A Walk Above the Canyon

Affable. Back in April I took a trip to Palo Duro Canyon with Callie to go backpacking and hiking in the second largest canyon in the States. Early in the morning after a night of camping through thunderstorms in the remote backcountry canyon, Callie and I set off on a 16 mile trail that would take us from the canyon bottom, to the cliffs above, and back. The trail actually wasn't all that hard, and only in a few places did it become moderately difficult due to steepness. Callie handled that trail wonderfully, and I couldn't be more proud of her for her first weekend truly adventuring with me. She kept up, and sometimes had more energy than I did!

The Rock Garden, on the Rock Garden trail

The morning started off cool (it was the beginning of April, so mid-spring in Texas), but sunny and clear, and we kept up a good pace all the way to the top of the cliffs. More than 600 feet in elevation gain, and Callie took to it like she'd been doing it her whole life. We meandered through giant rocks strewn about by an ancient landslide, pausing every so often for a drink and photo opportunity. We weren't in a hurry, which is the best way to be. We'd get to the top when we got there, and I had no desire to speed our objective along. Most of the time Callie was in front of me, though always within eyesight and usually within reach. I often saw her turning back to me, pausing while I caught up to where her four paws took her easier than my two.

Trail atop the cliffs

By the time we crested the cliffs clouds had moved in, shuttled by a brisk wind that sent me digging for my jacket. We explored the clifftop, meandering on crisscrossed footpaths along the edges until we came to a wide track. Following it, we wound our way over the grasslands above the deep canyon, moving ever closer to a sharp point overlooking the rugged backcountry canyon we had camped in the night before. The clouds thickened and the wind picked up, finally pushing me to seek shelter beneath the clifftops on the way back.

An overlook of Palo Duro Canyon. See the green strip of river at the bottom?

The climb down by the same trail was chilly, but less so once we got out of the wind. The sun never showed herself after that, and we even felt a few chilly rain drops once we arrived at the car. I was relieved at our timing, and glad that we had started so early in the morning to see the sun lighting up the canyon walls. We left Palo Duro Canyon happy and tired, with Callie passed out on the seat next to me. She slept the whole way home.

Bright orange cliffsides hover over the established campground in the park

What I'm listening to: Mirkwood by Howard Shore