Souvenirs From The Road: Balmorhea State Park and White Sands National Monument

May 2, Day 2, found us heading west across Texas to Balmorhea State Park. Leaving Fentress we took a different route to avoid San Antonio and it's traffic jams. We headed toward Fredericksburg and drove Hwy 290, which was such a peaceful, beautiful drive. No more bluebonnets and Indian paintbrushes, but many other beautiful wildflowers. 413 miles and 7 1/2 hours later here we are at Balmorhea State Park.

If you aren't familiar with this park, it is home to the world's largest springfed swimming pool! It was about 95 when we got set up in the park. Our first destination was going for a little swim. It was pretty cool water, a little slick on the bottom, and lots of little fishes checking us out. The perfect fun time to celebrate a long drive. One end of the pool is 20’, making it an excellent place to go scuba diving. The 74 degree water temperature felt really good. Here are some pictures of us having a cool, relaxing time.

There is always lots of birds to watch here. They love the cienegas (desert wetlands) that are home to endangered fish and other wildlife.

We were treated to an awesome sunset and enjoyed a little norther' blow in that night.

May 3, Day 3, was a shorter drive day as we headed to Oliver Lee Memorial State Park in New Mexico. We took the detour off of I-10 so we could stop at White Sands National Monument. (So important to get our passport books stamped but unfortunately the office was closed when we got there. Boo.) This park is south of Alamogordo, perched on the side of the mountains at an elevation of 4300 feet. Oliver Lee in the late 1800s brought his livestock from Texas and established his ranch headquarters here in 1893. He was partner in the largest cattle operation, from Cloudcroft NM to El Paso TX until the 1920s when it dissolved. He was active in politics. This park commemorates his life and times.

Another important person in this area was Francois-Jean “Frenchy” Rochas, born in 1843 and emigrated into New Mexico. He homesteaded here at the mouth of Dog Canyon raising cattle and cultivating an orchard and vineyard on the park site. We enjoyed a half mile nature hike exploring the mouth of Dog Canyon.

After a wonderful dinner of fresh caught Texas gulf shrimp and redfish, we headed towards White Sands National Monument for a sunset fun time. These shimmery white sand dunes are located in the Tularosa Basin in the Chihuahuan Desert and cover 275 square miles, making them the largest gypsum dunefield in the world. The white gypsum sand was so cool which surprised us since it was such a warm sunny day. It brought out the kid side in all of us. Had a lot of fun making sand angels, running down the dunes, and just enjoying life and a beautiful sunset.