We drove south from Las Cruces to sprawling El Paso and then weaved our way back into New Mexico for our last hurrah.
The day’s Texas highlight was Guadalupe Mountains National Park, but it was too late in the day to do more than a short hike.
The mountains are actually a fossil reef from the Permian Era. We watched the Park video, which showcased the park’s highlights, whetting our appetites for a future visit.
We stayed in Carlsbad and in the morning went to visit Carlsbad Caverns. The elevator was closed for maintenance, so the only way to see the caves was to hike down 79 stories, explore the cave, and then hike back up 79 stories. Well worth it! One wonder gave way to the next and the array of speleothems continued to amaze as we passed from one “room” to another. 
And then back to Texas. We had one of our longer travel days to get to Fort Worth, but we were lucky to miss most of the high winds and torrential rains. We parked the rig in Burleson, but spent most our time visiting with Dick and Sue Roche. They treated us to a lovely home cooked meal, we went to the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, their kids joined us at the RAHR Brewery, and we had a tasty repast at the Spiral Diner.
And then off to Austin. Actually we’re staying in New Braunfels about 45 miles away — as close to Austin as we could get, due to South by Southwest and spring break crowds. Tonight we’re enjoying a quiet, rainy evening at home.
It looks like the Carlsbad Caverns would be something to put on our list of places to visit!
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