THE LAW WEST OF THE PECOS

(MARCH 26, 2018) Today, I began my trek up the Rio Grande Valley. I left Del Rio at about 8:30 and headed up Route 90. This is going to be a miles day as my lodging for tonight is in Alpine, Texas. As Captain Augustus McCrae would say "a little fart of a town down on the Rio Grande."

After leaving Del Rio these is really not must in the way of towns, just a lot of wide open spaces and some beautiful scenery.  About 30 miles out of Del Rio, Route 90 crosses the Pecos River. There is a scenic overlook here that give you of grand view of the 1,310 foot long bridge that spans the Pecos River some 273 feet below.  This is the U. S. Route 90 High Bridge. The original Pecos High Bridge stands a few miles up stream was completed in 1892 to carry Union Pacific Trains across the River Canyon. The current bridge was completed in 1944 and in addition to carrying freight trains across the canyon, Amtrak's Sunset Limited cross the span as it runs between Sanderson and Del Rio.

I stopped here at the scenic overlook to snap a few photos of the bridge and the Pecos River which feeds into the Rio Grande a couple miles down Stream.

After crossing the bridge it is a little over 20-miles to the town of Langtry, Texas. Another little fart of a town with only a Post Office a small store and The Judge Roy Bean Visitor's Center and Museum. Yes, it was here the legendary Judge Roy Bean ran a saloon and held court as the only "Law West of the Pecos."

The Judge's original Jersey Lilly Saloon is preserved here and welcomes visitors who can see where the Judge held court in either the Billiard Room or more often on the front porch.  After a night of drinking in San Antonio the judge fell ill and eventually returned to his home in Langtry.  He never recovered and died in the billiard room of the Jersey Lilly on  March 16, 1903.

After completing my visit to the Jersey Lilly it was it back on Route 90 as I made my way toward Alpine.  Its about 150 miles from Langtry to Alpine and the scenery through here is beautiful, especially the part through Sanderson Canyon.

Some three and a half hours later I arrived in Alpine and after stopping at my Hotel to extend my stay an additional night I took off  to Fort Davis National Historic Park. Fort Davis played an important role protecting settlers, mail coaches and freighters on the San Antonio - El Paso Road.  Today the Fort is probably one of the best remaining examples of a frontier military fort that once dotted the landscape of the southwestern United States.

One Interesting note about Fort Davis is in 1857 the Army brought about 25 camels to the fort in an attempt to replace horses and mules who often struggled in the areas arid conditions.  While the camels were thought to be more efficient at hauling supplies than Horses and Mules and were patient and easy to manage, the other animals would panic when the camels approached.  Horse would often buck and throw their riders and mules would balk and refuse to move. The Fort Davis Camels were sent off to Camp Verde where they would remain for a number of Years.  Legend has it that years later off spring of these camels continued to roamed the area.

All of the remaining building at Fort Davis are original, and several of the building have been destroyed or fallen into ruins.  I had a very interesting and informative afternoon exploring the remains of the Old Fort. My National Park Senior Pass got me in for free, which was another perk.

After exploring Fort Davis it was back to Alpine where I am spending the Night.  Tomorrow is off to Big Bend National Park.  While Alpine is the closest town to the National Park, it is still about 80 miles to the visitor's center. So tomorrow I plan on spending all day in Big Bend.

TODAY'S MILES:     261
TOTAL MILES:       3483