The Slow Changing Saguaro

Change: it happens all around us every day, yet we often hardly even recognize it. One day slowly and peacefully drifts into the next until the next thing you know, many years have passed. While change is easily recognized in some circumstances such as, growing children, stock values, or the weather, it can sometimes take years to notice significant change in other arenas. The ever present, slow growing, trustworthy saguaro cactus falls into this category as the dependable icon of the west.

While showing up as symbol of the west in most Hollywood cowboy movies and travel brochures, the saguaro cactus is actually only native to the Sonoran Desert. 

This desert comprises a small portion of southern Arizona, deep southern California and a small western section of northern Mexico. The Saguaro National Park, where we visited, is a 92,000-acre park located in southeastern Arizona, near Tuscan. The park was set aside in 1933 by Herbert Hoover for a National Monument as preserve and for all to enjoy.

Having visited in 1996, twenty-five years did little to change the landscape as we traveled the same path, exploring for the most part the same cacti. Young cacti only grow 1 to 2 inches in their first 8 years. It takes 35 years for its first bloom, 50 years for its first arm, become adults at 125 years and often live to 200! I am sure we took pictures of the same silhouettes as we marveled at their beauty. 

The cacti seem to take on a personality of their own with the many different shapes and sizes. While generally not growing above 4000 feet in elevation, they do stand out in the landscape as they can reach heights of 75 feet tall. 

After visiting the park, you truly feel like you have been “out west,” and the memories of the tall, majestic Saguaros are embedded in our minds for years to come.

While another twenty-five years will mean significant change for our family, meanwhile, at the Saguaro National Park, most likely very little will change. Nevertheless, it is a great place to visit!

~Mark

Tombstone

In the middle of October, our family, as well as Mamaw and Ryan and Amanda’s family, went out west on a big family vacation. On the seventh day of our exciting vacation, one of the places we stopped, was Tombstone, Arizona. There we would see the famous gun fight at the OK Corral! Everyone was exited! We packed up all our bags and loaded them into the car and headed off! We wanted to get to Tombstone early, to get tickets before they sold out. The Cox family came later after they changed the oil on their van.

Tombstone is a small town in Arizona with lots of old buildings and museums. We got there early, so we started walking and looking inside the gift shops and stores. 

At one store, there was a man working on leather. He made all kinds of amazing things. He made leather vests, and holster belts, and lots of other articles out of leather. Some of the stores we did not go into, we just looked through the windows. In one window we investigated, we saw a very fancy saddle and holster belt. It was fun looking in all the windows. Behind the store where we bought the tickets, there was a section where there were horse buggies that you could climb into. 

There was also a spot where you could sift for fools’ gold, or cool rocks. We all had a wonderful time.

Finally, it was time to head off to the famous OK Corral! Merrily we headed to our seats and sat down and waited, delighted for the show to begin. The gun fight was the Cowboys against the Earp brothers and Doc Holiday. The actors reenacted the gun fight as it happened in the past. I really liked the costumes they had on, and they had real guns. After the show was over, we all took our pictures with the actors. On our way out, one of the actors gave me a bullet! That was exiting.

We all loaded into the vehicles, and we headed off to Boot Hill. Boot Hill is on a little slope northwest of Tombstone. It was called Boot Hill because lots of gun slingers, and ordinary people died violently, “with their boots on.” There are three hundred people buried there. When we arrived, we headed toward the old cemetery. It cost six dollars for each adult. Kids were free! Before we entered the cemetery, we received a little pamphlet that told us where to start and told how the person died. We got to see the graves where Billy Clanton and Frank and Tom McLaury were buried. It was neat to see the graves of the men who were in the O.K corral gun fight.

After we looked around for a while, it was time to head to our next stop. We had a thrilling time! My favorite things were watching the gun fight and walking through Boot Hill. It was also fun to walk through all the gift shops, and to see all the remarkable things for sale. I hope to go to Tombstone, Arizona again someday.

~ Jonah

Like No Place Else

On day five, on our out west trip, we made it to White Sands National Park. White Sands is in the state of New Mexico. It took a long time to travel to the glistening white sandy expanse.

We got out of the cars in the huge dune field and felt the white sand. It was made of gypsum crystals chopped up into little pieces by the wind. It also felt so cool to the touch and didn’t stick to you.

Then we went to the visitor center and bought some sleds and wax so the sleds would slide better. Now we could slide down the sand dunes. Next, we drove to the boardwalk area and walked on the boardwalk far out into the sand.

The dunes were huge and were hard to climb, but we made it to the top and with our sleds. We slid down. It was faster than I thought it would be. It was so fun.

All the boys hid behind the sand dunes with their guns and pretended to shoot one another. Moriah, Galilee, and I played with them too. We all would crawl up the dunes and fire our cap guns. We had a wonderful time.

