Caprock Canyons State Park

Day 1 on the Road to Denver

After booking me a photography workshop in Denver CO, Judy got to work itinerizing our next road trip, making sure we would be able to hit some State & National Parks on our way to Denver and back. Have I mentioned Judy makes the best itineraries!!! We set out early morning on day 1 and 2 hours into our journey we stumbled upon The Garden of Eden. This Garden, in Eden, TX, is a city project provided for the community to enjoy. It was a majestic garden, lush with foliage. Flowers bloomed from almost every bush and their fragrance mixed with all the scents of the herbs that surrounded them. Water features gave off a tranquil sound & arches thick with vines created niches of seclusion. It was a place where fairies lived I’m sure of it!

After our garden excursion we continued on our way. The road lead us to historical and dilapidated buildings, a food truck with super yummy burgers, and endless views of open fields and farm lands. After 8 hours on the road we finally reached our destination for the night, Caprock Canyons.

Caprock Canyon State Park & Trailway is located in Quitaque, TX. It is the home to the Official Bison Herd of the State of Texas, so the Bison were the main attraction for us.

When arriving, we stopped in the visitors center to purchase our State Park Pass. That’s right, It’s for real y’all! We were also told, by the park ranger, that they were expecting thunderstorms for the night. She said we were to stay put and not to cross the low creek beds to get out of the park, should the weather take a turn for the worst. We figured it would be fine, I mean, we’ve camped in the rain before.

Jackpot! As soon as we entered the park we saw one lone Bison in the distance. Beautiful!!!!!

And then the Prairie Dog colony came along. They were everywhere! Gathering food, they ran in and out of their holes popping their heads up and down. We could watch them for hours but we were on a mission to set up camp.

Campsite # 37. Talk about secluded. No one in sight, except for the occasional tourist driving by to get photos of the amazing view were we would be camping overnight. The skies were blue and the sun was high so we inspected our campsite, decided the best place to set up the tent, and explored the area. Everything looked great, so now it was time to explore the park and see if our luck would lead us to the Bison herd.

Our first calling was an exhibit booth that told us about the landscape that stretched far before eyes. Canyons and bluffs colored the landscape with a deep orange and the blue sky against it made the view even more magnificent! After admiring this spot we got back on the trail to Bisonville, AKA find the Bison! We found them down a back road, in the far distance. A large heard drifting slowly. We waited, and watched for what seemed like an eternity until we realized they were getting closer!!! One large male lead the heard right to us! It was amazing to watch them slowly get closer and closer. The large majestic creatures allowed us to be a part of there heard for those moments in time. Truly Amazing! Mission accomplished!!!