|
Monday, 29 March 2004 00:00 |
 We were up early this morning, 6:15 AM, but that's because we are still on central time. Here in the Chihuanhuan Desert it cools down considerably at night, down to 8C (46F), a stark contrast to the 27C (81F) that we enjoyed yesterday afternoon but wonderful sleeping weather. The sky is clear blue and cloudless, just perfect for an early morning walk which we both enjoyed. After breakfast our first stop was at The Living Desert Zoo & Gardens another New Mexico State Park near here to learn about the animals that reside in this desert. The fee was $4.00 each, very reasonable and worth it just to learn about the local plants and the state bird, the infamous Roadrunner.
From there we went into Carlsbad for lunch at the Pecos River Café, a very popular local eatery serving quality food at a reasonable price. Based on the over-full parking lot, we knew we would do well there and we did. Then we headed to the Carlsbad Caverns National Park . The drive there was gorgeous and the view spanned for miles and miles in every direction. Once we arrived at the caverns we had several choices as to how much of the caves we wanted to see. There were two self-guided tours and several guided tours ranging from easy to strenuous. We went on the two self-guided tours taking the Natural Entrance tour and then the Big-Room tour, roughly 2.5 miles and 2.5 hours long. It was an incredible experience that led us 750 feet down into the depths of the earth.
After our morning walk and the hiking we did at the caverns, my muscles are telling me that I will be feeling this day for a while. 
|
