Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas and Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

May 16 and 17, 2015

Kate at the top of Texas!

Martin and Kate at the top of Texas!

View from the top

We arrived in Guadalupe National Park on Friday, May 15 around dusk. The mountains jetted from the plains like I've never seen before. The tallest mountain in Texas is located in Guadalupe National Park, and is rightly called Guadalupe Peak. It stands surprisingly tall at 8,700 feet. We slept at a  pull out on the side of the road, right outside of the National Park. We are committed to not pay to sleep for as much as possible. The goal is to make our funding last for an entire year.

Trail leading down into Carlsbad Cavern

We woke up early to tackle the mountain. The air was dry and windy. The hike was 9 miles round trip with 3,000 feet of elevation gain. It was surprisingly easy and quick to get to the top. Only two hours to the top and an hour and a half back down. We were back down at the car by about 11:00 a.m.

Carlsbad Cavern

Carlsbad Caverns National Park was only a 35 minute drive. Carlsbad Cavern is one of 120 caves in the area and provides easy walk down into the deep dark cave. The cave was formed by sulfuric acid within the cracks of the cave. The stalactites and stalagmites were fantastic. The large were huge and spacious. I can't imagine how it must have been to be the first to discover such an amazing find. 

One of many storms we worked to avoid in Texas

After spending time at Carlsbad Caverns National Park we made our way back across the border to Texas. We decided to camp at a rest stop around Peco, TX to avoid tornado warnings and severe thunderstorms.

Tornado's and thunderstorms surrounded us. After calling my aunt and uncle in Houston, we made a plan to stay in Houston and visit family tomorrow. We are excited to sleep under a roof, have running water, and catch up with family!