The Road Genealogist: Big Bend National Park

Showing posts with label Big Bend National Park. Show all posts

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Big Bend National Park - Part II

Ft Clark Springs RV Park, TX

    Here's what the plaque says.       Chisos Mountains: Volcanic Heart of Big Bend
    The mountain mass rising out of the desert was once molten rock. Study the shapes of the peaks to make sense of the geologic battleground, this jumble of eruptions and underground flows.
    Angular blocks like Casa Grande [center background] are stratified layers of lava and ash - remnants of blows from nearby volcanoes. Rounded features like Ward Mtn [far right] were subterranean domes of magma that became prominent as erosion scraped aways thousands of feet of overlying sedimentary layers.

Note that these mountains have been around a bit longer because of their rounded shapes -- like the above-mentioned Ward Mtn.

A close-up of the rounded peak on the left of the above photo.

A small spire on the left side of the road around to the north (and only) entrance to the Chisos Mtns.

A dry wash near where I stopped for lunch; there were tire tracks on its floor.

Reminds me of the sterling silver cover over a turkey or roast beef. [Yes, it's getting close to dinner time. :-)>]

My guess is that the agaves in Big Bend blossom more often than every 100 years; further north they're called century plants because they take so long to blossom.

Mountains are beginning to look a bit more rugged as I drove uphill toward the entrance to the Chisos Basin.

A look back down the approach to the "Basin," as it's called. Because there are several hairpin turns, RVs over 24' and trailers over 20' are not recommended on this road.

The plaque states that those continuing up the road will encounter more trees -- starting with junipers, oaks, and Mexican pinyon [pines]; and hikers to yet-higher elevations will find Arizona pines and Douglas firs. [The latter are usually found along streams in some parts of the Sierra Nevada in CA because they require more water than, for example, ponderosa (or yellow) pines. Incidentally, the pines I saw in Arizona looked like ponderosas to me.]

A look past my rig up the road to The Basin.

The top of Casa Grande (7325'), from the saddle through which one enters The Basin. Though it's not the highest, Emory Peak at 7832' is, its shape sets it apart.

The Basin Campground on the right, the "Window" to the left and slightly above it, and Visitor Center and Lodge to the left.

A plaque titled "Camp Life." It reads as follows. "Two Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camps stood here from 1934 to 1942. The 200 men of the Big Bend CCC were organized in military fashion, subject to military discipline, and pair one dollar per day. After five days of bashic training, they began life in the Chisos Basin, marching in formation, living in open bay barracks, and performing backbreaking work. Although Spartan, camp life provided some of the recreation, camarderie, and rest the men longed for after a hard day's work. Often grueling, the work provided income and self-esteem for a generation that had endured economic hardship."

The early evening sun, red from shining through a thin layer of clouds, hits the mountains to the north of The Basin.

Panning left, more filtered red rays on the Chisos Mtns.

Casa Grande from my site, #4. There are no hookups, but there is potable water and restrooms with electricity. Yes, one fellow was charging up his cell phone in the restroom. And I liked the hand-dryer since it warmed up my hand much more than a dry paper towel would.

More mountains to the right on the road from Panther Junction north. [It becomes US385 outside of the park; "panther" is what locals call mountain lions.]

The road heads north toward the gap in the mountains known as Prsimmon Gap.

One last geologic feature: Dog Canyon. It appears to be a bit more than a mile to its mouth, but there is a trail up it. [Carry plenty of water -- especially if you insist on making the hike in mid-August. You'll go out in a blaze of Gore-ee, and the coyotes will be thankful for the meal. :-)>]
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Links:

National Park Service web pages on Big Bend National Park
QT Luong photosof Big Bend NP

Sa 16 Feb Actual Route: San Pedro CG, Amistad NRA - Amistad Dam - San Pedro CG, Amistad NRA

Su 17 Feb Actual Route: San Pedro CG, Amistad NRA - Del Rio Lib - Walmart

M 18 Feb Actual Route: Del Rio Walmart - Home Depot - Del Rio Lib - Walmart

T 19 Feb Actual Route: Del Rio Walmart - Home Depot - Brackettville Lib - Ft Clark Sprs RV PK

