Van Horn, Tx. (Pop. 1,683)

Our mission today was to get to Carlsbad Caverns. We had tickets for 12:30 and about two hours to get there. We decided to do what we do best: find a coffee shop and relax. And that’s exactly what we did! We discovered the Blue House Coffee Shop. When we arrived, we noticed the line was out the door—but the other door. So, we left and joined the end of the line. Slowly but surely, the line moved, and soon we were fourth in line.

During our wait, several people passed by, saying, "Excuse me," as they cut through the line to pick up their drinks. The barista also came out at one point, excused herself, and squeezed through the line to check whether the air pots needed refilling. A boy’s name was called, and he darted through the line to grab his two drinks. When my turn came, I ordered a feta and spinach croissant (warmed up, please) and two hot drinks. After a moment, my name was called for the croissant. I had to navigate through the line to retrieve it, only to repeat the same process a few minutes later for our drinks. It was probably the most inefficient ordering/pickup system I’ve ever seen. To be fair, the limited space made it challenging to organize. Still, as I watched the chaos, I thought to myself, Give me five minutes, and I’ll streamline this process. I bit my tongue, though, and we enjoyed our drinks and croissant.

We headed to the caverns and arrived early, hoping we could get in ahead of schedule, but we couldn’t. So, we returned to the PLUM, had some lunch, and took naps. Being recently retired, naps are mandatory. At 12:30, we headed back to check in for our descent into the depths of the earth. We planned to walk down and take the elevator back up.

At the entrance, a young staff member asked if we were sure we wanted to walk down. When we confirmed, he warned us about how steep and lengthy the path was, explaining that most wheelchair assistance requests come from people attempting the descent. Once more, he asked, “Are you sure?” With a touch of amusement, we replied, Yes, sonny, we want to take the walk. Nodding, he unclipped the cord to let us through. Kids!

The hike was 1.25 miles of steady descent—800 feet down. The trail was well-maintained, beginning outside before heading into the cave. I kept my sunglasses on without giving it much thought until we entered the dimly lit cave. Although the path was illuminated, it seemed quite dark to me. Here’s a tidbit about myself: I’m a bit claustrophobic. When spaces feel too tight or too dark, I sometimes start to feel as if I’m suffocating. While I’m not extremely claustrophobic, I have had my moments. I began to wonder if I’d made a mistake venturing into the caverns. Then it hit me—I still had my sunglasses on. The instant I removed them, I felt much better.

We continued down the path, taking in the impressive sights, and were glad we had opted for the walk. The doubting young staff member should have given us more credit—we handled it just fine. Of course, we took the elevator back up. We’re adventurous, not foolish.

We briefly considered staying to watch the bats emerge from the cavern, but I didn’t want to leave too late, and Dana wasn’t particularly keen on watching bats. So, we left and headed south. On the way, we stopped for a short hike at Guadalupe Mountains National Park. It was conveniently on our route and offered a rugged sort of Western beauty.

As I was driving through the barren western region, I was reminded of some of the old country western music I used to listen to. I found some of that genre on Spotify and listened for about 45 minutes. I was reminded of how much I dislike that music. I think I’ve had my fix for the next 50 years. :)

We arrived in Van Horn around 5:00 p.m., ate at a Mexican restaurant, and parked at a Pilot Travel Center for the night. By the time we’re back home, we might need the sound of traffic for our white noise.

The air tonight is cool, and tomorrow is expected to be cooler than the past few days. We’ll be heading to Terlingua tomorrow. We’ve rented a room just outside Big Bend National Park and plan to explore the area on Wednesday.

“It’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice.” —John TempletonLeer más