Fun Photos - Big Bend Plants

The desert climate of Big Bend National Park can be harsh, but there are plenty of interesting plants.

Agave Havardiana also known as a Century Plant

Cylindropuntia

Pinion Pine (I adore this tree!  Look at the cute little cones!)

Agave Americana

Opuntia (Commonly called Prickly Pear, but also known as Barbary Fig)

Ocotillo

Firecracker Plant

The tall plant (surrounded by other shrubs) is Yucca Whipplei sometimes known as Excaliber or Our Lord's Candle

Texas Ragwort

For more fun photos visit Image-in-ing and Wordless Wednesday.

Crafty Friday

 Hi friends! Recently, I made a crossbody purse to use on our 2nd annual Great Texas Road Trip.

 It was 9x9 prior to sewing so ended up about 8x8 after seam allowances with one slip pocket on the inside made with the lining fabric and bias tape. 

This shows how long the strap is.

I learned how to make the slip pocket from YouTuber Anne Bonney Bags. I learned how to create the adjustable strap for my bag from YouTuber Le Janaro. 

Here is the hardware  I used, and here is the zipper.  It worked perfectly for our trip!  I needed to be able to walk hands-free in order to use my camera, but there are always certain things you want to have with you at all times.

I also made my own reversible bucket hat.  I got the free pattern from Hello Sewing which I was able to tweak to fit my smallish head, and I followed her video tutorial on YouTube. 

This hat was very useful when we visited Big Bend National Park.

Visit more crafty friends at Crafty Creators and Friendship Friday.

Some links in this post are affiliate links (not all of them) which means if you purchase an item from one of my links, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.  This is NOT a sponsored post!

Bet You Didn't Know! (Carlsbad Caverns)

 Yesterday I posted some photos of our visit to Carlsbad Caverns a little over a week ago.  I learned a bit about this National Park before we went, and even more while we were there.

Column built by water

Fun Facts!

1.  The caverns sit below the Chihuahuan Desert in southern New Mexico.

2.  There are 120 known caves as of now (exploration continues).

3.  Carlsbad Cavern is not the largest cave.  That title goes to Lechuguilla Cave which is only open to researchers and explorers.

Chihuahuan Desert

4.  The surface ecosystem has over 750 plant species.

5.  From Spring to Fall, the caves are home to hundreds of thousands of Brazillian free-tailed bats. In all, there are 17 species of bats in the National Park.

6.  For the serious hiker/adventurer, there are over 50 miles of minimally maintained backcountry trails with limited water sources. (Not for me!)

Backcountry mountains

7.  You can take an elevator up or down into the cave.

8.  We chose to hike the natural entrance to the cave which is a 1.25 mile stretch of steep switchbacks that descends 750 feet into the bottom of the cavern.

9.  The self-guided tour of the Big Room is also 1.25 miles.

The natural entrance

10. Photos are allowed, even flash photos.  I took my camera, of course!

11.  The King's Palace Trail is only accessible during a ranger-led tour, so we didn't see that part.

12. Plain water is the only thing allowed in the way of food and drink, so we brought plenty in our backpacks.

Cavern Walls

13. The temperature in the cavern year-round is about 56°F  (13°C).

There is so much more to talk about! Here are some resources if you're interested!

National Park Service-Carlsbad Caverns

Jim White's Story of Carlsbad Caverns

Carlsbad Caverns Wikipedia

Best Easy Day Hikes in Carlsbad Caverns National Park

Carlsbad Caverns Activity Book (great for kids!)

History and Culture of the Park

Visit Thursday Thirteen for more fun lists!

Some links within this post (not all of them) are affiliate links.  If you choose to purchase an item, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.  This is NOT a sponsored post!

Fun Photos! Carlsbad Caverns Adventure

 

Here are some of my favorite photos of Carlsbad Caverns, part of our second annual Great Texas Road Trip (+New Mexico). I'm looking at this photo album for my pictures.  It's really cute!  I'm also looking at these stickers and I've already purchased these stickers.  I found some paper that would add some color while staying with the theme because the cave photos are all basically neutral.

This is the natural entrance to the cave, and you can see the switchbacks that lead down gradually.  The switchbacks continue all the way down.  Some are quite steep.

This picture shows how water has formed what looks to me like the teeth of a whale.

This is an old miner's ladder that is still in the cave.  I believe it was used in the early 1900s.

This is called the Silent Bell.

Here is the botton of it.

The sign explains it much better than I could!

This picture demonstrates just how dark it is in most of the cave.  These look like people or skeletons to me in the background.

All of these were formed due to dripping water.

I hope you enjoyed seeing Carlsbad Caverns.  For more fun photos, visit image-in-ing and Wordless Wednesday.

Some links in this post (not all) are affiliate links which if used to purchase an item may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.  This is NOT a sponsored post.

Happy Random Tuesday

 

I'm back from the Second Annual Great Texas Road Trip (+NM)!  It was glorious!

We stayed at three different places and put over 2,000 miles on our rental car.  And speaking of rental cars... Just an hour into our trip, the AC went out.  I made 4 phone calls and no one could help us. Only one of them actually tried. (Budget)

We went to the location at the airport in Dallas as soon as we arrived, and they had no cars available.  Luckily, my husband was able to find a location not too far the next day, and they gave us an even larger vehicle.  It was much nicer.  So, a little pain, a little gain.  No one should have to drive a car with no AC in 90 degree or higher weather!

Our upgrade

The first two nights were in Dallas to see one of our daughters and her husband.  Have you ever heard of Eataly? 

There are ten locations of the fabulous place:  Italy, Toronto, and 8 in the United States, one of which is Dallas. (And more coming to England and France.)

It is a market with fresh pastas, meats, cheeses, gelato, sauces, and so much more, but it also has restaurants in it.

   Expensive, but so worth it!

After Dallas, we spent two nights across the Texas border in New Mexico to go to Carlsbad Caverns.  Here's a sneak peek. 

Then we spent two nights in Big Bend National Park.

Another Sneak Peek

  We didn't get to go to Mexico because  most of the trails were closed that led down to the river.  More on vacation coming soon. I've got tons of photos to edit!

Let's get to the good stuff!

Former English Teacher Pet Peeve!

That's me, too, and I had to use one at Carlsbad!  Ewwww!

That looks so decadent!

That would matter to me!  We have to drive half an hour or more to get to one.

The label says hamburger, but if I'm not mistaken, they are hot dog buns.
Or a really weirdly shaped hamburger!

And last, but not least,

I'm pretty sure this is how my cat feels when we go away.

Have a great week!

Great TX Road Trip (+ New Mexico) Happy and Random

 It's all starting again!  The second annual Great Texas Road Trip, formerly called the Big Texas Birthday Tour.  This year we're including a trip over the New Mexico border in our Texas trip.  We started in Dallas Saturday.  Then on to Carlsbad, New Mexico, then down to Big Bend National Park, and possible a crossing into Mexico.  We'll see. Should be great fun! Today is Cavern Day. Can't wait to tell you all about it! But for now...

Basektball joke in case you aren't a fan.

Awww Poor Doggy!  But he's so cute!

Crazy!

Much more valuable!

And last, but not least...

Have a great week!  Please visit Stacy's Random Tuesday Thoughts and Sandee's Happy Tuesday!