Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico

Having had the opportunity to explore various caverns in Australia, I was completely unprepared for, and a bit presumptuous about Carlsbad.  I thought places like the caves of Margaret River or the Jenolan Caves where pretty amazing.  But these caverns are breathtaking in their enormity.

The Caverns National Park is located in the beautiful Guadalupe Mountains, a mountain range that rises up out of the Chihuahuan Desert that runs from west Texas into southwestern New Mexico.  The highest peak is 3,595 feet and its all pretty much escarpment country.

The Park has more than 110 limestone caves and Carlsbad itself is not the largest of them.  But at its deepest accessible point to the public.....its 79 stories deep or a 2km walk down into the caverns through the natural entrance.  The length of the weave of tunnels throughout the caverns is 35 mile.

Although American Indian people have known of the caves for thousands of years, it was said to be a 16 year old cowboy from Texas who first explored the caves in the late 1890s.

Downstairs, its just beautiful with mammoth formations of creaming whites and buttery tones.  A few little ponds lie here and there reflecting back the beauty of the formations.  And yep, its home to approximately 400,000 bats although you don't notice their presence or smell!

Well worth the detour en route to Roswell!

The Wild West

Its called "Big Sky Country" and it is not hard to understand why.  Prairies for as far as the eye can see smothered by enormous blue skies that overwhelm and feel so close you can reach out and touch them.  I was told "there's nothing to see out there" but the journey from San Antonio through the Texas west into New Mexico has been amazingly beautiful.  One minute it will be vast plains and then a small rise will reveal a canyon or some stunning rock formations.   From grassy tundra to desert and dunes to lazy river systems.  This region was, for centuries, the territories of various First Nations People who hunted buffalo and lived off the land.  Then the Spanish arrived and called it home for a while.  The US-Mexico War of 1846-48 secured the area as part of the US territories and it became an important trade and overland mail route.  Then of course, cattle came and the legendary cowboy was born along with images of the Wild West.  1920 saw the discovery of oil and the rest....well its history now.  Suffice to say that some of the little towns I've passed through still feel as though they are trying to figure out whether they are part of the 19th century or the 21st.  Yesterday, I saw a cowboy with spurs and chaps ride up, pull in beside me, hitch his horse up and go into the saloon.  Surreal.   Its clear to see that many communities struggle economically and that life is as harsh as the environment around them.  Some really are ghost towns with abandoned and decaying buildings outnumbering those that appear to have some level of habitation occurring.  Other communities, like Madrid in New Mexico take the remains of an old company coal mining village of 1850, re-imagine its potential such that today it is the centre of a thriving artisan community producing amazing pieces of art, pottery, jewellery and fabrics.  What has been truly beautiful to finish off my days, has been these sunsets.  Breathtaking.

Our journey so far (trip map).

Sunset pondering

Its a beautiful winter afternoon in Houston.  Chilly but not unpleasant and the colour of the sunset reflecting on the stone of the buildings around me is that wonderful buttery yellow with hints of orange and pink creeping in.  There is a lovely gentle breeze and a subtle scent of evening dinner cooking wafting through the air.  Coincidentally, there is a brilliant shaken, but not stirred, dry martini sitting beside me.  Ahh...perfect.  Its almost Christmas and the homes around me are lit up with all their festive lights and colours.  Houstonians are starting to chill and relax a little.  I notice it out on the local street.  People just seem a little more cruisey which is great.

So what of my first US Christmas as a local? Actually, I pack up the truck on Thursday and set my wheels westward.  Yep...I'm hitting the trail for the wild west.  Cruising across the southern States through Texas, New Mexico and Arizona to California.  Then I don the winter bikini for the cruise along the Californian coastline, taste some wines in the Napa Valley, and walk the Golden Gate Bridge before turning eastward.  Then on through Nevada and Utah before hitting the slopes in Colorado.  From there, I'll check in with Dorothy and Toto in Kansas, before singing a tune with Curly McLain in Oklahoma.  Finally the long run back down into Texas.  Five weeks of road tunes and travel snacks.  Can't wait.

Apart from my very patient and extraordinarily tolerant travel partner who is one of a small group of people prepared to listen to me belt out songs en route, I will also have my trusty Nikons and the new GoPro.  So I hope to share my happy snaps and stories along the way, so please come along for the ride.

