So obviously, we sold our house. The not so perfect part of our move was the fact that there was going to be a month in between signing over the first house and signing for our new one. Brady still had to work and there was no way Linda and Woody would have been able to put up with all 4 of us and 2 dogs for 4-6 weeks. And because we homeschool, I was able to put all of our stuff into storage, then I pack up my kids and my dogs and hit the road for a month-long adventure in New Mexico while Brady stayed with his folks and maintained gainful employment and signed for our new home! Brilliant!
The day we signed was a fiasco! I spent the morning packing up last minute things like a mad-woman, trying to make sure Brady had everything he needed for his extended stay with the folks and the kids and the dogs and I had everything we needed to survive a month in New Mexico. We had pain-in-the-ass buyers throwing a fit about a hole in the pressboard under the sink and threatening not to sign and my whole world was falling apart. Finally, with a little firmness, our agent was finally able to get them to understand that fixing the pressboard was a cheap, cosmetic fix and if they had a beef about it, they should have brought it up in the negotiations. So they finally decided they would sign. AND my life was back on track as planned!
As soon as I signed the papers, Brady drove me back to the folk's house and we said our good-bye's and I piled kids and pipsqueak dogs into the Hyundai and down the road we went! I'm kind of bummed, because I swear I had a picture of my little SUV with the cargo bag on top! Oh well. Anyway, we hopped on the highway and headed out of town bound for Sonora, TX, trying like the devil to beat rush hour traffic. Now why, you ask, would anyone ever feel the need to go to Sonora, TX? Well for the most part, you really shouldn't, there just isn't much there. However, the
Caverns of Sonora are there and for the last 10 years, every time I have driven down I-10 on my way to NM, I have seen the signs and always swore I would stop, but we never go through at a time that would work. So this time, I made it work. I booked us a room at the Best Western for the night and we got up bright and early and headed to the caverns the next morning and boy was it ever worth the visit!
This cave is known for its abundance of helictites, which are formations that grow in many directions, not just up or down. It is also known for being covered in "cave popcorn" which is usually formed by dripping or splashing water. You will get to see some of the samples in the photos that follow! And by all means, if you'd like a closer look, CLICK on those photos!
Example of cave popcorn
A little underground pond
This one made me think of melted candle wax!
Example of helictites, notice how they grow in every direction?
The most famous of these formations was the butterfly. You will have to google an image of the Sonora Cavern Butterfly if you want to see it in tact. In 2006, someone vandalized the formation and cracked one of the wings off doing irreparable damage. This is what is looks like now, still beautiful, but nothing compared to how amazing it was when it was intact.
I think this one was called the Bottle Brush, but it looked kind of like a toilet scrubber to me!
This is the first time I saw "soda straws" that were over 3 ft. long! SO COOL!
And last but not least, this pic just made me think of the deepest, darkest depths of the world. It's almost a little scary!
So although I could live the rest of my life without ever going to Sonora, TX again, the caverns were truly tremendous and well-worth the effort! Not too bad for the first day of our Big Ol' Adventure!
