FTJ, Entry 75: Canyons, Caves, and Caverns

I wanted to post a gazillion more images, in that it seems we are seeing SO many beautiful views and amazing wonders of nature. I will try to control myself.

A note about the previous blog on Artesia, NM, and the cowboy statues there. One of my favorite novels of ALL time is Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. In a weird coincidence, The Trail Boss bronze statue in Artesia had a plaque explaining that although the novel is fiction, it is highly likely that McMurtry based his characters Augustus McCrae  and Woodrow Call on the real-life cowboys Oliver Loving and Charles Goodnight, who forged the Goodnight-Loving trail that goes through the area here. Not only that, but the fate of character Augustus McCrae in the book is the actual fate of Loving. In 1867, on the third Goodnight-Loving cattle drive, Loving and another cowboy were ambushed by Comanche Indians. Loving was wounded and sent his companion to bring Goodnight, who was about 70 miles further down the Pecos River, for rescue. Goodnight could not find his friend, but later encountered him at Fort Sumner, further upriver. Unfortunately, Loving died due to complications from surgery -- but before that, made Goodnight promise to take his body back to his beloved Texas for burial.

For those of you who know the book, it is nearly the exact plot! How cool is that? (Well, I think it is cool -- and it was so serendipitous finding this very personal connection on our travels.)

We also learned that the "chuck wagon" was invented and named for Charles Goodnight! More education for us.

Some additional views of the sites here in New Mexico are below.

Us at Indian shelters (caves) along the route to Carlsbad Caverns.

We learned that from prehistoric times to the end of the 19th century, Indians lived off this harsh land. They used shelters such as the one above, eating the game they could kill, as well as prickly pear cactus and many other native plants that would make most of us gag. I did try some fruit thing they refer to as a native walnut, but spit it out. (Dave, ever the medical professional, waited to see if I went into seizures afterward.)

The Wonders of Carlsbad Caverns

It is difficult to portray the enormity and mind-blowing spectacle of Carlsbad Caverns, but imagine going 750 feet below the earth and finding a cavern room -- the largest natural limestone chamber in the Western hemisphere -- with floor space estimated at 600,000 square feet, or 14 football fields.  There is a self-guided walking tour through and around the Big Room (none of us wanted to do the "natural" tour, which is in a different area, and much longer and more strenuous), where we saw enormous stalagmites and stalactites (some which started forming 500,000 years ago), strange bottomless pits, and evidence of the courage of the original cavern explorer, Jim White. He discovered the caverns as a youngster in 1898 after seeing hundreds of bats come out of a hole in the ground. In the 1920s, he led expeditions there.

Most of the photos (which are not great due to the low lighting) give you just a small impression of the enormity of this natural wonder. Wish we could have captured the HUGENESS of it all.

Beau descends into the abyss...

Hmm...wonder why the guys are so fascinated with this formation.

Next time, a chronicle of the horror of the trip from Carlsbad back down through friggin' Texas, and north to Las Cruces, NM during the continuing typhoon.

I am now a victim of post-traumatic stress. Maybe I can get disability from Social Security?

Tanks, Panky