Caprock Canyons State Park

I don't know why some folks insist on describing Texas as flat and boring. Certainly the parts of the Lone Star State I've explored have been anything but boring. For instance, take Caprock Canyons State Park.

The countryside rolls on and on, like the music from an antique player piano, as you approach the 15,160-acre park, 100 miles southeast of Amarillo. Farms and ranches decorate the landscape where the opportunity for exploring an intricate web of canyons seems a million miles away. Even in the friendly town of Quitaque (pronounced Kitty-Quay), the possibility of colorful canyons seems remote.

But travel a mere three miles north and you'll indulge in a vast array of scenic canyons, abundant animal life and a wide-open campground with extra-large spaces.

The rugged escarpment divides the tablelands of the southern high plains to the west from the rolling plains to the east. Comprised of exposed geological formations capped with the whitish color of resistant caliche caprock, most of the area consists of red sandstones and siltstones belonging to the quartermaster formation of the Permian Age.

Located3 1/2miles north of State Highway 86 in Quitaque, on FM 1065, facilities include restrooms with and without showers; campsites with water; others with water and electricity; a dump site and primitive sites for backpackers. Also, there are areas set aside for equestrian camping and group picnics, a fishing pier a swimming beach and a boat ramp. A hiker's shuttle is also available for a fee.

Mountain bikers, hikers and horseback riders will enjoy portions of the 64Y?-mile Rails-To-Trail conversion, which stretches from the west at south plains up on top of the caprock escarpment to the east end of Estelline in the Red River Valley. It crosses 54 bridges and runs through Clarity Tunnel, the last active railroad tunnel in Texas. At present, 64 miles of the trail are open to the public.

Caprock Canyons consists of five vegetational communities that range from stream-fed bottomlands boasting tall grasses, plum thickets, hackberries and cottonwoods, to sparse badlands where juniper, cacti and mesquite live. The park is a haven for an assortment of wildlife. Most proud of its herd of pronghorn antelope, its herd of buffalo (15 animals, making it the largest in the state park system) and its golden eagles, the park also boasts of African aoudad sheep, both mule deer and whitetail deer, raccoons, porcupines, foxes, opossums, bobcats, coyotes and more than 175 species of birds. In addition, fishing enthusiasts may snag bass, crappie and catfish in Lake Theo.

It is also a haven for hikers, horseback riders, mountain bikers, fishing enthusiasts and folks who want to just sit back and relax, take a drive or swim. A riding area in excess of 5,000 acres and more than 16 miles of hiking and riding trails are available throughout the park. Another 16 miles of trails are available for mountain biking.

Although there are some very steep roads in the park-some boast of 16 percent-the road leading to both the Honey Flat and Wild Horse camping areas is easy to negotiate. TL-DONNA IKENBERRY

For more information, contact Caprock Canyons State Park, PO. Box 204, Quitaque, Texas 79255; (806) 455-1492; or Texas Tourism; (800) 8888-TEX.

Copyright T L Enterprises, Inc. Sep 1997
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