We discovered that as we began our westward movement toward Nevada County, California and home that our relative speed increased, not that we have ever traveled very fast in any given day. We didn’t really spend any time researching new and interesting things or places to explore; we just planned for our next campsite down the road. We also increased our daily miles traveled from as few as say 19 to as many as 150 to 200 without being very aware of it. This was totally different for us. Texas is like 1,000 miles wide, one third the width of the US, and we were compelled to get across it. Consequently, we didn’t photograph very many things though we admit that anything of natural beauty is well worth recording. Cokie was having fun experimenting with a new camera and lens. At Cedar Ridge CG there were other travelers who took a similarly laid back approach.
Hords Creek Lake afforded a shot or two of the local wildlife such as armadillo and deer plus some of the prettiest sunsets we had seen in a while. Unfortunately, the weather remained very cold and we often woke up to “Pod-sicles.”
Of course, as soon as I wrote the above we chanced upon three fun and interesting local sites in the mid (waist? waste?) lands of Texas. Along Highway 20, a little south and west of Odessa, we found the Monahans Sandhills State Park, the Odessa Meteor Crater and the Million Barrel Museum. Yahoo!
Have we got your attention or what? The glistening dunes of sand at Monahans State Park are soft, serene and reminiscent of waves on the ocean, made of fine quartz ground and blown from the eastern escarpment of the Guadalupe Mountains of New Mexico. These 3,840 acres of powdery sand up to 70 feet tall are a paradise for sand-surfers who utilize discs or boards or whatever is handy to surf the faces of the dunes. It was the off season so we really didn’t get to see much surfing activity but the quiet of the place was welcome for a couple of days.
We used the State Park as our base camp as we set out to explore the presumed wonders of the Odessa Meteor Crater Museum and Site. We were not expecting very much in the way of a crater as we had been forewarned by the volunteer in the Dunagan Visitor Center at the State Park that the impact site had filled in over the years. She was so right! The museum was quite interesting with displays of meteor material from all over the world and information about Odessa Crater itself. It and four smaller craters were formed when a great shower of meteorites collided with earth approximately 50,000 years ago. The largest of the nickel-iron fragments created a funnel-shaped depression about 550 feet in diameter and 100 feet deep. More than 100,000 cubic yards of crushed rock was ejected by the energy released by the impacting mass. The smaller craters near this main crater were from 15 to 70 feet in diameter and 7 to 15 feet in depth. Over the ages these craters have accumulated sediments deposited by wind and water to the point that the main crater is now only about 15 feet deep and somewhat difficult to discern from the surrounding terrain. It is the second largest meteorite crater recognized in the US. The largest is the Arizona Crater near Sedona at 4,000 feet across and 500 feet deep. We will have to add that one to our next ‘must see’ list.
The earliest recorded discovery of the crater was made in 1892 by a local rancher but more extensive excavations and scientific studies were conducted by the University of Texas in 1939 through 1941. A 165 foot deep shaft was dug in the center of the crater in an effort to try and find the core of the meteorite. After finding nothing but bedrock, it was determined that the impact mass, estimated at 350 tons, was traveling at such a great velocity it exploded and vaporized upon impact; thus this crater is known as an ‘explosion crater’. The smaller craters, from which meteoritic material was recovered, were created by much smaller masses of material traveling at below explosion velocities so that they are known as ‘impact craters’. The largest fragment of the Odessa Meteor ever recovered weighs about 300 pounds and is an iron based meteor. Only about 6% of all striking meteors are metallic where as 93% are stony masses and resemble stones on earth. The remaining 1% are rare and beautiful stony-iron meteorites.
Our next discovery was the Million Barrel Museum. Whoa! Howdy! In the 1920’s a subsidiary of Shell Oil Company set about digging a mammoth earthen pit, 522 feet by 426 feet designed to hold 1,084,000 barrels of oil at a construction cost of $250,000. Dug by men and mules, the 45 degree angled sides were cemented over and a huge roof was constructed over the entire dish. By the1930’s the tank was abandoned because it leaked, the stored oil was highly taxed and the Great Depression had struck. In 1935 the super structure of the roof and its many lightning rods was torn down leaving the site to its fate. In the 1940’s it became a parade site for the Sheriff’s posse, a square dance pavilion in1950 and then fishing and boating venue in 1956 with a new boat ramp. The Tank was no better at holding water than it had been at holding oil so “Melody Park” opened and closed on October 5, 1958. Nowadays the local high school seniors are encouraged to memorialize their graduation with graffiti and artwork around the Tank.
Thus it sat for decades until the local Historical Society made it the center of the Million Barrel Museum. The site boasts many buildings and displays of local lore and history, as well as hosting a variety of events. Part of the fun we had was being toured by a very knowledgeable and enthusiastic docent, Julie Salazar, through all of the venues including rail cars, the first jail, a local post office display and a restored Victorian home. We spent hours listening to her stories and photographing the artifacts. Throughout our three and one-half year long journey, we have most enjoyed the small, out-of-the-ordinary, local spots we have found. The experience has always been enriched by those sweet encounters with the enthusiastic person who loves their town or neighborhood and willingly shares it with us.
We left this little oasis in the ‘outback’ of Texas and drove straight to Brantley Lake State Park outside of Carlsbad, NM. We’ll catch you up with us and our wintering in New Mexico in our next blog.
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