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Looking for Texas? First, it depends on which Texas you're looking for. As it turns out (and we admit we were ignorant before
our trip) Texas is a complicated place. It's made up of several different regions some of which are really different from
the others. Even the people are different from place to place. The more we traveled the more we realized that, happily,
many of our preconceptions about Texas were wrong.
The goal of our road trip was to visit Big Bend National Park. While not one of the most talked about national parks,
it arguably has the best desert hiking in the southwest. The park lies in west Texas along the Rio Grande River. Part of
what makes this place so amazing is its incredible remoteness. After a few hours of driving west from the big cities we started
to wonder if many of our preconceptions about Texas were mistaken. As I mentioned, Texas is made up of several different
regions, however most people live in the eastern half of the state. East Texas is pretty much indistinguishable from a large
swath of the southern US that stretches (culturally and geographically) from Dallas to Virginia. But West Texas, well baby
that's a whole 'nother story!
West Texas is geographically fascinating. It features basins, mountain ranges, arid steppe, riparian washes and lots
of sagebrush. One of our first stops was Monahans Sandhills State Park. The park lies about 30 miles west of Odessa along
I-20. These dunes are part of a large dune system that stretches about 200 miles to the northwest. The visitors center is
informative (and it has a clean bathroom right off the freeway), but the fun here is running or sliding down the steep dunes.
Alpine is one of the larger towns in the southwestern part of the state. We hit the jackpot one night at dinner when
we wandered into the Edelweiss Restaurant inside the Holland Hotel. The menu was Texas-sized and difficult to interpret.
Gordon Ramsey would definitely disapprove! However, the food was good and, best of all, there was an acoustic country band
of senior citizens playing country music classics while we ate in the cool southwest-style dining room.
Our accommodations were in Marathon. We stayed at the Adobe Rose B&B. I was apprehensive, until we met the owner.
She made us feel right at home, puts out a good breakfast, and has a really nice Jacuzzi in the back garden which we were
happy to put to use. The "large" hotel in Marathon is called the Gage Hotel. Here, in all honesty, I had the best
margarita I have ever had. The bar features a fireplace and the requisite number of taxidermed animal heads on the wall.
The restaurant is elegant and overpriced, and the outdoor patio had live music. We sat with our margaritas and just enjoyed
a strange sense of coziness in the middle of so much beautiful, lonely land.
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Big Bend National Park requires a commitment. It is over an hour south of Marathon and Alpine. Points of interest within
the park are quite far apart. The best map to have is published by National Geographic. These can be found at many bookstores
and online at the Globe Corner Bookstore (www.globecorner.com). For open desert hiking we found the Hot Springs Canyon Trail.
This trail starts at the western end of the Rio Grande Village at the Daniels Ranch picnic area. Hike up and over the first
ridge and then across open desert. The trail passes a Native American site where you can see "bowls" that were
pounded into the rocks and were used for grinding corn. Wild horses roam the meadows near the river and bloated tourists
can be found soaking in the "hot springs" in high season. The springs are adjacent to the river and are not particularly
inviting, especially since there's a car road that allows non-hikers to reach the area relatively easily. Nevertheless, the
hike is really nice. Bring plenty of water because this trail is hot and sunny. Another nice hike begins at the Chisos Basin
Lodge and Visitors Center A short or very long loop hike can be enjoyed by following the Chisos Basin Trail, Pinnacles Trail
and Laguna Meadows Trail. These trails pass through scrub brush, dry pine forest, meadows and high ridges. For scenery lovers
this trail is extremely rewarding!
We combined our West Texas trip with a couple of days at Carlsbad Caverns. The high point of our visit was being first
in line at the natural entrance in the morning when the caves opened on the second day. We were able to walk down into the
cave pretty much alone and enjoy it at a relaxed pace. Personally I was awestruck, I had no idea how beautiful the Caverns
were. It's a long ride to Carlsbad Caverns and the town of Las Cruces is a thankless, bleak reward after hours on the road.
But we definitely felt satisfied that we made the effort to visit this icon of American national parks.
Oh, a few words about the bleakness. This land is sprawling, empty and profoundly provocative. The air conditioning
in our rental car could hardly keep out the feeling of lonely desolation that hangs in the air. Yes, I'm being a bit dramatic.
But to understand what I mean take a drive on the county road south out of Marathon and stop when you see a rusty windmill
and a few lonely cottonwood trees on the west side of the road. From here, watch the sunset over the mountains in the distance.
Wait until just after the sun disappears for a surprisingly cool wind that comes out of nowhere. Enjoy the silence. Then
head back into town for another margarita.
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