Palo Duro Canyon State Park

Did you know that there is a Grand Canyon in Texas? I kid you not. Palo Duro Canyon is the second largest canyon in the United States, stretching 120 miles long, 800 feet deep, and 20 miles wide at its widest spot. In contrast, the Grand Canyon is 277 miles long, 5000-6000 feet deep and 18 miles wide at it's widest.

Since we decided to spend a couple of nights in Amarillo we just had to visit Palo Duro! The canyon was named after the "hard wood" found growing there (Rocky Mountain juniper) and it is a lush place filled with wildflowers and grasses with some yucca and prickly pear as well.

The vistas were beautiful.

Being the hardy, adventuresome types that we are, we decided to do a little hiking down in the valley. We chose a trail called the Paseo Del Rio, Spanish for "Path for the Out-of-Shape" that ran parallel to, but just out of sight of the road. This was so that in case of problems one only needed to holler and someone could find you easily. It was a pretty path that meandered through the verdant landscape and alongside a small, muddy river part of the way.

The trail allowed us glimpses of high canyon walls as we walked, and we enjoyed the sounds of birds singing in the trees. The walk was a bit much for Auggie who is used to short walks around a campground, so we took our time.

It was a lovely day for a hike. To top it off, as we passed the ranger station we saw some longhorn cattle, something I have wanted to see since we have been Texans. They were big animals, much larger than I expected.

Bob and I agreed that we would love to return some day and hike some more in Palo Duro Canyon.