Panhandling 12.09.24

After once again heading to the Chicago area for a few tweaks on the trailer’s custom solar power system, and a week spent with our gracious friend Sajad in Park Forest while the Bigfoot was in the shop, we headed south.  This time we did not stop to see the many wonderful sights along the way, because we were focused on getting into warmer temperatures.  The Bigfoot is wonderfully warm and well-insulated, which is why we have it, but still.  Like I’ve said elsewhere, the outdoor lifestyle just isn’t the same when temperatures hover around freezing.

As I have mentioned, many campsites and RV parks, as well as state and national parks, are already closed for the season or have minimal areas open and for curtailed hours.  This meant that even after extensive searching we often had only one choice as to where to stay for a night.  We never actually failed to find a place, but sometimes the end result was unexpected.  We have noticed that many Wal-Marts no longer allow overnight parking.  One manager told us that after COVID, with camping on the upswing, too many people took advantage of the privilege and it got out of hand.  Some stores also had problems with homeless people who would stay for a long time.  However, we discovered other, previously unknown possibilities for boondocking.  We stayed at an Aldi parking lot in the heart of Fargo, ND; at the huge parking lot of the mammoth Hard Rock Casino and Hotel in Tulsa, OK; at a boat landing in North Dakota; and for the first time experienced the extraordinary hospitality of Cracker Barrel restaurants, this time in Springfield, IL.  This chain is happy to have boondockers and even has RV spots marked off in their parking lot.  Of course, we repaid the hospitality by patronizing the restaurant for a delicious hot breakfast the next morning.  Most of these spots were found through an app called Campendium. 

I remember the Texas panhandle from a previous vacation as being flat, dry, hot, and boring.  It’s still flat and dry, but of course this trip it was not hot.  It’s December, even in Texas.

But at a rest stop east of Amarillo, we stopped for the scenic view, and reading the displays inside about the surrounding country, I found that the second largest canyon in the US was just a short distance away.  I had never heard of Palo Duro Canyon.  And it’s not obvious as you drive toward it.  About 25 miles south and slightly east of Amarillo, the Grand Canyon of Texas, as it is called, suddenly appears out of the dry, flat panhandle country.  You cannot see it and kind of don’t believe it’s there, until it is. 

Palo Duro Canyon is about 120 miles long and 20 miles wide, and is up to 800 feet deep. (For reference, the Grand Canyon in Arizona is 227 miles long, up to 18 miles wide, but over a mile deep.)  It features sedimentary rock formations in stunning shades of red, much like the red of the rock formations at Arches, in Moab, Utah.  In the campgrounds, you could tell which vehicles had already driven the park roads by the red sand and mud on their grills.

When we entered the park, we found that reservations were required for camping.  With some difficulty I accessed the online reservation system.  It appeared that all the camping spots were full.  Since there were multiple campgrounds in the park, I assumed this was a mistake.  It was Thanksgiving Day, after all.  After months of being the only campers, or one of a very few vehicles, at every campground, how was it possible that this park was completely full?  We paid for a day pass and drove in.  The plan was to find a space to stay and then see the park after unhooking the trailer. 

Once on the park roads, we realized that it was not a mistake, the campgrounds really were full.  And it was already evening.  We found a primitive camping area (for tents, with no electricity or water) with space, and camped there, figuring we’d settle up in the morning, since we didn’t need hookups anyway. 

The next day, the state park police came by and we explained that we were at a tent site because the park was full and it got late.  They sympathized but said the site we were in was reserved for that evening and we would have to move.  They found us a new site, a regular RV site, and escorted us to it. 

We found that Palo Duro Canyon is hugely popular, not only with campers, but as a day use park.  The traffic in and out during the holiday and over the weekend was steady.  Many of the spectacular rock formations in the park are accessible only on long, strenuous hiking trails, but there is plenty to be seen from the road or with a short walk as well.  We met another couple with a Bigfoot, Jim and Joyce.  Theirs was a truck camper and we toured each other’s rolling homes and traded road stories.  They live in Alaska so they knew of the Dalton highway and other places in Alaska that we had just visited.  We also met a German couple with a huge rig, which I guess you could call a van or a bus but which was bigger than either and seemed more like a tank, huge and high.  They gave us some information about camping in Europe and said people in the US have been very helpful to them.

We heard and saw roadrunners around our campsite, and they are so unafraid of humans that I was able to get fairly close for pictures.  Roadrunners can fly but prefer not to.  Their top running speed is about 20 mph (whereas a coyote’s is around 40 – another myth busted!).  When they walk or run, they tip their bodies forward so their tails are straight out.  They were larger than I expected, maybe 12-14 inches long, almost half of which is tail feathers, and quite plump. 

On the last day of our stay, we drove the canyon road to the end.  We discovered much evidence of recent flash floods, including markers measuring the depth of the water, which appeared to have recently been submerged up to several feet.  Some trails and bridges were still out due to flood damage.  In researching various park websites, I have found that to be true across the country this season. 

Although the park visit was ultimately not cheap – though camping fees were reasonable, there were additional charges for day passes every day and for more than one person – it’s a real gem, making driving across the panhandle much more interesting.  The day we left, most of the park was closing due to a two-week hunting season.  The prospect of carloads of hunters armed with rifles and bows convinced us that it was time to move on!

 

Gas prices:  $2.39 on the Ohio turnpike (which, however, has outrageous tolls - $8.75); $2.29 close to Oklahoma City; $2.21 near Amarillo, TX!  Woo-hoo!

 

Signage:

Grumpy is good - Sign at Disgruntled Brewing Co. in Detroit Lakes, MN

I sleep around (with tent camping graphic) - Wheel cover on RV in Minnesota

Damage?  Oh, hail, no! - Sign at construction company in Madison, WI

Gobble gobble, easy on the throttle - Seasonal lighted highway sign in Missouri

Also: It’s a speed LIMIT, not a suggestion!

Come see your buds! - Cannabis dispensary in Lebanon, MO

Dead people’s stuff - Sign at Architectural Antiques and Design in Oklahoma

And the winner:

Sarcasm.  Because beating people is illegal. - Sign outside store in southern New Mexico