Finding the Middle of Nowhere, Part 1

It took us ten days on the road to find the middle of nowhere!  There were many times on the journey I thought we found it but it wasn't until Saturday that I concluded we really were...finally... in the middle of nowhere.  The trip this summer was planned to avoid the crowds and see some of America's less frequented National Parks.  We read and heard that many of the parks are very crowded now that people feel a bit more free to roam the planet.  Except to Canada, which we are still not free to roam into.  No hard feelings...well...almost none.  I miss it, but instead of sitting around missing it, we are enjoying the middle of nowhere, avoiding the crowds and giving some of the other parks a little love.

Sunset on the first night of the road trip, in Fredericksburg, TX.
Not the middle of nowhere yet!

Our first park was Big Bend National Park.  You may have heard, Texas is very large!  We feel like we drove through most of it to get to Big Bend!  After driving many miles on the flat west Texas highways the flat rocky desert gradually changes to a hilly desert with mountains in the distance.  It is like you are in a different state!  We enjoyed getting to know the small town of Alpine which was where we stayed.  Alpine is full of murals!  They are little surprises around every corner.

The murals of Alpine!  
Worth checking out, even if it is almost 100 degrees.
Yes, that is Hoss from Bonanza who is from Alpine.

We explored Big Bend and just had to do the most iconic hike to see one of the most recognized scenes in the park.  TJ rode his bike up and down the steep hills while the rest of us drove to the canyon and hiked to the Rio Grande River.  We saw Mexico, across the water, several different places in the park.  After driving to the three main areas closest to us, we decided we should definitely come back, when it is cooler outside!  The crowds were...minimal.  Nobody else is crazy enough to visit a park in south Texas in the summer.

At least it is a dry heat....🥵

Just a short hike from here....

To here!  Mexico on the left, USA on the right.

After a few very warm days in south Texas we headed north, expecting to escape the heat.  The best way to escape the heat is to go deep into a cave!  Carlsbad Caverns National Park is another, out of the way, park.  We saw that reservations were required to enter the caverns and they were sold out online for the day we were there.  TJ, being TJ, decided to just go get in the very short line with his Senior park pass and try his luck.  Lucky for me...he is a lucky guy!  We were given a ticket to enter and in a matter of minutes we were taking the elevator down 750 feet to the caverns.  No hiking down for us, we were on a schedule and only had a short time to explore.   Ahhh, nice and cool down there.  I am so glad we took a chance, it was amazing!  I wondered if I would feel claustrophobic in the caves but upon entry I realized there was no way it would be a problem.  It was like entering a gigantic cathedral that went on for a mile!  The lighting inside was perfect and highlighted the formations beautifully.  I was surprised how much I enjoyed this place.

I love how the two on the right side are just about touching, after hundreds of years!

Photos will never do this place justice, just go and see it for yourself!

 

After five days on the road and some pretty impressive parks it was time for a break from the trails and the oppressive heat.  Time to join civilization for a couple of days.  Santa Fe is a perfect mix of civilization and still a bit wild.  We enjoyed eating out at nice restaurants, walking the streets and looking at the galleries, visiting a church or two and playing a round of golf.  Playing golf on a road trip feels like a touch of home, since I spend at least two to three days a week on the golf course at home.  It is a familiar environment and an exercise my muscles are familiar with as opposed to hiking on steep trails.  We enjoyed our little civilized break.

To quote on of my sisters-in-law....
"I feel like letting my arms go!"

I had the same feeling here.
Gotta love air conditioned golf!

After a short break in Santa Fe, we headed north to find The Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.  Sorry to admit, a park I had not heard of until a few weeks ago.  Our original plan was to spend the next three days in Moab exploring Arches and Canyonlands.  After hearing how overcrowded the parks were this summer and how Arches closed for part of each day due to capacity crowds, our friend Roberto, refigured the route.  Sticking with our "less visited parks" theme we diverted to Montrose, Colorado and Black Canyon.  

To get to Black Canyon from Santa Fe, we passed through Durango, Co. and had lunch with a good friend of our son.  We had to stop!  What are the chances we will pass this way again?  After lunch, we drove The Million Dollar Highway to Montrose, Co.  There are many legends as to why it is called the Million Dollar Highway ranging from one vertigo challenged man saying he would not travel that road again for a million dollars to the legend that when it was built in the 1930's they used gravel left over from nearby gold and silver mines only to discover later that it was rich in ore and very valuable.  TJ agrees with the first legend wholeheartedly!  He drove the first five miles and I had to pry his clenched fists off the steering wheel and guide him safely to the passenger seat while I drove the remaining 80 miles of switchbacks up and down the peaks of the San Juan mountains through the San Juan National Forest.  It is a stunning drive but not for the faint of heart!

Not for the vertigo challenged!

Turns out Black Canyon of the Gunnison is one beautiful park!  TJ, again, decided it would be best explored riding his bike.  For whatever reason, cliffs and switchbacks do not bother him as much on the bike as they do in the car.  The rest of us, again, drove to the end of the park, hiked up and down the trail to get the big view and then pulled over at every lookout on our way down.  I had no idea what to expect from this park and am so glad we put it on our itinerary!  The canyon is deep and dark and surrounded by mesas and mountains.  

We also stayed in one of the most unique accommodations of the trip while in Montrose.  We had 2 rooms in the Old School House Lodge in Montrose.  An  interesting communal experience.  We joked that it had the makings of one of those novels like, "Nine Perfect Strangers" or "The Woman in Cabin 10".  There were the two couples traveling together (us), the guy riding a dirt bike from coast to coast, the young couple who had been in town for a month and were heading back to real life the next day, the mother and her twenty-something son who was taking a break from work, the couple no one ever saw and the woman who lived downstairs.  All the makings of a good novel!  The place is amazing and we loved meeting the other travelers!

Breakfast on the porch in the cool, fresh air!
Perfect!

Glad I have these groovy hiking shoes!
Painted Wall

We enjoyed our time in Montrose very much!  A two night stay makes a big difference when you are on the road for over a week.  We also opted to do take-out while there.  After a year and a half of not eating out, we ate out most nights on the trip up to this point and believe it or not, it felt so good to just stay in.  We played cards after dinner and one night we played dominoes with our new friends, the young couple who had been in town for a month.  We all commented on the fact that last year we would not have sat together at a table with 4 other people we did not live with and play dominoes together.  We all happily thanked our vaccinations for giving us the freedom to really enjoy playing a game together with new friends.  Travel is much different this year than it was last year, and it is a good thing!

Stay tuned for Part 2 when we reach the middle of nowhere.