day95

Day 95 (November 23, 2006) - Guadalupe Mountains N.P.

The Guadalupe Mountains N.P. is a 2-hour drive from El Paso, and we get there very early in the morning. The road cuts through the Chihuahuan desert, that continues as far as the eyes can see to the right. On the left, the Cornudas Mountains keep us company all the way to Guadalupe. We pick up the park map at the Visitor Center and we get advice on a nice hike around here. It's the Devil's Hall trail that takes off from the campground right behind the VC. It's very windy today, but the wind is warm and the sun is shining. A T-shirt does the job. We start ascending a bumpy rock ledge and then we descend into the canyon and cross a dried up wash, which we follow all the way to the end of the trail. The view from here is great: the limestone rocks around are craggy, in some parts they are layered and look like steps that we can easily climb up. Among the rock folds, a few lizards are basking in the sun. On our way back, a mule deer gets nervous as we approach and with three long leaps reaches a ledge above our heads. In the distance, we hear a puma roar, we can't quite point where it comes from but we were told by the ranger that puma sightings are frequent here. We proceed with caution. This is a quite unique park in its own way: cacti and other succulents grow in the shade of pine trees and even a few maples, more common in the northern areas. In winter, it's not uncommon to see cacti covered in snow, this is a favorite destination for many photographers looking for unique shots. 2 and a half hours later we are back at the RV, ready to go caving...

The Carlsbad Caverns N.P. is just 20 miles away and we get there in time to book the last guided tours into some of the most spectacular caves in the world. At 750ft deep, with a temperature of 56°F year-round, the 1.4 mile cavern we are about to visit is amazing. We will go through the King's Palace, the Queen's Chamber and the Big Room. Ranger John explains the geological past of these caves with funny jokes that I am sure he has tested many times in the past. They were discovered in 1911 but a 16-year-old boy who at the time was working as a cowboy in a ranch nearby. He saw a storm of bats exiting from a hole in the mountain and made himself a ladder with wood and chicken wire to climb into the hole. What he found is what we today are able to visit without getting on our knees and crawling as he did. Jim White was his name and when this place became part of the National Park system in 1934 he was the first ranger. Initially, the caves attracted a lot of interest for a different reason. The bats who came here (and are still coming every year) to mate were leaving behind their "guano" (bat scat) - 100 million tons of it - which was known as an excellent fertilizer for orange groves in the Imperial valley, CA. All this guano was taken out and sold and transported to CA as fertilizer. (Think of it next time you eat orange peel...) As time went by, geologists began studying the formation of these caves and realized their importance in the grand scheme of things, so they fell under the protection of the federal government. And they truly are spectacular, the Big Room alone encompasses an area equal to 6 football fields. Some caves can be visited on arduous "caving trips" with flashlights, helmets and kneepads. There is a different between a spelunker and a caver: a caver rescues a spelunker, we are told. Our guided tour lasts about 2 hours but we have enough time left over to explore some other parts of the Big Room on our own. There are no bats right now, they come in early spring. Not that I mind... These caves are active, meaning that they are evolving constantly and eventually, in thousands of years, they will "cave in" as the outer layer of the mountains will be eroded away. I am happy we got to see them before this happens. No reason to procrastinate any longer.