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An all-too-short afternoon at Palo Duro Creek Ranch

November 2, 2019 by Jill Leave a Comment

The area around Canyon Texas (nearest major city is Amarillo) is at the top of my “gotta go back” list. I’ve traveled to very few places that I come away from thinking “Never again.” My most common response to any trip I’ve taken is “I’d go back here.” There are very few places that I actively plot to return to as soon as possible, but Canyon Texas – specifically Palo Duro Canyon State Park and Palo Duro Creek Ranch – is at that place for me. I have trouble naming my favorite trips because I love everything about travel and find something to enjoy about every trip I’ve taken but Palo Duro Creek Ranch is for sure the place I want to go back to. If you’re looking for info on Palo Duro Creek Ranch or Palo Duro Creek Ranch Jeep Tours, you have come to the right place!

Table of Contents

    •  
    • Palo Duro Creek Ranch Canyon TX – What is it?
    • Why go?
    • Palo Duro Ranch Jeep Tours – and other tour options at at Palo Duro Creek Ranch (AKA Elkins Ranch)
    • Is Palo Duro Creek Ranch a good activity for kids?
  • Not traveling to Texas? Check out my favorite Montana Itineraries:

 

Spring and summer are the most popular times to visit this area. Read more about visiting Palo Duro Canyon during the off season.

Palo Duro Creek Ranch Canyon TX – What is it?

Palo Duro Creek Ranch – you might also hear it referred to as Elkins Ranch – is a piece of privately owned land in Palo Duro Canyon, not to be confused with Palo Duro Canyon State Park, which is operated by Texas Parks and Wildlife. You can explore a lot of Palo Duro Canyon via the state park but the land that sits on Palo Duro Creek Ranch is much cooler to explore and offers a much more unique experience. Palo Duro Creek Ranch is a tourist attraction (I hate that phrase but you get the point) but it is also a working cattle ranch.

an afternoon at Palo Duro Canyon Ranch is a must do for anyone visiting the Canyon/Amarillio area

Palo Duro Canyon is the second largest canyon in the United States. I’ll let you guess what the first is. When I tell people outside of Texas about how awesome Palo Duro is, there’s at least a 50/50 chance they haven’t heard of it. Canyon is kind of a sleepy little college town and nearby Amarillo isn’t exactly the biggest city in Texas, so it’s not an area that is widely known, which I have mixed feelings about. Part of me wants to share the secret…which I guess is what I’m doing here…and part of me loves that this isn’t a giant tourist attraction like the Grand Canyon. 

Palo Duro Creek Ranch AKA Elkins Ranch is a must-do in Texas

Why go?

Palo Duro Creek Ranch offers several tour options that allow you to experience the rugged terrain and soak in the beauty of the scenery without running into as many humans as you do in Palo Duro State Park. You’ll have the opportunity to see wildlife that you might not get in Palo Duro Canyon State Park and, if you want to, you can have a really cool jeep experience, which is what we did. 

Looking for info on the National Parks in Texas? Check out THIS POST from Carful of Kids.

We went during the off season so we were the only tour group on the property at the time. It was a fantastic afternoon that had the “away from it all” vibe. If there were other tour groups on the property, maybe a little bit of that would be lost but I still want an opportunity to test that theory. See also it was cold when we went and I think this tour would be fun to experience when temperatures were just a little bit warmer.

Palo Duro Ranch Jeep Tours – and other tour options at at Palo Duro Creek Ranch (AKA Elkins Ranch)

I mention that Palo Duro Creek Ranch is also known as Elkins Ranch, which is the former name. When we visited, the sign at the entrance still said Elkins Ranch, which was a little confusing. Whatever you call it, there’s some great tour options here.

There are several options for Jeep tours and horse tours listed on the website. There’s also a mention in the “explore” section about Humvee tours and helicopter tours coming soon. There’s no description about Humvee tours but you can find the different options Palo Duro Ranch Jeep Tours here. 

We did Hidden Springs Canyon, which was the two hour tour. I really wanted to do the Spirit of Palo Duro Canyon which takes you all the way to the canyon floor but we were bumping up against another commitment and had to opt for the shorter tour length. This is seriously on my list of what I want to do in 2020 and we’re working to fit it in.

Is Palo Duro Creek Ranch a good activity for kids?

My kids really enjoyed themselves at Palo Duro Creek Ranch. The bouncy jeep ride was probably their favorite part but they enjoyed the wide open spaces and the views, too. There were several spots where we got out of the vehicle to check out scenery that could be very dangerous if your kids can’t follow directions to stay away from the rock’s edges where the drop offs are steep.

If you lay on your belly and shimmy to the edge of the rock you’re treated to incredible views. My husband reported seeing a lot of lost hats.

Obviously, if your kids can’t follow directions to stay well away from these steep drops, this might not be the activity for you. My kids are junior thrillseekers and were unhappy with my decision not to allow them to get this close to the views but I was confident in their ability to listen to me. 

Yep, that’s close enough to the edge. Now smile for the camera.

No guarantees on wildlife sightings, of course, but we did see some coyotes and some deer down in the canyon. Our guide was wonderful with our kids. 

Looking for somewhere to stay in Amarillo or Canyon Texas? Check out Booking.com.

Not traveling to Texas? Check out my favorite Montana Itineraries:

Two days in Butte – Top things to do in Butte Montana

Places to visit in Montana that aren’t Yellowstone or Glacier

 

One week Southeast Montana Itinerary


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All About Jill

I'm a digital content creator and essayist who copes with parenting and most other situations with humor and snark. Just so you know, if this weren't the internet, I'd be smiling awkwardly and answering simple questions like "How are you today" with gems like "I like pockets."

