New Mexico is a cool state! It has an awesome variety of things to do and see! Unfortunately, we
didn’t get to spend time in the northern part of the state, but the southern half did not disappoint!

“I survived Highway 285” should be printed onto a t-shirt. I would have bought one! The 285 is a dangerous
highway with multiple deaths already this year. It is bombarded with massive trucks and oil field vehicles/equipment
in addition to the abandoned mobile homes and cars that decorate the shoulder. I enjoyed seeing the oil fields,
but WOW, I couldn’t get out of Pecos, TX and into New Mexico fast enough.

Carlsbad:
Spent the day at Carlsbad Caverns National Park walking the 1.3-mile loop that is 800-feet underground learning all about
stalactites, stalagmites, soda straws and popcorn formations in the cave. It was beautiful, and it felt
so great to get out of the heat. The National Park has a beautiful amphitheater set up facing the large entrance
of the cave to watch the “Bat Show”. Naturally, the bats come flying out as night falls. And it was just like you
see in the movies, they come out in a large group and fly together creating a funnel shape before heading out on
their own personal hunt for food.

Roswell:
Embrace the cheese, people!! We went to the groovy International UFO Museum and The Alien Zone for some epic pictures. We were
in Roswell for about 2-hours. It was a “must-do only ONCE” sort of experience. A small museum with a few interesting
documents. I may not recommend this place as a destination, but if your car rolls into town, you might as well stop.

Las Cruces:
Spent the day sledding the sands at White Sands National Park on our over-priced gift shop sleds. If you are in the area, this
is a must-do! The landscape is stunning, I have never seen anything like it. Wear your sunglasses, the glare from
the ground is stronger than looking directly at the sun. We took a break and cruised around Alamogordo, grabbed a
quick bite to eat, found a planetarium so we watched a movie about stars (mostly to cool off) and headed out for round two of
sledding. I love the random adventures and variety that this trip has given us.

Brian was dad of the year this stop and took each girl out on a daddy-daughter date (which is great because I get
mommy-daughter time with each one of them though they don’t get as excited).

Arizona, here we come!! Penny & Howard, prepare for the volume in your house to go up substantially :).

Tina
Boondocks and Bliss