We spent six days at Brantley Lake State Park near Carlsbad NM, and then three days at Bottomless Lakes State Park near Roswell NM, and finally three days in Albuquerque NM.
Brantley Lake State Park…Why we came…
To see Carlsbad Caverns National Park.
The campground…
There aren’t any decent campgrounds near Carlsbad Caverns National Park, so we chose to stay 40 miles north at Brantley Lake State Park. We were glad we did! It was nice. The sites were spacious and ours had a good view of the lake. The sites were all paved and a bit unlevel. They varied considerably in length…some were too small for today’s big rigs. We had water and electric. There was a wastewater dump station on the way out. There was no wi-fi, but we had a reliable Verizon 4G data signal. The bathrooms were well maintained and the showers were decent. There was a nice walking trail from the campground that we walked nearly every day. It was also very peaceful during our stay. We were comfortable and would gladly return if in the area again.
Brantley Lake near Carlsbad NM
Plenty of space between sites. We had a good view of the lake.
Carlsbad NM, elevation 3,295 feet and population 26,138, was 20 miles southeast of the lake. We drove through town a couple of times and did one supply run. There were multiple places to buy groceries and other supplies. There was also a selection of restaurants, but we didn’t check any out. Nor did we explore the town.
Artesia NM, elevation 3,380 feet and population 11,301 was 30 miles north of the lake. The downtown area was clean and pleasant. We liked the various metal sculptures that depicted things important to the area’s history.
Adventures…
On 13 April we hiked around Sitting Bull Falls…
The campground host at Brantley Lake suggested that we check out Sitting Bull Falls. We were very surprised that the road was paved through the Lincoln National Forest. (The term “forest” is laughable in this desert environment!) Our first impression was how nice and neat the park was with fine stone picnic shelters, grills, and benches scattered about. We learned that the Sitting Bull Falls Recreation Area is a shining example of the durability of the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) efforts. They constructed the shelters and trails back in 1940.
We walked a short CCC paved trail out to the falls. Sure enough, there in the parched desert, spills a beautiful 150 foot waterfall. The spring fed water disappears underground only a few hundred yards beyond the crystal clear pools. We remarked how this would have been such an incredible find if we were early explorers.
From the park, we had access to numerous trails. We planned a five mile route that would take us above the falls. We followed the rocky switch backs up and enjoyed the views back across the Pecos Valley.
As we hiked, it was interesting to note the contrast in desert flora and what was growing near the spring fed creek. Cacti were in peak bloom, while along the creek, maple and madrone trees were breaking out their summer leaves and the knee-high grass was healthy and green. It was like an oasis! We looped back to the top of the falls and peered 150 feet straight down into the pools. It’s a beautiful place!
Hike route around Sitting Bulls Falls / At the base of the beautiful waterfall
Really nice facilities. These are picnic shelters.
The 150 foot high waterfall and lush vegetation contrast beautifully against the desert.
Looking towards the parking area as we head up the trail to the top of the falls
Springtime desert flowers are very colorful
An interesting section of the trail built by the CCC around 1940
At the top of the falls
At the top of the falls
On 15 April we walked into the depths of the Earth…
Arleen wanted to visit Carlsbad Caverns since her Mom took her to the Lewis and Clark Caverns in Montana as a little girl. We eagerly booked a tour of the King’s Palace online and learned that the elevator was out of service.
On arrival, we were briefed by a Ranger and descended into the yawning cave. At the opening, we noticed some cliff swallows and maybe a few bats flitting about. The huge cave is famous for the mass exodus of hundreds of thousands of bats at sunset. Straightway, the trail drops about 700 feet with numerous switchbacks and we were blown away by the stalactites and stalagmites. Their quantity and size far surpassed anything we had seen in other caves. As we rounded the Iceberg, a huge iceberg shaped rock that fell from the cave ceiling, the natural light disappeared.
After 1.25 miles and an 800 foot descent, we reached a cross roads in the Big Room and headed towards the meeting area for the tour. We popped into the coolest café and restroom area! You walk through a short cave tunnel to the get to the nice bathrooms. The café and small gift area were so unexpected that it was almost startling.
We met the National Park Ranger and headed to the King’s Palace entrance with a 20 person group. Along the way, she told us how the caverns formed roughly 260 million years ago when the Capitan Reef was on the edge of a huge inland sea. She also told stories of the first cave explorers who crawled in with candles. We learned that the broken elevator was installed back in 1920!
