Hail to thee, Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Stephen Mather, Horace Albright and to the marketing genius of Ansel Adams, among others, for kickstarting the National Parks program. What gems there are in our crown of National Parks. I had seen many of the trip West and continue to do as many as feasible. How lucky we are to claim more than 400 national parks (84 million acres). And then there are State Parks. I bought a Senior Park Pass and it makes coming and going very easy.
Such was the case for the White Sands National Park. A hotel guy said they were pretty cool and it was
not out of the way so we went. It was pretty cool. In some areas it looked so much like snow (and it was in the high 30's) that folks bought saucer sleds at the gift shop and were sledding! It was interesting to see the landscape change so dramatically. See for
And then of course we have seen Arches and Zion and Bryce Canyon and Kodachrome and...
Good Lord I have seen a lot of sights, amazing! I have traveled over 9,000 miles, probably heading to 10,000 and I am so grateful to have had this opportunity.
The most recent park notched on my cane is Carlsbad Caverns. I had to delay my trip a couple days as they were closed for some interior lighting repair but I went on February 1 and was so satisfied that I don't think I will have to do another cave ever. It is staggering and I didn't even do the self guided loop. If you go, do a tour and then plan another hour and a half on either end for the grand self guided walk. I was a little nervous at first but it is so awe inspiring you forget how far underground you are. You really do. Gina was waiting in the car for me and it was cold and damp so I didn't want to leave her too long. Of course she was fine, she just took a nap! Here are some pictures of the park outside that morning and then the caves inside.
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