Take care

Derrick Perrin

Some work/Some play

So on the hit list will be San Angelo, Texas so we can shoot the Jackson wedding at the Cactus Hotel.  The next week we will make our way to Kermit, Texas.  In route we will stop and shoot some law video in Midland before making to the wedding in Kermit.  Sunday all work will be done and it will be time to play, well almost.  We did get a call to take some photos of one of the neighboring lands on the Chispa Road.

-Derrick

LOBO PRESENTS INTERNATIONAL SHORTFILMS
APRIL 22-24 2011, LOBO/TX

Desert Dust Cinema is a three-day, nonprofit film festival organized by a few of the denizens of Lobo, TX. Lobo is located on US Hwy 90, 16 miles south of I-10 exit 140 (Van Horn). This year, the festival will take place from Friday, April 22nd to Sunday, April 24th and at regular intervals in the coming years.

Needle Peak on Chispa Road

See you next week,

Derrick

Train Tunnel to San Carlos Mines

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/books/landscapes/publications/txu-oclc-5040853/fullview.html

This is an old photo of the train entrance to Bracks Canyon, eastern end, San Carlos taken by the U.S. Geological society published in 1900.

The Rio Grande Northern Railway used this rail line once.  Its a shame since so many oriental folks spent long hours busing it out around 1895.  To read more on the rail line check out l

Gleen’s Texas History Blog

This is a quick musical tour of Texas.  Cool video, must of been one hell of a road trip.

South Chiva Windmill Photo

Happy Monday to you,

Derrick Perrin

West Texas always has a asterisk next to it when stories are being told.  The small print reads something like this:

Due to forces of nature and the gravitational pull of the poles the area know as West Texas must be taken in relative terms.  Distance, Time, Accommodations, and Temperature are all relative depending on how much fun one might be having.  Also note, if it grows, it will stick you; if it crawls, it will bite you!

Rough Beauty With Thorns

So now some relative stories about my relatives

My aunt Tish has always been a big fan of Big Bend National Park.  My wife Kendra and I had only been in the park for a few hours before we went on a trip out there with my aunt.  In my previous trip to the National park my wife and I visited Cat Tail Falls.  This is a little known trail to a waterfall oasis in the park.  The park system took the trail off of the map system after 9/11.  So if you are going there, it is by word of mouth.

Tish was interested in seeing Cat Tail Falls after we told her about how easy the hike was, and how it is flat and no more than a mile to the beautiful desert oasis.  Keep in mind there is a big ass asterisk floating over my head as I’m telling her this.  Kendra and I forgot all about the elevation change and the two to three mile hike to the falls after we laid eyes on it.

So to my aunt Tish, sorry for the piss-poor description on how far, high, strenuous, and dark it would be on the trail to Cat Tail Falls.  It was worth it.

On the trail with Tish again

This time we told her about the flat one mile loop outside Fort Davis, Texas.  (Insert asterisk here)  This time Tish brought her cousin Phillis along.

Hiking in West Texas

So we set off on this relatively short, flat, easy hike to Chico Tank on the Nature Conservancy‘s Madera Canyon Hiking Trail.  Short and flat is how it was when Kendra and I hiked it two years before.  The trail goes up down and around to a nice tank called Chico.  Its a really nice place to sit in the shade a catch your breath.  The ole ladies thought it would be a great spot for birding if it wasn’t hotter than hell out that day.

Grason at Chico Tank

What makes a road?

From the first year I met my lovely wife, Kendra, we have been taking trips to west Texas.  She has been a trooper when it comes to taking trips with me.  Some of the areas we travel aren’t paved.  To tell you the truth, they might not be roads.  They might be Jeep trails or goat paths, but you can travel on them given the right vehicle.  So call them what you will, but they do get you from point a to point b.  One trip we were in the Big Bend Ranch State Park and picked a spot to go hike at.  The trail head was only 20 miles away, this will be a piece of cake to get to.  An hour and a half  of drive time and we finally made it to our destination.

Kendra and Grason at 3 months

Kendra and Baby Grason

The hiking at the Big Bend Ranch State Park was amazing.  Living near the coast most roads are flat and straight.  Its hard for me to adjust to mountains and curves.  When I drive somewhere I take the miles as minutes.  A town 60 miles away will take me an hour’s drive.  When it comes to Big Bend Country nay, nay.  It just doesn’t work out that way.  God decided to put in some scenery out there and it takes time to drive through it.    We can’t wait to get back there where being close to somewhere is definitely relative.

Off to the Hot Springs – They are just around the corner…

In 2009 Kendra and I made a run through Pinto Canyon.  It was beautiful and we thought Tish should see it.  We knew the Pinto Canyon road would take you close to the Chinati Hot Springs.  I had a GPS telling me it was just right around the corner so we thought we would go see what the hot springs was all about.  So around a corner and then another corner and then another or two before we finally saw the Chinati Hot Springs sign that said 5 more miles.  When you are off-roading in west Texas a 5 mile section of road might take you an hour to traverse, that day it took us about 30 minutes.  No one told us this old hippie commune was hosting the after party for the Marfa Film Fest.  The locals were nice.  We received the tour by a girl who had not quite sobered up enough to be working so her shirtless substitute stepped in as the Chinati tour guide.  As we were getting into the truck we heard a lady yell out that there would be naked salsa dancing after dark.  It was brought to our attention that this would be the 2nd night of naked salsa dancing.  The previous night included the local border patrol.  We saw all we needed to see and made it out of there before dark.  It seems that at the hot springs decency is relative.

Chinati Hot Springs

Texas Pen-striping

Despite what the people running the fish shack/park store say, you can make the loop around Balmorhea Lake in a Ford Expedition.  You will modify your vehicle’s paint job in the process.  What they call a road is relative to how much you are willing to sacrifice your paint job.

The fish shack / park store

Around these parts we call that Texas Pen-Striping.  Don’t worry too much they all relatively come out with a good waxing.

Texas Pen-Striping

Relative from a relative right back at me

Relative goes both ways.  After dishing out enough relative it was time for me to have a plate full.  When your aunt says she would like to get up early and go out to Balmorhea Lake she does not mean after the sun comes up.  I guess to here early is also relative.  Who knew things happen in west Texas before noon?  I sure as hell didn’t!  Well, I do now, and I also know that there is only one thing that can come close to matching a west Texas sunset, and that is a west Texas sunrise.  So if you don’t have photos from your previous experiences way out west, you might only remember how great things were and mislead someone you are dragging along the trail.  Oh well, everyone has survived and made it back home to tell their stories.

Shiner at the window at sunset

Thanks Aunt Tish,

Derrick Perrin – West Texas Enthusiast.