It was very windy last night, which made cowboy camping interesting (I was afraid to get up because I didn’t want my sleeping pad or quilt to blow away).   

We had a short day of driving (relatively speaking).  After getting everything packed up, we drove about 30 minutes to an amazing restaurant in El Paso called San Isidro Mission Cafe. Even better than the food (and the food was excellent) was the company - we met a great family friend, Rick, there for brunch. 

Following brunch, we drove about an hour to Pancho Villa State Park in Columbus, NM. It’s still extremely windy here but we did manage to set up the tent.

We also managed to take showers.  The water pressure was terrible and the water was mostly cold, but I’m grateful for the chance to start out the trail clean.  (That being said, it is so windy I’m sure I’ll be covered in a fine layer of dust when I wake up tomorrow morning …)

I can’t believe we start the hike tomorrow!  I also can’t believe I’m feeling nervous - you’d think I haven’t done something like this before.  :)