Las Cruses New Mexico

We left Alamogordo yesterday morning (Sunday) and moved a little west to Las Cruses, maybe a two hour drive. We are 15 miles north of Las Cruses at Leasburg State Park.  We arrived early enough to beat the strong winds that had been fore casted. It did get very windy yesterday afternoon, a lot of dust was being blown around. We did drive into town to replenish our food stock and to stop at a large flea market that we had seen earlier on our way in along the freeway. The flea market was a bust because of the wind and the dust that was everywhere; we left without a purchase hoping there would be other opportunities for these huge sales.  

This morning we woke to a mostly overcast day. It was strange not seeing the blue sky. It did clear up however and the wind kicked up again, not as bad as yesterday but still windy. We drove back into town to explore the area. Just south of  Las Cruces we found the historic village of Mesilla, where Billy the Kid stood trial. Now the plaza of Old Mesilla is home to quaint shops offering crafts from local artisans as well as numerous restaurants serving authentic New Mexican cuisine.  We walked through the plaza and visited many of the shops. In the center of the plaza sits the San Albino Catholic Church. Another beautiful church we found, although not in the Mesilla area, was Our Lady of Health.

Our plan for now is to leave here in the morning and head an hours north to yet another one of New Mexico’s wonderful state parks.

 Our campsite

 Wind and sun protection

 Mesilla Plaza

 Interesting entry

 Old town, old car

 San Albino Catholic Church

 Inside San Albino

 Our Lady of Health

Alamogordo Day Two and Three

The day started out with coffee and breakfast outside, it never did get very chilly last night. We loaded up our laundry and headed into town. We spoke to two very nice ladies while we were doing laundry, who were snow birds from Wisconsin and have been coming down here every winter for a while now. They said this past winter was a cold one with temperatures hitting as low as 17 degrees. They said the nice days make up for the occasional cold one however.

After laundry we drove around town, we like to go back in the neighborhoods and get off the main drag, to get a feel for it. There are some beautiful areas here. After the drive it was back to the RV for lunch and to put our fresh wash away. With nothing scheduled for the remainder of the day and it being so nice out we decided to go back to White Sands National Monument. We were glad we did, it is such an unusual place. We parked the car and hiked over the dunes.  It was blinding if you took your sunglasses off.

We returned to the RV for some Johnsonville Brats on the grill and a quiet evening. We did manage to watch two episodes of Downton Abbey.    

We were planning on leaving here tomorrow but the forecast is calling for high winds. Down here high winds mean dust storms and we really don’t want to get caught in one. So we may end up sitting here for another day or so. This afternoon we could see sand being blown around over in White Sands, the wind however is not bad on this side of the valley (yet).

This morning was so beautiful we decided to take the Dog Canyon hike up into the canyon the complete hike is over 5.4 miles one way to the summit and an altitude gain of 3100 feet. We made it to the second bench which was 2.4 miles up, pretty good for oldies. Needless to say the 2.4 miles going down were so easy.  We returned to grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch and a relaxing afternoon. The temperature reached about 80 with a sky so blue and clear, New Mexico has the bluest skies we have ever seen.

 View of the campgrounds from the top (as far up as we went anyways)

 Nice sunset

Alamogrodo

Retirement Time

We left Carlsbad this morning around 09:30. Once again the sky was as blue and clear as it could be. Not a cloud. I think I would miss an overcast day now and then. We have actually been very lucky so far as weather goes. Since our second day on the road, when we had a little rain, it has been sunshine every day.

Our destination today was Oliver Lee State Park in Alamogordo New Mexico. The drive took us over the Sacramento Mountains at an elevation of 8600 feet. Yes there was snow up there, not much but snow no less. Once across the peak we did the descent to the valley floor and soon we had 82 degrees. We thought Duluth was hard to dress for.

The rest of this day is dedicated to retirement time, tomorrow we will head into town and do laundry and explore the area a little. We are very close to White Sands National Park but seeing how we were just there we may pass on visiting. 

We do not have internet here at the park so I’ll have to wait until we go into town later to publish this post. We had full T-mobil service until we reached the park then lost it. We are sixteen miles outside of Alamogordo.

Yesterday was different from the other days we have had in the fact there was no wind, no even a breeze all day. That lasted until shortly after we went to bed then the wind picked up and blew all night long. This morning, nothing not even a breeze just a beautiful sunny morning.  

                                                Tunnel at the Top of the Sacramento Mountains

  

 Views from our campsite

 View out our window

 Sun is starting to set

Dog Canyon (trail we will take tomorrow)

 Sunset

Carlsbad Day Two

This morning we woke up to 37 degrees and high winds, but with a beautiful clear sunny sky, so it didn’t take long to warm up to 65 degrees. We decided to go to the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park. It is a state operated zoo and cactus garden specializing in native species of the Chihuahua Desert and New Mexico. The staff at the zoo works with the New Mexico Department of Fish and Game and other public and private entities in wildlife conservation efforts for many injured and orphaned birds, mammals and reptiles. It’s so nice to know that the animals here are actually better off living at the zoo than living in the wild.

Admission to the Living Desert Zoo is only $5.00 with free parking. The zoo trail winds through different desert habitats with labels on the trees and cactus as you pass.  It’s still a little early in the season so some of the displays were empty but we were able to see quite a bit. The cactus and succulent greenhouse at the end of the zoo trail is really amazing it houses many varieties of both native and exotic cacti and succulents from around the world. No crowds and if we were out of the wind a perfectly beautiful day.

We topped it off with a trip to the dollar store (I love the dollar store) and lunch at Subway, than back to the RV for some relaxation, cleaning and map reading to decide where we will be traveling tomorrow.

Entry to the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park, Carlsbad New Mexico

Matching Mexican Parrots

Bald Eagle

Golden Eagle

Golden Eagle

Along the Gardens

Bobcat

Prairie Dog

Desert Tortoise

Turkey Vulture

Turkey Vulture

Wild Pig

Common Black Hawk

Buffalo