Driving from LA to Texas

[Gore]

Ha! last time I was at the Thing it was about 105 inside and the dust was so think you could hardly read the descriptions... I can actually see the Thing/Bowlings parking lot lights from my house at night about 8 miles as the crow flies. Below is WikipediA explanation of the Thing.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thing_(roadside_attraction)

Best part about the Thing is the Dairy Queen and Texas Canyon just up the road. I would recommend anyone passing through put aside a couple of hours and visit the Amerind Foundation.

http://www.amerind.org/

That is an absolutely fabulous write-up in wikipedia and I recommend everyone read it. I see that you were, in fact, not confusing The Thing with McDonald's and that your posts are heavily laden with sarcasm. Perhaps, you are hoping to chase a few people away so that the lines are not so long, or that not too many people relocate there and drive up property taxes, I'm not sure. In any case, as anyone can see, The Thing is a veritable museum rivaling the Smithsonian, which, coincidentally is just down the road a few miles from me -- so at least we have that in common, both living near great museums. In any case, it seems that the admission of only 1 dollar! provides a tremendous bargain as it will allow you to save some money and purchase postcards and other valuable roadside trophies. Also, it seems that as an added feature, The Thing also doubles as a sauna, so you can clean your pores and relax while you're there. :thumb:

Incidentally, we always stopped and had a picnic at Texas Canyon nearby. That is a great place. You might want to overnight it there, just so you be sure to see everything. Are there any nearby recommended hotels?

Also, just off the highway very near Las Cruces is the old town of Mesilla. The town square is quite well preserved. The Double Eagle is like an oasis in the desert and has a fabulous Sunday brunch buffet, but I think it is worth a stop, especially for something to eat. El Patio has the best margaritas there as I recall.

 

[BillN]

It's no Smithsonian but they try. Seriously the Amerind is well worth the time for folks interested in Native Peoples. After a hot time viewing the Thing one can cool off with a Mister Misty Float.

I do like Las Cruses and the old town of Mesilla, also the Mesilla Valley is a great little agricultural area in the middle of not much. Our kids used to be at White Sands so we spent a fair amount of time in the area in and around Las Cruses.