Some animals live in the white desert, like the kit fox. It could be chasing a mouse, like maybe an Apache pocket mouse in search for food. We looked for their prints in the sand, and we saw some prints. We thought it might have been a kit fox.

There are also plants living in the White Sands desert. A soap tree yucca has to grow taller than the sand to keep new leaves above the sand. But after the wind blows the sand dune away, a yucca will soon fall over and die.

My favorite part of White Sands was sliding down the sand dunes. We did a lot there. It was also Moriah’s tenth birthday, and she had her party under a round picnic shelter. Her cake was crafted out of Little Debbie cakes. It was a very fun way to celebrate her birthday!

At the end of the day, we saw a beautiful sunset. All of the orange, red, and yellow mixed together to create a wonderful picture of twilight. On the sand dunes, it made you feel closer to the amazing picture God painted.

Our stop at White Sands National Park was a real adventure. The two hundred seventy-five square mile site is one of the world’s great natural wonders. We had a terrific time at the world’s largest gypsum dune field while we were there. It was like no place else!

~Unique

Of Beans, Saluting the Captain, and Reminiscence

Arising early on the nippy morning of the fifth day of our grand western trip, we scurried to disassemble camp so that we might quickly head on our way. The Carlsbad RV Park was remarkable to each of us because of the huge tire-go-round in the park that mimicked the modest version we had at home. We had never encountered one anywhere else, and the children and grandchildren delighted in employing it well while they could!

The morning chill gave way to sunshine as we found ourselves dropping down out of New Mexico into West Texas and the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. 

The range, located in the vast Chihuahuan Desert, is home to a stop of the Butterfield Overland Mail, as well as a site called Frijole Ranch. It was fascinating to see the remains of a stop where stagecoaches carried mail cross-country during the era when the Pony Express operated simultaneously. 

After we decided to visit the ranch, I ruminated on whatever could be of interest on a “bean farm” out west in this dry barrenness that could grow little. I would be surprised!

The historic cultural landscape was a museum in self-reliance! Frijole Ranch, a house and grounds on the National Register of Historic Sites, was built with native materials in an area of the Guadalupe Mountains that contained springs. The oasis was budding with life! There were majestic pecan trees and orchards. Green grass abounded in stark contrast to the surrounding desert. Who would have thought this possible? A resourceful John Thomas and Nella May Smith moved to the homestead in the summer of 1906. They made a living primarily from truck farming and their small orchard. With their several spring houses and pumps, they watered both the farm and the house. Along with their ten children, they grew apples, peaches, apricots, plums, pears, figs, pecans, blackberries, strawberries, and corn at the edge of the dry, lower slopes of the Guadalupe escarpment. This ranch stood as a testament to the pioneering, rugged spirit of the American West.

From that oasis, we headed west with the grand view of El Capitan, the iconic eighth highest peak in Texas, standing sentinel over the desert valley floor below. 

We stopped at a scenic bypass to snap a photo of “The Captain,” to remember the moment long after it had passed. The dramatic limestone landmark rose boldly behind us, its sheer walls thrusting to the sky.

Descending into the salt flats, we traveled the one hundred miles or so to the west Texas town of El Paso. The town brought reminiscences of our trip twenty-five years ago. It was in El Paso that we realized we were leaving friends and family far behind on our relocation west. It was a sobering realization. There also, we gazed across the Rio Grande, smaller than our expectations, to see Juarez across the US border into Mexico. It was sad to see the shabbily constructed homes. It made us appreciate how prosperous life was on this side of the border. 

This time, with an ornate border wall defining the border, Juarez looked to be a prosperous town. There were no longer shanties, only nice dwellings, businesses, and amusement parks. Time had changed a lot.

We ultimately crossed the Arizona border and located our stopping place for the night in Wilcox. We had experienced quite a day, but the high point, figuratively speaking, was saluting “The Captain.” The day had brought scores of interesting sites and reminiscences. Our journey was sure to provide countless more occasions in the ensuing days.

~Rhonda

The Cave Of Wonders

Caves have always fascinated me. From small, shallow apertures set in rock, to great rooms and tunnels riven beneath the soil, there is something mysteriously inviting about a cave. So, when Dad asked his children still at home, to write about one place they would like to visit, I chose Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Not only would it have spectacular rooms filled with formations typical of an underground aperture, but Carlsbad is also famous for its bats which are a breathtaking display of wonder at night. It sounded like a grand venture.

Surprisingly, many of the places each of us had chosen to visit, were located in the southwestern states. So, it was with great anticipation that we prepared for this fall’s vacation. The itinerary was filled with so many sensational stops to discover and explore, many of which were destinations on our travel wish list. Day four of our journey was especially exciting for me. It was the day we would get to explore Carlsbad Caverns!

