Pecan Lake Entertainment

Pecan Lake is an amusement park. There are many activities there. We went primarily to visit the botanical gardens. There were many families enjoying the day. Kids were having a great time playing on all the activities. 

The gardens are beautiful 

Some koi in a small pond. In the larger Pecan Lake you

can fish for perch, crappie, and bass

Palo Duro Canyon

 I have heard about Palo Duro Canyon for years and I have finally made it there. Palo Duro Canyon State Park, often called the "Grand Canyon of Texas.  As the second-largest canyon in the United States, Palo Duro Canyon stretches approximately 120 miles in length, up to 20 miles in width, and reaches depths of around 800 feet. Its vibrant layers of red rock formations and steep cliffs create a stunning landscape. The park features over 30 miles of hiking and biking trails, catering to various skill levels.  

I had driven for 4.5 hours on hi way 60 over terrain as flat as a pancake 

Then you come around the corner and there it is in all its glory 

This gash in the earth was carved out of the surrounding shortgrass prairie 

by the Red River over millions of years.

 The river water has exposed layers of rock dating back hundreds of millions of years.

This sign is displayed at every bridge in the park. 

I can't imagine the severity of the storm that 

would even raise the water level to this sign. BUT!

The high water mark sign in Palo Duro Canyon State Park serves as a stark reminder of the catastrophic flood that occurred on May 27, 1978. During this event, a torrential downpour delivered up to 10 inches of rain in just 90 minutes, resulting in a 12-foot wall of water surging through the canyon. The flood's impact was devastating: four people lost their lives, over 200 campers were stranded and required helicopter rescues

The Pioneer Amphitheater, nestled within Palo Duro Canyon State Park

 is a renowned open-air venue celebrated for hosting the annual TEXAS Outdoor Musical.

Another great day exploring the wonders of our country.

Quarai Ruins

 Today I continued east on hi way 60 to Fort Sumner NM. It is a rather bleak section of hi way 60, miles and miles of a brown grassy plain with a smattering of small green bushes

I did make a stop at the Quarai Ruins

The Quarai ruins are located in central New Mexico, in a rural desert. A natural spring attracted people to the area for centuries and attracted the ancestral Pueblo people to settle for longer periods of time and introduce agriculture to the area. The earliest masonry pueblos being built at Quarai around 1300s. The largest features of the ruins are the main pueblo and the walls of the mission church, which was probably one of the largest wall and beam structures in North America. The walls range in thickness from three to six feet, and probably reached a height of 40 feet.  By the early 17th century the large pueblo compound had been built. Spanish missionaries were received by the Quarai in 1626, and granted permission to build a mission.  Although the community did well, a severe drought afflicted the region beginning in the late 1660s, which combined with attacks from hostile Apaches to lead to its abandonment in 1675.

There is a small museum with some artifacts 

In the 1600s the Quarai were a manufacturing center for glazed red ware pottery

that was traded to the nearby Pueblos.

The spindle whorls, used to make cotton thread, were made from recycled

 or reworked pottery sherds.

One axe head and two arrowshaft straighteners

Distant quarries in Texas, Mexico and elsewhere yielded the flint, obsidian, jasper, 

chalcedony, chert and fibrolite used to make these tools. 

Model of what the site might have look like.

The long narrow sockets held the roof beams that spanned the church  

Free camping at lovely Bosque Redondo Park

Another interesting day on the road

Heading East

I left my friend Steven's new acquired property in Show Low and headed  east to join up with WIN friends in  Phenix City, AL. 

Traveling across NM on route 60  the landscape was mostly 

Pinion Pine trees. 

I spotted this antenna array in the distance and went to investigate 

In the 1960' and 70's, Professor Ron Bracewell used 32 of 

these 10 foot antennas to predict solar storms. 

They were mounted on the piers below which were 

moved here from there original location at 

Stanford University 

The piers were saved because Bracewell 

invited visiting scientists to chisel there names on them.

Over 200 historic names, including two Nobel Prize winners, 

have been identified on these ten restored piers.

The sun dial indicates it is a little after 12, it is about an hour and half show. 

Maybe it something to do with  day light savings time

Since 1980 the VLA has been in operation every day, 

all day and night except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's 

I enjoyed watching several rock climbers demonstrate their skills on this 

cliff across from where I was camped.

Coming down

Beautiful Box Canyon recreation area

It will do for the night.