Reflections and Anticipation

Ted. When I retired six years ago to hit the road with Judy, I wrote a blog post listing eight goals for retirement: 

1. Drink more water

2. Eat more healthy food

3. Exercise more

4. Learn more about my electronic devices

5. Learn more Spanish

6. See more live music and theatre

7. Volunteer more

8. Listen more

To date, I'd grade myself about a “B-." Interestingly, my goals haven’t really changed. 

In some ways (war, pandemic, loud politics) the world has changed, but in many ways it has remained the same for eons. During the past six years, Judy and I have traveled over 200,000 miles, visiting lots of countries, and parts of our own for the very first time (and, no, we are not ready to settle down). As we've tried to illustrate in 370 blog posts, this is truly an amazing planet filled with fascinating people. 

Here's a bit from a post in January of 2017:

“And what is my greatest expectation? Making the acquaintance of wonderful people all over the world and enjoying unexpected rendezvous with friends and family!”

That dream has certainly come true! 

What’s in store for 2023? We will be traveling a bit slower and learning more about places we know and love; first New Zealand and Australia and then Europe in the fall. Lots of rendezvous are being scheduled for which I will permit myself to temporarily replace my water consumption with wine. And, as always, we will find time to hang out with grandsons! 

Judy and I wish you joy and good health in the coming year.

Home for the holidays

Ted. It’s been about three weeks since Judy and I drove from Las Cruces, New Mexico back to Athens, Georgia in our good old reliable truck, Raymond. We will settle in here for three months to enjoy my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving as well as Christmas and New Years Day. We also have a couple of birthdays to celebrate. 

Folks have asked us if it is good to be home and that has caused me to think hard about what home means to me now. As nomads, we typically think that home is wherever we hang our hats. 

Is home just a place where we feel, safe, secure and relaxed? That usually happens to us after just a week or two. If we know our neighborhood and how to get around, we’re good. We have figured out ways to get to know local folks pretty quickly and enjoy making new acquaintances. 

So does that mean we are “home?” I searched the internet for a good definition of home and found one at the website for Habitat for Humanity, a non-profit organization for which Judy and I have volunteered for many years. When first time homeowners are asked what a home means to them, the responses are wonderful. Here’s my favorite: 

    “I think that home is simply wherever you’re surrounded by people who         love you.”             - Mary Kate

The Organ Mountains

Ted. Many towns in the American West rest hard up against an iconic mountain range. In Las Cruces, that would be the Organs.

Las Cruces backed by the Organ Mountains

Lying 10 miles to the east of Las Cruces, this range is only about 12 miles long and the tallest peak is just 8,900 feet high. Yet, their distinctive pipe organ like appearance dominates the surrounding area. Much of the range was protected in 2014 as the Organ Mountains – Desert Peaks National Monument. 

The Organs run north to south and divide the Rio Grande Valley from the Tullarosa Basin. Most of the moisture in the area comes from the late summer monsoon, which rolls in from the east. Thus the eastern slope is a bit greener. This has been an unusual year with lots of fall rain so the modest little waterfalls, even on the western slope, are still flowing. 

We have enjoyed several hikes into these mountains and they will hold an outsized chunk of our memory of Las Cruces. I’ll share a few snapshots.

Judy with our buddy Jeff

Sunset over Tullarosa Basin

White Sands National Park

Ted. One morning, Judy and I drove 40 miles east of Las Cruces, over San Augustin Pass into Tularosa Basin to see the famous white sands. 

Most of the basin is controlled by the military. The national park is surrounded by Holloman Air Force Base and White Sands Missile Range. About 40% of the sand dunes were protected as a national monument in 1933, and those 228 square miles became a national park in 2019. 

Formed about 1,000 years ago, the dunes are not your typical silica sand. The intense white crystals are actually gypsum which is a soft mineral known to most of us as the main ingredient in plaster and sheetrock. Interestingly, we learned that the dunes are actually expanding.

 Entering the dune area one experiences something akin to snow blindness. Leaving our truck to walk a trail through the dunes did not get any easier on the eyes.

The road through the dunes

What we experienced was much like cross-country skiing; a world of white with a stark blue sky. We sometimes walked along the tops of dunes but occasionally dipped down into the valleys, which is where the plants and animals cling to life. Unfortunately, the only wildlife we saw on our visit was children sledding down the dunes.

We have visited Great Sand Dunes NP in Colorado and Erg Chebbi in Morocco. Those dunes are formed from normal sand which may explain why they are much taller - up to 750' tall versus 60' maximum in White Sands. Still, these white, white sands are unlike anything we have ever seen before and we were very happy that we took the opportunity.

Climbing a dune

Trail markers are important

Life finds a way!

Time to head south

Ted. Santa Fe lies 7,200 feet above sea level so the temperature drops noticeably when the sun goes down. Judy and I knew that by the middle of October it would get just a tad cool for us so we had made plans to spend the last three weeks of October about 300 miles south in the town of Las Cruces. 

Before we left the northern part of New Mexico we had a few more things to see. 

Entrance of Museum of Indian Arts & Culture

Courtyard of New Mexico Museum of Art

Segesser hide painting in NM History Museum

Don Pedro de Peralta, founder of Santa Fe

Santuario de Guadalupe

New Mexico state capitol

Aspen hillside

Santuario de Chimayo

Ruined church in Salinas Missions Nat'l Monument

Kiva wall painting Kuaua Pueblo

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

Texas Brown Tarantula

Las Cruces lies in the Rio Grande Valley, about 50 miles from where the states of New Mexico, Texas meet the country of Mexico. The elevation is 3,900 feet and the town is surrounded by the Chihuahuan Desert – the largest desert in North America. Sitting right along the old Camino Real Trail from Santa Fe to Mexico City, we knew there would be a lot more history to learn. We also looked forward to spotting more creatures on our hikes in the desert.