Our second (and final day) in Big Bend National Park fell on a Sunday. With COVID and the ability to tune into church anytime and place, it shouldn't have been a problem to watch church and be in the park, but holy smokes, Big Bend is out in the middle of nowhere so we heard a bit of it here and there.
Hannah needed to finish her Junior Ranger packet which meant that she needed to take the nature trail surrounding the visitor center to learn about the different plants in the Chihuahuan desert. While I don't complete the Junior Ranger programs myself, I always really enjoy the activities included because it teaches me all the things that I love to know....like plant names. Of course, the plants around the visitor center are always either stellar examples (that we'll never find in nature), or are pathetic examples (that leave us wondering if there is even a plant in the appropriate labeled spot). As a result, I downloaded a plant identification app (there was thankfully WiFi at the visitor center!) which became our go-to throughout the remainder of the trip. I tell you, when you know what you're looking for, there is a lot more to the desert than just what appears out the window or on the trail!
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| A PURPLE prickly pear! |
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| A lotebush--check out the thorns! |
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| Texas Sotol |
After our river adventures from the day before, we decided to stay away from the border so we could relax a bit! There was a 4.8 mile hike out to the "Chimneys", a rock formation that was created from volcanic action underneath the ground that pushed up the rock. In other words, there was no volcano, just the action under the ground. Four miles is pretty easy for me on any given day, but the trail ended up being covered in what we call "river rock" in Michigan. 4-8 inch long stones covering the trail. For me, with the imbalance of a previously broken ankle--and age if I'm being honest--it was a bit stressful thinking of walking four miles over that, but I knew Glo was itching to hike a longer distance, so we set off. It was pretty hot, being in the middle of the day, and boy, was I thankful for my newly purchased wide-brimmed hat. Glo was leading, and she was fast; Hannah was in the middle, keeping me moving, but keeping it more casual; and I was in the rear, just praying that I could keep up both physically and mentally "with the cool kids".
My eyes stayed trained on the rocks just a foot in front of each step, and there was no time to look up and see what was around.
I had started my watch, knowing that it was 2.4 miles out, so I had some idea of how much longer it was while I was hiking. Rather quickly we got to our destination, and it wasn't disappointing. Just sitting in the middle of the desert were these three-story rock formations, and on them were petroglyphs (we learned the difference between pictographs (drawn) and petroglyphs (carved) at the visitor center).
I thought we would sit in the shade awhile and relax, but we weren't there longer than five minutes (just enough time to snap a picture), and Glo was ready to head back. Holy smokes, the strength of youth! Again, I put my eyes to the trail and started the hike back.
The next hike actually took us back to the river, but not before stopping at another visitor's center (the park is so large that it has THREE) so that Hannah could take the pledge and earn her pin and patch. The Santa Elena trail was termed THE most popular trail of the park, and it was only 1.7 miles, so it seemed an easy choice. WOW! What a difference. Every hike up to this point had been in the sun and heat, but this one was shaded either from the surrounding mountains or from trees (blessed relief for our Michigander hearts). There were several signs posted that you could face fines or imprisonment for crossing the river to Mexico, but all along the trail, people were taking pictures on the other side. We hadn't seen this the day before, but this trail also didn't have a bunch of Mexicans sitting on the other side which I think acted as a natural deterrent. It was also the first time that we had seen a bunch of people on a trail. It was a game of who is going to move over for the other person to pass by. But in the end, we all got in the river and got pictures in the canyon. And I've learned through the years that there's nothing like putting tired feet in a freezing cold river to revive them again!
That night, we had a reservation at the hoity-toity restaurant affiliated with our resort, the 12 Gage Restaurant. I wanted Glo to have the experience of eating a real steak, cooked at a real steakhouse. Of course, I worried that she might just order a salad yet again (!), but in the end, with no pressure from me, she picked the $52 filet mignon which topped the list. The waiter told her that the less-expensive ribeye was tasty also, but I personally don't like ribeye, and I told him that she would have the filet ;-) It came with green beans and potatoes, and I assumed she would be going home with leftovers, but in the end, she ate the whole thing! As John says, she belonged to the "clean plate" club ;-) And she wanted dessert as well--a Mexican brownie cooked in a cast-iron skillet topped with dulce de leche ice cream. She ate that whole thing as well! And my Texan mother heart swelled with pride when Hannah decided it was time for her to taste her own chicken fried steak! She loved it!
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