The first week of November I went on a camping/hiking trip with my
friend Nathan. We traveled to Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Carlsbad Caverns National Park
and Big Bend National Park.
We left at 5:00 AM Monday, November 1st from my place and headed west.
We pulled into Guadalupe Mountains National Park at 11:30 AM, but we gained an hour since we
went into Mountain Time. We setup camp which is where I found that my 20 plus year old North
Face tent rain fly has deteriorated to the point it was not useable. I ended up throwing the fly
away and used an extra tent Nathan brought along. The air bed I brought along did not work that
well either and I ended up using a spare that Nathan had. I was in his debt for his foresight to
bring extra equipment. As I thought mine was up to par, but was not.
After we finished setting up camp we went on our first hike on a trail
called Devil's Hall trail. It was not a tough hike, but another hiker we passed along the way
said that the recent flooding has actually caused it to be more difficult than it used to be.
When Nathan and I got to the stopping point, I noticed my boots, Asolo hiking boots, were
falling apart. The soles were coming off and only attached at the heel and toe, which was
actually lucky. We made it back to camp and tried to figure out what to do with my boots. I
tried on Nathan's extra shoes, but they were too small. I did not want to duct tape them either,
so we drove the 50 miles to Carlsbad, New Mexico and luckily found a local sporting goods store
that had some boots. $55 later and I was good to go.
The next morning we began our trek up Guadalupe Peak trail. This was
Tuesday, the 2nd of November. We started at just after 7:15 AM local Mountain time. I'm not sure
what I was expecting, but the climb to the top took a lot out of me. I did not think I would
need to top off my hydration pack, which was a mistake because I ran out of water. We were the
first ones on the trail, but we got passed about three quarters of the way up by two groups.
That was because of me and all of the resting we had to do. The elevation took a lot out of me.
Although, it was not a race, so it did not matter. We reached the top just before 11:30 AM. We
stayed at the top for an hour and had lunch and rested. The trip down was fairly easy, but I did
mention to Nathan I did not think I could do another trail like this one again so soon. It took
us just over two hours to reach the bottom. Passing numerous people on the way down who were
heading to the top. We got back to our campsite and rested for an hour. Later, after resting we
drove out from the park and down towards the highway. We found our way via back roads to the
Salt Basin Dunes. The road to get there was gravel and bumpy and parts of it looks sketchy, but
it was worth the drive just to see the different area. We got in some good pictures then headed
back to the campsite to cook dinner. We went to bed and woke up to a cold and cloudy day.
On Wednesday, Nathan said we should do an easy day and since there was
cloud cover the entire day in the mountains, we drove over to Carlsbad Caverns and toured the
Caverns. That was another great experience. We walked down from the top through the cave
opening. They said it was a 75 floor decent, but there were no stairs. Just steep declined
walkways. Walking around the caverns was just awesome. So many cool geological sights to take
in. After we left there we stopped by the Frijole Ranch trailhead and hiked the Smith Spring
trail. It was a bit on the cool side, but once we got to hiking, it was not so bad. We say the
natural spring and it was amazing. Nathan and I were the only people there. With the cloud cover
it was quiet, so the spring noise was very relaxing to hear. We finished that hike and went back
to camp. It was getting colder and rainier as the day progressed. We sat in the truck most of
the day before making sandwiches and going to bed slightly early. It got cold that night, but
the rain and clouds cleared for the next day.
Thursday, November 4th, Nathan and I drove over to McKittrick Canyon
trailhead. We had to wait in line behind 6 other cars as this trail is only open from 8:00 AM to
4:30 PM daily. It was quite a drive to get to the trailhead building, I think almost 6 miles. We
got ready and headed out. It was cool to start, but quickly changed as we got warm from hiking
and had the sun on us. We took the McKittrick Canyon trail. Three miles in we arrived at the
Pratt Lodge. This was a house/cabin built out there which was amazing. Then we hiked another
mile in further and went to a place called the Grotto. It was a geological formation that would
probably look like something from Carlsbad Caverns if it had not been exposed to the open air.
We rested for a few minutes, then doubled back about a quarter mile and then hiked up the
mountain to a place called the Notch. This place was astounding. The view from the Notch showed
both sides of the canyon and was breathtaking. We got in a lot of pictures and headed back down.
