We have just completed a three month stay at Caprock Canyons State Park in Quitaque, Texas. It is a 13900 acre park in the Texas Panhandle. It was quite a change from our last location in the Appalachian Mountains in north Georgia. In fact when we arrived and Le'Ann, the park interpreter was giving us a tour, Sherree was thinking, "This place is awful. I'm not sure I can stay 3 months". After less than 2 weeks we fell in love with it. During our stay we experienced a winter snow storm, 50 mph winds, and a short hail storm, (no damage). Least you think that sounds bad, it's not. Each event was short lived and besides it kept things exciting.
The snow storm lasted only one day but the park was closed due to roads in and out being treacherous and unsafe. The park superintendent, Donald Beard, made the decision to close, and it left Sherree and I alone in the park. It was really beautiful as you will see in the video at the end of this post. Standing outside the motor home, experiencing the cold and quite was a spiritual experience. Watching the deer and the bison standing in the snow gave us an idea as to how the earlier settlers in this wonderful land must have felt. Of course we had all the modern comforts to fall back on that the pioneers did not, but still being alone at such a time was breathtaking.
The hail storm lasted only a few minutes and we invited a family with two young boys that were tent camping across from us to sit out the storm in the motor home. With the pounding of the hail on the roof the boys sat there in wide eyed silence. We had many windy days but only one with a brief period of 50 mph winds. We did learn that when the weather service says breezy that we should hold on to our hats and if it said windy I needed to hold on to Sherree to keep her on the ground.
There is a lot of history in this area and the following is a short blurb taken from the TPWD web site.
" The region's historic era began when Spanish explorer Coronado traveled across
the plains in 1541. After Spanish colonies were established in New Mexico
around 1600, two-way trade between Plains Indians and New Mexicans began and
gradually increased. The Plains Apache, present when Coronado arrived, acquired
horses and became proficient buffalo hunters. They were displaced by the Comanche,
who arrived in the early 1700s and dominated northwestern Texas, until they
were finally subdued in the 1870s. During the Comanche reign, trade prospered
and New Mexican buffalo hunters, known as ciboleros, and traders, known as
Comancheros, were frequent visitors to this area. Las Lenguas Creek, a few
miles south of the park, was a major trade area, and a site excavated on Quitaque
Creek has produced artifacts indicating that it may have been a cibolero camp."
The rangers at the park made our stay even more memorable. They were always more than willing to answer our questions and to help us in any way they could. Le'Ann was the park interpreter and the person that was very helpful in obtaining our first Camp Host position. Joyce worked the front desk and always had a smile on her face. James was the lead ranger and the one we normally went too if we were looking for something to do. We stayed busy with restroom cleanup each day and picking up trash from around the park. Freda, Dennis, CL, and Rebecca were the other rangers that we came to know as very good friends. Last but not least was Donald Beard, the park superintendent. He always had good word to say and offered to help us in any way he could.
There was another couple that acted as Camp Hosts for two of the three months we were there. That was Fred and Nancy Greer. They are a retired couple from Plainview that have been spending time at the park as Camp Hosts for the past several years. We became good friends and enjoyed some nice long walks and visits at the end of a busy day. Nancy made some homemade Butter Finger ice cream and even made some apple crisp in a dutch oven one day which she shared with us and the park staff. It was a wonderful thing to do on a hot west Texas day.
As I mentioned earlier we cleaned the rest rooms and showers each day and picked up trash around the park wherever we came across it. Kudos to Sherree for teaching me the correct way to clean the restrooms. By the end of our stay we had received several compliments about how clean the restrooms and showers were. Sherree really got into driving the Mule and the Gator, especially on those days that we rode the trails to check the primitive facilities and sometimes just to explore. Almost everyday brought something new to learn and experience. We cleaned out fire pits and grills and on a couple of occasions we re-set some fire pits. We helped assemble and install some picnic tables and I helped install some new lights above the restroom/shower entrances. Due to the drought, Lake Theo was very low and on several days we picked up trash that had been underwater for a long time. We even pulled up some old tires.
We saw wild life everywhere. There were mule deer, bison, (more about them later), feral hogs, rabbits, and at night we could hear the coyotes in the distance. There were doves, quail, hawks, owls, road runners, and turkeys. Even the turkey buzzards were fascinating to watch as they soared effortlessly thru the blue sky. And of course there were lizards and a snake or two.
Now about the bison. The herd is about 70 to 80 strong at the present time. Some of them are direct descendants of the Charles Goodnight herd. Mr. Goodnight was a cattleman and had a very large ranch in the Panhandle. Most of the bison were killed to make it possible for Goodnight to raise his cattle. His wife became concerned that the bison would be lost forever and convinced him to spare some for future generations. He did just that and the park is trying to carry on that goal with the official Texas bison herd at Caprock Canyons. The bison are magnificent animals and in seeing them made us wish that we could have seen the huge herds that once roamed this area. It must have been awe inspiring. We all owe a debt of gratitude the Goodnights for saving some of these animals for us today and we also owe a big thank you to the rangers, (past, present, and future) that make is possible for us to enjoy them even today. The herd continues to grow each year with the addition of new calves. While we were there, seven or so were born.
I could go on and on about our time there. Something about awakening to the sounds of the birds singing, the rustle of the leaves as the wind blows, the solitude of the canyon trails, and the beauty of the wild flowers and blooming cactus filled our hearts and souls with peace. The quite still voice of God.
The following slide show is just an attempt to convey the fun we had and the beauty we enjoyed.
