Antelope Hunt 1912

Fred Gibson and James Hanibal Beach, Photograph, ca. 1912; digital image, (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth14175/ : accessed January 13, 2014), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, http://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Clark Hotel Museum, Van Horn, Texas. 

Another great image from the collection of the Clark Hotel Museum in Van Horn.  Our Texas Mountain Trail organization helped the museum with a grant to preserve photographic images of early Culberson County.  Click on the photo for a closer view!

Want to be a Goat Cheese Intern?

Late last year, we worked on a joint project with Texas Folklife profiling a few folks in our region engaged in food production.  It was our pleasure to attend the goat cheese-making workshop and interview Malinda Beeman of Marfa Maid Goat Cheese.   Malinda clued us in then that they were about to offer an internship to just the right person.  Last week, they posted a notice:

Marfa Maid Goat Cheese Intern Program

We operate a grade A licensed goat milk dairy and cheese making facility . The dairy is located two miles from Marfa in the Big Bend Region of West Texas. This is an area well known for its beautiful landscape. Marfa is considered a cultural destination with many activities year round.

Our dairy makes fresh goat cheese (chevre, feta, yogurt) on as seasonal basis from our small herd of Alpine/Nubian mix dairy goats. These products are available in the groceries, farmers markets and restaurants of the three towns of our area, Marfa, Fort Davis and Alpine.

We hope to have volunteers stay up to six months in our most busy season, from April to September. The two areas we most need help would be caring and milking the goats. The other need is to have assistance in the cheese kitchen to process the milk and make the various cheese products . This would also include cleaning and maintenance of the kitchen and equipment. Volunteers could also be a part of delivering the product and attending the local farmers market. The work load would be 5 days a week with 4-6 hours devoted daily to each area.

English is the preferred language however Spanish speakers could be accommodated. We do not discriminate for age, gender, ethnicity etc. We are looking for responsible people who love animals, have a love of food, healthy and enthusiastic.

The housing is a refurbished metal trailer (330 square feet) with bathroom, kitchen , sitting area and a bedroom. Volunteers will be given a $200 a month stipend) for food, if a couple comes together, the stipend will be $300 a month.

For more information email us at marfamaid.dairy@gmail.com or phone (432) 729-3987

We're bringing Ride for Reading to the Mountains!

We're looking for volunteers to help us deliver books to elementary schools in Fort Davis (on Thursday, January 23rd) and in Terlingua (on Friday, January 24) through the Ride for Reading program, with special thanks to regional partners (listed below) and Better World Books...

Here's a short video of a Ride for Reading book selection at an elementary school:

And another on the delivery by bicycle!

Would you like to join us by riding your bicycle to the elementary schools in Fort Davis and/or Terlingua?

Information on the Fort Davis delivery on Thursday, January 23rd is here and here.

Information on the Terlingua delivery on Friday, January 24th is here and here.

Many thanks to folks who've made this happen:  the schools in Fort Davis and Terlingua, Don Baumgardt of El Paso's GeoBetty.com, Fort Davis Chamber of Commerce, Stone Village Tourist Camp in Fort Davis, Big Bend Ranch State Park, Davis Mountains State Park, Big Bend Resorts and Adventures in Terlingua, and Brewster County Tourism Council, and of course, our own volunteers and members of the board of our regional Texas Mountain Trail non-profit organization.  Y'all are GREAT!

Architecture of Henry Trost and UTEP

If you're interested in architecture, you won't want to miss the program at UTEP on Saturday, January 18th, at 1pm.

Join Dr. Max Grossman for a richly illustrated 45-minute presentation followed by a half-hour tour of the four oldest buildings on the UTEP campus. This event will focus on the role of the iconic architect Henry C. Trost, the foundation and early development of Texas School of Mines and Metallurgy, and the introduction of the Bhutnese style to campus.

For more information on this event, see the full listing on our Texas Mountain Trail calendar, here.

Join Dr. Max Grossman for a richly illustrated 45-minute presentation followed by a half-hour tour of the four oldest buildings on the UTEP campus. This event will focus on the role of the iconic architect Henry C. Trost, the foundation and early development of Texas School of Mines and Metallurgy, and the introduction of the Bhutnese style to campus.

- See more at: http://texasmountaintrail.com/events/el-paso-texas-trost-society-tom-lea-institute-invitation#sthash.P8vG9V1p.dpuf

1935-6 Van Horn Basketball Team

1935-36 Van Horn Basketball Team, District Champs, Photograph, ca. 1935 - 1936; digital image, (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth14229/ : accessed January 07, 2014), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, http://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Clark Hotel Museum, Van Horn, Texas. 

 

One of our organization's first preservation projects was to work with Van Horn's Clark Hotel Museum and the Portal to Texas History to digitize the photography collection chronicling the history of Culberson County.

