 |
| Greetings from Alpine |
As mentioned in our last post, we decided to drive Big Bend via Marathon, so we could enter the park at Persimmon Gap. Along the way we made a quick stop along Highway 90 to capture this Target in the middle of nowhere. Seems this Target Marathon is just a spoof "guerrilla art" installation poking fun at Prada Marfa. With that checked off our list we carried on our way.
 |
| Target Marathon |
We basically sprinted through the town of Marathon. Sorry Marathon it isn't you; it's us. We had our eyes on the prize. We were so close to Big Bend.
 |
| Proof. We made it to Big Bend National Park |
At last we made it to Big Bend National Park! It took us what seemed like hours to get to Panther Junction. We had to stop by the the Fossil Discovery Exhibit (and every few feet to get out to explore, take photos, and walk around). We made it to Panther Junction (hundreds of photos later). Who needs a welcome center? "E over there. Over!" Eric (ie. E) was clueless. "There!" Eric was oblivious to the cutest little...pig-like...things. Eric had the fancy camera, so off he went to capture National Geographic worthy photos of the animal. Turns out, you're not really supposed to run after these things. Thanks (after the fact) park ranger. Eric was trying his best to coax the animal out from behind the cacti. Stacy is (apparently) a javelina whisperer. Wait. What? Two more?! To which Eric responded, "I have the camera set on video if they charge you. Don't worry, I'll capture it." Such a gentleman! It should be noted, if you ever see javelina, give it some space. These are, despite our example, wild animals.
 |
| Making Friends with Javelina. |
Pro Tip: When you only have a few days at a National Park, check in at the visitors center and speak with a Ranger. They can tell you the points of interest that should be seen with a limited amount of time. The rangers gave us the routes to take and offered up other words of advice (especially with a park at full capacity).
We carried on our way through the park knowing we would be back the following morning. We still managed to take more photos. I may have stopping to photograph every cactus we came across. Hungry, we decided to start heading toward Terlingua. After a wrong turn (I blame Waze, Eric blames Stacy) we made it to the Terlingua Cemetery. We stopped to wander around and take a few photos.
 |
| Terlingua Cemetery Chisos Mountains in the Background |
We then headed back to a roadside bbq place we had passed earlier. DB's Rustic Iron BBQ hit the spot. We had the smoked turkey, sausage, and brisket. The food was delicious and we caught the sunset while dining al fresco in the desert. Besides being a Ghost Town, Terlingua is also the home of an International Chili Cook-off. Apparently, it's a pretty big deal, so check it out if you're in the area on the first Saturday of November.
 |
| Roadside goodness. |
After dinner we pressed onto our next AirBnb (where we would stay for two nights). We stayed at the Greasewood Grocery. It was once a small grocery store that was converted into a cabin. Pam was a lovely hostess. The Greasewood had great views of the stars at night and sunrises in the morning. We had to learn to conserve water here. The showers had limited amounts of hot water. We became champions at maximizing the hot water. We hope we helped West Texas and their drought with our water conservation efforts.
 |
| Greasewood Grocery. Home Sweet Home for two nights. |
The next morning, after quick hot water showers, we headed back into Terlingua for breakfast and coffee at La Posada Milagro. They had a good breakfast and great baristas. I pretended this was the desert version of Starbucks. Note worthy points: if you're a wifi junkie then the town of Terlingua has free wifi, the park has cell phone service, and our AirBnB also had coverage. Along the highway, however, there was no cell service or wifi. Both nights at the Greasewood the sheriff pulled into the parking around the grocery. We assumed to use the free wifi. Wifi is life. We feel ya.
After breakfast, we hit up a gas station. Eric's PTSD was still fresh from almost running out of gas. By the time we entered the park it was after 10:30 am. We knew, based upon what the Ranger told us the day before, we should head to Santa Elena Canyon. The views were breath taking. We also met lots of friendly hikers along the way. Don't be afraid to talk to the people around you here. Everyone is in a great mood!
 |
| Eric and Santa Elena Canyon |
Our next stop was the Rio Grande Village. It was here we pulled the trusty Yeti out and had a picnic lunch. We also broke out the map and Eric insisted we get another hike in before the day ended. Off we drove to Mule Ears Spring Trail. It should be said...this hike...we never finished. We came close, but no dice. There were no trail markers along the way. It wasn't until we returned home, and I was telling a coworker of this hike, that we discovered the All Trails App. Had we known of this app, someone (Stacy) probably never would have had the extreme meltdown in the Chihuahuan Desert. In her defense, every hiker we came across said, "You're close!" or "It's just another 1/3 of a mile to go!" Those people...terrible with measurement and time. Big...fat...liars.
 |
| Mule Ears and the Chihuahuan Desert (aka, Never-ending Hike) |
Once we made it back to the car, Eric decided it would be best to head back to Terlingua to feed his hungry girlfriend. The Starlight Theatre is quite popular. We had about an hour and a half hour wait, but they've thought of that. Next to the Starlight is the Terlingua Trading Company gift shop. It's full of local art and all kinds of souvenirs at every price point. There was entertainment outside on the huge porch. A (local?) group of musicians played the entire time we were there. We caught our last desert sunset of the trip here.
 |
| Sunset from The Starlight Theatre Porch |
The Starlight had amazing chips and guacamole. The chicken-fried wild boar was pretty delicious, too. When in Texas they know chicken-fried things. Take advantage. During the meal we were able to catch more live music on the theatre stage. It was a great end to a fun day of hiking and exploring Big Bend and Terlingua.
No comments:
Post a Comment