Travel day

I intend to cover a lot of ground today. Probably not the best idea considering that it’s already after 11am and I’ll be entering Central Standard Time today, losing an hour.

Doesn’t matter. I have a mission. Get to Houston. (Not today; just very soon.)

I’ll be driving through (or around) Austin and I should probably stop. I have friends there and it would be great to see them, but I’ve got one destination on my mind and that’s it.

So I’ll be out of New Mexico today. Kind of a shame, really. This area of New Mexico, driving along Hwy 380, is gorgeous. By the way, don’t let any maps fool you: Bingham is not a town. I mean, I guess it is, but I think only four people live there. I think I saw a house, but I’m not sure. There was a store(?) advertising that they were selling Carrizozo Icy Cold drinks. Or slushies. Or something Carrizozo.

Speaking of Carrizozo… interesting place. Right outside of town is the Valley of Fires, a large region filled with lava rocks. And life sprouting up from the ground all around. Beautiful. The town of Carrizozo itself seemed cozy. I seriously debated stopping for the night and camping in the Valley of Fires, but I really wanted to get to Roswell, which I managed to do just before dark last night.

Was happy to finally reach Hondo, where the road finally turned into four lanes. Hondo, Lincoln, Capitan, Carrizozo… been there. Can cross those off of the list.

Roswell? Not so interesting. There’s definitely a slice of the economy here built around aliens and UFOs. Kind of sad. Lots of young people. Small town young people. This is not a metropolis. It reminds me of Florence, South Carolina, the major city in the Pee Dee Region of South Carolina: small town hoping to be more. But it isn’t.

Bottomless Lake Park seems interesting. But… eh. Not visiting. I’m sure I would find something fascinating in Roswell, New Mexico were I to stay, but I’m not. I’m leaving. In 3… 2… 1…

Photos (a lot) here.

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