We passed two other groups on the way up and a park ranger that was heading that way too. We
assumed the ranger was heading up there to make sure to tell people to head back since the park
closes at 4:30 PM. We hiked back to the Grotto and had lunch. While eating we took off our shoes
and socks to let our feet rest for a bit. After eating, we hiked back to the trailhead center
and drove back to our campsite. Nathan said he wanted to change plans and take me out to Big
Bend and show me around there. To do this, we had to leave early Friday morning so we could get
to Big Bend at a decent time.
Friday morning Nathan and I broke down camp and packed up the truck and
left by 6:00 or 7:00 AM. We drove to Big Bend and he took me on a whirlwind tour of the places
he thought I would like to see. I honestly do not remember all of the places we went to, but
they were all stunning. Big Bend is just amazing and I feel I will go back there again. We went
on three quick hikes, all were mile or less hikes. We drove from one end of the park to the
other showing me everything he could think of. Around 7:00 PM we made it over to our campsite
and setup. It did not get as cold as the other nights at Guadalupe Mountains, but my down mummy
sleeping back did its job of keeping me warm.
Saturday we packed up and headed home. Nathan did take me by the
dinosaur exhibit at Big Bend which was worth it to see. We did the 8 hour drive back home. Once
I got unpacked, I took a shower, which was the best feeling after going 5 days without one. Then
I sat back and watched some TV before going to bed early.
I took over 1500 pictures and 6 short videos with my phone. After they
images were uploaded to the cloud, Google created over 50 panoramic images from my images. The
trip was amazing and I hope that I can do it again. Next time, I will have to invest in a lot of
new equipment for the camping part. The cost will be well worth in my opinion.
Nathan made a video of our hike to the top of Guadalupe Peak.
Nathan also made a video of the Smith Spring hike
Nathan took
this picture of me at Balance Rock.
Me at the Balance Rock - November 5th,
2021 Big Bend National Park
Here are a few of the pictures I took during the
trip.
Along the trail to Devil's Hall
- November 1st, 2021 Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Along the trail to Devil's Hall
- November 1st, 2021 Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Devil's Hall - November 1st,
2021 Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Sunrise from the campsite -
November 2nd, 2021 Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Panoramic view from the trail -
November 2nd, 2021 Guadalupe Peak Mountain
An early-ish morning view from
the trail - November 2nd, 2021 Guadalupe Peak Mountain
View from the trail - November
2nd, 2021 Guadalupe Peak Mountain
Wood bridge along the trail to
the peak - November 2nd, 2021 Guadalupe Peak Mountain
The certified monument at the
top of the mountain - November 2nd, 2021 Guadalupe Peak
Mountain
Cave entrance down to the
caverns - November 3rd, 2021 Carlsbad Caverns National
Park
Carlsbad Caverns - November 3rd,
2021
Carlsbad Caverns - November 3rd,
2021
Carlsbad Caverns - November 3rd,
2021
Smith Spring trail - November
3rd, 2021 - Guadalupe Mountains Park Frijole Ranch
The natural spring on the Smith
Spring trail - November 3rd, 2021 - Guadalupe Mountains Park
Frijole Ranch
McKittrick Canyon - November
4th, 2021
McKittrick Canyon - November
4th, 2021
Pratt Lodge at McKittrick Canyon
- November 4th, 2021
The Grotto at McKittrick Canyon
- November 4th, 2021
McKittrick Canyon - November
4th, 2021
From the Notch at McKittrick
Canyon Trail - November 4th, 2021
Sunset from our campsite at
Guadalupe Mountains National Park - November 4th, 2021
Big Bend National Park -
November 5th, 2021
Big Bend National Park -
November 5th, 2021
Balance rock Big Bend National
Park - November 5th, 2021
One of the tinaja's that Nathan
showed me - November 5th, 2021 Big Bend National Park
Me next to a dinosaur bone -
November 6th, 2021 Big Bend National Park
Since I keep seeing my "friend" from Ashburn, VA and Canada keeps coming to the
site,
I figured I would update them on what's going on.
I traveled to Elkhorn, Nebraska for my niece's
graduation party. I saw my
immediate family and caught up with my best friend. My brother took me to his new house and showed me
around. My sister and brother-in-law took me to their weekend campsite they own. I had lunch with my best
friend and we could have talked the rest of the day and probably on into the night.
After getting back, the light fixture in my dining room broke and almost
crashed to the table. I was able to take it down before that happened. The parts I ordered back in March for
my car finally arrived. A new Yperion titanium oil
filler cap and titanium strut towner nuts. Before my trip, I put
the VS Forged wheels back on my car along with the titanium lug
nuts. It looks fantastic.
