One of our Texas Mountain Trail Heritage Bike Routes is featured in the
current issue of the Texas Historical Commission's magazine,
The Medallion! Click
HERE to
read the entire issue online--a travel article covering our region
including Marathon, the Gage Hotel, and Big Bend Ranch State Park starts
on page 6!
Is the route easy? YES! A family could easily handle the five miles
there, five miles back route. There's virtually no vehicular traffic,
is incredibly scenic and the average slope is only 1.2%! The elevation
gain is only 121 feet!
Why is this called a "heritage" bike route? The ride starts out at the historic (and cycle-friendly!)
Gage Hotel,
continues across the highway and railroad (easy crossings!) to the Gage
Hotel's formal Gardens. From there, you follow signs to the Cemetery
and County Park.
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| Water Lily from Gage Gardens |
The Cemetery is a short detour and has the graves of early Marathon residents, with interesting markings and monuments.
Head further south to Post Park, through country that once held a tent
hospital during the 1918 influenza epidemic, a buffalo soldier
encampment called Post Pena Colorado, and to Post Park. Be sure to read
the interpretive panels on the
Buffalo Soldier encampment and the
geology of the area, produced by our friends at the Brewster County Tourism Council...and have a GREAT ride!
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| Post Park! |
The park itself is a great place to watch birds and enjoy wildlife, and
was a stopping off point for the Comanche and Apache. It also was a
project of the 1930s Works Progress Administration!
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| Ride to the Post! |
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