Testing times

What an interesting week I’ve had.  I have spent time with a Naval Engineer crawling around below the deck of a Beneteau yacht checking out the bilge, the Yanmar engine, waste tanks, the keel, the zinc, the propeller shaft, etc learning stuff I never really believed I’d be learning.  I then followed that up with a test sail on Galveston Bay and dealing with yacht brokerages, marine insurance agencies, marinas, and yacht clubs.  I can’t say I know what the hell I am doing but I now have a yacht to show for it and a great new toy to share with C.  So its a new journey for me in terms of learning experiences.  After 25 years of him talking about it, I can’t say I genuinely believed it would happen.  So now that there is an actual yacht out there with our name on it; I guess I need to learn how to maintain it, repair it, sail it, navigate and importantly, keep her afloat.  Actually, I am really looking forward to that part of it.  I like information.  I believe I can pretty much deal with any challenges thrown my way provided I am informed.  Some would quietly suggest that I over think things and to be truthful, I won’t challenge that accusation.  But I do like to know what I am dealing with and all the angles and hurdles that might present themselves.  My first challenge, you’ll be pleased to know, is that Coromell has a blown anchor light.  Now that is not the light attached to the anchor and therefore the one sitting on the bow of the boat within easy reach.  NO….the anchor light is that teeny tiny little blip that sits right at the top of the mast.  Yep.  So guess whose job it is to go to the top and replace the bulb.  Joy.  Can’t wait.  My only saving grace is that the boat will be  settled in her slip rather than bobbing around on a wave!  I picture a scene from Cliffhanger…clinging helplessly to a pathetic climbing line with my beloved below on the deck yelling “you can do it…just don’t look down!”.  Where is Rocky when you need him!!  Oh well, I am hoping that this blown anchor light won’t be the last I change and that I will someday get to change one while cruising one of the great oceans of the world!!

Gifts

Its that time of the year again when you see Mums and Dads out and about stressing over that “gotta have” gift for their kids; or party hosts with long shopping lists scanning the isles for that one special ingredient.  It always seems odd to me that we need a ‘special occasion’ or a date on the calendar in which to express how we feel about those we love and about life in general.  Everyday should be just such a day but I guess we can always find excuses for not getting around to it.  Perhaps that is what Christmas has become for many people….a reminder!  So to all those who pass through my life and to those who have stayed...thank you.

In my little world, we have everything we need – each other, our wonderful families, a bunch of fantastic friends, a great home, fabulous food and wine in our pantry, respect and love, and opportunity.  So gift giving always proves to be incredibly difficult in our home to the extent that we usually end up having a ridiculous conversation that starts with “so what do you want for Christmas?”.  I mean, where is the surprise in that? 

But this year, we didn’t have that conversation.   

This year the gift for me has been seeing the most amazing bedazzled expression and grin on C’s face.  This year I have gotten to see that little boy within him absolutely enthralled and whimsical.  And for that….I am happy and content.  

This year, after a lifetime of talking about his dream…we did it. 

Say hello to the newest member of my family:  Coromell

 Now....where is that sunset champagne??

Chasing the Pow!

Join me for a spot of skiing?  Banff and Lake Louise, Canada

Pure White

Serene; pure; cleansing and simply magnificent.  That is what fresh snow is to me and when that snow is draped across the Canadian Rockies and hugging the shores of Lake Louise, one can’t help but feel alive and the soul renewed.  Coming over the mountains into the Bow River valley in Banff National Park is always an amazing sight and I can literally feel my lungs and heart expand.  I love this part of the world and I don’t think that I will ever tire of the place.  Its as though time slows down and life takes on a completely different meaning.

This trip was probably the most leisurely I’ve done.  No timetable to follow – except to be back at the Calgary International by 11am on 25 November.  Beyond that, I could explore, ski or not ski, shop or not shop, relax or not relax and of course, eat drink and be merry.  I chose the “explore, ski and not relax” option.  For so early in the winter season, the snow conditions in Banff National Park were perfect. A snow pack of 106cm and 71cm of fresh snow in the last 7 days – no one can complain.  I checked out the Sunshine Ski Resort and the Lake Louise Ski Resort.  Both very different but equally fantastic skiing and views to die for.  There is something truly special about standing on the precipice of the mountain looking down at Lake Louise! 

I stayed in Canmore this time; a little town just south of Banff and I really enjoyed the change.  Far from the touristy style of Banff and very much a local mountain community.  Funnily enough, I had two great nights out – the first in the Drake Pub chatting to an Australian fellow who has been living in Canmore for 10 years and then the second in a fantastic wine lounge, the Sage, which is owned by an Australian who is married to a Canadian.  Almost can’t escape my fellow countryman.  But it is easy to see why so many Australians travel to Canada – its not only an amazingly beautiful place, but the people are incredibly welcoming and friendly and seem to share the same curiosity about the world as many Australians do.

I think that if one has the opportunity to go anywhere once in their life, the Canadian Rockies has to be high on the list.