Airplane passengers and those coming by train will take the same motor route from Carlsbad, since it is direct, and the only route from that city. Special busses known as the Carlsbad Caverns Coaches make the trip at frequent intervals, and also operate from El Paso, which is about 145 miles away.
As the Caverns-bound sightseer heads toward his objective from Carlsbad or El Paso, he will find himself in the heart of the desert. There is hardly a tree that is more than head-high. Visitors seeing the desert for the first time will marvel at the yucca and sotol along with other less majestic desert vegetation. The stately yucca points its bloom skyward and is a thing of beauty in the spring. Among its grass-like leaves are often found mockingbirds, thrashers or cactus wrens, who like to build their nests amid the security afforded by the spine-tipped bunching of the limbs and branches. The uppermost point of the sotol sometimes reaches as high as 15 feet in the air, while the yucca, often referred to as the Spanish bayonet, occasionally looms to 25 feet. Indians used its leaves for baskets and its roots for soap, and the sotol served the Indian as food, both cooked and raw, the crisp rich centers tasting much like celery hearts.
© BY ROBERT NYMEYER
There are several other species of cactus, and to the newcomer these will be a new experience. Besides the Devil's Head and the branching cane, one sees the thousand-headed cliff cactus, the large leaf "prickly pear", various kinds of mescal, and numerous smaller varieties. The octopus-like ocotillo, spreading its fingers outward to the sky, is numerous, picturesque, and unforgettable.
The traveler who is fortunate enough to make the trip during the spring months will be extra rewarded by seeing this desert flora in bloom. Every color of the rainbow will be noticed, but primarily the desert blooms of cacti are for the most part quite pronounced in the lighter, soft colors, especially in the light pinks and yellows. A few give forth edible fruit, and many are known for their ability to hold moisture, often a lifesaver to man and beast.
What trees there are will be found mostly along the banks of, or adjacent to, small streams or rivers which supply them with the water their roots must have. Besides several species of oak are the black walnut, black cherry, New Mexico maple, junipers, Mexican buckeye, the small green ash, an occasional pine struggling for existence, and numerous mesquites. There are also several nut and berry trees which have long been helpful in preserving the wild life that inhabits the area.
Desert wild flowers accentuate the land in spring with their dots of red, yellow and blue. In places they are so thick as to resemble a crazy quilt of many hues and shades.
Although the area gives the impression of a barren wasteland to the inhabitants of less arid regions, there are many forms of wild life which for countless centuries have made the area their home. Although the Red man's arrows and the white man's bullets have reduced the herds of wild game which once roamed the hills and valleys, there are still a sizeable number which may occasionally be seen.
Among these are the gray mule deer, still found in the narrow gulches and on top of rocky ridges, jack rabbits which continue to multiply and dart rapidly hither and thither, being most noticeable at dusk, rock squirrels which dwell primarily in the rocky cliffs, and numerous kinds of rats which seem to have little trouble eking out an existence.