2nd Largest Canyon in the U.S.

Location: Oasis RV Park (el. 3,800 ft); Amarillo, Texas

(all pictures taken with Nokia Lumia 929 cell phone)
(click pictures to enlarge)

When I left Louisiana a couple of weeks ago, my destination was Palo Duro Canyon. I wanted to see the second largest canyon in the United States. Since there is a state park that covers a portion of the canyon, I planned to camp there. After the zero cell service at Caprock Canyon, I knew it would be the same thing at Palo Duro so I decided to find a campground in Amarillo and make a day trip to Palo Duro. It worked out well. I found a nice campground on the west end of Amarillo with concrete pads so I could inspect the underside of Liberty and still be close enough for the day trip. I also have cable TV so I was able to see the New Orleans Saints beat the Falcons last night. 

Campsite at Oasis RV Park, Amarillo

Palo Duro Canyon was privately owned until the 1930's. It was home to the giant JA Ranch with was managed by the legendary cattleman, Charles Goodnight. Thousands of head of Longhorns, owned by the JA Ranch, roamed free in the canyon for decades. It was very difficult to round up the cattle to sell when they were mixed in with the mesquite and other vegetation. Once barbed wire became common place, natural boundaries such as the canyon was no longer needed. Eventually the longhorns were cross-bred with other types of beef cattle to make a better stock. The State of Texas bought parts of the canyon in the 1930's and turned it into a state park. The Civilian Conservation Corp help with the development of the park. Today there is a long road system in the canyon where you can see most everything. If you want to get a more close up view, there are trails to walk but I decided against it. I just wasn't in mood for some reason.

This is the road leading to the canyon. It is surprising that such flat land ends in such a large canyon.

First view of the canyon from on top

The road to the bottom

The road in the bottom of the canyon

More views from the bottom

Looking up at the canyon top and the skies

Lots of plane traffic over such an isolated location.

Bright red sandstones

A nice view of a part of the canyon system

Nice outcroppings on layered sandstone

A panoramic view of the canyon.

Ya'll take care of each other. I'll Cya down the road.

Bison on Parade at Caprock Canyon State Park

Location: Caprock Canyon State Park (el. 2,600 ft); Quitaque, Texas

(all pictures taken with Nokia Lumia 929 Cell Phone)
(click picture to enlarge)

I pulled into Caprock Canyon State Park about 1:00 pm on Monday with plans to be here a couple of days but immediately changed my mind. There was no reliable cell phone signal or wi-fi connection anywhere in the park. It was strange in that one minute my phone would have a very strong signal and then absolutely nothing. That on again/off again was very frustrating. Reading the brochure the park gives out at the time of checking in, it said, "In case of emergency, call 911." I thought that was funny since there was no cell phone signal. A year ago it wouldn't have bothered me to stay here a couple days and be off the cell grid but my situation has changed and I feel the need to be available all the time. So my plan was to explore as much of the park that afternoon as I could and move on the next day. 

Campsite. Lots of different spiders around.

Typical road and view in the park

This is a panoramic picture from the cell phone. This type of landscape needs it.

Red Rock outcroppings

Erosion has been working overtime

Some cactus with blooms or fruit. It was growing right on the side of the road.

I was able to walk a short trail that led to a nice outcropping with a great view.

Rugged Landscape

I hitched up Tuesday morning with plans to go to campground in Amarillo. I have been camping in the country for a while and the change to city-life will be nice. 

On my way out of the park, I was behind a man and woman on motorcycles who had camped a few sites away from me. They suddenly came to a stop and I saw the reason why. Bison were crossing the road. This park is the home of the Official Texas State Bison Herd and was one of the reasons I came to this park. The beginning of the herd was put together by Charles Goodnight back in the late 1800's at the nagging  encouragement of his wife. With the isolation of this herd, they remain direct descendants from the vast herds that used to roam the Great Plains.

The motorcyclists wisely stopped a ways back because who knows how many motorcycles the bison have seen. I eased forward to act as a buffer for the motorcycles and to try to hurry the bison along.

I heard the big one that was looking at me clearly say, "Hey partner, we have the right-of-way here". I said, OK.

It appeared to be at least a half dozen spring calves so the herd is doing well. Just about the time the first group cleared the road, the second group came out of the woods.

