The Events of Sunday, February 20, 2011

                At dawn, Ben and I exited the RV and saw a strange sight. A thick cloud hovered about five feet above the ground. It looked like fog but smelled of smoke. Ben ran a couple miles, and I walked and prayed for about half an hour. By the time we returned to the RV, the cloud had vanished. But Ben was delighted to share that during his run he had seen a mountain lion. 

                Pam and Caitlin were already up, so I roused Lindsey and Abby to start making beds and we prepared for breakfast. Afterward, the girls went off to the showers while Ben used the RV’s outdoor shower (since this campground charges $1.50 for a five minute shower). They all finished quickly, so we departed about 9:30. We stopped briefly at Panther Junction Visitor Center to use the restrooms, deposit postcards n the mailbox, and call ahead to reserve a campsite for tonight. Pam and Ben went into the visitor center so Ben could share his news. He found a ranger and shared his mountain lion sighting. The ranger was quite attentive and asked Ben to fill out a special form, which he did in great detail. He is quite the junior ranger!

                The road to Castolon Visitor Center was newly paved, so our drive was very smooth. Perhaps the smoothness lulled me into a false confidence. Because the road surface was so dark, neither Pam nor I saw that the road lifted and then dropped, like a warped vinyl record. This warp occurred just as the road turned left, and I really REALLY wanted the RV to turn left along with the road. Suddenly, we bucked up and slammed down, and our springs lifted us up again. It’s a helpless feeling to turn the steering wheel and feel the vehicle go straight–because there is not enough contact between the tires and the road. The RV bounced up, down, up … down on the surface and –ah, finally—we turned left. Whew! Life on the road is exciting! I applaud my family, and especially my co-pilot Pam, for maintaining calm and quiet through this unexpected adventure.

                The Visitor Center was small and under-developed, but the volunteer host husband-and-wife team made up the difference. They answered Pam’s questions about mercury mining: it was the area’s most profitable venture, climaxing during the ammunitions manufacturing boom during World War II. They also addressed my curiosity about US-Mexico relations. (To summarize what I learned, the park administration enjoyed a healthy partnership with Mexican workers during the 80s and 90s. Then the post-9/11 emphasis on increased security generated regulations that shut the border here. Now there are plans to create an international park that will include both U.S. and Mexican property, leading once again toward a happy partnership that will benefit both nations.)

                The sun shone bright and hot as we walked out of the Visitor Center. We retreated into the cool RV and made lunch. Then we drove eight miles to the Santa Elena Canyon trailhead. According to our ranger friends, this was the spot where we would see the most impressive views: colorful cliffs bordering the impressive Rio Grande. We had also learned that the Rio Grande used to be six times more impressive as it is, before its source waters were tapped by both US and Mexican agencies for electric power and agricultural irrigation. Today we saw the remnants of this once mighty river. The trail started as a paved sidewalk/stairway up into the cliff. Then it followed the rocks up, into some dirt paths. We walked along the river for about half a mile, to a dead end by a silty beach. It was a fun place to stop: bird calls (and kids’ voices) echoing from canyon walls; the brown river flowing by silently; the bright sun illuminating red rock high above us; sweet coolness from the cliff’s shadow. It would have been a good spot for photos, except that none of us brought a camera. We paused for several minutes to enjoy cool water from our water bottles, then headed back to the RV.

                The next stage of our travel was a highly contested topic. We had a choice of route: we could return along the same paved road that we had just traveled for about an hour; or we could travel a much shorter, flatter dirt road--for about an hour. We ended up traveling the dirt road, bumpy and dusty. Pam put it best: it feels like we’re experiencing the desert better this way. At some points, the road was so narrow that the weeds scratched both sides of the RV. Other times, the surface was so sandy, it felt like our forward progress had stopped altogether. Once we went through a “wash” that was so steep, we bumped our rear end coming out the other side. We stopped to investigate Luna’s Jacal, a sturdy, low wood-and-adobe structure that housed a pioneer goatherder for sixty years. Here he raised a family of ten children, from five wives.

                We emerged onto the highway and drove on in serene tranquility. We drove a little ways outside the park and found BJ’s RV Park, our spot for tonight. This place has some character: the park manager is a kick: two teeth, separated by an inch of smile, and a deep voice resonating with hospitality. The campground itself is not much more than a glorified parking lot; but tonight, that’s all we need.

                After sliding out and hooking up, we enjoyed some quiet reading time and a yummy taco dinner. We did not attend any church service today since there were none anywhere nearby, but we had time this evening for a family Bible study. Now it is quiet and the family is all in bed. The moon has not yet risen, and the stars are shining against a gorgeous black sky.