I froze when Kerri said she wanted to drive into Las Cruces to see friends.I reminded her of my track record with Las Cruces and van breakdowns (specifically brakes) in the most blunt way I could – I’ve never made it to or through Las Cruces without some form of...
We move East at a good clip. Through and past Phoenix, and up the mountains on the other side as we wanted to take a route other than Interstate to our next destination. It wasn’t even a new area we were traveling – we did it last year – but...
The time of year I normally travel through this area (winter) has always made it difficult to visit the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument. The monument is well outside of cellular coverage and way up above 5000 ft elevation, so I have skipped past it for eight years now. Kerri...
Las Cruces will be the furthest East we go this year. After diligently watching the Bellingham weather we decided to start our migration back towards Washington. With the about-face came a weekend of opportunity. The opportunity to explore a small slice of New Mexico that neither Kerri or I have...
The last time I was in this area, this road wasn’t paved. I was surprised to see what was once a long and washboard dirt road was now smooth asphalt. I was wondering why they would pave such a nondescript road, well outside the city proper when I saw the...
My previous visit to Bisbee (way before I met Kerri) left me with a sour taste in my mouth. Honestly, I didn’t much care to make a return visit, but with Kerri having never been I took one for the team. We arrived early enough to be able to park...
The final day of our travel weekend brought us to Carlsbad, New Mexico. Here we would visit the Carlsbad Caverns National Park and even a quick trip to Guadalupe Mountains National Park. Again, I have been to both in my past, but Kerri had been to neither in her adulthood....
The previous night we were in bed early expecting another early start in the morning. Once again we were packed up, coffee in hands, dogs in the truck, and actually driving before sunrise. It was truly a miracle to see Kerri out from under the blankets so early… twice in...
I must have driven past this park of New Mexico a dozen times in the past few years, but I have never stopped in this park. That all changed on this day when Kerri and I went well out of our way to drop in. We arrived with just 1...
Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument preserves the cone shaped rock formations that are the products of volcanic eruptions that occurred 6 to 7 million years ago, and marks my 65th National Park visited. Not even knowing of this National Monument’s existence until arriving in the Santa Fe area, the plan...
