Zarya

Johnson Space Center is mission control for NASA. It is used for astronaut training, and a center for the design and test of vehicles and robotics for current and future space missions, like the TOP SECRET International Space Station and the TOP SECRET Orion Project. I also went on the TOP SECRET tram tour of the facilities.



One of the first rockets.

One of the modules for the International Space Station.

Apollo booster rocket. It is huge.

Space suit worn on one of the shuttle missions.

I will never complain about my bed again.

Space toilet! The pee is recycled as drinking water. Gulp.

 

alright alright alright....

Austin TX is also the setting for one of the greatest movies of all time....

 

Come and take it.

Austin TX has a laid-back vibe that mixes most of the things I enjoy: music, outdoor spaces, and heaps of grilled meats. It seems like a place where rhinestone cowboys, greasers and pinup girls, williamsburg faux-hipsters, college bros and the brady bunch can all hitch their horses to the same post.

Barton Springs. A popular swimming hole right in the middle of town. There are a slew of swimming holes, pools, creeks, and lakes in and around Austin.

A dirt lot, picnic bench, some cold beer, and you're ready to go. There are many interesting places to kick your feet up, day or night.



Torchys Tacos. A local institution. The tacos are delicious.

 

View after a couple Shiners..

Sun Radio 100.1 had a live show. Twang and $2 tacos.

Rudys BBQ, a local chain. The fatty brisket (on the right) was tasty. And yes, I ate everything in the crate.

Austin is home to the University of Texas, so there's also the college town vibe.

So wrong, but just right.

Alas, no one mounted the jackalope.

Austin is famous for it's live music scene. There seemed to be a stage in every bar, restaurant, park or parking lot. On this night, I went to the Mohawk to watch Benjamin Booker. A great show.

The Mohawk, with the stage just off Red River St. A relaxed, multi-level outdoor club with a about 3-4 bars inside.

Benjamin Booker. I was boogieing (not pictured).

Starting on the outskirts to the west of Austin is Texas Hill Country.  Swimming holes, BBQ, wineries, parks, and resorts. Also there's Fredericksburg, a legit German town up in the hills. I will definitely come back for a visit.

There's a good pace of life in and around Austin. I can get used to it here.
 

White pickups

Driving from Carlsbad to Austin TX cuts through the West Texas oil fields. Oil derricks and geysers of flame dot the horizon for endless miles. Seemed like the only vehicles on Hwy 285 to Ft Stockton were tanker trucks and white pickups. Always white. Why are they always white?

And the only resource more abundant than oil and white pickups seem to be ambulance chasers. Ads for personal injury lawyers everywhere!

Oil. Church. Football. Pickups. Guns. Ambulance Chasers.

Reminds me of this tune by John Cougar Mellencamp (If that is really his middle name, it's awesome).



Rock of ages

America is beautiful. And that beauty can sometimes take the form of a haunting, unearthly landscape like the Carlsbad Caverns. There are miles and miles of passageways at the caverns, but I toured the two main areas---Natural Entrance and the Big Room---that don't require squeezing through a crawlspace or rappelling down a rock face in pitch black.

Natural Entrance to the caverns. Sometimes you can see thousands of bats fly out of the cave at dusk. Smells like bat poo.

The Devil's Spring

 

 

 

 

Rock of Ages

The Giants



The caverns are easily accessible. You can take an elevator to the bottom if you don't want to hike. There's even a gift shop and restaurant down in the depths. And many years ago, people used to hold wedding ceremonies down in the caverns!

Saddle up. Onwards to Austin TX!

Made some friends in New Mexico



My new friends Qngarkurayyakzzii and Cornelius.

Maybe because of the Roswell incident, but New Mexico seems to have a healthy obsession with aliens and UFOs.

A mural in Phoenix

 

Hoodoos and vortexes

Utah and northern Arizona should maybe be one big national park. Unique natural wonders abound. Another one of those places is Bryce Canyon. It's a park full of spires and pinnacles (called "hoodoos"), slot canyons, and one Queen. What an odd landscape.

Bryce Canyon is also very cold. I found out it's something around 9000 ft above sea level. That's high. For comparison, Lake Tahoe is around 6000 ft above sea level.

On this day, I wore shorts and a t-shirt for the hike. In the immortal words of Sterling Archer "As long as you learn something from it, it's not a mistake."

 

 

 

 

The Queen and her court.

The twisty path down the Navajo Trail.

Hope that gumdrop doesn't fall.

After Bryce, I stopped for a night at a motel in Flagstaff, AZ. You'd think it was a desert town with cactuses and really thirsty people. But it's in the high desert, and also very cold. It reminded me of Reno, but without the casinos and toothless biker ladies.

Next stop after that was Sedona, AZ, land of red rocks and vortexes. And healing stones and aura readings. And old rich hippies, sipping organic margaritas at fancy resorts. And useless decorative southwestern pottery and windchimes. And turquoise bolo ties.

I guess vortexes are some kind of mystical, life-renewing energy force occurring around town. I definitely got vortexed at the KFC off Hwy 179....



A church built into the side of a cliff.

View of Bell Rock, when I was on it.

One of many shops selling spiritstones, kachinas and psychic healing to the hordes of salt and pepper retirees.

The area in and around Sedona is red rocks country. I stayed up in the Oak Creek Canyon area at Cave Springs, with lots of spots to hike, fish, camp and swim. My activity? Sleep.

Onwards to Phoenix, the land of tacky bar and grills and UFC wannabes!

Zion

Zion is a relatively small national park (Well, any park would be small compared to the Grand Canyon), but it's quite a gem.

Immediately after entering the park, I could see rock formations, in all shapes, sizes and colors, shooting up to the sky. Everywhere you turn are sweeping views of the park.

 

Checkerboard Mesa

 

 

 

The Three Patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob

I hiked "The Narrows", which basically involves wading in and out of the icy cold Virgin River, down in a section of the park where the towering walls of the canyon squeeze up on the river. Amazing sights, worth the effort to stay dry and upright on slippery smooth rocks. Almost fell a dozen times, but my walking stick saved the day. (I owe you one friend!) I made it through a section known as "Wall Street" (haha), then headed home.

 

 

 

To get a sense of scale, there are two people to the left and behind the boulder.

Spooky...

 

The ranger said that the water level was low today. But at certain points I was wading in waist deep water. I'd hate to see what it's like when the water level is normal. The "hike" will be more like a swim. The canyon was also swept by huge gusts of wind today, swirling clouds of sand and stone. Blinded and exfoliated all at the same time.

There is another a famous hike at Zion known as Angel's Landing, where you zigzag your way up one of the rock formations for a spectacular view of the canyon. Again, not for those afraid of heights, like me.

That's it for today. On to Bryce Canyon!