There were some big animals walking slow.

The one on the right stopped and looked at me as I was taking the pictures. The one directly behind him must have been his wife cause she prompted him to keep moving.  

Ya'll take care of each other. I'll Cya down the road.

Last Walk in Copper Break SP (mostly pictures)

Location: Copper Break State Park (el. 1,500 ft.); Quanah, Texas

(all pictures taken with Nokia Lumia 929 Cell phone)
(click picture to enlarge)

2nd post today....:)

Even though the temperature spiked out at near 98 degrees today, a nice breeze was blowing and the humidity was low. I found a couple of nice trails to hike walk on that lead to some pretty views of the area. When I checked in to the park, the rangers said rattlesnakes were still roaming around and to be especially watchful on warm and sunny days. I remembered that warning, but went on the walk anyhow. I gathered up a bottle of water and my walking stick. The stick is used to walk with but also to make noise and shake the bushes to let any critters know that I'm around. I bought the stick almost a year ago when I was staying in the Davis Mountain State Park. It has proven itself to be sturdy and solid. Good purchase.

The main walk was on the Bull Canyon Trail and a second smaller one was on a short overlook trail. Both trails were well maintained and easily followed with no snakes encountered. It was a very nice, leisurely walk with plenty of sights and sounds to keep my attention. 

Water, check.
Walking stick, check.
Short loop, check.

Bull Canyon

More Bull Canyon

Last picture of Bull Canyon

This is the only flower in the entire walk. It was on the side of the trail so I took its picture. I'm not sure what the name of it is. It is similar to a Black Eyed Susan or Daisy but I'm pretty sure it isn't one of those.

I took this picture to try to capture something on the bottom side of that top horizontal limb in the middle of the picture. There were about 6 globs of tree sap and the sun was shining through them at just the right angle to cause a fantastic glow. It was great. Just one of those things that we never expect but that lighten our day. It's like the old saying,,,, "If you don't go out to see what you can see, you won't be able to see it." 

This was the wide part of the trail. Other places were much narrower.

This is from the "overlook trail". You could see very far in the distance. 

Last of the overlook trail pictures. 

It was a good walk on a pretty day. There are times when I don't feel like taking such a walk but just about every walk turns out enjoyable. Sometimes I have to just tell myself,,,,,,,Go! Most of the time I don't reply and just comply.

Like I said in the post from this morning. Tomorrow is moving day. 

Ya'll take care of each other. I'll Cya down the road.

The Comanche Indians and Texas Longhorn Cattle

Location: Copper Breaks State Park (el 1,500 ft); Quanah, Texas

(pictures taken with Nokia Lumia 929 cell phone AND Nikon D5100 camera)
(click pictures to enlarge)

The landscape of north Texas

The welcoming committee to Copper Breaks State Park

The view of the lake from near the campground

My campsite.

The Comanche Indian. To the Spanish in the late 1700's and the Texans in the 1800's, the name brought to mind fear. Fear of Comanche raids that went as far south as Old Mexico and as far east as the Gulf coast near Victoria. The Comanche were not native to this region. They showed up in the Texas Panhandle about the same time the Spanish showed up in Old Mexico. The Comanche started out in the mountains and valleys of western Wyoming as a part of the larger Shoshone Indian tribe. In the 1600's, a few bands of Comanche started moving south into the great plains area of modern day eastern Colorado and western Kansas. This proved to be beneficial because of the increase in food and warmer climate. Greater numbers followed. This move was an invasion of the lands of other Indian tribes such as the Apache, Utes, Pueblo, etc. The Comanche defeated or caused the other tribes to move away, thus giving their land to the Comanche. This type of Indian invasion of other Indian tribes was typical of all of the Indian tribes of the country. To them, the strong survived. Ironically, this is exactly what happened to all of the American Indians in that they were eventually conquered by the stronger white Americans.

