Beth in the Southwest

 Today was our last hike. Its hard to believe our week is coming to an end. It's been a great trip. Excellent trip leaders, a wonderful group of people to hike and travel with, beautiful scenery,  challenging hikes, delicious food. My first time in Texas and I got to visit three national parks.

Today we drove to Guadeloupe Mountains National Park to hike on the McKittrick Canyon Trail. It is a very beautiful trail. So different compared to Big Bend. We started high in the mountain where there is much more water. As a result, there are lots of trees including elms, pines and a tree with smooth orange bark called the Texas Madrone. 

The trail is fairly flat but very strenuous because the trail bed is mostly gravel and loose stone. It crosses several dry creeks and some flowing water.

Part way up is the Pratt Cabin which was built for Wallace Pratt in the 1930s. He was the founder of Humble Oil which became Exxon. The cabin is in a gorgeous setting and was actually very comfortable considering when it was built. They even had a diesel powered station to supply running water for the kitchen and bathrooms. 

After the hike  we returned to El Paso for our farewell dinner at a local Mexican restaurant.  Delicious!

Tomorrow we all fly home. 

Beth in the Southwest Day 6

 Today was a transition day.  We left Terlingua, Texas early in the morning to drive to Carlsbad, New Mexico. 

Along the way, we made several stops including a roadside art installation in Marfa, Texas that is a replica of a Prada shop. Social commentary I guess. And yes, the Audi is part of the installation.  

At lunchtime we stopped for a picnic at the historic Frijoles ranch in the Guadeloupe mountains.  It is a homestead that was settled by several families in the late 1800s and early 1900s. 

From there we drove to Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico.  We spent several hours walking the trails inside the caverns. The rock formations and the amount of space the caverns occupy are truly amazing.  

After that, pizza dinner and hotel. Tomorrow we will do a long hike in Guadeloupe Mountains National Park. It's hard to believe it will be our last hike. 

Beth in the Southwest: Day 5

 Today was our last day in Big Bend. We started with an easy hike on the Boquillas Canyon Trail. At the far end of the trail we got a great view of the Rio Grande and the mountains on either side of the border.  

From there, we went to the Boquillas border control station where we crossed into Mexico. At the river there was a "ferry" which was actually a flat bottom row boat that a man pulled across the river to bring us to the Mexican side.  The water is only about knee deep but has a rocky bottom so not great for crossing on foot. 

Once across, we walked into Boquillas del Carmen. It is a tiny and remote village that has made the most of their location to attract tourists visiting the Big Bend area.  A couple of restaurants,  very small schools, a church, a clinic and some private houses. Many of the residents set up tables outside their homes to sell trinkets,  handmade embroidered goods and stuffed toys.  With only one sandy road through town they are able to show their items to tourists passing through.  

We had a delicious lunch of red and green enchiladas,  tacos, beans and rice. We sat at an outside terrace facing the mountains and it was warm and sunny out so it was perfect. 

After we crossed back to the US, we stopped at the main visitors center for Big Bend at Panther Junction.  We saw a wonderful film about Big Bend. It was the best way to wrap up our visit to the park.

Our tour coordinator cooked dinner for us in Terlingua. Lasagna,  salad,  brownies, yum! 

Then back to the motel to pack because we go on to Carlsbad, New Mexico tomorrow. 

Beth in the Southwest: Day 4

 Today we got an early start and returned to Big Bend to hike the Lost Mine Trail. This is a challenging mountain hike starting over 5000 feet and finishing at almost 7000 feet.  The trail was originally designed by the CCC during the depression as a donkey or burro path. In those days ladies didn't hike and rode up the mountain instead.  Good thing that has changed! The trail was rocky at times and had lots of switchbacks.  The views were spectacular.  When we reached the top we had a picnic lunch before heading back down. 

Interestingly,  at the higher elevation there were many more trees and green plants than we had seen in the desert. 

After the hike we returned to Terlingua where we visited what is called the ghost town. In the early 20th century there was a mercury mine here. The ghost town is the ruins of the mine and buildings that were part of the mining community.  

In the ghost town is the Historic Starlight Theater. It was once an open air theater  but now it is  a restaurant and that is where we had our dinner.  I ate a mesquite smoked barbecue sandwich because Texas!!

On the way back from the Lost Mine trail we stopped at the visitor center. In the parking lot was this bird which turned out to be a roadrunner. Not exactly like the Looney Tunes version!

Beth in the Southwest: Day 3

 Today was our first hike inside Big Bend National Park. It is a very large park with a variety of trails. In the morning we did a desert trail of 4 miles called Mule Ears Trail. From the trail we could see mountains in the distance on all sides including two peaks that look just like the head of a mule. Our guides told us about the geography of the area and the history of the park. Before it was protected land, it was used for cattle drives from Mexico to the Midwest. Land in this area provided grazing space for the cattle which makes sense because there's so much land!

We saw lots of desert plants including creosote and old man's beard. In one section of the trail there is a small spring and we saw lots of ferns growing there. It was the only water anywhere near this trail. 

After a picnic lunch we went to Santa Elena Canyon for another hike. The canyon serves as the border between Mexico and the US at a very narrow section of the Rio Grande.  The rock formations were so tall and beautiful to look at. And, near the river we saw different plants than we had seen in the desert area including river cane which is an invasive species.  