Over the next mile, we wandered through four colorful rooms and descended into the deepest part of the caverns that the public are allowed. At one point, the Ranger turned off the lights. It was pitch black! We put our hands just inches from our faces and couldn’t see them at all. Apparently, the day before our visit, the power had gone out. Fortunately, there are backup generators, but it was likely a long, frightful few seconds for some people. It’s a good idea to bring your own flashlight! Recently, the Park Service has been installing new LED lights that are more environmentally friendly and last much longer.
After the two hour tour, we returned to the café for a snack and then did a self-guided tour of the Big Room. Along the 1.25 trail, we saw such highlights as the Hall of Giants, Bottomless Pit, and Rock of Ages. It was a fairly even, and paved flat trail, but our necks got a workout spinning up and down and every which way to view all the awesomeness! We likened the huge cavern to the old European cathedrals. There is such an immensity of shapes, textures, and sizes, that your eyes don’t know where to focus!
Finally, we tackled the 800 foot ascent. Along, the way we passed many folks resting on the thoughtfully spaced benches. At the top, we heard a lady proudly announce, that despite her worries, it took her less time and effort than she had thought. We were surprised when a Ranger informed us that there had only been a 5% decrease in visitors since the elevator had been out of service. We certainly felt that the caverns were worth the extra effort and even appreciated the exercise!
Descending the steep trail into Carlsbad Cavern
The King’s Chamber. It is very difficult to capture the grand scale.
The facilities inside the cave are impressive! We enjoyed a snack 700 feet below the surface. / A stalactite and stalagmite nearly meet. / Reflection off the crystal clear water is serene.
The formations are beautiful and impressively big. We are in these pictures for scale.
On 16 April we met a friend in Artesia…
Stephanie and Arleen were deployed together in Afghanistan. Stephanie and her husband, Ryan, live in Clovis NM. We were happy and surprised when they decided to make the 300 mile round-trip drive to see us! Stephanie even made us each a little quilted mat. They make perfect coasters!
We met them in Artesia NM at the Java House. We were there when they opened and were still there sharing stories when they closed. After that we wandered around Main Street of Artesia and checked out the sculptures in tribute to the history of the oil and mining industry. Stephanie and Ryan share our adventurous spirit, and we look forward to seeing them down the road again someday.
Stephanie and Arleen checking out an oil derrick sculpture
Bottomless Lakes State Park…Why we came…
To look for aliens!
The campground…
Bottomless Lakes State Park was great! We had a long, wide site with privacy and a view of the lake out of our back window. The gravel site was fairly level and had water and electric. There was a dump station on the way out. We had a good Verizon 4G data signal and the state park even provided wi-fi! There were a couple of nice walking trails and they provided nice views of the red cliffs and the oasis-like lake. The lake allows fishing and non-motorized water craft, but our trip was too short to fish or kayak. Due to the convenient proximity to Roswell, the lake is popular on nice afternoons and weekends when it can get a bit noisy. Otherwise, it was peaceful and we really enjoyed it. We would gladly stay there again if we end up back in the area.
The Bottomless Lakes are very pretty
Long, wide, spacious and private sites. We were quite comfortable.
Roswell NM, elevation 3,573 feet and population 48,411, was 15 miles west of the state park. It was much bigger and far more interesting than we expected. The main street gets pretty congested during the day…making left turns can be a booger! There was a selection of places to get groceries and supplies, and there were plenty of restaurants. We found it both cheesy and charming how much the town has embraced its extraterrestrial reputation. Even the street lights are adorned with alien eyes! We appreciated Roswell much more after our tour. More on that below…
Adventures…
On 18 April we toured Roswell and visited the Roswell UFO Museum…
Do you believe in aliens? When we lay out at night and gaze at all those stars, we have a hard time believing that we are the only intelligent life. We have followed the stories of UFOs and aliens for years. The mysterious crash near Roswell NM in July of 1947, is one of the most famous UFO cover up stories. We went to investigate for ourselves.
We met UFO researcher and Roswell tour guide, Dennis Balthaser (www.truthseekeratroswell.com), at the Civic Center. He drove us by some of the city’s historical sites such as the Iron Cross embedded in a canal rock wall. The canal, Iron Cross, and other works were made by German prisoners of war. We had no idea that nearly 5,000 Germans were held in Roswell during WWII!
Our next stops were the impressive sculptures of Pat Garrett and John Chisum. Tour guide Dennis shared the 1800s history of the area that included Billy the Kid.
