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| Carlsbad Caverns Guano Road Trail, NM | | -
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| | Carlsbad Caverns Guano Road Trail, NM | | | |
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Carlsbad Caverns Guano Road Trail, NM
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| Hiking | 3.00 Miles |
343 AEG |
| | Hiking | 3.00 Miles | 1 Hour 8 Mns | | 3.05 mph |
| 343 ft AEG | 9 Mns Break | 10 LBS Pack | | |
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[ show ]
| no partners | | Spent a couple of days in Lubbock Texas, It has been a long time since I saw so much flat. On my way back from Texas I thought I would break the drive up by staying the night in Whites City near Carlsbad Caverns. I decided to do a short walk before retiring to the hotel and chose the Old Guano Road Trail. Ate dinner at the only restaurant in town before the hike because it closes at 7. From the Caverns Parking lot took the nature trail to the Guano Trail and headed in about 1.5 miles to just when the sun was starting to set. If I planned it right the bats would be flying out just as I got back to the cavern.
The Nature trail from the parking lot is paved for about the first half mile to the Guano Trail. There are informational signs along the way that give information of the variety of plants in this portion of the Chihuahuan desert. The pavement ends at the Guano trail. A couple hundred yards in on the trail is a man made shaft that goes down into the caverns below and at one time was used to extract bat guano from the cave. It is fenced off now but when the wind is blowing you can smell the caverns (If you have ever been in the caverns near the entrance you know the smell I'm talking about). I continued along the trail for about a mile as it follows the ridge, if you continue along this trail it will head down toward Whites City. The wind was blowing really hard on this hike and the visibility over the desert below was pretty much non existent. The hike in with the wind at my back was fairly easy but on the way back even though the trail is fairly level felt like an uphill climb. Keeping your hat on or taking a leak were near impossible if not comical. Made it back to the caverns in time to see the bats but the show was not very good, I've seen more bats come out of the 22nd street Pantano bridge in Tucson. They probably thought it was too windy and decided to eat in. I did see some Barbary Sheep while in the park, they look a lot like bighorns except the horns are not curved as much. These animals are not native to this area and were brought in by I believe the ranchers years ago. Will have to finish this hike on another trip. Good hike for a shuttle, have someone drop you off below and hike the 3.5 miles or so and meet them at the caverns. |
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