they started to figure it out when they saw us buy sleds at the Visitor Center : ) As we drove deeper into the park, the sand dunes stretched further and further and became taller and taller. It was literally white sand as far as you could see and they took delight when the paved road turned to a sand-only path. We found parking and the boys raced up the hill. They were hesitant to go down by themselves the first time (since they've never been sledding before), so one at a time they went on my lap. Nerves quickly melted away and they loved the thrill of sliding down the dune. I have to say, it was much more fun to be sledding minus the cold, freezing snow and layers of clothing : ) We got in a good hour before a thunderstorm moved in and we had to make a break for the car. It was a beautiful scene to watch the sun set over the endless sand dunes. It was definitely a highlight of the whole trip!

The next day, we made a quick pit stop in Roswell on our way to Carlsbad Caverns. It was literally a 30 minute stop, but we managed to squeeze in some aliens because when else are we going to find ourselves in Roswell???

Carlsbad Caverns provided a nice respite from the hot sun and boys loved exploring with their mining hats. We took the elevator down 775 feet below ground level and walked the 1.25 mile Big Room tour. I don't know how much scenery the boys took in as they were going to quickly through the path. It was pretty incredible all the formations and just the vastness of it. With 2 hour wait lines for the elevator back up, we took a rest and opted to walk the steep  1.2 mile Natural Path back to the surface. I don't know where those boys got all that energy but they were practically running up the switchbacks - we kept having to ask them to slow down! Then, my favorite part of the whole day was when we came upon a cave room that had a bright huge beam of sunlight shining down – it was like a scene in a movie. Later, a ranger told us that only happens certain times of the year at certain times of the day, so we felt lucky to experience it. I don't remember my trip to Carlsbad from when I was young, but I hope these boys remember theirs!

So goodbye, New Mexico and thanks for a memorable trip! It was fun but we're happy to be back home now : )