We visited Palo Duro Canyon State Park today, which is the second largest canyon in the United States. This park is a little different from the Grand Canyon in that it’s geared toward hiking, not driving. Also, instead of hiking down into the canyon, you drive down into the canyon and hike back to the top. The goal was to try to do some hiking and give Troy an opportunity to finally get out of the car and get out some energy.
My wife felt like death warmed over this morning, but she decided to come with us anyway. She said she would rather feel like crap and rest in a beautiful place than to do it in the hotel. It worked out I suppose, because Troy and I would set out on a trail, and then my wife would drive the car around to the other end and sleep while she waited for us to get there.
I wasn’t sure how Troy would do with the hiking, and I wasn’t sure how hard the trails were going to be, so I picked the shortest, easiest trail to do first. We took the Pioneer Nature Trail, which was described as a 0.4 mile hike down to the river and back. It was supposed to take about a half an hour and was the only trail that looped back to the beginning. The “river” was really just a small creek and barely had any water in it. It also only took us about 15 minutes to complete the hike, and Troy and I were surprised when it was over. I guess so was my wife because she wasn’t there when we got back. Apparently, she had driven off to find a bathroom, and we were stranded.
So, we decided to try the Kiowa Trail, which started from the same location as the Pioneer Nature Trail. It was a 1.4 mile one-way hike and was supposed to take 1.5 hours. I texted my wife and asked her to meet us at the other end. The trail started out meandering through the grasslands and scrub trees along the Red River. There were views of Triassic Peak, looming off in the distance as we walked. Troy and I were having fun chatting with each other about the sites around us, and Troy was making up stories to share with me about an alien following us down the trail. I shared memories and funny stories with him of previous hikes when I was a kid. It was good to hear his laughter echoing through the trees.
As we neared the end of the trail, we came upon a large red cliff with white slashes across its surface. Some of the slashes were nothing more than a thin line, but some were as thick as my arm. Most of them cut through the red rock in parallel layers, but a few spider-webbed at angles between layers. The contrast was really very striking. As we got closer, we realized that the white slashes were actually veins of some mineral throughout the red cliffs. We found out later that it was satin spar gypsum, which is a soft fibrous mineral commonly found in sedimentary rocks, which explained its presence in layers in the red cliffs. Troy and I spent a good deal of time examining the formations, marveling at their beauty, and climbing up into little pockets that had been washed away into caves. We were so enthralled by the cliffs that we hiked to the end and brought my wife back to see them too.
After a quick bathroom break, lunch, and an encounter with a road runner, Troy and I decided to hike the Sunflower Trail. This trail was 1.2 miles and again was supposed to take 1.5 hours to complete. It started out snaking through scrub trees, rocks, and prickly pear cacti. We had awesome views of the towering canyon walls above us as we descended into the grasslands. The grasslands were tall stalks of thick grasses taller than me! It was almost like passing through a cornfield. The trail was shady with lots of large trees hanging over the path and ultimately ended up by the Red River again. This portion of the river was a little larger with more water and even had a few small waterfalls cutting across the twisting river. We took some time to just stop and listen to the soothing sound of the water. Troy and I found a lot of deer footprints near the water, so I guess it’s a popular spot for wildlife to come get a drink. Near the end of this trail, we once again encountered large red cliffs with white gypsum slashing through them.
Our last stop was a quick hike from the Soapberry Day-Use Area to see the Cowboy Cutout, which was a little shack cut into the side of a hill. From the top, you’d never even know that it was there. It just looked liked a hill. But inside it was a spacious one-room shack with a fireplace at one end. Troy wanted to know why they didn’t have any furniture, and I told him that it had been removed, but that they probably had a table and chairs and most likely some beds off to the side. What was most noticeable to him was how dark it was inside with no windows or electricity. The only light was shafts pouring through the holes in the dirt. It was a stark reminder of how many luxuries that we have today that people didn’t enjoy back in the 1800s.
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