The Texas Perimeter Hike — Caprock Canyons State Park

I wake up around dawn, and I know something has changed.  My nose feels it, then my hands as I unzip my sleeping bag.  The air is crisp as I twist around and look outside my tarp.  Then I see it coming down, slow and unhurried, falling silently and muffling the sounds of the world.  It’s my first Texas snow.“I was born upon the prairie, where the wind blew free and there was nothing to break the light of the sun.  I was born where there were no enclosures and where everything drew a free breath.” —  Ten Bears of the Yamparika Comanches

I wake up around dawn, and I know something has changed.  My nose feels it, then my hands as I unzip my sleeping bag.  The air is crisp as I twist around and look outside my tarp.  Then I see it coming down, slow and unhurried, falling silently and muffling the sounds of the world.  It’s my first Texas snow.

I’m volunteering at the magical Caprock Canyons State Park, where in one week it has snowed, rained, and been sunny about evenly.  After hiking so much road it is a gentle relief to be in a natural area.  I’ve been here almost a month now, though most of the last week I’ve been sick.  I came wanting to explore the canyons, learn about the plains and its history, and perhaps give my feet a break.  I haven’t been disappointed.

To get here, I hiked south along the Caprock Canyons Trailway, a separate 64-mile stretch of park property running from Estelline to South Plains.  I ran into a lot of wild pigs, several deer, and one armadillo.  One evening I heard strange noises nearby, like dumping water from a small-lipped container.  In the morning I woke up to the same noise, accompanied by the flapping of dozens of wings.  I looked up and saw over 100 wild turkeys just a few yards away.

Winter is the slow season at Caprock Canyons, slow for volunteers at any rate.  Because of the weather, it’s hard to plan on anything other than the day at hand.  I found myself doing odd tasks, running a children’s discovery center, helping to take out nails from an old fence, assembling some armoires.  The most official task I had was to give a few Saturday talks about my hiking trips to visitors.

The people that work at Caprock are a family unto themselves.  The guys harass one another, and the women ask how everyone is doing.  The rangers usually have enough computer work to keep them busy all day, but they are more than happy to answer questions and help someone out.  Many times, that has been me.

One day in the park office, I told the staff that I heard an unusual noise the night before.  Sort of like a horse whinnying but not quite, I said.  It was hard for me to be more precise.  A ranger and a volunteer both gave me their best guesses, but neither was certain.  Then Park Manager Donald Beard said from his office, “Did it sound like this?”  I heard the noise again, a little high-pitched and shaky, almost eerie.  That’s it, I said.  “Screech owl,” he added simply, returning to his work.

I explored the park during other days.  A friend visited, and we found our way to the top of Haynes Ridge Trail.  The weather was cloudy and subdued, but we had a great time swapping stories and eating dinner.  In the morning, we hiked to the overlook and spent an hour and a half admiring the canyon views while eating breakfast.  We sat on top of the world.

One hundred thirty-five years ago, the last of the free Comanches roamed these plains and wintered in these panhandle canyons.  You don’t have to look hard to find what they were fighting for.  Their reasons are still here.  They are in the water, animals, and open air; they are in the very dirt.

Smatt is the penname of S.Matt Read. A writer, inventor, baker, and hiker, he is currently hiking the entire outline of the state. Follow his adventure here and at www.texasperimeterhike.blogspot.com  and www.twitter.com/perimeterhiker.

 Eagle Point, a well-known Caprock Canyons land formation.  The author hiked the Eagle Point Trail multiple times.