Recently I shared of our overlanding adventures to Angelina National Park and all the dreams that trip sparked inside all of us, yes-even the kids! We could't wait any longer for another trip so we quickly (literally just a few weeks before today) planned out a trip to the mountains of Santa Fe, New Mexico! We spent the day yesterday preparing and then woke up this morning at 4:00am to get everything loaded up into my husbands Lexus GX460 for us to get rolling on the road. Side note: The GX460 is a perfect vehicle for overlanding and off-roading...I'll have to have my husband create a post sharing what this machine can really do for those that are interested! There's something special about being together on the open road with wide open spaces. Intoxicating and so fresh.
My husband wanted to leave by 5:00am...we rolled out by 6:00am only to realize about 20 minutes away that we left a certain handle locked that needed to be unlocked for our house sitter to be able to enter. That was mostly my fault as I have a habit of locking every single lock at night before getting into bed, so this one was no different. Only...I didn't realize it needed to be left alone as he had set it haha. My husband is so gracious and patient with me. Such a strong trait of his and I soooo appreciate the love he covers me with. So...we had to detour and turn around to get back to the house to unlock it. All good! In the end, we actually found our way onto the highway about 6:45am and from there it was smooth sailing. The route we took was from mid-Texas headed West, then up through New Mexico. West Texas is an interesting drive if you've never driven it before. Mostly flat, dusty and brown during this time of year. However, even through the miles and miles of plain lands, the sky and the horizon were always a spectacular sight. On some spans of highway while still in Texas we saw so many tumbleweeds! In all the years I've been in Texas, I have never seen an actual tumbleweed, until now. There were boo-coo's of them! Sadly, I didn't get any photos of them, but alas, it will give us another reason to get out West again! Wind farms for miles and miles that have hundreds, possibly thousands, of wind turbines set up to generate natural electricity, also known as wind power. The structures are so magnificent when up close, and watching the blades slowly and elegantly slice through the air was mesmerizing.
As we entered New Mexico we started to see some distant plateaus at random, dispersed intervals. More wind farms graced us with their non-rushed flow. Further into New Mexico, the closer we got to Santa Fe, mesas and buttes started popping up left and right, singularly and in clusters. They are so beautiful against the backdrop of the expansive sky. Oh! The Sky! Sooooo much sky with the clouds dreamily painted on it.
There is beauty surrounding us, wherever we are...we just have to be willing to see it.
On the highway, on the outskirts of the Santa Fe Mountains, we were all stunned by how beautiful the entry was. Greeted by the most beautiful backdrop of mountains. The sky did not disappoint us either. Photos don't do it justice, but I snap them nonetheless to try to embed the memory in my mind (and to share with others, of course). Makes for fabulous reference photos for my paintings too!
So here we are, in the heart of Santa Fe, New Mexico. Our "home" away from home for the week. Ready to soak in all her glory and savor every bit of it. I shall share more of our trip after I've had time to digest, filter through my photography, and reminisce over all the memories we are about to create together. That's the best part, being together and exploring Gods gorgeous world.
Sending each of you loads of Love and Light,
~Cassie