It was a cold morning, just 39 degrees, when we left Van Horn at 8:30 AM. Fortunately it warmed up nicely and we finished the day in the 70's. We turned the car north and headed through the mountains for New Mexico. It was a two hour ride thorough the desert. The owner of the hotel warned us to be gassed up and ready for a drive where there is nothing out there, and he was right. The drive took us through what I always think of when I think desert…dry, rocky, sandy ground with scatterings of silver sage and cactus, and patches of yellow grass on flat ground bordered on the west by mountains. They call it mountains. It is the Guadalupe Mountains. They are not high as one might expect, and certainly no competition to the Colorado Mountains, but they have the character of mountains…angular and fierce gray rock bursting from the desert floor, reaching for the sky. Today, the early morning sun cast dark shadows into the crevasses between the high ridges, painting a picture no artist could capture in his imagination.

I could not take my eyes off of them as we drove north, alone on the road that seemed to go nowhere. When we reached a wall of rock where there seemed to be no passage, the road found one and took us through, up and over the range and down the other side and into Guadalupe Mountains National Park. We stopped and chatted with the park ranger for a while, then continued our journey over roads that apparently flood at times, for we saw gauges by the roadside with markings up to 5 feet high. One would think that the dry desert floor could drink rain water like a thirsty dog on a hot day, but apparently not. It just washes down to low lying areas, waiting for the hot sun to take it back.

When we arrived at Carlsbad Caverns National Park, there were few cars in the parking lot and we knew we would enjoy a peaceful walk through the Big Room. An elevator took us down 750 feet into the depths of the earth where we walked around for over an hour in the darkened room, so quiet we could hear the dripping of water from above. It is a challenging walk at times, in the dark, over uneven pathways that rise and fall and rise again, at times rather steeply. It was a challenge for me, but I was determined to complete it and I did…and proud of it. Fortunately, they have kennels for dogs, so we were able to leave Beamer with the staff while we took our time enjoying ourselves.

After having some lunch, we headed off to Hobbs, which is in New Mexico, but right on the border of Texas, and on the border of a time change. We decided to stay on Texas time. Makes life simpler.

The drive east took us through more arid desert but with many things to focus on. We saw signs for WIPP, and what appeared to be significant activity along the road. After checking my phone I found out that it stands for Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, and immediately I knew…it was a repository for radioactive waste. Further research confirmed my suspicion. It is the worlds third repository for radioactive waste from research and development of nuclear weapons.

We also saw a lot of oil pumps and tanks, drilling rigs, a pipeline station, natural gas facility and several mining operations. And what we saw when we arrived in Hobbs confirmed that this area is all about energy mining. The road into town was several miles of metal buildings of many sizes and colors, all containing businesses that support this industry…pumps and pumping services, drilling services, energy services, industrial construction, pipelines and motors.

We arrived at our hotel at 4 PM and checked in. We clearly paid too much for our room tonight, but the rates here are over the top. And a conversation with the desk clerk confirmed our thoughts that they charge it because they can get it, from the energy companies. We would have done better to be here on a weekend. Who would have known.

Tomorrow we head back into Texas and to Abilene and Ft. worth.