On Saturday we took a day trip to Ft. Davis about 26 miles from Alpine. On the way we stopped at the Chihuahuan Desert Nature Center & Botanical Gardens. 3 photos show area. We walked about 1/2 mile through the outdoor gardens. We were sadly disappointed when we went inside the cacti greenhouse as it was truly neglected even though many species were housed. Probably it would have been better in the late spring when some of the varieties would have been in bloom.
Ft. Davis is a quaint small town at 5,050 elevation (known as highest town in TX) with a population of 1,050. We spent about 3 hours going through the actual Fort which is a National Park now. It was established on 1854 to protect pioneers & travelers on the San Antonio-El Paso road from Apache raiders. Many of the original structures remain standing (some have completely crumbled) and some are in the process of being restored. There is a rather large visitors center and small gift shop also. Lots of history and the museum was very informational. We happened to be there when the Park Ranger was giving the Ranger Oath to 3 young boys that had just completed their Jr. Ranger program. The boys were so excited.
It was too late in the day to go to the McDonald Observatory so that will have to be another day trip.
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