It got below freezing last night and the campgrounds water faucet froze, as well as the water in our water filter. The sun was out and shining brightly but the water hookups are on the other side of the rig! Bummer. We used the water in our fresh water tank to get dressed and stuff.
After breakfast we headed over to Palo Duro Canyon. Palo Duro Canyon State Park opened on July 4, 1934 and contains 29,182 acres of the scenic, northern most portion of the Palo Duro Canyon. The Civilian Conservation Corp of the 1930's constructed most of the buildings and roads still in use by park staff and visitors.
The Canyon is 120 miles long, as much as 20 miles wide, and has a maximum depth of more than 800 feet. Its elevation at the rim is 3,500 feet above sea level. It is often claimed that Palo Duro Canyon is the second largest canyon in the United States. The largest, the Grand Canyon, is 277 miles long, 18 miles wide, and 6,000 ft. deep.
Palo Duro Canyon was formed by water erosion from the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River. The water deepens the canyon by moving sediment downstream. Wind and water erosion gradually widen the canyon.
Early Spanish Explorers are believed to have discovered the area and dubbed the canyon "Palo Duro" which is Spanish for "hard wood" in reference to the abundant mesquite and juniper trees.
We spent a couple of hours driving around and checking everything out. The only animals we saw were some wild turkeys. At the exit we saw some Texas Longhorns. These are part of the State of Texas herd of longhorns.
After our adventure in the park we drove into town to do a little shopping. We sent to a western store called Cavender's. It is really, really big and puts any Shepler's, I have been in, to shame. I did pick up a gift for one of my nieces but I won't say what it was. I wasn't impressed by the customer service in the store. It took forever to check out.
We tried to stop for a bite to eat but there was a long wait in the restaurants so we just went home. I had put a meatloaf in the crockpot for dinner so we had a light snack when we got back. After dinner Bill emptied the water tanks and put away the hoses and stuff. It is suppose to be really cold again tonight. We are parked right next to the shower house so we will shower there in the morning. We also did a couple of loads of laundry tonight. It was only fifty cents to wash and fifty cents to dry. Great prices. Our next laundry won't be until we get back to Hemet.
So we are going to settle down for the night now. Here are all the pictures I took today.
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