“In my opinion, there are only six states in the US who have a seemingly overblown nation of state identity and state pride: Alaska, California, New York, Florida, Hawaii and Texas. But it’s the proper parts of Texas lean into it with vigor.” – Old Sean
Alpine Hops
West Texas towns are a unique aspect of the west. They’re spread out over wide distances, battered by dust and sunlight and decorated with an unmistakable combination of quirky art and Mexican influence.
On our final day in the West, my brother and I opted to check out townships in our area rather than drive back to Big Bend for another round of heated hiking.
That being said, my brother and I began our day with numerous hikes and outdoor events around Alpine.
The very first thing we did in the morning, after a McDonald’s breakfast, included clambering up the side of Hancock Hill. We attempted to climb up the shorter side on the East side of the rise, but the road that direction has been labeled as a private access point, prohibiting trespassers.
Undaunted, we strove up a steep, painfully rocky incline to the upper ridge of the hill, which overlooks Sul Ross University.
Upon this ridgeline, we were specifically looking for the Sul Ross Desk. Supposedly, someone in a past era had dragged a heavy metal desk to the top of the desert overlook and we were determined to find it.
It took a while, but we found a nearby set of landmarks that directed us the right direction with the help of a couple other hikers.
First was the coil of barbed wire stuck along the edge of the trail. Secondly, we spotted an odd, very short radio tower in a small clearing. Afterwards, we identified the truly odd dead tree covered with four bicycles tied to its upper branches.
Finally, we spotted the desk itself. A low metal piece of furniture gazing over the horizon, the desk has numerous notebooks inside. Many people have scribbled their notes and names inside the covers. I found invites to Nintendo Switch’s Rocket League, small koans, the classic “So and So Was Here” and a few notes from professors from the university to their more adventurous students. My brother and I provided our two cents, played with a shopping cart nearby and headed back downhill.
A Country City
Following our time on Hancock Hill, we checked around the downtown area. Downtown Alpine has a fair number of strange and quirky shops, including numerous galleries, secondhand thrift stores, extremely brash food trucks, coffee vistas and The Cheshire Cat Antiques.
Unfortunately, due to either COVID or simply the fact that it was a Wednesday, the vast majority of shops were closed.
My brother and I grabbed a couple of caffeinated ginger ales from the local grocery shop, “Porters” and wandered around. Cow Dog Food Truck was unfortunately closed. However, my brother and I did manage to visit Murphy Street Mercado, a lovely little shop where I found radish jam to bring back home to Dallas.
(My roommate Callum makes jams and jellies, so I believed he would enjoy them). We also managed to visit a little gallery called Curry Studio & Gallery where the main illustrator, Tom Curry, introduced us to his dog.
Fort Davis Visits
Finally, getting back to the car, we began driving North. We made our way to the restaurant/shop known as the Stone Village Sandwich Shop in Fort Davis. Just like the other surrounding towns, Fort Davis is filled with quirky odds-and-ends shops, including thrift stores, proud hat shops, a beautiful mayor building and a couple of leather stores. Stone Village Sandwich Shop, in particular, sells truly fantastic sandwiches which are meticulously prepared.
Following our outdoor meal in Fort Davis, my brother and I continued driving to the actual ruins of Fort Davis. The precursor to the town was an old western military base established at the foot of imposing cliffs, designed to ward away bandits and Native American raids on west-driving caravans.
The majority of the military base is in a state of preserved ruins, with the occasionally-restored building standing tall and beautiful.
My favorite feature was a drinking fountain built out of a barrel. Due to COVID, we of course couldn’t risk drinking from it, but it was still cool. A couple of wild horses picked their ways around freely and across all of the grounds, the main ranger building played bugle sounds and marching tunes.
Mountin’ Up
Following our time here, we drove still further out to the Davis Mountains.
These large mountains cost six dollars per person to enter and we paid to drive along the “Davis Mountain Scenic Overlook.” This steep drive brought us up a windy path that overlooked numerous lower mountains and beautiful desert grounds with red splashed of harsh red stones.
Our mountaintop had a few hiking trails my brother and I picked our way along, daring one another to stand atop of precarious rocks and struggling through stubbornly sturdy dead trees. More baby watermelons grew wild out here, with large carpenter ants shuffling along the ground. We also spotted a rattlesnake which immediately hid from us.
Driving back down the mountain, my brother and I stopped at the excellent Herbert’s Caboose Ice Cream Shop, which is, of course, served out of an actual green caboose. We briefly toyed with the idea of visiting the Rattlers and Reptiles Exhibit nearby, but ultimately cited a lack of energy against it.
Next we wandered to Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute in the hopes of one, final hike, but the gates were shuttered.
So instead we returned to Alpine for a bit of rest before planning to head out once more to Marfa. We hoped to go at sunset (which is when the mysterious Marfa lights generally appear) but with the sunlight not truly fading until 10 PM, we decided to make a couple more side stops.
