Deep in the heart of Texas...

Texas is a BIG state!  We covered a lot of ground both getting to and travelling from Grandpa Garcia's.  On our way to Arizona to visit Todd's Niece Stephanie and her son C.K. and to attend the Overland Expo 2014, we made stops in Amistad National Recreation Area near Del Rio, Texas and Big Bend National Park near Marathon, TX. 

Amistad, "friendship" in Spanish, lies on the US-Mexico border and features a dam jointly operated and maintained by the United States and Mexico.  The resulting reservoir is a destination typically offering an excellent array of water and outdoor activities.  However, like many places in the West, the prolonged drought has dropped the level of the reservoir to an extent that only one of the many boat launches around the periphery of the reservoir still actually reaches the water.

In Big Bend National Park, roads end at the Rio Grande, the boundary between the United States and Mexico.  The area is a mix of canyons, desert, mountains and a variety of ecosystems that include several bird migration paths.  In addition to the beauty of the area, it was also interesting to see how little separates the US from Mexico in some areas.  There are no "fences" in the middle of the Rio Grande and at some points, the river is little more than a few yards wide and a few inches deep.

Traveling between these parks and along the border, we saw countless US border patrol vehicles, facilities, and planes, and went through several checkpoints - on the US side.  It was evident that the US government is spending a considerable amount of money trying to beef up border security.

Below are a collection of some of our photos from this portion of our trip.



Railroad Bridge at Amistad



Tarantula Hanging Out in the Grass

Wild Turkey out for a jog

Turtle who wasn't so happy about being turned around for his photo



One of our camping spots in Amistad

 

"Prickly Pear" and "Agave" Cactus in Big Bend



Cactus Blossom

Another Type of Cactus

"Prickly Pear" Cactus blossoms

"Agave" Cactus Blossom (which was probably dead)

Desert Flowers

"Ocotillo" Cactus

We watched these little guys fight over their sunny territory for several minutes

Todd at the view from "Window Canyon"

These bugs made quite the noise as they moved from one spot to another - enough to startle you until you got used to them

A nice moon above the mountain was our evening view from one campsite

A "Lechuguilla"

Not a pig, not a hog, but a "Javelina", actually, several of them, freely grazing by our camping spot

 

A cute "Black Tailed Jackrabbit"

 

"Beep - Beep" there goes another Roadrunner

 

A "Torrey Yucca"