Mom and I had driven over 1600 miles so far, and experienced incredible sites on our Southwestern road trip. From massive awe inspiring Big Bend National park and the towering Saguaro cactus in Arizona to the architectural marvel of the Hoover Dam, red rock canyons and petroglyphs of the Valley of Fire, and navigating the crazy streets of Sin City. It was time to begin our journey back towards Texas. While we had some plans etched into our itinerary, one thing this trip had taught us so far was to write those plans in pencil because things happen and you need to be ready to just go with the flow. What we did know for certain, without any doubt, was that we would have an incredible experience and be just as mesmerized by the trip home as we had been getting here.

We began our drive East after stressfully making it out of Las Vegas. So far, this is my least favorite city to drive in, day and night! Our penciled in, tentative, itinerary had us hoping to experience the Skywalk over the Grand Canyon. This part of the canyon is easily accessible from Las Vegas, and on our route, so we decided to make it one of our homeward stops rather than a day trip while in Vegas. *Tip- make sure you download the route from your GPS because you will lose service!* When we finally made it to the spot where you pay for entrance, we learned that you have to be shuttled in. The line was INSANE, and when we finally made it to the ticket booth, we were told that they were currently cash only. There was only one ATM on site, which had its on ridiculous line, so we decided to just move on to Flagstaff since the plan was to visit the south rim. When we got back on the road, though, we were greeted by a happy little surprise!

On the drive from Vegas, we kept seeing little groups of Joshua Trees. I was telling mom how I want to visit Joshua Tree National Park when we pulled right up to a little roadside park called Joshua Tree State Forest of Arizona. Obviously, we pulled over and walked the short trail circling these peculiar trees. Arizona was coooold!!! Even though we looked ahead at temps and were prepared for how cold Arizona was predicted to be, it didn’t take long for that “real feel” of 17 degrees to kick in and we were running back to the warm trailhawk with heated seats.

As we drew closer to Flagstaff, our stop for the night, it began to snow. Our hotel had huge icicles cascading from the corners, and ice and snow were all over the roads. It was evident that plows had come through, but more snow was expected for the area. We turned on the weather and started getting all the road closure notices. It became very clear, very fast, that the Grand Canyon South Rim wasn’t going to happen. I was devastated. Mom has never seen the Canyon, and I wanted to see it in the winter, but there is just no getting around closed roads. So we rested, and hit the road the next morning for Albuquerque.

Our one night in Flagstaff, I sat up in bed searching maps, websites, and apps for an alternative spot we could visit since we missed the Grand Canyon. It was White Sands all over again. Mom and I had been to Albuquerque on a previous trip where we went up the sky tram at Sandia Mountain, so I wanted a different experience for us on this trip. We decided to make our way to old town Albuquerque, do some shopping and have lunch. I loved all the adobe buildings and clusters of chili peppers hanging around the doors and gates.

The next morning, we decided to drive as much of the original Route 66 as we could on our way back to Texas. I enjoyed seeing the old hotels and signs from days gone by. We found a mural next to an old diner which wasn’t due to open until lunch, so we took some fun pics in front of all the Route 66 paraphernalia and then got on our way.

It seemed like we would never make it back to Texas. I wanted to link back up to I-10 and drive that the rest of the way home, but to get there, we had to navigate literally through the middle of nowhere New Mexico! Other than two larger than life cowboy cutouts on opposite sides of the road looking like they were ready for a showdown, there was absolutely nothing to see! The picture of the cowboy cutouts I attempted while I was driving and mom was napping came out all blurry, so I don’t have that to share, but there were taller than a house!

When we finally made it back to Texas, we pulled into Monohans Sandhills State Park to play in the sand dunes. These dunes seem to rise out of nowhere. We went from flat ground that stretched on for miles to towering dunes of soft powdery sand. With my annual state parks pass, we gained entry to the park and made our way to the day use area so we could climb up to the top of these massive dunes and take in the views. After a long day of driving, we didn’t arrive until close to sunset, so we didn’t have much time before the light would be gone. Even though I grew up on the beach and have spent my life trudging through thick sand, nothing compares to the work your legs will endure trying to reach the top of the dunes in this park. The view at the top will make it all more than worth it, though!

We spent the night in San Angelo, but instead of checking out San Angelo State Park on our last day on the road, I decided to venture off toward a historical site that I saw signs for during the very beginning of our road trip. Our last and final sightseeing stop was Ft. McKavett State Historic Site, an old fort that was decommissioned in the 1970s.

The ruins of Ft. McKavett stand on a rocky bluff overlooking the Edwards Plateau. The 150yr old West Texas fort left me wide eyed and curious. This site is considered one of the best preserved and most intact examples of a Texas military post. The Hill Country views are spectacular, and walking among the ruins and through the restored structures and barracks are a history buff’s dream.

Its funny, I hated history growing up. Even though I was a diligent student, I always struggled to stay awake in my history classes. Nothing about it interested me. As I’ve gotten older, however, I find it more and more fascinating, especially places like this. I’m not quite sure what it is about standing in the middle of the officer’s quarters, which burned in 1941, or walking the barracks of Buffalo Soldiers, but I wanted to stay. I wanted to soak in every inch of that place, know its stories, know its truth.

If I were to rank the places that we stopped in order of favorites, or ones that I would definitely return to, Ft. McKavett is unquestionably at the top of that list.

It was a long, exciting 10 days on the road full of both disappointments and happy surprises. At the end of it all, my favorite thing about this entire trip was getting to experience every mile and every view with my rock, my best friend, my mom.