Hiking in Palo Duro Canyon

We headed out to Palo Duro Canyon last week to do some hiking. We, well really me!, chose the Lighthouse trail. It’s a 6 mile round trip hike. Part of it is just walking along a path. Some of it is climbing over rocks and up hills. All I know is I was pretty tired when we finished! (and I only took the camera out on the easy parts—not coordinated enough to keep from dropping it while I’m climbing!)

We had a beautiful day for the hike----it was a little overcast and not too hot. There was a nice breeze every now and then, which really helped cool us. The canyon was filled with other hikers and mountain bikers---so great to see people out enjoying God’s wonderful creation!

Somehow, David, Hadley and Lance all wore a Team Lance shirt---each one from a different year! I was the oddball and wore something else. Hey-- someone’s gotta be different!

The scenery is just amazing there. Sometimes I forget how incredible it all is. We must do this more often!! Mostly smilin’

There are a few other trails that cross with the Lighthouse trail. It is well marked and maintained, so we didn’t stand much of a chance getting lost. Yay for state parks! Getting closer…

Some of the wildlife we saw along the way. I remember when we used to find Horned Toads all the time. Nowadays, they are much rarer. I think they are even on the endangered list. Some other hikers on the trail told us they saw tarantulas, too. Thankfully, we did NOT! Almost there! We did it!!

The view from the Lighthouse platform is just amazing! We thought the day was a relatively cool one---til we got to the bottom and saw this thermometer. Surely it was wrong! It did not feel like 105*.

After we finished the hike, we drove to a picnic site and enjoyed some more time together. Why is it a sandwich always tastes better outside??

As we drove out of the park, the park ranger was feeding the Longhorns so we got to see them up close and personal. What a great day!