#3: [04-Apr-24]

#1: [05-Jan-03] (incomplete)

18-Jan-2003 -- John Hudson and I left on our quest early on Friday morning and arrived in Kermit about 9:00 p.m. that evening. We stayed with some of John's old friends and then set off for N32 W103 early on Saturday morning. The confluence is near one of the most notable spots in the entire area. The Kermit Sand Hills. These are dunes that rise as much as 70’ off the desert floor and, other than the abundant petroleum products found under the surface, are probably the most important feature around. Folks from quite a large radius come here on weekends to play on the dunes.

We felt that we could get within walking distance in our little Nissan based on our research with MapSource but what we WERE able to do was get far enough off the main highway to get the car stuck in a sand drift across the caliche road. It took us about 3 hours to extract ourselves. We would jack the car up using a couple boards we found nearby and then lay chunks of caliche under the tires. We would make about 5 feet of progress before having to start the process over again. Fortunately it was January and not July!

When we finally got out, we went back to the area where everybody congregates to unload their ATVs and dune buggies. We approached a group of guys and explained our dilemma. We were very fortunate to make the acquaintance of William McCauley, a dentist from Carlsbad NM, who was visiting to enjoy the dunes with his Yamaha. William agreed to drag me back over three miles over the dunes and areas of miniature oak bushes to the confluence. This was my first experience on one of these contraptions and I am happy to report that it is possible to fall backward off one while ascending a dune and come off unscathed!!!

John waited back at the rendezvous place since we were only able to convince William to be a gratis taxi service. We left a cairn made from a long stick and a Keystone Light can to mark the confluence!