This gem was included in that collection:

Photograph of coaches and basketball team. Photograph of the Van Horn Basketball Team, 1935-36. District Champions. Front Row-Bob Hurt, Roy Johnson, D.L. Moore, James Mayfield; Second Row-Horace Oiver (Superintendent), Baylus Wagnon, Bart Knight, Dutch Walters, Ben Medley, Raymond Wheat (Assistant Coach), Back-Jimmy Terrell (coach)

Link to this photograph online at the Portal to Texas History.

National Parks Free Fee Days in 2014!

Mark your calendars for the Free Fee Days at our National Parks in 2014!
     
      January 20

• Martin Luther King Jr. Day
  
  February 15-17
  Presidents Day weekend
  
  April 19-20
  opening weekend of National Park Week
  
  August 25
  National Park Service Birthday
  
  September 27
  National Public Lands Day
  
  
  • November 11
    Veterans Day

Rio Grande at Santa Elena Canyon
Big Bend National Park

Fort Davis National Historic Site

McKittrick Canyon Trail in
Guadalupe Mountains National Park

Chamizal National Memorial in El Paso

Fee waiver includes: entrance fees, commercial tour fees, and transportation entrance fees. Other fees such as reservation, camping, tours, concession and fees collected by third parties are not included unless stated otherwise.

The Sounds of Big Bend

View from a rock shelter in
Big Bend Ranch State Park

One of the great joys of visiting our region isn't discussed much, because, frankly, it is hard to convey.  When you're here, if you let yourself stop a few minutes and concentrate, you can experience absolute  quiet.  What you see in our landscape are unspoiled vistas, but what you HEAR--because we are so remote--is what early man heard, what the Apache and Comanche heard, what Cabeza de Vaca heard, what the early settlers heard as they moved through our region.

We were reminded of this when we heard a podcast by "How Sound" about the sounds of Elizabethan England.  It is worth a listen in that it forces you to think about the sound of today's world, and the sounds we've lost from the past.  If there is a place in Texas to reclaim the sounds of the past, of the true frontier, it is in our region. 

Santa Elena Canyon
Big Bend National Park

We offer a private wilderness experience, trails to hike where you see no one for many minutes (and perhaps hours), so it is easier here....to stop and listen to the silence.  Maybe you'll hear your heart beat, maybe you'll hear a rock tumble as an animal scampers about, maybe you'll hear the wind swell and then wane.

This is why we often advise people to explore the region by bicycle:  you're out in the open, not protected by your car.  There's no metal box to divide you from the land. 

Metate left near rock shelter in
Big Bend Ranch State Park

And when you happen upon remnants of early cultures in Big Bend, take a few minutes to experience the sound of their world as they did. 

What were the sounds of grain being ground in the metate at the rock shelters? 

What were the sounds of rock art being created? 

Rock art in Big Bend Ranch State Park

What were the bird songs?

What was the sound of the Rio Grande, lapping against the rock canyons?

Take a river trip and experience it yourself.  And a hike.  Have a great time in the Big Bend of Texas.

13th Annual Terlingua Home Tour!

Looking for something truly unique to do on Sunday, January 26th?  Take in all the creativity and resourcefulness exhibited by the 13th Annual Terlingua Home Tour! 


If you attended last year, you'll get an update and see the progress on the home pictured here!  Thomas and Carmen Drinkard's earthbag home will again be on the tour this year.  They are pictured in front with their children Carla and Michael. This home was featured in the 2012 tour in its early construction stage. This is a wonderful opportunity for those who saw the home in its beginning stages to see the completed structure and will be interesting for all home tour guests to explore this alternative and affordable construction technique.

The tour will run twice during the afternoon, with the first tour from noon to 3 pm and the second from 3-6 pm. Both tours depart from and return to the porch in front of the Terlingua Trading Company. Transportation to and from the homes on the tour is generously provided by local outfitting companies. Each tour concludes with a light wine and hors d'oeuvres reception at Espresso y Poco Mas, which is directly across the parking lot from the Terlingua Trading Company. Tickets are $30 per person. Cash and checks only. Space is limited so reservations are required. Guests may opt to drive personal vehicles but are required to caravan with the outfitting companies. High clearance vehicles are suggested as the homes are located on rough roads.

Participants are asked to arrive at least 15 minutes before the scheduled departure and to bring their own water as none is available on the tour. It's also suggested to dress in layers or bring a jacket as our desert weather changes often and quickly. Some walking on rough terrain is required so practical shoes are recommended. As we will be visiting private homes, handicap access is not available.

For reservations or more information, call Big Bend Library at 432-371-2639 or in the evening 432-371-2399.

The tour is sponsored by Last MinuteLow Budget Productions, a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to supporting the performing arts in South Brewster County through community productions and educational opportunities.

The tour is listed on our Texas Mountain Trail events calendar...check there often for other fun things to do in Far West Texas!