The Border, White Sands, Guadalupe & Carlsbad

The Border, White Sands, Guadalupe & Carlsbad

4/25, Thursday
We went to Prehistoric Trackways National Monument and discovered it was a BLM managed location with lots of OTV trails and just too rough for us, so we decided to leave without exploring.

Next we drove to El Paso to replace the camera battery charger that had stopped working. While in El Paso we visited the Chamizal National Memorial. This us a National Parks site commemorating the peaceful settlement of the Chamizal boundary (USA/Mexico) dispute. We talked to a park employee, Saul, at length about it, getting his perspective and learning about the border wall in El Paso. We also watched a good video documenting the dispute and resolution.

Mural on the outside of the Visitor Center. Presidents who have visited this site are featured, along with other historical figures.
Beautiful art piece inside the center.
The border – just outside the monument.

I asked Saul for a restaurant recommendation and we had some if the best tacos and chicken soup ever just down the street from the Memorial at Los Jarrones.

After lunch we went hunting for a new TV for the RV and found one at Camping World. We also picked up a more practical water hose, and joined the Good Sams Club for discounts. After that we drove to White Sands National Monument for sunset photos. We saw the Bleached Earless Lizard and a Western Kingbird.

4/26 Friday
IHOP for breakfast then on to San Andrea’s NWR for a stamp in our book.

We had a very peaceful picnic lunch at Guadalupe Mountains National Park, then hiked down to the ranch and natural spring-fed pond.

Next we drove to Carlsbad Caverns National Park, then explored a location along the cliffs there where Native Americans may have lived for awhile.