Yesterday (Tuesday), we took the day off. Ellen asked what we should do today and I answered--nothing. Actually, we were going to go for a hike, but by the time we finished breakfast, cleaned up around the van and started out, it was already too hot. We had a 738 yard hike.
We finished our hard day by attending an evening astronomy talk, given at the dark end of the visitor center parking lot. It was a good, dark spot, except when the law enforcement rangers drove through with their headlights on.
There are a lot of stars here at Big Bend, being far from any cities and having few lights. The presentation was pretty basic, pointing out the major stars and constellations, with a bit of star physics, western myths and Navaho Coyote stories thrown in.
Today was a different story. We road the motorcycles out to Santa Elena Canyon (named after my mother, of course) and back via the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive, one of America's Scenic Byways. It was about 130 miles round-trip, all within the park. Have I mentioned that Big Bend NP is big?
Just after we left the Rio Grande Village area, the road goes through a short tunnel and through some sweeping curves before heading up hill. Ellen noticed an SUV come to the top of the hill and stop. When we got close, we noticed it was a park ranger. He'd been tracking us on radar. We were still going well under the speed limit at that point, so we just waved as we passed him.
It is a good thing that the park speed limit is 45, not because the scenic drive is difficult, but because it is hard to keep your eyes off the scenery. The road runs up from the desert and twists its way up past peaks and mesas and back down to the old US Army post at Castolon, where there is a campground, visitor center and restored general store. From there, the road goes down to the Rio Grande and along the river to the entrance of Santa Elena Canyon.
Even without considering the great scenery, it was great motorcycle ride, although it could be a little more exciting if the speed limit were higher. The major riding excitement today was hitting the road construction site where there was about 200 feet of deep loose gravel. Ellen rode through it like a pro; I, however, managed to stall out on the first pass through as my heavy bike sunk in above the wheel rims.
On the way in, we stopped at the Castolon Visitors Center for a break and chatted with the visitor center volunteers. It seems they are practically professional volunteers, going from park to park within the National Park system and at several state parks as well. An interesting life, if you don't mind living in a 26-foot fifth-wheel trailer.
At the canyon, we took off the riding gear, put on the shorts and Keen sandals and hiked the trail up into the canyon. The trail went in about a mile, climbing along the edge of the American side and then down along the river until the canyon cliffs came right down to the water. The cliffs on both sides are about 1500 feet high where the trail ends. It was shady and cool in the canyon, a welcome change to the heat outside the canyon.
When we got back to the bikes, they had multiplied: there were two more dual-sports in the parking lot and a couple more showed up just as we were leaving. Unfortunately, no BMWs, just Kawasakis, Yamahas, and Suzukis--smaller, lighter and knobby-clad for riding the dirt roads in the park. We did, however, pass an old BMW airhead coming the other way on the road out of the canyon. So many motorcycles in this park.
It is understandable; the ride back along the scenic drive was just as impressive as the ride in with a completely new set of views and curves. After a water stop at Panther Junction, it was back to Speedy and a well-deserved shower. Just another sunny day in West Texas.
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