That particular morning found us off to a later start than anticipated, so instead of stopping near Pecos, Texas to attend a church there as planned, we made our layover at Fort Stockton, Texas, worshipping with the congregation at the Church of Christ. Then, it was time to be back on the road, headed for Carlsbad, New Mexico. As we neared our destination, the foothills of the Guadalupe mountains rose around us. The shutter buttons of our two Canon cameras were constantly clicking as they were passed around the car, back and forth, to one side and then the other. Trying to capture the beauty of the landscape.

The time set on our timed entry tickets, which Mama had previously purchased, was drawing to a close. We raced inside to purchase the actual entrance tickets needed to explore the caverns. We were just in time. Tickets bought, we were ready to enter the depths below us. Mamaw decided to take the elevator down while the rest of us trekked down the one and a quarter mile trail through the natural entrance. It was a steep path, equivalent to walking up or down seventy-five flights of stairs! It was well worth it though, for it winds past historic landmarks and famous formations in the caves like Whale’s rock, Devil’s spring, and The Iceberg.

I was in awe of all the underground beauty we saw while at Carlsbad. It was even more spectacular than I had imagined. And we were only seeing the tip of the iceberg. Hidden beneath the soil of the Guadalupe Mountains and Chihuahuan desert are more than three-hundred rooms carved out of the rock. The national park only contains one hundred and thirteen of these, while only three are open to public touring, and we explored only one of them. When we reached the bottom, the Big Room, we found Mamaw who had been waiting for us, and then started on the mile and a half loop around that popular section of the caves. A ranger, after answering a few questions, kindly showed a trilobite encased in the limestone wall. There happen to be several entombed creatures, like bats, trilobites, and others, throughout the many hollows of Carlsbad.

Once we finished touring the Big Room, the last elevator to ascend back to the surface was nearing its departure time. We were, with another family, the last tourists to leave the underground portion of the park. Though the plan had originally been to tour around the caverns for a while and then go and set up camp, coming back in the evening for the Bat Flight program, we spent so much time down in the cave, that by the time we came up, the program was about to begin! It was the icing on the cake.

Earlier, the same ranger who showed us the trilobite, told us that tonight’s Bat flight program was the last of the season, and that though there were a few bats the night before, she could only hope there would be some tonight. So, not knowing what to expect, we settled into our seats in the amphitheater. Before the bats emerged, we were able to view the return of the swallows into their night dwelling. They twittered, circled, and then dived into the black opening. We also enjoyed the ranger who spoke on the features, habits, and history of both the Mexican free-tailed bats and Carlsbad Caverns National Park.

Suddenly, the ranger grew quiet, and a solemn stillness fell over the entire crowd, the bats were departing. First a whisper and then a rushing sound of wings as a few and then a river a bats came forth. They swirled around the natural entrance, a column of black, and then in groups flew off into the evening sky. To say it was a breathtaking experience, would be a gross understatement. Words cannot depict the magnitude of the picturesque display of one piece of God’s amazing creation!

As the bats had come, they left, the last few trickling out of the cavern just as it began to get to get dark. Alas, we had no pictures of the bats, as any electronic devices were not allowed during their exit. We slowly and silently filed out of the theatre, awestruck by our grand encounter, and headed back to the parking lot. It had been a day of wonder and adventure that far surpassed my expectations. I am so glad that Carlsbad Caverns became one of the numerous stopping points on our trip.

~Halayah

REMEMBER THE ALAMO!

On October 27, we left the house and drove off for a fun, and exciting 2022 out west vacation! We did and saw a lot of fun and wonderful things, but one of my favorite places was on day three of our trip, when we went to San Antonio, Texas. That’s where we saw the Alamo!

We arrived at the Alamo after a long and slow ride through traffic, and started our Alamo visit by taking a family picture in front of the Mission San Antonio de Valero (which is now known as the Alamo). After the picture, we headed inside the building where we saw the six flags over Texas: The Kingdom of Spain, The Kingdom of France, The Republic of Mexico, The Republic of Texas, The Confederate States of America, and The United States of America. 

We also heard the story of the Alamo from one of the park rangers! She did a very good job telling it. Did you know that the word alamo means cottonwood in Spanish?

After walking through the Alamo building, we headed outside and began looking at all the statues found around the building! There was a model of James Bowie, Davy Crocket, William Barret Travis, and a few others. After looking at all the sculptures, we went back around to the front of the Alamo where we got some pictures and talked with two Texas Rangers! It was very thrilling to talk with real Texas Rangers.

The battle of the Alamo was fought by the Mexicans who thought that Texas should be part of Mexico, and the Texans who thought Texas was its own free state. The battle started in morning hours and was won by the Mexicans 13 days later, after all of the 189 Alamo defenders, including Davy Crockett, James Bowie, and William Travis were wiped out. In later battles, the Texan soldiers yelled, “Remember the Alamo” as their rallying cry.

I really enjoyed our visit at the Alamo. My favorite thing was the Mission San Antonio de Valero and the big green patch of grass in front. It is such a pretty sight where it was nestled in downtown San Antonio, Texas. I will always Remember the Alamo.

~Samuel