The first Big Bend diary took us as far as Homer Wilson Ranch, on Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive, in the western part of the park. Today we will continue southwestward towards the Rio Grande and Cottonwood Campground.
West part of Big Bend NP. Map courtesy National Park Service.
The technical issues from the first diary have been solved. These pictures are in Lightbox mode. Click on the image to bring up a larger version.
First stop along the way is Goat Mountain.
Distinctly layered rock on Goat Mountain
My shadow simply would not get out of the way.
Note to makers of interpretive signs: This is how you do it. A tourist with very little knowledge about geology could stand here and make sense of the landscape. The current theory is that an eruption produced pyroclastic flows on an existing volcano, forming the light-colored layers. Later eruptions contained magma with less gas, spreading heavy volcanic rock atop the lighter layers.
According to the final panel,
About 27 million years ago, the region was uplifted and faulted, and erosion began to shape the land we see today. The overlying silica-rich lava was resistent to erosion and formed steep, jointed cliffs. The weaker pyroclastic deposits below are eroding away, exposing a dike (magma intrusion) that may represent a part of the original magma feeding system.
Once again, the young-earthers will need a different theory.
Cactus cluster.
Mule Ears in the distance.
Sun and shadow, light rock and dark rock.
Cerro Castellan and prickly pear cacti.
The light-colored rock in the area is tuff, a product of volcanic pyroclastic flows. Despite the sound of the word, tuff is softer rock that erodes readily. Tuff Canyon is the last stop before Castolon.
Tuff Canyon, near Castolon.
Warning: there are two spider pics below the fold. Skip past them if you don't like spiders.
Cottonwood Campground is far from spectacular. It is carved from a brushy patch of woods that used to be a cotton field. While it is close to the Rio Grande, the river is not visible from camp. Each campsite has a metal bearproof locker for food storage. When I stuck my hand into the recessed slot to activate the latch, my fingers met something soft. This critter ran out of the slot and perched on the edge of the door. The next morning, I spied a tarantula crossing the road. To make it easier on arachnophobes, I have reduced the image sizes for these two pics.
I chased this spider from its hiding place.
Tarantula and its shadow.
The next morning, I visited the the historic settlement of Castolon. Some of the old buildings house a ranger station and a visitor center.
Historic building with a view.
Looking towards Mexico at Castolon.
The former residents of this area traded on both sides of the Rio Grande, and they looked for ways to make a living from the harsh land. A large area of river bottom near Castolon was turned into a cotton field. Nearby was a trading post named La Harmonia. Quoting from the interpretive sign:
Before the 1920s, no one along this part of the Rio Grande had ever planted cotton. In 1922 businessman Wayne Cartledge began to sow that high-dollar commercial crop in these river bottom fields. Cartledge also introduced steam- and gasoline-powered irrigation pumps that boosted his harvests. In 1923 he increased the value of his cotton by "ginning" it before he sold it - that is, by mechanically separating the tiny seeds from the fibers. By 1942, mounting costs and falling prices ended La Harmonia's cotton ventures. Only the machines you see here today are left to remind us of this foray into large scale farming.
This land was forest, then a cotton field, and returned to forest.
As I was editing the picture below, I had the opportunity to adjust "sharpness." Cacti bring a whole new meaning to sharpness.
These prickly pears don't want to be touched.
Diary #3 will cover Chisos Basin, arguably the most scenic portion of Big Bend National Park. See you down the road!
In case you missed it, here is the link to Big Bend Photo Diary #1
Ocotillo beginning to bloom in response to rainfall.