Carlsbad Caverns

We headed for Carlsbad Caverns around noon on Friday - about a 4 hour drive. We wanted to make sure we got there before dark so we could witness the bat flight which occurs around sunset. If you ever have the chance to witness the bat flight, I highly recommend it. Before the flight, a park ranger gives you information about bats, and dispels many myths. One good thing to know - if a bat is on the ground - unless it’s a vampire bat which do exist n South America - it is probably sick. SO DON’T KICK IT OR TOUCH IT! Bats usually only attack when they’re sick or threatened - otherwise, they prefer to avoid people.

The prevalent bat at Carlsbad Caverns is the Mexican Free-tailed bat. There’s about 600,000 of them now - up from 218,000 in 1973. Their bodies are about 9 centimeters (3.5 inches) in length, and they weigh about 15 grams (1/2 ounce). They help control the pest population by feeding on bugs at night. The bats actually share the cave with swallows who feed on bugs during the day. We sat in the amphitheater for a half hour and still hadn’t seen the end of the bats.

We camped near the caverns for the night so we could visit the caverns the next day. We spent about 3 hours descending about 850 feet. There’s 3 miles of trails in the caverns but a lot of it is switchback - otherwise the descent would be too steep - plus you get to hike it back out. No, we didn’t see any bats in the caves - just bat guano. The bats actually live in caverns a lot lower than the public has access too.

The caverns are amazing. I’ve been to Mammoth Caves in Kentucky when I was little. I don’t remember a lot but from what I do remember - Carlsbad Caverns seem to be different. The formations look white instead of stone colored and a lot of times have very delicate looking shapes/designs. Some stalagmites & stalactites were very small - almost like children’s toys. My camera batteries ran out about half way through the tour. Guess I’ll just have to go back again.

If you’re visiting the southwest, I highly recommend a trip to Carlsbad Caverns. And if you’re coming from Albuquerque, you can stop in Roswell, NM, and visit the UFO Museum. We didn’t have time for it this trip - maybe next time.

For more information about Carlsbad Caverns.

More pictures.

Red or Green?

Red or Green? That’s a common question asked in Albuquerque. What they’re really asking - do you prefer red or green chilies? I haven’t had red chilies yet but I do like green chilies. I attended a Chili Peeling Party on Labor Day. The chilies are roasted and then we peeled the skins, chopped and bagged the chilies to freeze. Some people wore gloves to protect against being burned by the chili juice. The heat of the chilies didn’t bother me until I washed my hands. Weird but true. Luckily the juice wore off before I took out my contacts - that would have really been painful. I was amazed that the skins came off as easily as they did - for the most part - some were stubborn. I'm not sure how many pounds of chilies we did - it seemed like a lot. After the peeling, chopping and bagging was done, we enjoyed quesadillas with fresh green chilies. Very delicious. And fun. Plus we got to bring some chilies home.

peace

AMC Annual Retreat

The last weekend of August is the Annual Albuquerque Mennonite Church (AMC) Retreat. This year we went to Camp Oro Quay. The girls and I decided we were going to tent camp. The unit owns 4 tents and 4 sleeping bags plus I brought my tent and sleeping bag. We have a tarp for underneath - 2 people to a tent - 2 tents - so I figured no problem. I’m used to my tent so I didn’t even think about looking at the tents the unit owns. First mistake. Needless to say before we go camping again I'll make sure everything is there.

When we went to set up the tents we found out that only one was complete. The other bag had one broken stick. The tent we did get set up had a broken zipper. Luckily we had a safety pin to pin it closed. Kirsten & I decided to sleep outside under the stars. It was really nice that weekend - it didn’t rain, it wasn’t too cold. However, I didn’t bring any long pants or a long-sleeved shirt for the cool evenings. Second mistake. Then the buffalo that the camp owns got out the first night which made the dogs go crazy. A fox was running around both nights - or so I was told - again, making the dogs go crazy. And the second night I woke up in the middle of the night and realized that we are in the mountains, there are snakes in NM and the sleeping bags offer warmth. Not something that is conducive to a good night’s sleep. I didn’t see any snakes, I’m not particularly afraid of snakes - I just don’t like sharing my sleeping bag with one.

Friday night there was a square dance which we participated in. The caller taught us a lot of different dances. I haven’t square danced for a long time - I’d forgotten it’s a lot of work. And a lot of fun. Although half the fun was watching others dance.

Saturday morning the girls and I went for a walk. We couldn’t find any trails but we found a dirt road. We ended up walking for an hour. Even in the morning it was hot.

While the girls went swimming after the walk, I joined some of the youth (and adults) in the ropes course. I’ve never done a ropes course before. Bill, the Camp Manager, used each experience to teach about Christ and how the ropes course applied to our everyday lives. It was fun and a great learning experience. We had to move everyone from platform to another one with one in between. We couldn’t jump but we did have 2 boards to use. However, nothing could touch the ground, including the boards. We thought it would only take a few minutes. It took us over 20. That was a humbling experience. The next section was a rope web which we had to go through without touching the rope. And we couldn’t reuse a hole once it had been used. We did that in about 15 minutes.

The last 2 sections involved climbing Ponderosa Pines using metal “steps”, climbing on a platform and then either crossing a suspended log or wire to another tree. I forgot to take pictures of the ropes course when I was done - or rather I was too tired to remember. I looked up Ponderosa Pines to see how high I had climbed and found a generic picture. The average Ponderosa in the southwest grows about 50 meters - that’s roughly 163 feet. I climbed about ¾ of the way up. Twice. I am not in good shape and being in the mountains doesn’t help with breathing. Getting up the tree was definitely the hardest part besides trying to climb on top of a platform that you’re underneath. Crossing the suspended log and then rappelling down was fun. I didn’t think I could do the 2^nd tree but Bill encouraged me to take it slow and rest when I needed to. I made the climb, crossed the wire - there were ropes tied from a 2^nd wire above to use as a “handrail” and climbed onto a 2^nd platform. From there it was a short zip line down. The 2^nd tree about did me in. I was slightly dehydrated before I even started. Third mistake. When I got down I was bruised, scratched and covered in sap. Silly me - I wore shorts since I didn’t have any long pants. Fourth mistake. I did learn that Ponderosa Pines smell like vanilla though.

After all of that I didn’t even get a s’more. Is it really camping if you don’t eat s’mores? But I did have fun!

peace