Day 12
Wednesday April 13
I’ve mentioned before the travel chats I do on Twitter. One of the places I’ve heard raves about is Caprock Canyon State Park. When they told me about the bison herd, that was simply a bonus. I knew someday, I had to visit this park. That's what brought me to Turkey for two nights. There are two entrances to the park. One is in Turkey and the other is a few miles west in Quitaque. Tina warned me about the road in from Turkey. So, I backtracked to Quitaque and came in the front entrance.
The perfect way to start the day...
According to the visitor center staff, there are three hundred bison within the park. Armed with a trail map, it was time to explore. The first trail of the day was a pretty easy four miles out and back. It promised views and a natural bridge.
The natural bridge is actually underneath the trail.
The second trail was a bit more involved. Depending on my route, it would be six to seven miles with a stretch marked "Steep" on the trail map. It's a bigger loop, but I was only going as far as a place I had heard raves about called Fern Cave. It's a cave with its own spring, watering lush green ferns inside. You can see a video from the Youtube channel Secrets of Texas here:
It starts with a pretty easy two mile hike through the Upper Canyon...
They weren't kidding about the trail getting steep. From the climb up...
Steep inclines with periodically loose footing isn't exactly my thing and I was quickly getting out of my comfort zone. I paused to watch a young couple slowly working their way down from above. They said I was "maybe half way" up. I asked about the cave and they told me it was dry and brown. After pausing for some water and giving the trail some thought, I decided not to press on. A few more shots from above...
Back down on solid ground, I simply walked back up the trail, just taking it all in. That bison had moved down and was now alongside the trail. He didn't seem to mind me. But, I did warn everyone I met about him, especially those with dogs.
Seen on the drive back towards the visitor center...
It was a bit late to commit to another long trail, so I decided to come back in the morning and tackle one in a different area of the park. Instead, I drove back out to Quitaque to look for a late lunch.
There really wasn't much choice. But, the folks at the Coffee Mill did make a very tasty sandwich.
Back in Turkey, I ditched the bulk of my stuff in the room and finished the coffee on the front porch of the hotel. People drove by and waved, including the county sheriff. If I were the paranoid sort, I'd wonder why he picked that moment to drive by.
While Mondays and Tuesdays are quiet at the Hotel Turkey, on Wednesdays they open the back patio. The kitchen also cooks pizza. I didn't know any of this. I just saw more people going in and coming out with pizza boxes.
Out on the patio, they have stages and often have live music on the weekends. I really wasn't thinking food, but the Lone Star or two hit the spot.
And prominently displayed on Main Street, Bob Willis' tour bus.
I had paused to shoot this mural when a local guy stopped and told me there was one on the other side, too. Then he told me about the one he had done on his house of turkeys flying.
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