We rolled into Palo Duro Canyon State Park long after dark, having spent most of the day chasing bison at Caprock Canyon. With the tiny lunch we'd had in town, we dropped anchor and then headed into the city of Canyon to find a Mexican food place - we were missing our normal hole-in-the-way weekly fill and it was Taco Tuesday after all. Joe Taco on the square did not disappoint!
If fact, with it being on the square, I got to check two things off my list: a new restaurant to review AND a courthouse to snag photos of!
The Randall County courthouse had really outdone itself - with color-changing lights illuminating the exterior (the above was just one color scheme, it cycled thru several) and we just happened to be there at 9pm as the clock tower chimed a tune and then tolled out each hour to 9 - the lights blinking along in time. Pretty, and pretty cool!!
The park is truly serious about making sure you take hiking safety and hydration seriously. Camping and hiking in the winter months means that we weren't at risk for severe heat, but both RDB and I could tell that it was much less humid up in the high plains than what we're used to in Houston, and we made sure to bring plenty of water with us for the trek (thanks, Camelbak!).
The trail increased about 150' in elevation on the section that we hiked, but it wasn't something so strenuous that you couldn't make it happen. Just taking it slow, stopping often for pictures, and sipping on the water along the way - along with the beautiful fall weather - really made it an excellent adventure!
The trail guide gave great pointers on which mile markers to stop off at and observe formations or points of interest. The above red hill doesn't have a formal name, so we were challenged to create our own. I said it reminded me of giant ant hills, RDB said it looked like something from Mars. So between the two of us, we decided that this is the Martian Ant Hill Formation.
Our main goal was to hike out to a viewing point of the Lighthouse Formation (above) and just as we rounded the trail to be able to see it, I had to snatch RDB by the arm to keep him from stepping on a snake that was sunning itself in the middle of the trail. He wasn't the largest snake I've seen in my life, but I'm not a fan of anything that slithers. We side stepped around him and continued on with our hike.
Making our way back out (which always seems to go faster than heading in) we had worked up quite the appetite. So, Yelp to the rescue, and craving our weekly dose of pizza, we jumped in the truck and headed into Amarillo for a late lunch at 575* Pizzeria (they have cauliflower crusts!). Y'all. OMG, I wish this place wasn't a full days' drive away! It may not look like much nestled into a strip center on the edge of town, but OMGeee, it was so good! So good, in fact, that we went back the next day for lunch again before we left for our next park!! On the second trip, I picked up a six pack of Breckenridge Brewery Vanilla Porter (that we're enjoying this evening as I blog, and it is tasty good!)
Being on the edge of Amarillo meant that we were near a Route 66 roadside attraction that I just couldn't resist: the Cadillac Ranch. RDB and I drove over to the field where these old beauties are buried nose-first into the earth, parked, and walked out to the art installation to add our own touch to the work.
I had a thought in mind before we left home of what I wanted to put on the hood of one of the cars....
It took a little planning to get it just right....
But I'm pretty happy with how it turned out....
Hello my VEC team! Y'all are just as iconic and unique as each one of these caddys; ever changing, always inspiring, and so crazy awesome! I'm so thankful to have each of you on my team and I'm honored to be your leader! Keep making your mark on the world! 143!
RDB and I just happened to be there at the perfect time as the sun was setting and I have way too many pictures of the cars in that golden light!
For those who don't know, I collect earrings as souvenirs of my travels, trying to get something that's a color or style that reminds me of the place I've visited (the ice blue of the glaciers in Alaska, the deep green of succulents from a trip to San Fran, the purple and blue of a stage I presented on in Nashville) So, when I walked up to the merch truck and they had earrings from a local artist who uses chunks of the spray paint from the cars, I was SOLD!
It was a perfect end to an awesome day and a great reminder of this fun trip!
Back at the campsite the next morning, RDB and I got everything set up for an extensive Park and Drive video. The road that leads into the campground has a 10% grade, is switchbacked and windy, and takes nerves of steel when you have 26,000 lbs of rig and truck (26,660 to be exact - so says our last CAT scale ticket (11k of that is trailer weight, for those who are curious)). Since we came in at night, we really didn't see how deep into the canyon we were traveling (it's about 800' in elevation drop) and didn't know there weren't guardrails along the sides, either, but our RAM 3500 had no problems holding its own going down or hauling back up.
We originally had planned to stay over til Friday, then make the trip back towards Houston, stopping off at Colorado City State Park, but Sis called before we started this adventure to let me know that Thanksgiving was being shifted over to the first weekend of December, to co-inside with Dad's 70th b-day, so we rescheduled our campsites for the weekend to nearby Cedar Hill State Park instead.
Lots of miles to cover, so as much as we could have stayed longer, we packed up Thursday night and headed out for a stop over at the KOA in Abilene (to break the 6 hrs drive over two days, rather than all in one). The Texas Longhorn herd at the park headquarters wished us safe travels, and beckoned us to come back soon.
We were at Palo Duro Canyon State Park, Juniper Loop Site #105 (50a/W). It's a pull thru site, which was great since we came in after dark, but watch out for the really big rocks as you're getting in; I stood on top of one with the flashlight pointed down on myself so RDB could see where it was (on the passenger side, with as big as the truck is, you wouldn't know you hit it till you hit it, and I could tell someone had already done just that). You'll want to bring a mat of some kind to put out at your doorstep - the sites here are really dusty and you'll track that red dirt inside in no time!
More camping pictures here.
For a drive thru video of the campground (and the really steep road in) go here.