I really do love pockets, though.

I spent 26 years in the USAF, which went by really, really fast. I'm very proud of my service but I'm loving my second act even more. Writing gives me the opportunity to flex my creative muscles and that's what makes me happy. Welcome.

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rippedjeansandbifocals

Freelance Writer & Travel Expert
Producer, Listen to Your Mother SA
💜 Mom via birth & #adoption
🐈 Human to @remusthebengalcat
🇺🇸 USAF veteran
📍#texas

Jill Robbins
This little guy wasn’t a keeper - a fish has to This little guy wasn’t a keeper - a fish has to be at least 20 inches long to keep and this one was a couple of inches short. That said, the excitement of catching my first fish was BIG. 🎣 
.
I was invited down to South Padre Island this weekend for #NationalCookYourCatchDay and I’m not gonna lie: I was a little nervous. Things could go wrong. I could fall out of the boat, break something or get eaten by a shark. (I have a vivid imagination.)
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None of those things happened.
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Our boat caught enough keepers to feed us dinner and I wanna go fishing again.  I liked it a lot more than I expected to.
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I’m still going through pictures and videos and I’ll tell you all you want to know about planning your own fishing trip on the Texas Gulf Coast + where to eat and some other things to do. Every day can 
be #nationalcookyourcatchday 
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Thanks @visitsouthpadreisland for hosting me & Captain Eddie (AKA @fishingpadre ) for being such a patient teacher. 
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#sopadre #southpadreisland #southpadre #texascoast #texastodo #anglerlife #fishinggram #fishinglife #gonefishing
Happy Wednesday. 📷 taken at Wasserman Wranch n Happy Wednesday.

📷 taken at Wasserman Wranch near Alpine. Check my bio link for more information. 

#texastravel #westtexas #texastodo #welovetexas #texaskids #donkeysofinstagram #westtx #texastravel #onlyintexas #alpinetexas #alpinetx #igtexas #igtexasphoto #alamocreatives #heymama_love #texasblogger #satxbloggers #texasthingstodo #miniaturedonkey #miniaturedonkeysofinstagram
"Intelligence + Character. That is the goal of tru "Intelligence + Character. That is the goal of true education." Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

I saw a lot of posts about Martin Luther King yesterday when I was doing my scrolls through social media...on a day where I wasn't supposed to be ON social media, ahem. We hear and see a lot of Dr. King's words and quotes one day a year. So, instead of apologizing for posting this "a day late" I'll share that I'm challenging myself to remember some of these important words more than one day a year.

Our kids are watching us right now. I mean...they're always watching us but I think what they see in these times is more important than ever. Nuturing our kids' intelligence and character is more important than ever. My kids are 10 now - this picture is about four years old - and they are absorbing EVERYTHING we say, how we say it and even what we don't say. 

This mural is near the suspension bridge in downtown Waco. Waco is famous for all the Magnolia things but there's a lot there for families, too, and the park around the bridge is a great place to explore along the Brazos River. 

#martinlitherkingday #martinlutherkingquotes #wacotexas #wacoheartoftexas #wacohot #texastravel #texastodo #onlyintexas #texaskids #texasfamilies #alamocreatives #igtexasphoto 
#raisinggoodhumans #raisingboys
Here’s something you’ve probably never seen be Here’s something you’ve probably never seen before: my bottom teeth.
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I always hide my crooked bottom teeth in pictures and I’m super self-conscious when I talk. So I did something about it.
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I wore braces as a kid and my top teeth are straight but my bottom teeth are shifting and one tooth is traveling into the back of my mouth and I have some crowding. My orthodontist said it’s very unusual to put braces on just half your mouth but my bite is still aligned so they didn’t have to put them on my top teeth - my wallet is thankful.
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Questions I’ve already been asked:
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1️⃣ At your age? Yes, at my age. I still care about my smile. 
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3️⃣ How long do you have to wear them?
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6-9 months.
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3️⃣ Do they hurt? 
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My teeth are sore and my mouth is tender but not to the Tylenol level so I guess the answer is “Not too much.”
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Other questions? Advice?
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#braceface #adultbraces
Little things can really be big - do you agree? M Little things can really be big - do you agree?

My husband gets up with our kids twice a week and does their breakfast and morning routine and takes them to school so I can sleep in. I don't laze away the morning in bed - it usually amounts to about an extra hour of sleep for me and a little more peace and quiet as I start my day. 

This probably seems like a little thing but this is huge for me. The mental benefits of not having to set my alarm on a schoolday is truly my love language. I would rather have sleep than flowers or presents. 

On those morning where my husband takes my kids to school, I will inevitably find the kitchen not "just so." There will be spills on the table or something that didn't get put away. I resist the urge to be sarcastic or to ask "Um, is there a reason we have four boxes of cereal just sitting on the counter?" or point out that it would take less than 30 seconds to wipe a tabletop or put a box back on the shelf. I resist saying stuff like "I guess if I want it done a certain way, I have to do it myself." I don't even say that to myself. 

My husband isn't "doing me a favor" by taking care of our kids. When I talked about being stressed and tired during an argument last year, he offered to take some things off my plate and giving me two mornings where I don't have to set an alarm was one of his ideas. It's part of the give and take of marriage and even though it makes me clench a little when I see spilled milk or stuff that hasn't put away, I appreciate having a partner who shares the load with me. 

My marriage definitely is not perfect and I'm in no position to give relationship advice. But for us, this one little thing is a really big deal. 

And, as I've recently discovered, a cereal box can sit on the counter for several days and the world doesn't explode. Who knew.

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