Jacqueline’s Jaunts

10 April 2025, Carlsbad Caverns National Park and Guadalupe National Park Jeeps - 5 Up early, had breakfast, and headed to Carlsbad Caverns NP for our 9:30 am scheduled entry. We arrived before the visitor center opened at 9:00 am. Once they opened the door, the guys got our tickets, and Jan and I went to the gift store to find the passport stamp area.  Once we stamped our passport books and I purchased a Christmas ornament, we headed outside to line up for our 9:30 am entry. It was already starting to get warm. We were thankful the waiting area was in the shade. After the Ranger orientation, we were let loose. The main thing we took away from the ranger was to whisper in the cave. Your voice could travel ¼ of a mile. To enter the cave, we walked down to the bottom of the amphitheater, where the cave opening is. The cave opening is also where all the bats fly out at sunset. We are a little early, according to the ranger.  We spent about two and a half hours and descended ...

09 April 2025, Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico We had numerous discussions last night about which route to take from Alamogordo to Carlsbad Caverns, but this morning, we decided not to take the mountain route and go through El Paso, Texas, then back up to New Mexico. It was a longer and safer route. There was one glitch: major road construction and rerouting through El Paso. It was a challenge between iMap and Garmin, but we got through it all and only made one extra loop on the freeway. The entire area is undergoing construction, and it's clear how confused drivers were by the erratic driving they exhibited.  We arrived at our RV Park at about four o’clock and drove into what we thought was the correct entrance. We found the proper place to register and then backed into our spot. K&J was about thirty minutes behind us. Our area was like a parking lot, but it worked. We were only seven miles outside Carlsbad Caverns and approximately forty miles from Guadalupe National Park. Once ...