Snow Day.

I've seen so many unique places in the last few days, I have no idea where to begin. I guess I'll start with my snow day on my way to Las Cruses, New Mexico. Yes, you heard me correctly. I did say New Mexico. The elevation in this state changes so drastically that you can go from rain, to winter, to ninety degrees and sunny again all in a day's worth of driving. That's exactly what I did. I left Carlsbad in the morning and headed north towards Roswell. I figured I may as well see what all the alien fuss was about while I was in the area. The museum is small, I walked around it and read almost everything in about forty minutes. The information is displayed on poster boards then framed and hung along the walls like a high school science fair. Don't let that fool you though, the amount of research they've done on the subject is excessive, which makes sense since obviously nothing has been proven and speculation runs wild. After a brief tour of a galaxy far, far away, I headed west towards the Lincoln National Forest. I got about half way to Cloudcroft, a town on the side of a mountain, when I noticed flurries on my windshield. The scenery changed abruptly from trees of green to powdered with white and back again. Thinking I wasn't going to be able to hike or see any of the stops I had planned, I was shocked to make it to Cloudcroft and discover the snowstorm had left a winter wonderland behind, light jacket required. The trees were covered and looked like something out of a Dr. Seuss book and the old train trestle over the Mexican Canyon, the last remaining evidence of the cloud-climbing railroad, blended into the mountainside. Not even fifteen minutes farther into my drive, I passed through a tunnel that opened up to a lush and intricate landscape, not a snowflake in sight. I made it to Las Cruses later that night and was spoiled by my amazing host, Ernst. Myself and two other couch surfers were staying there for the evening and being a retired chef, Ernst treated us to a delicious dinner, dessert and all. Not that I needed it, but how could I say no to such a thoughtful and delicious gesture? I couldn't, I enjoyed every bite of it. Full and tired after an evening of talking and chatting about couch surfing and our travels, I knew I had to ask to spend one more day there. Partially because there was so much to see in the area I didn't want to miss and mostly because I enjoyed Ernst's company, beautiful garden, and wonderful home cooking.

I said goodbye to Karen and Jolanda the next morning and exchanged information, hoping to hear more about their tour of New Mexico in the days to come, and headed to White Sands National Monument. Up until this point, at the mention of New Mexico, the first thing people told me I had to see was White Sands. Oh my, were they right. The world's largest gypsum dune field is one of the most unique places I've seen so far. Fun fact, the heart of the 275 sq. mile dunes can be seen from outer space. Driving past the visitor center and into the monument, the first mile or two is flanked with the backs of the dunes, spotted with cacti and prairie grass blowing in the wind, and literally opens up into a sea of sand. Standing on top of the dunes, all I could see were the waves of the glistening white gypsum crystals, a person here and there, and nothing but white as far as I could see. Climbing up and down the dunes that can reach up to fifty feet high, my bare feet cool and comfortable in the cold sand, I couldn't stop admiring how the mountains were only a slightly darker shade than the sky and painted a nice backdrop. It seemed unreal, especially when I looked to the east to see the snowy mountain I had driven through the day before peaking out behind the dunes. It's amazing how the sand bakes in the astoundingly hot sun all day long and still, unlike quartz sand at the beach, it remains cool to the touch. If you want to get scientific as to why - the gypsum does not readily convert the sun's energy into heat which is why it's always cool in temperature. The hard, packed down surface is decorated with ridges, ripples, and designs and are almost uninterrupted as you walk along them. Making the most out of my short visit, I rented a sled from the gift shop and treated the dunes like snowy hills on a day off from school. Word of advice, start sitting down and wiggle your way off the edge. The massive dune in front of me looked way too tempting and I tried to run and jump onto the saucer, made it all of two feet, and flew off the front. Pride, and knees, bruised, I was thankful to have two new friends, Alyssa and Lauren, by my side to laugh with me. I should have known that wasn't going to work.

