Alligator Gar - Brazos River- Texas

Yesterday I was reading about the Alligator Gar on Passport to Texas. The Alligator Gar is the largest freshwater fish known to Texas and, according to Passport to Texas, can grow up to ten feet long and 300 pounds. I have never seen one this big but can imagine how scary such an encounter might be. What I find most interesting is the Gar’s tendency to swim close to the surface. Apparently the Gar’s gills are poorly suited for extracting the oxygen the fish needs which forces them to “gulp” for air at the water’s surface.

It reminds me of a Brazos River trip I took some years back. It was early spring and I had invited my mom and dad on a short day trip down the river. We put in Squaw Creek at Tres Rios River Ranch in Glen Rose, TX and paddled the short four miles down to the Lake Whitney Recreation Area. The water was warm and without much flow. I remember we had to get out to drag the boats more than usual.
What was really unusual about the trip were the Gars. At every bend we found literally hundreds of Gars beaching themselves in the shallows of the river. Their backs sticking high up out of the water, sometimes 5 or 6 piled on top of each other.


I had never seen this before (or since) and wanted to check it out. In all my river trips I have found Gars to be extremely skittish, more so then most fish. But on this warm March day they couldn’t be stirred. I could paddle right up next to them and they wouldn’t move a muscle. It was so strange that I decided to test their resolve and gently lifted one out of the water with the end of my paddle. That got him to move, but only enough to re-submerge himself. I didn’t want to bother them further assuming this was some kind of mating practice.

In spite of a tremendous amount of time on Texas rivers I have yet to see Gars behave like that since. After reading about them yesterday, I can’t help but wonder if they were all just short of air?
 

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Second Higest Mountain Range in Texas

A friend and I are making plans to summit Mt. Livermore and Baldy Peak in the Davis Mountain range. Baldy Peak (atop Mt. Livermore) is the highest point in the Davis Mountains. Access to the summit is limited due to the fact that nearly all of the Davis Mountain range sits on private land. The majority of Mt. Livermore is actually owned by The Nature Conservancy, an organization dedicated to preserving nature. The Nature Conservancy is a mighty fine organization. Only one thing truly irritates me about the conservancy…they don’t like to share. Public access to TNC land is limited to a few weekends a year making it difficult to find time to hike. I appreciate what TNC is doing and believe that preserving the last few truly wild places in this world is a worthy endeavor. I just don’t know what good all of it is if they won’t let us enjoy it. Seems there ought to be a way to police potential hikers from upsetting their mission. But I won’t get into that. As I said before we want to summit the peak and fortunately for my friend and I, Livermore Ranch owns the rest of the Mountain with access to the summit.

I called Livermore ranch the other day to schedule a time when I could come check out their facilities. Some folks at church are looking for a place to have a spring retreat and Livermore Ranch just might be the place. I have been sent to go scope it out and see if it will work for our retreat needs. I haven’t asked the owner yet… but I hope he will let us summit after a tour of the facility. Looks like we will be heading out there the Thursday before thanksgiving if the owner and my wife will let us (I have yet to ask either if I can go).

A little information about Mt. Livermore. At 8,373 feet Baldy Peak is the fifth highest point in Texas with the four higher peaks all residing in the Guadalupe Mountain Range. Baldy Peak is the name of the highest protruding crest on Mt. Livermore which is considered to have its own summit (8,206 feet) apart from Baldy Peak. The slopes of Mt. Livermore have been described as a “Sky-island” because the plants and animals that live above 5,000 feet are isolated from other mountain ecology by vast distances. Surrounding the mountains is the vast Chihuahuan desert. When hiking to similar “Sky-islands” in the Guadalupe and Chisos mountain ranges I have been amazed at how you can actually see yourself passing into another ecological realm.

Mt. Livermore and the Davis Mountains are reported to be the home of a vast range of plant and animal life. Ponderosa pine, quaking aspens, pinyon pine, gray oak, alligator juniper, and mountain mahogany are among some of the plants isolated from the desert by elevation. Among the slopes of Mt. Livermore you may also find black bear and mountain lion, Black-hawk, Golden Eagle, Dusky-capped Flycatcher, and Montezuma Quail. Some species cannot be found anywhere else in Texas.

Mt. Livermore and the Davis Mountains are truly unique, beautiful places. If and when I get the opportunity to climb this mountain island I will be sure and share the experience here.

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"MonkeyMan"

Found this video of the "MonkeyMan" who does amazing things while climbing.

Monkeyman: Extreme Climber - Funny video clips are a click away

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Free USGS Topo Maps

In the 1940’s the U.S. Geological Survey began surveying the entire contiguous U.S to create a series of topographical maps. The USGS topo maps are considered by many to be the most accurate maps available and are used by paddlers, hikers, climbers, and cyclists alike for outdoor recreation.
These maps are now available for free in the public domain for download or home printing from the USGS website. Simply go to http://store.usgs.gov and click on the “Download Topo Maps Free” link on the right. Use the Google map interface to locate the area you would like a map of. Once zoomed in click on the Red “Mark Point” and download the map you want.
When I went to the map locater page I found it nearly impossible to find maps using the zoom feature. The search function to the right of the Map Locater proved much easier. Simply type in the name of a park, mountain peak, landmark ect. and you will be taken to the individual “Mark Point” where you can download the map in question.

