Travel Season

Our travel season kicked off over Memorial weekend. We took a road trip to Carlsbad Caverns and Guadalupe Mountains National Parks. It was hot in the desert and we did a lot of hiking. Here are a few photos from our trip.

Inside the caverns:

We did a guided tour of the King's Palace, and then walked in through the natural entrance to the Big Room.

Guadalupe Mountains:

We hiked to Devil's Hall on Saturday, which was a good plan because the area was closed on Sunday due to wildfires.

Sitting Bull Falls State Park, NM:

 This are was hit hard by wildfire last year. All of the trails are closed, but you can still get to the falls.

Pratt Lodge (on the McKittrick Canyon Trail):

The Grotto:

I don't think I've ever walked so much in two days (not even in Disney World!). It was hot, but we were well prepared. We also did a hike to Smith Spring, but I was too hot to take photos.

We stayed at the Trinity Hotel in Carlsbad. It was a wonderful hotel, and their restaurant was fabulous. The tiramisu was my favorite! It was in a great location, and much nicer and cheaper than the Hampton Inn (the "highest" end of the hotel chains in town - right next to the Walmart). It's in an old bank building, and we even stayed in the room with the old bank vault (now converted to a media room).