Journey Day 12 and 13- 3 and 4 May 2010

As checkout time wasn't till noon, I took advantage of the washer and dryer available so didn't leave Albuquerque till after noon. I don't think I realized quite how far it was going to be to Carlsbad till I put in the Roswell UFO Museum (before Carlsbad) to the GPS. So off I headed east on I-40 to some place called Cline's Corners where I then turned south. I had been warned that the drive was 'pretty boring'.....talk about an understatement!!!! It was a combination of driving through Saskatchewan and Southern Alberta with glimpses of the Rockies. For a section, one could gaze across miles of flat grassland and see some mountains in the distance while the rest of it didn't even have the relief of the mountain vista! It was also closer to desert than grassland so seemed pretty long. I was often the only vehicle for miles with the occasional tractor trailer rig which I passed. Eventually, I reached Roswell which is much bigger than I had expected. Talking to another couple found they had the same reaction. The UFO Museum is quite fascinating. I don't remember the 'Roswell Incident' as it happened the day I turned 2 on July 4, 1947. However, my father told me about it each year on subsequent birthdays and encouraged me to keep an open mind and not to believe others opinions rather to form my own after doing some research. I liked the objective way the Museum presented all their information, leaving the visitor to form their own conclusions. They have a neat gift shop and are trying to raise funds to find a new home. Their current building is an old theatre and I think they need more room. And yes, I did get some souvenirs (grin).

By this time it was after 5pm and I was anxious to reach Carlsbad and the hotel I planned to stay at so I could get the hockey game. I soon got to the hotel and drove into the area for registration. Now try and picture this....I'm a female, travelling on my own so tend to use common sense. As I'm about to open the door, I suddenly have 3 guys and a gal standing at my door! So, I rolled down the window part way and the first question I get is 'Are you from Vancouver?' It took me a few seconds to realize it was my Canucks flag! Turns out this group were all Canucks fans and the first guy had lived in Van and was now living in Newfoundland!!! How weird was this?

When I got to my 'smoke-free' room, it absolutely reeked of smoke!! When I complained I was told they didn't have any other rooms. Not a great night while I coughed and choked most of the night. I kept the door open with the fan running till I went to bed which helped a little. Boy was I glad to pack up, go for the breakfast buffet and get out of there!

My drive to the Carlsbad Caverns was a surprise in a couple of ways. First it was much farther than I expected and, as I entered the park, I was astonished to find that I was going be climbing a mountain! It was very hot and I stopped at a couple of the pull offs to take photos of course(grin).

I finally made it to the top and the Visitor's Centre. It was scorching but what a view! So I headed inside and headed for the Info Desk. Fortunately,  I had read about some of the potential tours so was able to tell the Ranger what I was interested in. As it was well after noon by this time, time was going to be a factor as the last elevator up was at 4:30 and the King's Palace Tour that I wanted to go on was about an hour and a half starting at 1:45 to meet. Then I also wanted to make it around the Big Room as well. Each of these are a mile and with my photo obsession, I wouldn't be moving quickly(grin). We finally figured that if I took the elevator down, I'd have time to do half of the Big Room before meeting for the King's Palace Tour then should have time to do the rest of the Big Room after the Tour. So that's what I did......

This was my first glimpse into the Big Room and it only got more impressive. Then, when I took the Tour, it was simply amazing! This took me 80 feet down which of course had to come back up later(grin). I've got to tell you that after a week and a half of mostly sitting driving then spending time either standing or sitting at the Reunion, doing that walking was probably good for me however, I could sure feel it by the end. As well, I was also noticing the changes in elevation whether up or down as they were happening so quickly whether I was driving through the mountains or going down 800 feet into the Caverns. For someone who spends most of her time at or just above sea level, this is definitely hard on the bod!!!

One of the fellows on the Tour was from Hawaii and does cave tours there plus is an avid photographer - I have his card if any of you are planning a trip there anytime soon. After arriving back up above ground, I headed out to take some photos of the view while heading back to the car.

When I got back to the car, there was a group of motorbikes parked in the 2 spaces next to me. The guys were just getting ready to leave so I stopped to speak to them as a couple of them had bikes the same as my daughter & son-in-law. I took a couple of photos of them and then they left and I followed soon after. So, I was now on my way to Albuquerque more than 200 miles north. Boy was I stiff by the time I finally got there after sitting that long. I did stop at a rest stop on the way. It was after dark by that time and I saw a woman waving me down. Hmmm, the suspicion flags were immediately raised, however, I opened the window and the poor gal was trying to find someone with a cell phone as their alternator had quit, her hubby was in a wheelchair & she had her 2 kids in the van as well. I immediately offered my phone and we couldn't get a signal there at all (this is very common through Arizona & New Mexico, especially with prepaid service - a term I use VERY loosely). After trying to get a call through with 3 truckers, finally the 4th one worked. I was about to offer to drive her into Albuquerque to get help if nothing else worked.

Finally, about 10:30 that night, I made it to the hotel (same one I'd stayed at for the Reunion) and gratefully took an aspirin for the stiffness and fell into bed....... Oh, except that I hadn't eaten since breakfast so I was just in time for room service so ordered something for lunch/supper.

Man, that was a looooonnnnngggg day but very much worth the time & sore muscles. I have some really unusual photos from that day for sure.