Camping in Texas

**slcsteve** · 01-29-2009, 05:02 AM

Shot in Palo duro canyon (just south of Amarillo )

That would be called a snake pit.

**jlander** · 01-29-2009, 05:15 AM

Looks about right.

I grew up about 75 miles south of Palo Duro. Spent many summers camping in the canyon. Used the old cowboy trick of running a horsehair rope around your sleeping bag to keep the snakes out. Don't know if it's real, but I never woke up with an uninvited guest!

I know one guy who did. It wasn't inside the bag, but curled up against it. He laid still and 2 of us used sticks to agitate the little fella into wanting to go somewhere else.

BTW: They grill up pretty good.

**SmoovD** · 01-29-2009, 06:11 AM

Steve,

Very nice. Palo Duro looks to be a great state park. I so much wanted to do a Palo Duro camping trip. The 5 days I had planned to go the weather turned foul so I made a change of plans and went south to Seminole Canyon. It snowed there too.

**Austin** · 01-29-2009, 06:14 AM

I grew up in Lubbock and went to Palo Duro a few times in my youth. I can't say I ever ran into any critters.

**slcsteve** · 01-29-2009, 06:44 AM

I've been to Palo Duro several times over the past 35 years but I can't take credit for the images - they were sent to me. I spent close to 2 months in the Mojave in the mid 60's, courtesy of the U.S. Army. Sidewinders, BIG scorpions, centipedes. Same stuff - different desert (SS-DD).

**ssilcox** · 01-29-2009, 07:30 AM

Ditto, we have similar nasty critters in Utah. It's funny - in Utah where I live we dont have any scorpions. My wife grew up in Arizona, and they lived in the sticks. A scorpion crawling across the ceiling was as common as a spider.

Eewewe (shudder)

**Jim** · 01-29-2009, 08:42 AM

Wow, nightmarish photo.

**Handy** · 01-29-2009, 08:58 AM

Geez, like hell I would be camping there!

Give me a hotel room.

**slcsteve** · 01-29-2009, 09:01 AM

If you're into Gorgons here's another.......

If you've wondered about the Irish legend.......

**jlander** · 01-29-2009, 10:54 AM

Never saw that many at a time, but we almost always ran across a few. This was back in the 60's.

**Mr. Clean** · 01-29-2009, 11:45 AM

It was back in the early 70s when I visited. No camping, but did stand on stage at the amphitheatre. There wasn't an audience, just our group but there were some pretty awesome vistas. God love Texas!

If I were going to guess the locale of that picture, knowing it was from Texas, I would have guessed Sweetwater during one of their local roundups.

**CapeCodJay** · 01-29-2009, 03:48 PM

Wow you would have heard me scream like a girl if I walked up to something like that!

**ambrose** · 01-29-2009, 04:36 PM

Yea those rattlers are common here in South TX.

I have to watch out when I fish out in Holly Beach. Ive seen them swimming by me while I wade fish. Also in the brush while you walk around Im used to them, they mind their business. Im more afraid of Cotton mouths aka water moccasins they are freaking aggressive and venomous and they will literally come after you even in water.

Im a bit more afraid of Stingrays out here in the gulf of mexico those are some big scary suckers and Ive already been "stung" or stabbed by one in my left wrist and believe me it was the worst pain of my life.