Santa Elena Canyon

Touring the Big Bend Park is mind blowing, but there is one part of it that is truly unique. That is Santa Elena Canyon. This canyon is a narrow rift between two towering cliffs and is eight miles long. It is 1300 feet deep and still getting deeper. The first group to go through this canyon in a boat was a special expedition in 1875. Several people have died since then while attempting to navigate this narrow canyon. We went down and looked at the entrance, but decided against trying to navigate it. The Rio Grande runs thru this canyon from west to east. This does not keep the river from flowing to the Atlantic. This canyon is thousands of years old.

Back Home

This is Monday night and we just got back from Big Bend. Bob and Cindy Peterman, O.L. Peterman from Maryland and myself. We went on a Star trek at the McDonald Observatory in Fort Davis and then went into the Big Bend Park. The chili cookoff in Terlingua was over. I will report on the Observatory and then on the Big Bend. Stay tuned.

Fort Davis

We are off to Fort Davis. The main objective is to visit the McDonald Observatory. They now have four telescopes you can look through. The night tour will accomodate about 12 people at a time. Jupiter still has one volcano that is erupting. You will also be able to see a landscape of Mars and a closeup of our moon. After that we will tour the Big Bend Park, stopping en route to sample some of the chili at the cookoff in Terlingua.

Across the Trinity River

Another time when I was horseback I went on a fox hunt. We were hard pressed to keep up with the dogs who were hot in pursuit of a fox. Then we came to the Trinity River. The dogs ran up and down the bank, baying. It was obvious the fox had swam across the river. So I plunged in and swam my horse across the Trinity, but first I took off my boots and hung them around my neck. The dogs followed. But the fox had gained enough time to reach his nest. The dogs circled around an opening in the forest but it was too small for them to enter. The fox escaped to run another day.

Madisonville

During my horseback tour of Southeast Texas I went to the Sidewalk Cattlemen's annual meeting at Madisonville. To provoke the cattlemen I rode with an English saddle and wore knee britches, a derby, and a jersey. Sure enough the cattlemen threw me in a horse trough. After that we all got a plate of barbecue and ate.

Downtown Parade

We rolled into Memorial Park in Houston and spent the night. Early the next morning the Salt Grass Trail riders began to saddle up and get ready for the big downtown parade. I was attached to the Port City wagon which included Vernon Frost Jr. and John Mecom Jr. As we moved through the middle of Houston I was right behind the chuck wagon on the Port City covered wagon. I looked up and saw a chilling sight. A young woman on the sixth floor of one of the downtown office building was getting ready to throw a large wreath right on top of me. I got a firm grip on my horse's reins and moved close to the wagon. The wreath landed right on top of us and my horse bolted. I looked to the right and there were children on the sidewalk enjoying the parade. I looked to the left and there was a mass of people on the other sidewalk. I did not want to trample anyone. And so, I gripped my reins firmly and headed my horse straight for the chuck wagon. The impact knocked my mount to his knees and I stepped off and grabbed his head. John Mecom jumped out of the wagon with a rope in his hand. We tied the rope around the horse's head and jumped in the wagon. At first we had to drag him, but then he began to trot along behind. As we moved down the street the chuck wagon door broke open and pots and pans began to fall into the street. Babe, the Port City cook, ran along behind the wagon, picking up pots and pan and cursing. At the end of the parade we went down a quiet thoroughfare and made it to the Port City Stockyards, about six miles away. My horse continued to trot along behind. The crisis was over.

John Moore's column

While I was working for the Houston Post I wrote a territorial column. I visited the towns and cities in 50 counties of Southeast Texas. It was during this time that I helped create the Salt Grass Trail. Reese Lockett of Brenham was chosen to be the boss of this trail, which originated in Brenham and arrived in Houston to open the annual Fat Stock and Livestock Show. I rode horseback on this trail ride for six years. We started out with a handful of riders and one wagon, this was the LH7 covered wagon furnished by E. H. Marks of Barker. Within three years we grew to more than 2,000 riders and 65 wagons and we jammed some of the highways. At that point we had to post some rules, such as only so many riders to a wagon. After it was organized it was not as much fun, but it had to be controlled.