However, Dennis’ passion and research focused on the trail of people, places, and events that wove the story of what happened in 1947. For example, in town, we drove by the home of Military Intel Officer, Major Jesse Marcel who brought some of the crash debris home with him. We drove by the radio station and the newspaper office that broke the news that was later retracted. Finally, we drove out to the former Roswell Army Air Field and Air Force Base that was home to the 509th Bomb Group and the B-29 Bomber in 1947. We saw the hangar where the alleged UFO and at least one live alien were temporarily housed and studied before allegedly getting moved to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. It is a very enthralling story. Sadly, very few of the eyewitnesses are still alive. We may never know the true story.
The air field was designated as Walker Air Force Base in 1948 and closed in 1967. It is now the Roswell International Air Center. The long fight line is used for testing new aircraft. The rest of the flight line is used for storage of aircraft awaiting disassembly for parts. Elvis Presley’s old jet sits off to the side just cooking in the desert sun. A couple of the hangars are used by another company to paint new aircraft. Eastern New Mexico University even has a small campus located where military offices previously existed.
After the tour, we went to the International UFO Museum and Research Center. The first section of the museum focused on the Roswell incident. The displays were thorough and informative. We really appreciated the signed, witnessed, and notarized statements from folks that were on the scene. It’s hard for us to call these people liars or think that they are so naive that they’d mistake a weather balloon for something unseen before. We walked away with more questions than we came with. Somewhere, someone, or something has answers. At the very least, it’s an intriguing mystery.
The town of Roswell and many businesses have embraced the extraterrestrial notoriety
Props from the movie: “Roswell”
A typical display at the UFO Museum. This one depicts numerous magazine and newspaper articles.
The aliens have landed at the museum!
Dennis informing us about the Iron Cross made by German prisoners of war; the story of John Chisum; and relays thoughts of the famous picture of Major Jesse Marcel with the supposed weather balloon
The entrance to the military base in 1947 / The same spot in 2016
Today the Roswell airfield is a commercial aircraft graveyard and repainting center. There are roughly 300 planes waiting to be chopped into pieces and sold as scrap and parts. One of Elvis’ planes sits out there just cooking in the desert sun!
Albuquerque…Why we came…
To spend time with family.
The campground…
We stayed at the Kirtland Air Force Base Famcamp. The military campground doesn’t take reservations and due to the large number of long term visitors, it can be difficult to get a site. We checked in around 2:30 on a Wednesday afternoon and there were only four sites available (out of 72). Late one evening, we even had someone try to squeeze into our site because none were available! There are two sections. One is older with smaller sites, decent landscaping, and mature trees. The newer section has large pull-through sites on a huge gravel pad with very few trees and very little landscaping. We were in the newer section and liked the convenience of the huge pull-through site. However, utilities are centered between two sites forcing the RVs to park close to each other. We had full hook-ups and a good Verizon 4G data signal. Wi-fi was available, but we never used it. The laundry facilities were well maintained and reasonably priced.
The location is good for us because it’s near grandma’s house, near base facilities, and most importantly, it’s safe! A big perk of shopping at the military commissary, is that Shawn’s step sister, Kim works there. While she helped us find some good deals, we laughed a bunch. It was good to see her and have her share a few meals with us too. Overall, we were comfortable at the Kirtland Famcamp and would stay there again.
Long, wide sites. Utilities are centered between two sites, so one neighbor is very close.
Albuquerque NM, elevation 5,312 feet and population 545,852 with 903,000 in the metro area, is not a place we like. The drivers are very aggressive, and crime and drugs are bad. Like in many big cities, the nightly news is depressing. Our anxiety goes up as soon as we enter the city. There is a plethora of stores, services, and restaurants. The good part of being in a city is the opportunity to get service done on the truck and thoroughly resupply. There are interesting things to see and do, but we were there to see family.
Time with family…
Our primary purpose was to visit Shawn’s Grandma. In addition, Shawn’s parents drove down from Colorado for a mini family reunion. Shawn’s Grandmother and Mother have had health challenges in the last year so we looked forward to seeing them. And with Shawn’s health issues this winter, they both needed to give him a big hug!
It was so good to spend time with them and share stories. The highlight of our visit was a fun dinner with everyone that Shasta organized. We really hope that they join us in “God’s country” later this year.
Family gathered for a fun dinner
Having fun with Cousin Shasta / Mom, step-dad, and step-sister, Kim
The two oldest grandkids with grandma / The family mug shot
Next…
We spent 10 days at Navajo Lake State Park NM to fly-fish the San Juan River. We also spent 10 days at El Vado Lake State Park NM to fly-fish the Rio Chama. Now we are in Taos NM for a week. Our next stops are Red River NM, South Fork CO, and the Salida area in Colorado.
Parting shots…
A road runner in a tree at Brantley Lake State Park NM
A beautiful sunset near Roswell NM
(102,110)
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