W 20 Feb Actual Route: Ft Clark Sprs RV Pk

Th 21 Feb Actual Route: Uvalde Walmart - Uvalde Lib - Walmart

F 22 Feb Actual Route: Uvalde Walmart - Uvalde Lib - Walmart

Sa 23 Feb Actual Route: Uvalde Walmart - Uvalde Lib - Hondo Walmart

Su 24 Feb Actual Route: Hondo Walmart - Las Palmas Br Lib - Walmart

M 25 Feb Route: Potranco Rd Walmart - Guerra Br Lib - Walmart
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Finding Campgrounds:

RV Campgrounds from TrailerLifeDirectory.com
Family Camping Directories from Woodalls.com
Free campsites website
Info on finding BLM Campgrounds

N.B. I receive nothing from Trailer Life, Woodalls, or FreeCampsites.net for including links to their free campground lookups.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Big Bend National Park, Texas - Part I

San Pedro Flats CG, Amistad Reservoir, TX
Big Bend Natl Park is a mix of three major components: 1)River, 2)Mountains, and 3)Desert.
And since the Rio Grande makes up 118 miles of the park's southern border from NW of Santa Elena Canyon to Mariscal Canyon at the bottom of the "U" and then to c4 miles north of Boquillas Canyon at the eastern tip of the park, many assume the River is the main story.

But I think that the big story is the mountains -- and not just stand-alone buttes like Cerro Castellan (3293') to the right but the Chisos Mtns in the center of the park.
Most national parks have lodges to cater to the more affluent visitors. Where is Big Bend's? Not on the Rio. Rather -- in the Chisos Mtns.

But let's return to the one canyon on the Rio Grande which I visited: Santa Elena. Here's a close-up of the left corner of the canyon. The analogy used in the park brochure for explaining the three deep canyons is that the heavy sediment in the river makes it like a "belt sander" -- which is always ON.

Here's a plaque explaining the evolution of Santa Elena Canyon.

And here's a look at the canyon from a somewhat elevated overlook.

Look like pigs from a distance, don't they?

This fellow was brave enought to cross the road where the grass was literally and figuratively "greener." He [she?] is a Collared Peccary, which is also called a javelina. When I told a ranger at the Panther Juncion station that they appearded to be eating grass, he said they eat a little of everything. [A woman in the campsite next to mine cautioned me not to leave anything out; told her that the 2.5 ft. step up into my camper is tough enough for me to negotiate let along a javelina.]

From 1918 to the end of the Mexican Revolution these adobe buildings were La Harmonia store -- serving residents of both side of the river border.

Heading north on the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. [Mr. Maxwell was the park's first superintendent.]
Don't believe the white material is salt, but the combination of colors caught my eye. [Turns out the white material is volcanic ash; see the next photo.]

In this close-up of Cerro Castellan note the middle layer of the top: more ash.

Mule Ears. They're both listed at the same elevation.

A closer view of Mule Ear Peaks, which are both listed at 3881 ft.

Google has made a change in Blogger's Image Upload Function which may limit the number of photos I'll have tine to upload; hwr, it also gave me an idea on displaying photos of plaques as larger images -- like the next explanation of Goat Mtn.
Alas, the experiment to enlarge the NPS explanatory plaque did not work because an enlarged image is not magnified when you click on it once as are smaller images.

Goat Mtn.

In the distance just to the right of the top of a small spire, the top of Santa Elena Canyon.

A photo of Santa Elena Canyon from an even greater distance.

A nearby mesa from Soltol Vista.

A plaque with a view from the south of the heart of the Chisos Mtns. ("Chisos" is pronounced "CHEESE-Ohs" -- as though it were a Frito-Lay snack.) [Click once to enlarge; press ESC to return here.]

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Links:

National Park Service web pages on Big Bend National Park
Wikipedia article on Lawrence Sullivan "Sul" Ross
Visit Big Bend piece on the the U.S. Army Camel Experiment; includes larger photo of plaque

Th 14 Feb Actual Route: Picnic Area SE of Sanderson - Sanderson Lib - Langtry - 8mi SE of Langtry bd

F 15 Feb Actual Route: 8mi SE of Langtry bd - Langtry - San Pedro CG, Amistad Natl Rec Area