Palo Duro Canyon Texas Part 1

 Saturday 29th April 2023

We packed up again and drove 160 miles to Palo Duro Canyon State Park, Texas. The drive was mostly on the 287 highway which went through the Texas plains with not a lot to see but shrub and fields for miles. The small local road to the park continued through rural land that was very flat then it ended at the park entrance. We arrived at a busy time and had to line up for a bit with day use people a lot of whom were turning around when they found out due to heavy rains the previous few days that the hiking trails were closed and when it costs $8 per adult entry you want to be able to hike. 

We finally got checked in and drove down a major sketchy steep road with very tight switchback turns that took us to the canyon floor. 

Driving into the canyon, you can see the white dots of the campsite

Sagebrush Loop Campsite

View from the kitchen sink, not bad!

View out of the back of the rv

WOW WOW WOW is all I can say. OK I better say more. From driving along pancake flat farmlands you suddenly descend into the most amazing landscape. They call this canyon America's second Rockies and I can see why. Your brain can't quite comprehend the change.

We got set up and went for a small walk. There is a Trading Post store and café next to our Sagebrush loop that was very busy on Saturday afternoon. We also drove along the canyon road that at the end turns into a loop road. The views!

On Sunday we set off early to beat the heat and hike The Lighthouse Trail. On the map this was shown as a 2.8 mile one way moderate hike. We GPS tracked our hike, with stops it took 3 hours and we covered 6.8 miles. It was great setting off in the cool of the morning but by the time we finished it was 80F. A lot of people were just beginning the hike and we saw a lot of them without hats or water despite the signs warning you how much water you needed. 

The walk was amazing and we were glad we pushed ourselves to do it - the reward of climbing up to The Lighthouse was worth it.

Thought this was The Lighthouse not far from the car park, nope Ros this isn't it, keep walking.

Look like a refugee! The fleece and body warmer came off pretty quick as the temperatures rose.

That's where we are heading? Ooo that's far! 

Is it better to hike and be able to see the end point, have the motivation or is it bad as you can see how far you have to go?

It was a bit of a scramble to the top.

Mr Dung Beetle hard at work

We left Morgan in the rv this time. It's the first time we have not taken her on a hike but she seems to be struggling right now and we knew the heat and the climb at the end would be too much. Looking back after completing the hike it was a good decision.

The wild animal resting up in the heat of the afternoon before making her way out to hunt