Today we were traveling again. From Las Cruces, we headed southeast toward El Paso, TX. Just over the border, we stopped at a tourist information center and picked up a map and some literature about Texas attractions. The info center was very nice and the bathrooms were so clean and posh, I almost hated to use the facilities.
Loathing big city traffic as I do, we took a detour through Franklin Mountains State Park, which took us around the northeast side of El Paso. We never did see anything to indicate we were in the park, nor did we see a park entrance, although we saw some signs that said “Park Entrance Closed” and “Park Entrance Detour.”
As it turned out this was a great choice. We saw the outskirts of El Paso, which is a city of about 650,000 inhabitants. We saw El Paso International Airport, and the highway (TX375) was beautiful: four lanes of smooth pavement. The only slight hitch was an 8% downgrade from the pass down toward El Paso, but even that was short lived.
Heading east out of El Paso, we saw what we both agreed is what we have always imagined Texas to be: broad expanses of desert with nothing but yucca plants. That eventually gave way to greener areas, and we enjoyed seeing the transitions happen. We stopped at a roadside picnic area and had lunch in the trailer, walked the dogs and had a nice break from traveling.
As we climbed into the Guadalupe Mountains, the terrain became a spectacular cascade of cliffs and hills and canyons. Jill was on the job with her camera. The route took us back into southeastern New Mexico.
Eventually, we arrived at the Carlsbad (NM) RV Park and Campground, where we are parked under a nice shady tree, enjoying the late afternoon sunshine. Tomorrow, we plan to visit the Caverns and have a picnic with the dogs at Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Since we have senior passes, we should get in for free. If the wi-fi will cooperate, I may be able to post pictures tomorrow.
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