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Virtual Big Bend

Yesterday I joined BigBendChat.com which is a discussion forum dedicated to all things Big Bend (along with other West Texas sites). One of the more interesting things I found was a link to this website: virtualbigbend.com. Virtual Big Bend has more than 30 interactive 360 degree panoramic views of various locations within the park. Each view allows you to look up down left and right or any direction you see fit. You can see the view from Emery peak (highest point in the park at 7825 feet). You can look around at Santa Elena Canyon. Or even view a real Big Bend waterfall, all in 360 degree interactive panoramas. It is truly a unique way to see the park right from your desktop. Now if we could only get a “Virtual” site for all our favorite outdoor places.

When you go to Virtual Big Bend you can view the 30+ panoramas in a window similar to the picture above. Only at thre real website you can pan and tilt in any direction simply by draging your mouse. Go check it out virtualbigbend.com

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Day Packs

I road my bike to work today after about a three week stretch of conflicts that prevented riding. The morning was cool and crisp and it felt good to get back out and ride. Today I became frustrated, however, with my lack of quality equipment. Mainly the Outdoor Products Vortex pack I use to carry a change of clothes, water bladder, keys and other stuff. I picked up this pack at Wal-mart for a lousy $20. At the time it seemed like an okay pack with nice features, plenty of room, and an unbeatable price. It was not long after use that the zippers began to fail. Currently the pack has only two pockets capable of zipping closed. Of those two pockets only one of the zippers on each side will actually zip. I keep wondering when the two remaining zippers will fail (probably while miles from home) and leave me with a pack full of stuff and no pack to carry it in.

What I need is to fork out the money for a quality day pack. One I can use daily as I bike to work and that would also be good for some day hikes from time to time. I have looked at the REI Flash 30 pack and have considered purchase.I currently use the REI Flash 65 for overnight and weekend trips and have been very pleased with its construction and quality. REI seems to have quality products at affordable prices. Other options include Mountain Hardwear Agama, and the Kelty Redwing 2650. The Flash 30 is the most affordable…but then again being cheap is what got me in the situation to begin with. I am sure REI’s products are quality and will more than likely buy the Flash 30 in the future.

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Dilemma

After writing yesterdays post I started thinking about how I would go about filling a complaint concerning the perceived monopoly run on the Devil’s River by Gerald Bailey. I looked on the TPWD website and found steps for filling a complaint. I am struggling if I should or not.

On the one hand I feel that it is an injustice that the land owners on the Devils River should be required to use Gerald any time they want to do a river trip when his involvement is completely unnecessary. It seems to be some kind of “good o’l boy” arrangement between the rangers at Devils River State Natural Area and Gerald. But on the other hand I do need to use Gerald from time to time for shuttle needs. I would hate it if my complaint closed certain sections of the Devils (mainly the Natural area and Blue Sage water crossing) to the paddling public.

You might be thinking…”Get some guts” but the Devils is just too precious to lose. Maybe I should just forget it ever happened.

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Devil's River, TX

Recently a friend and I took a paddle trip down the Devil’s River in South West Texas. The Devil’s River is considered by many to be the cleanest river in Texas. The Devil’s maintains this status mostly because of its remote nature. There are only two public water crossings along the rivers entire 47.7 mile stretch between Baker’s Crossing (Hwy 163) and the High Bridge over Lake Amisted (Hwy 90). Surrounding land is all private ranch estates. Land owners have been rumored to diligently guard their property and even shoot at paddlers attempting to exit their boats. All this has left this class I-IV whitewater river completely unspoiled.

The Devil’s River is characterized as a spring fed pool and drop river flowing over limestone. The river has a good variety of cool deep pools interrupted by the frequent class I-II rapids. Nearly all of these smaller rapids are complicated by the vast number of reeds growing directly in the middle of the river. At some instances it will appear that the river simply comes to an end where openings in the reeds are barley large enough for your boat to fit through. You have to follow the sound of flowing water to find your way through the reed jungles. Sometimes you will break through to a tunnel of reeds and fast flowing water. Other times you simply dead end into more thick reeds capable of bending your boat if you are not careful. But the reeds are all part of the beauty of the river.

At 16 miles below Baker’s is one of the real jewels of the Devil’s River. Dolan Falls a solid class V+ waterfall with a 10 -12 foot drop into strong hydraulics. I am told that only a few paddlers have ever tried to run the falls. One report is that a young man that ran falls and was sucked under a hidden rock ledge. Reports say he didn’t come back up for 100 yards down stream. Validity of these reports is questionable…but it is safe to say attempting to run Dolan Falls is a bad idea. A portage on river right allows for great pictures.