Aliens and Petroglyphs
The first place we attempted to find is the extremely odd Stone Circle, a series of singing rocks powered by solar panels beside a farm in Marfa. Inspired by megaliths such as the Nine Ladies in Ireland or Stonehenge, an artist partnered with an energy company. Unfortunately, the feature was closed when we visited, though we could see the sharp edges poking just over the hill they were placed behind.
Following this, we ended up wandering around Marfa itself to see what made up the small town. True to west Texas form, this was a quirky little hamlet.
Unfortunately, in the dark with few people out and about due to COVID, it’s a slightly creepy town with a few run-down buildings in the warehouse district and a fair number of ominous red lights securing closed interiors.
Our favorite buildings included the rather pretty town hall and a store simply labeled “Wrong” with a donkey statue in the front lobby. Red lights shone out onto the empty street.
Finally, it was time to head attempt our second night of viewing the Marfa Lights, but we stopped on the drive over, spotting yet another oddity. Along highway 90, at the very edge of Marfa, there exists a semi-circle of burnished metal pillars with alien symbols glowing off of their surfaces.
Unbeknownst to us, these were called Actual Contact. These pillars show colorful lines forming bizarre alien-figures. The style is oddly reminiscent of Native American petroglyphs, but with freeform wiggling lines which defy easy explanation.
My brother and I bugged out over the oddity of the area and drove the rest of the way out to the Marfa Lights Viewing Area.
Lights Lost
Supposedly, Marfa has inexplicable glowing balls of light that bob into spontaneous existence along the edges of an entirely flat desert. However, despite waiting for an hour and a half under a powerful half-moon and gradually vanishing clouds, the lights never revealed themselves to us.
Ah well, next time.
My brother and I returned to rest around 11 PM, ready for a quick rest. I planned to rouse us at 4 AM so we could get back to Dallas at a reasonable hours, avoid missing the rental-car-turn-in deadline. Our early awakening also allowed us a couple more road trip stops.
Right away, we left Alpine and nearly hit a deer dipping across the lane, a bulky tracking collar around its neck. Nervous for the rest of the ride, I kept the high beams on and drove to Fort Stockton.
Roadside Attractions
Our first roadside attraction on the way back was a giant roadrunner statue known as Paisano Pete. This huge roadrunner figure was worthy of a couple of photos as my brother and I loaded back into our vehicle and drove back off into the night.
Our next visit was supremely exciting. We drove to the Monahan Sandhill State Park. This is an incredible place to visit. Natural desert sand dunes with fine grains trace the landscape. Ambitious travelers can bring sleds to skim down, and the park includes numerous recreation zones, such as volleyball courts and picnic areas.
My brother and I made the appropriate Anakin Skywalker sand-jokes and hiked up the dunes for a stunning vista of a rising sun. It was an excellent way to wake up, even as the finely ground sands bogged our feet and challenged unusual muscles as we walked about.
Not entirely done with our trip, my brother and I made a quick stop at Ben Jack Rabbit of Odessa. This large rodent, formerly the largest statue of a Jack Rabbit, was wearing a telling mask due to the COVID crisis. The rabbit itself was built in honor of Odessa’s Jackrabbit Roping Competition.
The competition is exactly what it sounds like: Cowboys and Cowgals would dexterously lasso fleeing Jack Rabbits as part of a competition. The competition was originally supposed to be a quirky way to spice up Memorial Day. People weren’t actually expected to catch rabbits with lassos initially. But western wranglers, true to form, took the event seriously. The standing record for lassoing a fleeing jack rabbit was won by a woman named Grace Hendricks, who caught her behemoth rabbit in five seconds.
The contest was revived in 1977 and promptly shut down the following year due to a groundswell of protests lead by the Humane Society, citing animal cruelty.
Regardless, it’s a funny little stop on the way home. My brother and I finally made a steady loop around Big Spring, Texas, but by that point our exhaustion had caught up to us and we were simply ready to be home.
Brief Break
And that was it.: Four days of road tripping, hiking, mountain scaling, desert trudging, scenic drives, rattlesnake evasion, deer concerns, mystery hunting and COVID-transit quarantine. I can finally rest easy back in Texas, letting my restless bearing settle for a moment.
We certainly got our time worth.
In any event, this is likely my last trip for a while. The duality of COVID and work is going to keep me in isolation for a bit longer.
So until the next wander, likely within the United States,
Best regards and excellent trails,
Old Sean
Written July 1st 2020
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I bought this Horizon Hound Trek Blanket for a late-autumn trek in the United States. Since then, it’s gone everywhere with me. The blanket is lightweight, stuff-able, warm and durable. But my favorite features are the buttons. The blanket can be buttoned up the sides, turning it into a long thermal poncho when I don’t want to leave the warmth of my bed.
