Monthly Archives: September 2026

Howdy

outside

As my old doormat has reached the end of its life time, I ordered a new one.

I’m not sure how well it will hold up, but I thought this one fitted nicely.

As I’m close to leaving, I also did the usual maintenance chores like checking all remote control batteries and replacing those not at 100%. And I cleaned the filters of the three AC units. The hot tub has a new thermometer that can be used to see the temperature from the great room. I’ve asked Hill Country Premier Lodging to include checking the presence of the thermometer as part of the hot tub maintenance routine. (I found the old one tossed out from the hot tub deck into the yard)

For my next visit I will have some more staining to do; the logs could do with a fresh coat on the outside.

It’s been great staying here and I hope the guests appreciate the updates I’ve done.

Stove burners

kitchen

Sometime earlier this year, HCPL reported the front left burner of the stove not working. I authorized ordering new elements. As I was using the stove myself I noticed the front left burner still not working.

Being an electrician by education (granted, that was a long time ago) I investigated and found the cause; only one wire was going to the element, making it hard for current to flow and heat generated. So I took my soldering iron, replaced the old too short wire with a new one and now we finally have 4 burners again.

You can see they now all start glowing orange.

Deck maintenance

outside

Texas weather is hard on decks; burning sun most of the year and the occasional frost during the winter. So it’s time for some maintenance. A guest even managed to break a deck board, so I’m replacing those in worst shape. Here’s a before picture. As you can see, the federal blue is mostly faded.

After replacing 8 boards and re-staining all, it looks like this. I will likely have to do the staining yearly and still replace some boards every time.

although it’s nice to have a big deck ( 55 square meters or almost 600 square feet) the disadvantage is that it takes a while to stain.

Raccoon

outside

I’ve never seen one here before, but last night as I wanted to turn off the lights, I noticed this one on my deck.

i knocked on the window but he ignored me. As he wasn’t bothering me, I just let him be.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park

Roadtrip

From white’s city to the Caverns is only a 15 minute drive. I arrived for the first group in. It was possible to take the natural entrance and hike another 2 miles into the Caverns, but as I wanted to drive home to Ozuye the same day, I opted for the elevator.

That takes you down 750 feet (228m) in a minute. I’ve visited quite a few caverns, but this one dwarfs all of them. The hiking trail through the caverns takes over an hour.

It’s kind of magical to walk through there almost by yourself.

The drive back went smooth. It’s 7 hours and the 266 miles Interstate 10 is not very exciting but quick as you’re allowed to drive 80 (138km/h)

It’s now 19:45 (7:45 pm) and this road trip has come to an end. It was great fun and I’m already looking forward to the next one!

Guadelupe Mountains National Park

Camping, Hiking, Roadtrip

Next stop is back in Texas. That has some major advantages. Within minutes after driving into Texas, I had 5G with full bars. Much handier than the 0 anything I had in New Mexico, especially when looking up things.

My campground is inside the national park and it’s both scenic and quiet.

Below is the view on the park as you approach it.

Today I took a hike, which was too long for my phone battery, that gave up.

Fortunately, I had all trails app on my watch so I could finish the last 4,5 miles. All in all a strenuous hike. Halfway up Bear Canyon ran into two guys who had spent the night on the trail as they were too tired to continue.

This was the goal; hunter’s peak. The first section is one continuous uneven staircase of rocks.

But the view got bigger each turn. I started at the buildings you see just above the V.

Finally made it to the top.

Then this is the view

That peak you see is the highest mountain in Texas, but I could not do that one as I first had to deal with some work emails that delayed me an hour and a half.

A few minutes after the peak I almost met a snake up close. He took the attack position and hissed like there was no tomorrow.

Not knowing how far this one can strike, I kept my distance.

It’s hard to see but it’s in the center of the pic above. AI informs me it’s a Gopher snake, which is known for its loud hiss. He’s non venomous . But I only know that now and prefer not to get bitten by any snake, especially halfway up a 10 mile hike.

After the hike I decided I needed a shower, so drove to White’s city cavern inn, just outside the Carlsbad Caverns National Park. But they close the cave at 2 pm, so I’ll go there first thing tomorrow.

White Sands

Roadtrip

After my M6 night I drove to White Sands national park. Being Dutch I’ve seen dunes before, obviously, but the nearest sea is 10 hours of driving away. So this white dunes area is what remains of what was once an ocean here. Millions of years ago.

Alamogordo

Roadtrip, Uncategorized,

Nothing to do with the Texas Alamo, but it’s where I ended up after driving from Mesa Verde.

Long drive (10 hrs) but now only 15 minutes from white sands national park.

Drove through Albuquerque today and could not help keeping an eye out for Walter or Jesse.

Did pass this billboard of the Salamanca nephews.

Tonight I will enjoy the Motel 6 luxury of a real bed, AC and probably the best meatloaf meal I’ve ever had at Lescombes. It was NM spiced and came with a local IPA.

For some weird reason my KPN phone provider does not want to link to New Mexico’s providers, so since this morning I was offline until I reached the M6 motel. Apparently there’s not a good deal between AT &T and the state of New Mexico, as having no connection seems to be a common thing.

After my visit to White Sands, I will head to Guadeloupe national park, which is in Texas, so there I should be connected again.

Mesa Verde

Camping, Roadtrip

Just arrived at Morfield Campground inside Mesa Verde national park Colorado.

There was a bear sighting but these sites come with a bear locker to store all food in. Did not see or hear a bear.

Made a short hike here to the top of the nearest peak.

in the morning I took some more pictures before heading to White Sands national park (New Mexico, a drive over 500 miles.

In Utah, the predominant color was red. In Mesa Verde it’s logically green. Parts of the drive weren’t gorgeous as it went through an area that was burned down just a few years ago.