2019 SouthWest: Mesas & Buttes

On the I-10 route between San Antonio and the Park, we could see the trees becoming smaller, the cacti plants starting to appear, and the landscape becoming more arid and desert-like. Within 5 hours, it became very classic SouthWest landscape, desert with no trees, butte plateau hills, and the temperature had risen to to 27C.

inside one of those hills

We arrived at Davis Mountains State Park, which is adjacent to the Fort Davis National Historic Site and the town of Fort Davis.

Soon after set up, a cool couple (Dave & Connie) came over to ask us about our trailer, and while chatting, we discovered that they are from Nova Scotia!  Not only that, they also grew up as Airforce ‘brats’, like ourselves, and had lived on some of the sames bases. Even more small world, when Dave was at Rockcliffe Air Base,  he lived on Mars Ave, which was a little street perhaps only a half dozen houses up the street from our house. Crazy. We had so much in common that we visited back and forth to talk about those times. Naturally, we got together the next night for a refreshing beverage, to talk retirement travel, as they are on a similar journey as us.

The state park campground is at the elevation of 5,050 feet, and is nestled within surrounding ranges of hills. There are seven hiking trails, mostly switchbacks climbing to the top, and walking along the top of the ranges to look at the views.  We chose the ‘Indian Lodge Trail’ hike, which topped out at 5,600 feet of elevation. It offered a panoramic 360 degree scenic views of the total area, and was indicated to be challenging.  Undeterred, although we did ask what challenging really meant, and found that really depended upon who you asked. The consensus is that is was no big deal, and they were right. Except for a few small sections where the walking path was on narrow ridges, the views made it all worthwhile.

love the look of the landscape

The Indian Lodge

In the afternoon we explored Fort Davis, and found a cool little deli to grab a few things and hang out on the shaded porch. Soon after we settle in with our snacks, a man walked by and stopped to chat, immediately asking us where we were from. Turns out he was a Texas Ranger, and we had a marvellous conversation with him. He told us all about the history of the Rangers, how long he had been one, and the work he was currently doing. He explained that the Rangers are the branch of
Texas law enforcement that deals with major crimes . He was a super interesting guy, and as he now knew we were from Canada, we talked about how he sees the Rangers, the RCMP, and the Scotland Yard as some of the best national police forces out there. Hard not to agree with that selection. We wrapped up our chat, and as he walked away, my gaze fell upon his sidearm...no idea what it was, but I did recognize that it had a pearl handle, with an embedded Texas Star. How classic is that.