The Encore (Part III)

So we got snowed out at the Grand Canyon. It sucked. It snowed, it was cold, you couldn't see the f'ing canyon that was supposed to be there, and it was a general disappointment. Well... sorta. I doubt many people can say they were at the Grand Canyon when it snowed, so I consider myself fortunate. Plus, I'm sure I'll be back to the Canyon at some point.


Sedona - much of the same. Bad weather, wasn't nearly as cool as it should have been.


Phoenix - eh. We stayed in Scottsdale and went out for some beers at ASU. Ridiculous.


After Phoenix, we hit the road on our way to Las Cruces, NM, where we had two hiking destinations in mind: Carlsbad Caverns and White Sand Dunes National Monument.

The caverns were pretty cool - huge underground caves that were formed when underground limestone formations were dissolved by water. Really, really cool, really far underground. As you walk along the narrow path set out by the National Park Service, the only hope you have is that one of the huge rock formations on the roof doesn't decide to fall down when you're in the middle of a nice tour. That would seriously ruin the day...

White Sand Dunes - awesome. Located in the middle of a huge missile range in the middle of New Mexico, the sand dunes are an expansive desert, basically, that stretch out over several hundred square miles. I have a few issues with the government putting a national park in the middle of a giant firing range... but I made it out alive at least. Pictures are the only thing that will do this place justice, just amazing. They had several hikes you could go out on, with marked trails, so thats what NinAmini an I did - a 4-mile hike over sand dunes wearing nothing but bathing suits (no shoes), a cowboy hat, and a Camelback full of water. After that... OFF TO COLORADOOO