This weekend I was productive. I put a new ceiling box up in the dining
room since the old one fell apart from being put up rather shitty. It was cracked and the mounting part came
apart. Two separate shipments from Amazon came into today as well. A ceiling fan for my office and a new
sputnik light fixture for the dining room. Only
two extra trips to Home Depot were involved after getting
the ceiling box.
Tomorrow I may do some yard work. I added grass seed to the front yard,
which is taking and looking better. The freak snow storm earlier in the year looks to have killed the bushes
I have in front of my house. I may need to cut those out.
The Elkhorn
water tower from my parent's house
My sister,
brother-in-law and myself riding in their golf cart at their campground
My best
friend Mary Beth and myself getting a selfie together. I am so glad I got to see and talk to
her
A not so
great shot of my car
Yperion
Titanium oil filler cap
A shot of
the titanium strut tower nut (rainbow color) next to the OEM strut tower nuts. They not only
look good, but I saved ounces of weight. OUNCES!
The busted
ceiling box after I took down the light fixture.
The light
fixture that almost crashed on the table
The inside
of the ceiling to show the mounting area broke. It was just barely holding together as I
took it down.
Another
shot of the broken ceiling box
The new
ceiling box. This was a pain in the ass to install. I had to zip tie the mounting bracket so
it would not move or fall off as I tried to put the screws in
For some
reason the ceiling fan showed up before the dining room light fixture. I installed it and
now my office is so much cooler to be in. This fan has a remote which is convenient
My new sputnik light fixture. Not as fancy as the previous fixture, but it works for me
There was a car show at the local airport Saturday, March 6th. It was
called "Stephanie Nichols' 10th Annual Car & Vintage Plane Show-Georgetown Airport".
I had thought about entering my car, but I just do not think anyone would
care to see a Lexus, so I did not enter. I did wash my car because it was dirty. I feel good about getting
my car cleaned up. It looks fantastic now. I did not take pictures of my car, but I got a few of cars at the
show I found interesting.
1924 Cadillac
1932 Ford(?) with a supercharged hemi engine
Camaro drag car with a huge supercharger
Two 1940/41 Willys coupes next to each other. I
love Willys coupes. My dad has one. His looked similar to the black one.
The gigantic brakes on a Porsche GT3 RS
Another Willys, but this one is pretty much a
show car. It has a big engine, but has a fake fuel injection system on top of the carburetor. I
just shook my head. I think the fender well exhaust was fake too. It did not have any signs of
use. Also, under the fender where the exhaust comes out, you can kind of see it looks fake.
Lamborghini Mira, 1970, I think. This is
something I have never seen before in person.
Two cars I have not seen in person again. The
Panoz Esperante and a Morgan Area coupe.
The last couple of weeks have been busy and crazy. Work has been busy with
a project that is coming to an end. I finally got word on how an API from our CRM works so that I can
actually use it. Then there was the weather. The last ten days have been cold and either rain, ice or snow
or a combination of all three. The temperatures were the lowest I have seen since moving to Texas in 2005. I
left Nebraska in January of 2005 and it was below zero. I arrived in Georgetown and it was 50-ish degrees. I
honestly never would have thought the temperature would get as low as it did. Plus all of the snow and ice.
There was snow on the ground for seven days. I was fortunate enough that I did not lose power or water for
any amount of time. I am super thankful for that. This whole mess has made realize how unprepared we as a
society are for natural disasters. I am going to prepare a little bit in the coming months. I'm not going
full on "prepper", but I am going to get some basic things to have on hand. On a different note, I received
the front rigid collar parts from Japan before the bad weather hit. I'm going to wait to buy more parts to
see if there is anything that pops up from this bad weather that needs repairs.
Taken from my
office window at 2:15 AM, Monday February 15th, 2021. It may be the phone camera, but it felt
like there was a lot of light outside for it being the middle of the night. It is what caused me
to wake up. My room was bright from the snow.
Taken from my
office window at 2:15 AM, Monday February 15th, 2021.
A snowdrift
outside my front door. I think there was an average of 4 inches of snow that fell in the
area.
A field near my
house that is frozen. I snapped this pic after taking Gaby to school
Icicles on the
pergola in my backyard. This was the start of the freezing
Spoon Rigid
Collars from RHD Japan for the front of my Lexus RC F