I spent the rest of my day going slightly out of my way for a sight Wade, my host from my last post in Carlsbad, had mentioned and sounded awesome. Only an hour north and at least half a day left to explore, I figured, what's a little more driving in the grand scheme of things. I drove through Carrizozo, New Mexico, a small and seemingly ghost town that wraps around a big curve and connects two back road highways, and turned the corner to find a new sight. The clear blue sky at the top, then the mountains, and then the unusual; a strip of black broke up the green layer that came next. Valley of fire is one of the youngest and most well preserved lava flows in the U.S.A. Originating from vents in the valley floor, not a volcano, the lava is only 5,000 years old and is thought to have flowed for thirty years. It's swirling, wavy designs in the black and red rocky landscape look as though someone took a massive hammer and cracked the earth open. I walked along the paved path, stepping off at times and onto the lava to explore before I ever saw the sign encouraging me to do so, and immediately noticed how many different plants and animals call Valley of Fires home. I can't imagine really hiking on lava like that for more than twenty minutes, I would trip in a heartbeat. It's so unpredictable, rough, and rigid. Another sight on the list of unique places in New Mexico checked off, I pit-stopped at Three Rivers Petroglyphs on my way back and quickly perused some of the 20,000 drawings found at this mile long stretch of small rocks before heading back to Las Cruses.

I drove northwest the next day to City of Rocks State Park, a small and very cool park that really does look like a city from afar. I explored the massive, round clusters of boulders, wedged myself into a comfortable, mother-nature-created seat, and caught up on my journal. It makes me anxious when I start to get a little behind so I try and write to catch up whenever I can. I've done so much in the 3.5 months I've been gone and I don't want to forget anything. Wanting to check out the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument and the Gila National Forest the next day, I ended up couch surfing with a super sweet woman named Callie and her cat Arlo in Silver City, a small town with a very colorful main street at the entrance to the forest. Never actually leaving as early as I plan to the night before, I headed to the cliff dwellings. The roughly forty mile drive took way longer than it should have and winded in and out of the national forest's land at a steep grade. Having just learned from Callie about the Continental Divide Trail, the third major trail in U.S. along with the Appalachian and Pacific Crest, I noticed a ton of hikers walking along my route. One was very obviously trying to get to the same place I was and had about a mile to go so I pulled over and figured I'd save him at least a little bit of walking. "Cruise Control," as he called himself, a trail name given to him over his various hikes, explored the cliff dwellings with me before taking off back into the forest in the direction of Canada. Literally built into huge openings in the side of cliffs, the camouflaged homes date back to the Mogollon People anywhere from 1275 into the 14th century. Carefully trying not to touch any walls of the forty six rooms and climbing ladders to look down into the brick ruins, I thought about how cool it must have been to wake up and have that view every day and wondered if it looked at all similar to how it is now. Each room connected to the last, creating a maze, it was clear they used every little bit the landscape had to offer them to their advantage.

My last few days were spent with some great people. That is what makes for the best experiences, after all. Gila National Forest has natural hot springs and I can't believe I almost chose more driving over stopping to see them. This, by the way, is something I highly recommend. Just a few miles up the road from the cliff dwellings I found some at a perfect, peaceful campground, and for five dollars I could stay and soak all day. After a little less than an hour of solitude and thinking I was the only one there, I was excited to find out I wasn't. Large brimmed bucket hat, and huge backpack to match, I met Brian early on in my visit. He was another hiker trying to conquer at least a portion of the CDT. Coming to the realization shortly after that it would be hard to leave that day, let alone at all, I ended up going off the grid for the night. We spent the rest of the day exchanging stories and experiences and he scoffed at my amateur idea of lighter fluid, proudly showing me how it's really done. He definitely made my second time camping on this trip memorable and I can't wait to hear about the rest of his hike. Honestly, it was hard not to feel relaxed and content under the moonlight in the 104 degree hot spring. If every campsite was as serene as that, I'd contemplate the idea of never couch surfing again, although I'd definitely miss out on some awesome opportunities.

While I'm on the topic of opportunities, serendipity, synchronicity, whatever you want to call it, I want to give a big shoutout to Coleman and Mikey. I've thought about this a lot over the past few minutes and I'm going to give them the trail name of "The Lost Boys," should they choose to accept it. Had I not taken the scenic route on 152 I wouldn't have had such awesome company on my long drive to Albuquerque. In many months from now, I expect to hear that they've successfully made it into Canada and hiked, not hitchhiked, the majority of the Continental Divide.

My family is meeting me in Albuquerque and Santa Fe this weekend for an early birthday celebration. I may not turn 27 for twelve more days, but I am incredibly excited to have them all in one place regardless! It's been a while and a family reunion is just what I need!

- G.

The Photo:
Lauren and Alyssa sledding.
White Sands National Monument.
4/30/17.