If you do want to paddle the Devil’s you have to make arraignments through Gerald Bailey who lives in the Blue Sage subdivision about 25 river miles below Baker’s Crossing. Gerald has options for a number of different trips for a sum of money often costing several hundred dollars. His price is not all together unfair considering the great distance he must drive to shuttle you to the different put ins and take outs. Friends and I have done this a few times…putting in at Bakers, camping at the State Natural Area (15 river miles below Baker’s) and then taking out at the private low water crossing near Gerald’s. Since the land is privately owned Gerald is a necessity unless you want to continue 22.7 miles down river to the Lake’s Rough Canyon Marina.

Recently I discovered that a friend owns property on the Devil’s in the Blue Sage subdivision just up river from Gerald Bailey’s place. This came as a pleasant surprise to me and the friend and I started making plans for a day trip. According to the TPWD you can put in, but not take out at the State Natural Area if you make arraignments through Gerald. I assumed Gerald had to be involved because of the necessity to take out on private land or simply to run a shuttle. Since someone in our group owned land down river and we would be running our own shuttle we would have been able to bypass Gerald. I called the Natural area to arrange a put in and informed them we would be taking out on our own private property. The guy at the Natural Area said we would still have to pay Gerald if we wanted to put in on STATE property. WHY? The only answer they could give me was “That’s the way we do it.” I called Gerald to arrange the put in. I told him we wouldn’t need a shuttle and that we wouldn’t need to take out on his property. All we would need is for him to let us in. Gerald wanted $92 for us to drive out of our way to pick him up, take him back to the natural area to unlock a gate (a state owned gate on state property) to gain access to the water. We would then have to have our guy drive him back home. $12 went to the State for day use fees…the rest went in Gerald’s pocket.

Is it just me or is the State enabling a monopoly? Because of their decision to mandate Gerald’s involvement the only way you would ever be able to access the river without Gerald would be to paddle the entire 47.7 miles from Baker’s crossing to Rough Canyon Mariana. This would necessitate at least 2-3 nights on the river with little to no place to camp due to all the private property defended by Winchesters. Why can’t a park ranger unlock the State owned gate on state property? One followed us the entire 22 miles on unpaved 4x4 trails down to the gate in order to pull us over for excessive speed… Are you kidding me? The condition of the road wouldn’t even allow me to drive faster than 20 MPH. It would seem the rangers don’t have anything to do other harass citizens attempting to recreate in their park. Why not give them a job and let them open the gate for the small number of people who don’t need Gerald to run the river? Would it do any good to write the State to complain about this set up? Probably not. I guess if you want to run the river you have to be willing to pay.

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Midland, TX

Not exactly your top outdoor destination. Flat, arid, limited vegetation, limited wildlife, these are just a few words that describe West Texas. There is little here for any person who likes to be outdoors. But yet this is where I call home. I never intended to come to midland. Having grown up in the heart of the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex, I often found myself driving down I-35 into the Texas hill country. Texas may not compare to some states in what she has to offer for the outdoorsman, but the Texas hill country is about as beautiful of a place as any I have ever seen. The hill country is where I wanted to live.

So when I came time to change employers I hand picked several jobs in beautiful hill country cities that I would love to live in. Never had I even thought about the west Texas desert, much less considered moving here. But as the Lord would have it West Texas was where I was meant to be. By some strange way a resume of mine ended up here in Midland. I received a call, did and interview, and before I knew it I was packing up the family and driving west on the dusty seat of an old U-Haul truck.

Two years later I have come to appreciate the beauty of West Texas. Even if all of that beauty is at least 100 miles from my front door. But there is beauty here that many people never see. Growing up in DFW I would often come across pictures of Big Bend National park. The rugged beauty of the park called to me any time I would see such pictures. Living in the Metroplex put Big Bend a good 10 to 12 hours away. I never could bring myself to make such a long drive when the hill country was only 3-4 hours away. The first year we lived in Midland, however, I got the chance to head down there. Now I am only four and a half hours away and Big Bend has become one of my favorite places to be.

Midland, I discovered, was just what it claimed to be, the middle of the land. Looking at a map of Texas you find that some its prettiest places are between 4-5 hours away. Big Bend (4.5 hours drive), Guadalupe Mountain: Highest Peak in Texas at 8717 feet (4 hours drive), Palo Duro Canyon (4.5 hours), Texas Hill Country (3-5 hours). Davis Mountains: Second highest range in Texas (3.5 hours) Texas Metroplex (4.5 hours). As it turned out Midland was some kind of geographical oddity that opened me up to some of the quietest, prettiest, most remote places in Texas. Places that, while I was living in Dallas, never thought I would make it too.

Sometimes it is hard to find the time to drive 3-5 hours away to be outdoors, but I am finding more and more time every year. This blog will serve as a place record my adventures as I do find the time, as well as a place to daydream about those places in-between times. This is My Life Outdoors.

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