We finished the day at a scenic overlook in the park followed by dinner at a local Mexican restaurant.  

Tomorrow we head to a different section of Big Bend for more hiking.

Beth in the Southwest: Day 2

 If I'm writing too much let me know and I'll condense. 

This morning we left El Paso to head toward Big Bend National  Park.  It is quite a distance so we made a stop at Fort Davis National Historic Site. This was an army fort in the mid to late 1800s. They have restored many of the buildings so we could see how the families lived while they were stationed there. We also saw a film about the fort and the Buffalo Soldiers who were also stationed there. 

We hiked 2.5 miles on the mountain behind the fort. It was challenging in some places. We got a great view from the top and saw some interesting plants along the way. Yucca, prickly pear, grey elm. 

Quick stop for dinner then more driving to Terlingua where we will stay for several nights. The area is known for the darkest sky in the lower 48 states. We had a quick stargazing party. Saw Jupiter and Saturn and several constellations. 

Hiking Big Bend tomorrow. 

Beth in the Southwest: El Paso Day 1

 First day in Texas. Since today was a free day for those of us who flew in a day early, a few of us decided to explore downtown El Paso. We started at the art museum. Part of the museum is under construction but we did get to see some interesting local art and also works by the students from the museum school.

Next, we road the streetcar (trolley) which makes two loops. One goes around uptown which is more suburban and the other goes around the historic district.  

After the streetcar, we stopped at a little Thai/Mexican restaurant called Lick It Up. Kind of a hipster place with delicious food. We think it is named after the Kiss album. 

Next we walked around the historic district looking at street art and eventually walking along El Paso street which is filled with small Mexican style shops and ends just before the border to Juarez. Luckily, we turned around before we had to show our passports haha. 

Tomorrow we leave bright and early  for Ft Davis National Historic Site then on to Terlingua near Big Bend. 

Last Day in Curaçao

 Tuesday morning, we met at breakfast before it was time to pack up our suitcases. After packing up our bags, Jen and I took a taxi to the blue curaçao distillery. Nicole, Andrea and Jasmin stayed back to go to the beach. Shawna left for the airport earlier than the rest of us for an earlier flight to Miami.

At the distillery, we learned about the history of the liqueur and got to walk the working distillery which was quite small. It all started with transplanted Valencia oranges not thriving in the curaçao climate and transforming their peels into liqueur. They started adding blue coloring later to honor the blue water along the island and to make more colorful drinks. We also learned that the Senior brand is the original blue curaçao, and they were unable to trademark/copyright the word Curaçao since it’s a country. They taught us how to check the bottle design to ensure you’re getting the real curaçao. 

We got to taste the blue curaçao, tamarind flavor, and chocolate curaçao. The tamarind was really good. I ordered a drink that was frozen strawberry and mango with tamarind curaçao. While we were enjoying our drinks we found out the tamarind flavor isn’t exported to the US, so we each bought a bottle to take home. 

After getting back to the hotel, it was on to the airport. Our flights went relatively smoothly. Customs in Miami was chaotic and unorganized but we got on our flight just in time.

Back to reality today. 

Monday in Curaçao

 Monday morning, we started with breakfast and then after getting ready, most of us took a taxi into the city nearby (it was maybe a 10 minute ride). Nicole and I wanted to visit the synagogue and we all wanted to do some shopping and exploring. 

The synagogue and Jewish museum were opening late for some reason so we wandered around the neighborhood until it opened. The neighborhood was super colorful and we got a few things before a snack break. We sat along the water and got to watch the bridge open and close for boats. We had heard about it but assumed it was a drawbridge like we have at home. Instead the whole bridge floats and it opens and closes horizontally, which was wild to see. 

Eventually, Nicole and I got to go to the Synagogue and Jewish museum. The temple was completed in 1732. It is the oldest surviving one in this hemisphere. The floor is completely covered with sand. The inside is not super ornate but I still beautiful. The museum guide explained to us that the sand was for 3 reasons: 1) to remind us of being in the desert and escaping Egypt. 2) to remind us of the quote from Genesis: I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. 3) To remind us of when Jews went underground after the Spanish Inquisition and put sand on the floor to muffle footsteps. The museum was small but had a lot of great artifacts and history.

After the museum, we met the girls back at the resort and spent the afternoon by the pool and beach. One of the landscapers was cutting down coconuts and opened them for us to drink from. 

For dinner, we went back to the Italian place and the food was better than what I ordered the first night. We had caprese, tomato soup, and linguine bolognese. After dinner, we hung around and listened to the music before going to bed. 

Sunday Funday

 Sunday morning, we woke up and had breakfast with our favorite waitress. We hung around the resort in the shade for a while until it was time for our boat adventure.

We got picked up from the dive shop at the edge of the resort and taken to a catamaran a few resorts down the beach. The deckhand, Layla set us up with snorkel gear and then we got on the catamaran driven by Luis. They took us to an area with a lot of fish and a sunken tug boat to snorkel. The water is so clear here. It was great to see fish I had only ever seen in aquariums before. We wore ourselves out and then got back on the boat to cruise around the area and see some private homes and landmarks. We had some snacks on board, and in general just hung out. 

After a few hours, we returned to the dock and they drove us down the street back to our hotel. We regrouped and got dinner at the seafood restaurant. We had a pretty low key night after being on the boat all day.