Retreat and White Sands

So last weekend we went on a retreat with BSC in Cloudcroft.  It was a wonderful break and very needed.  Cloudcroft is about 90 miles East of Las Cruces in the Mountains.  It is at about 8500 feet and therefore is quite different then here.  It was so nice to see trees, walk in the woods and escape into nature.  There are 18 of us volunteers and we all were staying in a VERY small (but nice) house that one of the board members lent us.  The house only had one bedroom and a loft so about half of us camped outside on their wrap around deck.   It sounds crowded and not very restful but surprisingly we made it work.  It was really just a quite time to hangout,cook and eat good food ( kind of like being at my parents house).

Tucker decided on the last day to go "exploring" by himself in the woods.  A very wise idea - i'm sure we would all agree.  He packed water, some snacks, color tags to mark his trip and was off.  On his way out I convinced him to take the cell phone - just in case.  Well while he was gone for 4 hours (much longer then expected) i went for a hike with some of the other volunteers.  When I returned I see Tucker with a rip in his shorts, cuts and scratches all over his legs - he is looking a little disheveled.  It turns out that he got a little lost. (or a lot lost)  No worries - he made it back and promised to never do that again!  Lesson learned without too many consequences. 

Below are some pictures from my hike and the drive out of town. 

That is White Sands in the Distance - about 40 miles

Us with housemate Amy

On our way home from Cloudcroft Amy, Tucker and I decided to stop off at the famous White Sands National Monument.  It is awesome!  It is about 100 square miles of white sand dunes in the desert.  We just drove through, got out and walked around a little, but will be visiting again soon.  People bring sleds and go sledding down the dunes and they say its amazing to visit during a full moon.  I want to go back and go back-country camping  - I can only imagine the stars at night.