Out West Trip: Day 5 (Carlsbad, NM)

Today’s Highlights: A tortoise trying to eat corn at the Living Desert Zoo, Carlsbad Caverns, seeing a wildfire across the lake

I woke up as the sun rose to work. Despite record high temperatures during the day (hitting 100), the morning was frigid. I wore my heavy fleece with the hood up and was still freezing as I worked at the picnic table. The rest of the family got up a couple hours later, and we made breakfast and worked a bit on packing up. I then had to work for another hour while they finished packing up and getting ready. Our first stop of the day was the Living Desert Zoo, just north of Carlsbad. Chloe was in her element. She had brought along my old Canon point-and-shoot, and took photos of everything. She just *loves* to go to the zoo. Many of the animals had already gone in for the day, but we did get to see some, like the tortoise int he prairie dog town who was trying to eat corn, but the cob just kept rolling away from him each time he tried to take a bite.

Living Desert Zoo - 26 may 2011

We then headed south of Carlsbad to Carlsbad Caverns. Chloe decided we had to use the natural entrance. We walked down, down, down, Chloe taking photos the entire way. When we finally got to the bottom (750 feet down), we decided to get a snack (lunch?) and rest a while. There were no sodas for sale, only juice and gatorade; I wonder why? We all shared some cheese and veggies and then wandered around the “Big Room” before taking the elevator back up to the top. We bought a few things in the store, such as postcards and a (yikes) bumper sticker.

Carlsbad Caverns - 26 may 2011

We stopped at the super Walmart for more provisions. I’m generally not a Wal-Mart shopper; there’s something about the chaos and lighting in that store that drains me, but for this kind of trip, it is ideal. Ironically, the two campsites I booked in Carlsbad were both 13 miles out of town on the same lake, about 2 miles apart. When we got to our new site at Brantley Lake State park, we could see the KOA from the previous night just across the lake. Before settling in, we went for a little hike near the lake. For dinner, Rob made burritos, rice and corn, along with sausages for himself. After dinner, the girls played cards while watching the gorgeous sunset. At night, we watched a fire spread on the other side of the lake and the fire trucks come to put it out. Rob and the girls watched an episode of Doctor Who that they had downloaded. (No wi-fi at the state park.)

Brantley Lake State Park - 26 may 2011

My reviews:

• Trekaroo revie of the KOA Carlsbad
• TripAdvisor review of the KOA Carlsbad
• Trekaroo review of Carlsbad Caverns
• Trekaroo review of Living Desert Zoo

Trip Stats:
Roadside Attractions: None. (Total: 6)
States: New Mexico (Total: 6 – GA, AL, MS, LA, TX, NM)
State Plates Spotted: 4 (Total: 24)
Miles: 99 (Total: 1704)
Gallons of gas bought: 18.9 (Total: 111.6)
Poptops Spotted: 2 (Total: 2)
National Park Stamps: Carlsbad (Total: 1)
Miles walked: 4 (Total: 4)
Dollars saved with NP pass: 18 (Total: 18)