Palo Duro Canyon, Texas?

Question

We're planning to visit Palo Duro Canyon, Texas. Is it fun there? We've been told there are cabins/hotels at the edges of the cliffs...do they serve breakfast there? Thanks so much for your help!

Answer 1

Palo Duro Canyon is a canyon system of the Caprock Escarpment in the Panhandle of Texas (USA). As the second largest canyon in the United States, it is roughly 120 miles long and has an average width of 6 miles, but reaches a width of 20 miles at places. Its maximum depth is 800 feet. Palo Duro Canyon has been called "The Grand Canyon of Texas," both for its size and for the dramatic geological features, including the multicolored layers of rock and steep mesa walls which are similar to those in the Grand Canyon.

FACILITIES AND FEES

Daily Entrance

The daily entrance fee to Palo Duro Canyon State Park is $ 4.00 per person.
Children 12 and under are admitted free.

School Groups (Kindergarten thru College), participating in an educational program (teacher or park provided) are admitted at no charge. Please contact the park at [phone] ex. 0 to make arrangements prior to arrival.

Any facility or overnight fees are in addition to the daily entrance fee.
There is no additional fee for the park's Day-Use facilities and no reservation is required for those areas.

Persons turning age 65 or older prior to September 1, 1995 may get a Parkland Passport permit at no charge. This permit admits the bearer only into any Texas State Park. Persons turning age 65 or older after September 1, 1995 may enter the park for $ 2.00. If applicable to you or someone else in your party, please advise the fee collector prior to entrance.

Overnight Facilities


Palo Duro Canyon State Park has five classifications of overnight sites:
Back-Packing Sites
Back-pack camping is permitted only in the area south of the turn-around. You must hike into the area for at least 30 minutes. Water is only available at the trailhead. Fires are not permitted, although stoves with containerized fuel are permitted. You must carry out all that you carry in. Pets are permitted but must be kept on leash at all times.
FEE: $ 12.00 per 4 persons.

Equestrian Camping Sites
You may camp with your horses in our Equestrian Camping Area. Proof must be provided of Coggins Test within the past 12 months. There is a corral just south of the turn-around with established sites near it with a table, fire-ring, and water. You must ride in designated areas only. (A total of 8 horses/people constitute a site.) Restrooms/showers are available within approximately 1/3 of a mile. Horses may not be ridden to the restrooms/showers.
FEE: $ 12.00 per site.

Developed Primitive Areas
There are two camping areas that have been designated "primitive". (Cactus and Fortress Cliff) The areas have designated camping sites. Each has a table, a shade shelter, fire-ring and water available in the area. They have no restroom or shower facilities. You may drive (1/2 to 2 miles) to an adjacent camp loop for restroom/shower facilities. A maximum of 8 people are permitted in each site.
FEE: $ 12.00 per site.

Electrical Sites
(Hackberry, Mesquite, and Sagebrush camp loops.) Each site has a table (some with shade shelters), firering, paved parking area, water, and electricity. There is a restroom with showers in the camping loop. A maximum of 8 people are permitted in each site. There is a maximum of THREE vehicular units permitted per site. (A vehicular unit is one car, one trailer, one motor home, etc.)
FEE: $20.00 per site includes up to 2 vehicular units. Any 3rd vehicular unit is billed at the additional rate of $4.00 per day.


Cabins
There are two CCC vintage cabins perched on the rim of the canyon. Though rustic, these cabins have been renovated and have modern heating and cooling systems. Each cabin consists of two rooms plus restroom and shower. One room has a futon that turns into two twin size beds. The other room has one full size bed. There are no kitchen facilities, but there is a table and charcoal grill located just outside. Cooking is not permitted inside the cabins. Bed linens and towels are provided. A maximum of 4 persons are permitted per cabin. Pets are not allowed.
Check in time is 2:00 P.M. Check-out time is 12:00 P.M.
The cabins are strictly Non-Smoking
FEE: $ 100.00 per night plus tax and entrance fees.





A third, slightly larger cabin, the SORENSON has recently been opened. It is similar to the cabins shown here and has a large deck from which a panoramic view of the Canyon can be viewed.
FEE: $ 115.00 per night plus tax and entrance fees.


In 1933, the C.C.C. built 4 very small cabins near the turn-around area of the park. Referred to as "Cow Camp Cabins", these have been renovated and are available for rent. Three are one-room, and one has a second small "alcove" room off to the side. Each cabin has two twin cots beds, a small table with two chairs, a small refrigerator, and a microwave. A picnic table and grill are available on the outside. Bed linens and towels are not provided. FEE: $ 55.00 per night plus tax and entrance fees.

There are photos on the site below, looks really cool to me!

Answer 2

There are three rustic stone cabins built by the CCC on the rim and four down below. The ones on top have restrooms and supply linens, where as down on the canyon floor they do not. You will have to bring your own food. They have microwaves and a small refrigerator, but actual cooking is done outside over a grill that is supplied.

You will find the view from the top, breathtaking. Palo Duro Canyon is a beautiful work of nature and should be enjoyed as such. It's not a resort...when you go there, you are communing with nature. If you enjoy that sort of thing, then you too will love the canyon. There are a number of trails and a map is supplied.

Palo Duro Canyon is one of my favorite places. I go there just to decompress from the world.

Lisa

Answer 3

http://www.allacrosstexas.com/palo_duro_canyon.htm

Great place. I was there in 2001. The guy that answered before me gave some great info. Check out the musical 'Texas' if it's still around. It's staged in the canyon around all the rocks. When we were watching the musical, a thunderstorm was looming in the distance and the lightning and black clouds really added to the ambience of the performance and the natural surroundings...so awesome! Make sure you pack tons of insect repellent. We tried to hike to Lighthouse Rock (a main attraction) and we had to turn back. A fellow hiker recommended Avon's Skin-so-Soft. It works way better than Off!, which is what we took with us (it should have been called 'On').

Also, you can opt for a Cowboy Breakfast that is cooked outdoors at dawn...We didn't get to do this, but we are going to next time we go back.

One more recommendation - the night before we camped out at PDC we stayed in the town of Canyon at a B&B called the Hudspeth House. http://www.hudspethinn.com/ We were pleased with the accommodations. There was also an old-fashioned pharmacy down the street that served awesome chocolate peanut butter milkshakes (sorry, I can't remember the name of the place).

Hope this wasn't too much information...if you have any more questions, I'd be happy to help answer them for you.

Don't forget to eat at the Big Texan in Amarillo if you're passing through. Home of the 72 oz. steak! Pretty good food there. HAVE FUN!!!! http://www.bigtexan.com/