Travelling back in time at Texas ghost town

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/12/2019 (2160 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Located only a few kilometres from Big Bend National Park, Terlingua, Texas, is, or at least was, a ghost town. It still bills itself as that — even though many of the old buildings have become shops and restaurants. What they sell and serve may be all about today, but the town reeks of history.

The first white people to settle in the area in the mid-1880s followed the discovery of cinnabar, which is used to make mercury. It was mostly nearby Mexicans who went into the mines to work, but the population of Terlingua reached about 1,000 after the turn of the century, growing only slightly more as the demand for its quicksilver increased during the First World War.

As the demand later declined, so did the community — Terlingua became a genuine ghost town when the last remaining mine closed in 1942.

The cemetery, now a National Historic Site, speaks of gunfights, mine accidents and the short lifespans of those who lived there. While the cemetery is still being used, in its original section there are no headstones to honour those who passed. Simple wooden crosses on the hills of dirt that cover them are the only reminders of their existence.

Around 1965, tourists started coming back to Terlingua to capture some of the area’s history. In 1967, someone had the idea that it should become the chili capital of the world.

It is now the headquarters for CASI, the Chili Appreciation Society International. We were there as hundreds of people and their recreational vehicles started to arrive for the annual Chili Championship Cook-offs, held the first Saturday in November every year. CASI has become an international organization, with chapters around the world including China, the Virgin Islands and Canada.

While most Manitobans may recognize the dish as chili con carne, we found out many of the prize recipes have no beans in them at all.

In Terlingua’s heyday, the Starlight Theatre showed the most up-to-date movies of the day. Today it is the town’s best restaurant and saloon, where fun is served with the food and the entertainment is lively, featuring music and song from some of the best regional entertainers.

However, the real local entertainment is available for free on the porch in front of the Starlight Theatre.

We were there on a Sunday evening as stringed instruments began emerging from their cases, their owners taking turns doing renditions of old and new country music — truthfully, most of it was old, but the musicians and singers were quite good.

Terlingua is going through a building boom of sorts. We were told most of the new housing is not for people moving in, but rather, with the rising popularity of the area, the new accommodations are being constructed to become Airbnbs and other short-term rentals.

The property where we stayed was a few kilometres away in Lajitas, at the Lajitas Golf Resort and Spa.

This 110-square-kilometre property is situated along the Rio Grande, which separates the U.S. from Mexico, and is right in the middle of Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park. It offers just about everything a visiting tourist would want.

There is an RV park, grocery and liquor stores, plus a golf course that was rated this year by Golfweek magazine as the second-best public golf course in Texas, 80th in the country.

Members of our group chose to take advantage of some of the other on-site activity options.

In addition to the five-stand skeet shooting range, they had fun trying out the cowboy and combat-action shooting experiences.

Others went for more heart-pounding thrills on the nine zip lines available on the property.

A few travelled the mountain trails on horseback. The Lajitas resort has its own equestrian stables where guests can bring their horses, or enjoy a sunset ride on one of the steeds housed there.

One of the more enjoyable activities we tried was a raft ride along the Rio Grande. In the shadows of the huge mountains that enclosed us, we sailed through a few small rapids and marvelled at the scenery.

We pulled our rafts ashore at one point for a snack on a flat plain along the river, which our guides told us was on the Mexican side. Since there seemed to be no border entry options in this desolate area, we enjoyed our break and continued downriver.

While it is easy to drive to a photography point to capture some of the spectacular vistas that unfold every few kilometres, more in-shape hikers could have spent days exploring the hidden mountain discoveries, had time not been a factor.

I chose to go up and down the hills right on the property, riding a golf cart while playing the Black Jack’s Crossing golf course. Designed by PGA pro Lanny Wadkins, this layout is as much art as it is sport.

With natural streams running through it, the Rio Grande nearby and the mountains of Big Bend National Park as a backdrop, anyone who enjoys the game of golf will love this track.

Even as each hole changed in elevation and I found myself either driving the ball down steep embankments or working my way back up them, the reasonably wide fairways and readable greens make it a completely enjoyable experience.

The Barton Warnock Visitor Centre in Big Bend Ranch State Park, which is adjacent to Big Bend National Park, is only about three kilometres from the Lajitas Resort. Its displays and movies highlight the history of the northern Chihuahuan Desert, one of the largest and hottest deserts in North America. Through interactive presentations, it portrays the environment and evolution of one of the continent’s most unique and varied regions.

pradinukr@shaw.ca