West Texas ramblings

Leaving New Mexico:  Shortly after we departed Carlsbad, New Mexico, we could see the Guadalupe Mountains ahead of us.  The mountains include El Capitan, a mountain that is reminiscent of Half Dome in Yosemite.  El Capitan is 8085 ft. and Guadalupe Peak, the highest in Texas is 8751 ft.  We stopped at the visitor center and watched a slide show that included highlights of the many trails showcasing the highlands, canyons and desert of this park.   There are no roads into the Park, other than to some trailheads and the visitor center, making it a paradise for hikers.  We admired the mountains and continued our way south into Texas on Highway 62/180, turning south on to highway 54 and then highway 90 with more mountain ranges and desert to admire.  

The route to Marfa was sparsely populated and had no services until we reached the little town of Von Horn.  About 40 miles north of Marfa, we saw another huge balloon similar to the one that flew over Huachuca, Arizona.  We learned these are called Tethered Aerostat Radar Systems (TARS), and this one was actually tethered.  They are part of the US Customs & Border Patrol's drug interdiction program.  Then about 30 miles north of Marfa, we passed a little "Prada shop", which was actually an artist's installation.  We missed a photo op, but bought a postcard.  It's quite famous in its own right.  When we arrived , the pink stone renaissance style county courthouse caught our immediate attention, as did several other buildings in the town. The hotel Paisano, a gem in this desert town was lovely - and had once housed many stars from the movie "Giant" (Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson & James Dean).  While we were intrigued by their mysterious lights in the sky, Marfa was 'discovered' a few years ago by an artist who purchased much of a closed Army base and created a foundation for the arts.  He specialized in "minimalist art".  

He also drew many other artists to the community.  As a result, many of the old buildings downtown, which were  empty and decaying before the new wave of emigres arrived, have been taken over/remodeled by artists for their galleries.  We peeked into a couple, but most wasn't our 'kind' of art, nor are we shopping for any.  

We stayed two nights in a quirky RV park on the edge of town, the "Tumble In" that is noted for being self-serve.  Our one effort to view the famous Marfa lights was a failure (we got very cold!), although we were glad we made the effort.  The first historical record of the lights was in 1883 and they've been seen by many on the horizon since then.  Google the Marfa lights for more information and photos.

Our next destination was Big Bend National Park.  Our route took us through Alpine, which seemed another delightful cowboy/artsy small town with great murals.  We stocked up with groceries and headed south to the border on the Rio Grande river.  After getting a permit and park information, we delayed our visit to the park and returned to view the 'ghost town' of Terlingua, which has subsequently been re-popluated with small homes and businesses.  We found a RV park in the nearby town of Study Butte (pronounced Stoody By-utte, according to some brochure) and enjoyed the warmer temperatures and mountainous desert scenery.  Besides, the RV park in the National park was full for the weekend!   

We ventured into Big Bend National Park and were delighted with the  views.  We drove a road south to Santa Elena canyon and admired the amazing geography.  We spent 3 nights in the Rio Grande Village and enjoyed a couple of short hikes near the Rio Grande, which isn't such a grand river these days.