Epic Road Tripping in a Lincoln Navigator
Editor’s Note:
Two friends of Le Car, Asmeret Berhe-Lumax and Camella Ehlke, combined forces and took their children on an epic western road trip this summer. When we created the concept for “Go There With Friends” it was these types of adventures we imagined. After many months at home, people had a longing to get out, reconnect and rediscover the world around them. We know so many people who’ve been exploring the land, mile by mile, from the vantage point of cars and SUVs, that we wanted to document a tiny bit of this moment in time, the 2021 road trip.
We arranged for the crew to travel in style in a 2021 Lincoln Navigator. They flew from New York City to El Paso, where the epic road trip began. We asked one of the travellers, 13-year old Joie Berhe-Lumax, to share a bit of her travel journal with us. Her fellow passengers Ella, Ginger and Kaleo all documented the journey, while the moms did all the driving.
When we first arrived in El Paso, while I was excited about the trip, I wasn’t excited about all aspects of it. I was convinced that there would be plenty of unpleasant stops. However, by the end, I was pleasantly surprised. I was nervous about the heat, but luckily it was cooler than expected. Traveling with 5 others, 3 of whom I wasn’t related to, was nerve-racking at first, but it ended up being fun! The biggest problem we had was a shortage of chargers, but thankfully that was resolved.
This road trip was a fantastic experience and the car made it even better. Without the comfort and space of the Lincoln Navigator, spending 3 weeks with the same 5 people would have been exhausting, but instead, it was fun. This road trip was an adventure, one that I’d be willing to undertake again.
Our first official stop was Marfa, Texas. While Marfa is usually a thriving art community, we were there during the weekdays, and the town was basically closed. It was quite nice to walk around the silent streets. We also visited the Chinati Foundation and saw some beautiful art, primarily by Donald Judd. Overall, while Marfa was pretty small and quite quaint, I really enjoyed our stay there, however brief.
We visited Fort Davis, an old confederate fort, and did a short hike on a nice trail that led to a beautiful view. It is a national historic site. And while I expected it to be burning hot, we got lucky and followed storms, making it much cooler.
After two nights, we drove out to New Mexico, excited to see more, and made a pit stop at the Carlsbad Caverns. They were naturally formed and go 750 feet underground. The stalactites and stalagmites were very interesting, having a similar appearance to drip castles made with sand.
Then we visited White Sands National Park. We arrived in the evening, and we were able to watch the sunset over the dunes. I would definitely recommend this place, as it was simply magical. We even managed to catch a lizard, and research after the fact told me it was a bleached earless lizard, which is a variant of earless lizards, and is unique to White Sands.
There were a lot of thrift stores in the west, and that didn’t change in Santa Fe. There were so many cute ones, and quite a few good finds were made. I really enjoyed thrifting, because it was nice to see my old things being reused. My sister got some very nice shirts and I got a pair of sunglasses.
Next was the Bandolier, where we visited adobe houses, and on the trail, we even spotted a rattlesnake! We managed to stay a safe distance away while still getting some good photos. After that was Ghost Ranch, a property with 21,000 acres, where Georgia O’Keeffe owned a small house. We did a horseback tour of the property, and passed it but could not visit it. According to O’Keeffe’s wishes, the house will not be opened until 100 years after her death, in 9. We passed the Pedernal Mountain, and a magical landscape, which O’Keeffe loved painting.
In Arizona, the first stop was Sedona. We took a Jeep tour through a forest. We also saw some artifacts from tribes previously residing there, like pottery shards and spear fragments. There were also petroglyphs depicting things like maps and stories. After that was the Grand Canyon which was simply breathtaking. While I personally didn’t hike down into the canyon, my mom did, and she told me the down there views were spectacular. My favorite part of the Grand Canyon was the flora and fauna. I was fortunate to see wild horses and elk there. I even got to see a young elk up close! The squirrels at the canyon were also way more fearless, and I saw one drink from someone’s water, and even saw someone pet one.
Our next stop, and my favorite one, was Utah. We did a small hike on Willis Creek Canyon, which was beautiful slot canyons. You walk down into them, and the walls were composed of many-layered rocks. A creek ran through most of it, helping me stay cool. It was a wonderful hike that I would totally recommend. It was slightly small, but a great alternative to Zebra Canyon as it wasn’t claustrophobic. It was relatively flat and easy to hike. You could even bring children and animals. On our way to the next stop, we passed through Zion National Park. While we didn’t end up hiking there, the drive-through was breathtaking.
While there were two other stops on this trip, I’ve covered my favorite parts of the trip so far. This trip was a fantastic experience, and I would do it again without hesitation! I never imagined I would enjoy the American west, I really did, and I would go back. This was such a unique experience, and I learned so many things about the country I have lived in my entire life.
