December 8th - Sharon's Surprise

December 8th:

Doug surprised me today with a trip to Carlsbad Cavern, just down the road from where we camped in Van Horn, TX.  Little did I know that he had a surprise planned for me when he was so set on camping in Van Horn, when I thought we could get a few more hours driving in for the day.

How incredible is this planet?

I am still amazed at the hugeness of this cave as well as the energy it has taken people over years and years to make this viewable to so many people. I mean, what other cave do you know that has an elevator in it?

We were 850 ft. down in the depths of the earth, the elevator started at 750 ft. to take you back up to the surface. Makes me wonder what else is beneath our feet. By the time we got to the Big Room, which was a mile and a half walk down, down, down to it, I was in an altered state.

The Big Room felt holy and sacred. The walk around the Big Room was another mile.  Absolutely amazing.  It took us 3 hours with stopping and taking photos. Unfortunately for me, my photos didn't come out so well.  But I am still learning how to work my camera. Doug's i-Phone did fabulously.

Another night in Van Horn and then off to another day of intensive driving.