The Comanche eventually made it as far south as the middle of Texas where they met the Spanish who had conquered the Indians of western Old Mexico and were moving north. By then the Comanche had acquired horses and became one of the greatest Indian horse tribes. Since neither side could win militarily, somewhat of a stalemate existed for many decades. When the Mexicans won their independence from Spain in 1810 and then the Texans from Mexico in 1836, little had changed between the Comanche and their European/White neighbors. The Comanche continued their raids where they would capture prisoners and steal property. After Texas was annexed by the United States in 1845, the U.S. Army was pressured into "solving" the Comanche problem. The answer was to slaughter the Comanche horses which left the Indian on foot and couldn't fight. 1,200 horses were killed at one time in a canyon just to the northwest of here. They eventually were placed on a reservation in Oklahoma. 

In 1836, a raid on a settlement near Waco resulted in a brother and sister being kidnapped. The girls name was Cynthia Ann Parker (age 9) and her brother was John (age 6). Cynthia Ann lived with the Comanche for 24 years where she married a tribal chief and bore 3 children. In 1860, she and her youngest baby was accidentally rescued by a group of white men who attacked a small band of Comanche. She never quite adjusted to the white way of living and after her baby died, she did also a short time later. One of her sons, named Quanah Parker grew up to be the last chief of the Comanche as they were placed on the reservation. Her brother John, was abandoned by the Comanche because they thought he had smallpox. A Mexican girl was left with him. Both survived, married and eventually owned a successful ranch in Old Mexico.

The Red River near the beginning of the Texas Panhandle. It is surprisingly wide.

Part of the Official Texas Herd of Longhorns lives here at Copper Breaks State Park. On Saturdays, the park rangers talk about the cows and allow people to feed them little nuggets of food. It was interesting information, but this post is too long to go in to more detail. 

Would you like to hand feed something like that?

This little girl has her doubts about this feeding thing

This woman fed the cow with her mouth. Very slobbery,,lol

The cows are waiting for their treats before heading back to the fields.

Tomorrow is moving day and I'll be heading to Caprock Canyon State Park for a few days. I'm not sure about cell signal there, so it may be a few days before another post.

Ya'll take care of each other. I'll Cya down the road.     

The Falls of Wichita Falls, Texas

Location: Lake Arrowhead State Park (el. 915 ft); Wichita Falls, Texas

(all pictures taken with Nokia Lumia 929 Cell Phone)
(click pictures to enlarge)

The only thing I ever heard about Wichita Falls, Texas was from my father. He spent a little time here when he was stationed at Sheppard Air Force Base. Anytime he was asked about the place, he would just say, ",,,it was cold as a well diggers a$$". Kids now a days probably don't know what a well digger is and why his a$$ is mentioned. Oh well, things come and go. Of course my father was talking about a "Blue Norther". Texans will tell you the term originates in Texas and is usually associated with the panhandle of Texas. That may be true, but I have heard the term in other places of the country and from other people. My mother would say those other people must be Texas transplants. :). I do not plan to be here if a blue norther is scheduled to blow through this area. Liberty has wheels and they work just fine going south to warmer weather. The forecast for the panhandle looks good with the lowest temperature predicted to be a nightly low of 40 degrees on the 18th.

The view out the door of Liberty

Wichita Falls really came into it's own when the Fort Worth/Denver railroad passed through here in the late 1800's. It created a means to ship cattle and crops out to markets around the country. The town grew and was ready for the first of several oil/natural gas booms to hit the area. Oil was discovered around here in 1918 and companies such as Texas Company, Guffey Oil Company and Magnolia Oil were born. Of course we know them today as Texaco, Gulf and Mobil.

The original waterfalls that gave the town its name were washed out about 100 years ago. In 1986, city leaders decided to rebuild the falls. I visited them and they are nice as far as waterfalls in this area are concerned. The park in which they are located is very pretty and is located in a large bend of the Wichita River. You have to walk about a mile round trip to get to the falls, but it is a nice walk with pretty surroundings. The temperature was nice and it was peaceful with only a few people around.

The beginning of the path leading to the falls.

Lazy squirrel laid out spread eagle while chewing on an acorn

Benches were spaced along the path with a small bridge over a creek.

The man-made Wichita Falls.

Side view

The path running alongside the Wichita River. The city did a good job with this park. It was peaceful and quiet. Nice.

Still no one close by. 

I leave here tomorrow and head to Copper Breaks State Park. The tow is only about 120 miles but I expect the landscape to change again to more of a dryer, rugged nature. We will see.

Ya'll take care of each other. I'll Cya down the road.