Chad Thomas

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.

Link to the trails page: Guadalupe Mountains Trails

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

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

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

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

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