For the most part, it was a long and boring drive and I began to wonder if I should just head back to San Antonio and try to get home early. My long anticipated trip was becoming a trial instead of a vacation. I was very weak and I had to stop for several naps before I got near Big Bend. Fortunately, the Traverse had a front seat which almost fully reclined so my breaks were fairly comfortable. I had been planning a seven week trip in my truck this summer out to many of my favorite western places including the Canadian Rockies, Vancouver’s Sunshine Coast, the Cascades, the Redwoods, and then the Bay Area, followed by my first visit to San Diego. Now the idea of being so far away unsettled me. But I also realized that getting sick happens even when you travel, and the best bet is to steady yourself and remember why you are traveling in the first place. By 4:30 I had reached the turnoff for the park, and the scenery began to ease my fears. I was nearing the mountains and I began to see occasional roadrunners and different kinds of prickly pears and yuccas. I was going to make the Chisos Lodge before dark and as I drove the last few miles, the sotol and century plants were joined by Pinyon pines and Mexican drooping juniper, along with a variety of small oaks.
I felt better on Saturday morning and decided to try out the inexpensive bike I had purchased at a Big Box store on the way out of San Antonio. My plan had been to ride it until I returned to San Antonio and then donate it to a thrift shop. I drove out to Dagger Flat Road and it soon became apparent that my special bike seat was not going to fit. I tried to improvises but I had only a small adjustable wrench with me, not much of a tool box. I drove back to the filling station near Panther Junction, and the fellow there loaned me a hammer, just the tool I needed. I drove about a mile toward Study Butte, and then back and when I tried to ride it again the back brake locked and nothing I could do could fix it. I gave up on the bike idea and decided that some short hikes would suffice. It was now time to head to Terlingua to watch my team, the New York Jets, battle Cincinnati. The Jets played well, winning handily, and I drove back just beating darkness to the Chisos Basin.
Things changed radically on Sunday. I took the guided walk at Panther Junction and then I went out to Dugout Wells and took the nature trail there. I saw dozens of plants including Creosotebush, Whitethorn Acacia, Englemann’s Prickly Pear, Lechuguilla, Torrey Yucca, Purple-tinged Prickly Pear, Sotol, Honey Mesquite, Blind Prickly Pear, Ocotillo, Leatherstem, Big Bend Silverleaf, Strawberry Pitaya and Allthorn. I saw a red-tailed hawk, some quail, and several northern mockingbirds.
That afternoon, after a brief nap, I hiked into the Boquillos Canyon, and I took some fine photos with my new camera. It was very calming to sit by the Rio Grande and listen to it murmuring through several riffles.
I was feeling tired by the time I got back to the Basin, but I decided to walk a little of the Window Trail, one of my favorites. I was rewarded by spotting a cactus wren, and seeing Alligator Junipers, Pinyon Pines and a number of Century Plants. This was what I had come for and tomorrow should even be better as my energy improves.