I decided two Fridays ago (12/30) to take my chances and once again roam about Dinosaur Valley outside of Glen Rose, Texas. Last time I did that, 7 years ago, I got lost. Land of the Lost.
THIS TIME, I carefully mapped out a 5 to 6 mile loop, which entailed crossing the Paluxy River on the way out, and the way back. I only slightly considered how I might cross the river during my planning stage the night prior. Turned out, the river was quite full, and that crossing it even at the shallowest places would have meant getting wet at least knee deep (but probably more).So, a river crossing was out of the question, especially since the rangers had closed all trails north of the Paluxy River. I wasn’t much in the mood for another ranger encounter. So much for my planned out route.
I took a trail adjacent to the river instead, and filmed my Friday Hike video. The temperature was in the low forties (Fahrenheit), and that was absolutely wonderful. I love the cold weather. But there were no dinosaur tracks to be found, as the river covered them all. Often I needed to hike up the river’s banks to find passage. Then when I could, I would hike back down to the cold waters. For the most part, I was alone, except for a lone fisherman here and there, or a camper up on the banks. Occasionally, I would come up on a group of people in the easy to reach look-out spots. This park is a tourist attraction that attracts people from around the world. I would visit again and again. Next time, I think I might rent one of the kayaks that I saw along the river's bank for $25 a day.
Total miles: 4.38 miles, 509’ elevation gain