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Published: November 6th 2013
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Day 3 was the earliest morning yet. We wanted to get up early to catch the sunrise and the White Sand dunes. We actually thought we could get to dunes from the road but quickly found of that we HAD to go into the national park in order hike them. We also found out you could sled down the dunes as well so Meliss was able to spot some saucer sleds sitting outside the hotel lobby. Score. Off to the dunes.
Even though we realized we had to wait until 8am to get into the park, the trip up to the dunes was not lost. We still had the sunrise and all it's glory coming of the mountains and boy did it rise with a purpose. We stood and snapped pictures for about half an hour, capturing the gold and red glow light up the mountains and the clouds that hung overhead. The sun had done its job and now we had to return to town to get some breakfast while we waited for the park to open.
We found a small diner tucked next to a Denny's on the main strip and pulled in for our morning meal.
The pecan pancakes were good, but the menu and service stole the show. While Meliss chuckled and took pictures of the menu, I talked to the waitress about our trip across country. She grumbled how she wished she could come along and then said something that I couldn't make out. I was later informed that she stated she would just bring some peanut butter and we wouldn't even notice she was there. Awesome.
He headed out of there without our waitress and made our way to the White Sands National Monument. I honestly had no idea what to expect but I knew it would be a sight to see. I was right. Driving through the dunes we made a stop at the first trail. After bundling ourselves up and grabbing our saucers, we trekked up the white sand dune to see what was on the other side. What was there was more White sand, as far as the eye could see. Never seen anything like it. The sand was bright white and finer than any sand that I had ever put in my hand. What was even more amazing was the temperature of the sand. Cool to the touch,
even in the blazing sun.
We searched for the highest peak, the one for the best sledding. We picked one out and after reaching the top I took the first plunge. After a couple of pushed I slid down the hill, much like all the times back home in the snow. I reached a sudden stop at the bottom and my ass filled with sand, it was perfect. But much like back home, sledding in the snow, getting back to the top was the worst part. It took a lot of effort and because of the heat, made it not so much fun.
Meliss took her turn and her trip turned out much like mine, only she couldn't make it back to the top. So I rode down one more time so I could take pictures of her at the bottom. Should have taken a video. She made her way down but the saucer decided halfway that it didn't want to go any further. The only problem was that her body didn't get the message and she came crashing down to the bottom with a thud. Hilarious. At I got a picture mid-action.
We made our way
back to car and drove around the dunes for a while longer. We knew that we wanted to get to Carlsbad Caverns at a decent hour so we could get down to the caves today. So we departed the dunes but not before stopping at the gift shop. Good call Meliss, the dunes were awesome.
So we started the next leg of the day which was east to Carlsbad to hike down the caverns. We had to take route 82 to get there and what you don't know about that road is that there is nothing there. Besides winding through the mountains in the first few miles, the rest of the road was nothing but flat desert. Fortunately, this was a short leg today so it wasn't so bad. Plus, we saw a some bighorn sheep along the way.
We made it to Carlsbad a few hours later and wound our way down the seven mile road to the caves. Lucky for us we still had a few hours to explore the caves as they close down at 4:30. We made our way in and into the elevator where we descended 750 feet to the caves below. What
lay ahead was more stalagmites and stalactites that I'd thought I'd ever see in my life. It was a dim, cool underworld full of life and amazement. I wish we had more than few hours to explore but just like the Grand Canyon, these caves aren't going anywhere. We'll be back. Words can't do this place justice.
After taking our tour, we made our way back up to civilization, back to the mundane. We made our way back to Carlsbad where we attempted to find a place to stay. Not as easy as we thought. Places sold out everywhere but we worked our magic. Found a great place to eat and drank some green chili beer. All in all, the best day of the trip thus far by far. I know the rest of the trip will we great as we get to see friends and family that we haven't seen in years or have never met before. But this day is going to be hard to top so show us what you got friends and family, we're coming for you. Oh and West Sand Motel, sorry for cracking your saucer,. It was Meliss.
Oklahoma City tomorrow.
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