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Get away for the Fourth
Comments 0 | Recommend 0Here's 10 day trips for Odessans this holiday weekend
So you've got a three-day weekend and an itching to get out of town - well, we've got 10 spots for you to stretch your legs and still enjoy July Fourth festivities.
Surrounding communities provide holiday celebration in conjunction with these favorite places to visit - as long as you can afford the gas.
Seated at the foothills of the Davis Mountains, Balmorhea State Park is located just four miles from Balmorhea and offers a good time for swimming, picnicking and camping.
The Park's main attraction is the 77,053-square-foot pool fed daily by 22 million to 28 million gallons of water from the San Solomon Springs.
Located on Highway 17 headed south out of Pecos, the park is about 120 miles from Odessa.
>> Call 432-375-2370.
If the "city life" is feeling a bit enclosed, more than 800,000 acres at the Big Bend National Park will open things up with a variance of environmental terrain.
With different elevations and temperatures, the park is an ideal spot for day hiking, wildlife watching, camping and eating out.
Located due south of Alpine and Marathon, Highway 18 out of Monahans hooks into Highway 385 at Fort Stockton for the 200-mile trip south.
>> Call 432-477-2251.
Famous for its Big Room and bat flights, the Carlsbad Caverns has long been a favorite destination for day-tripping Odessans.
The park offers a wide array of tours in its 113 caves. Part of the 8.2-acre Big Room in the main cavern is accessible to wheelchairs while some of the special tours in smaller caverns require donning spelunking equipment and crawling on hands and knees.
The park is 174 miles from Odessa and is tucked into the corner of southeast New Mexico.
>> Call 505-785-2232 for general information or 505-785-3012 for bat flight information. For special tours, call 877-444-6777.
The beauty of the Davis Mountains State Park isn't your typical Texas terrain, but that's exactly what draws visitors to the mountainous region.
With shopping and dining in town, Fort Davis makes Texans proud with plenty of hiking trails, sightseeing, camping, scenic drives and the Fort Davis National Historic Site.
Located on Highway 17 driving south out of Pecos, Fort Davis is about 150 miles from Odessa.
>> Call 432-426-3337 or visit www.fortdavis.com or www.nps.gov/foda.
Just across the state line, Hobbs holds interest for many in large part due to its slot machines and video poker at Zia Park's Black Gold Casino. Of course, the place also features horse racing in the fall, as well as year-round wagering on horse racing telecasts.
If gaming gets your blood racing, this may just be your ticket.
What you may not know about Hobbs is that it's a favorite place for hang gliders and sailplanes. New Mexico Junior College also boasts the Western Heritage Museum & Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame.
>> For information, visit the New Mexico Tourism Department's website at www.newmexico.org and search for Hobbs.
Surrounded by a barren land, the Imperial Reservoir provides relief from the heat with 1,530 acres of water recreation.
Located four miles south of Grandfalls off Highway 18 between Monahans and Fort Stockton, the reservoir is a big splash for fishing, swimming, boating and other water sports.
>> For information, visit the website www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/II/roi3.html.
Two small West Texas towns offer a chance to see some big-city attractions. Alpine is about 150 miles southwest from Odessa, and Marfa is about 170 miles southwest.
Marfa offers the world-renowned Chinati Foundation that offers Modernism art exhibits. The facility was once home to a military base. The foundation has tours daily. Those wanting to stay overnight might check out the historic El Paisano Hotel that was built in 1930.
Alpine is home to some great music with Railroad Blues. The local watering hole brings in musicians from across the country. For history lovers, there is historic downtown Alpine and the Museum of Big Bend.
>> For information, visit www.marfatx.com or www.alpinetexas.com.
Nestled in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park, McKittrick Canyon offers a break from the West Texas desert. There's plenty of flora and fauna to see along its hiking trails.
Guadalupe Mountains National Park is located in far West Texas on Highway 62/180, about a four-hour drive from Odessa. The canyon is open for day-use only from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. MDT through October.
>> For information, call 915-828-3251 or visit www.nps.gov/archive/gumo/gumo/mckittrick.htm.
Sand dunes rise off of Interstate 20 and beckon activities from sand surfing to picnicking and camping at the Monahans Sandhills State Park.
A great spot for desert photos, the 4,000 acres of dunes include a modern museum and interpretive center.
>> For information, call 432-943-2092.
From drag boat races to the Concho River Walk, San Angelo offers visitors a wide range of things to see and do.
While the San Angelo State Park provides a taste of the outdoors, the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts and Education Center is geared toward the artistic mind. There are also three lakes in the area for water-based recreation.
The city's historic hallmark is Fort Concho, a former home to the buffalo soldiers of the Old West. With excellent reconstruction projects, the fort gives visitors a realistic view of life in the last half of the 19th century.
>> Call the visitor's bureau at 325-655-4136 or see the fort's website at www.fortconcho.com.
HAVE A LITTLE MORE TIME?
Don't forget to check out these popular hot spots for summer excitement in Texas:
>> The Alamo: www.thealamo.org
>> Ameriquest Field: http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/tex/ballpark/index.jsp
>> Battleship Texas: www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/findadest/parks/battleship_texas/
>> Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum: www.thestoryoftexas.com
>> Cabela's (Buda and Fort Worth): www.cabelas.com
>> Fiesta Texas: www.sixflags.com/fiestaTexas/index.aspx
>> Fort Worth Stockyards: www.fortworthstockyards.org
>> Fort Worth Zoo: www.fortworthzoo.com
>> Fredericksburg: www.fbgtx.org
>> George Bush Presidential Library: http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/
>> Fossil Rim Wildlife Center: www.fossilrim.com
>> Houston Museum of Natural Science: www.hmns.org
>> Houston Space Center: www.spacecenter.org
>> LBJ Presidential Library: www.lbjlib.utexas.edu
>> Minute Maid Park: http://houston.astros.mlb.com/hou/ballpark/index.jsp
>> Moody Gardens: www.moodygardens.com
>> Padre Island National Seashore: www.nps.gov/pais
>> Palo Duro Canyon: www.palodurocanyon.com
>> Paseo Del Rio (River Walk): www.thesanantonioriverwalk.com
>> Prude Ranch: www.prude-ranch.com
>> San Antonio Zoo: www.sazoo-aq.org
>> San Marcos Outlet Malls: www.primeoutlets.com/cntrdefault.asp?cntrid=1042
>> Schlitterbahn (Galveston, New Braunfels and South Padre Island): www.schlitterbahn.com
>> Sea World of Texas: http://4adventure.com/SWT/default.aspx
>> Six Flags over Texas: www.sixflags.com/overTexas/index.aspx
>> South Padre Island: www.sopadre.com
>> State Capitol: www.tspb.state.tx.us/spb/capitol/texcap.htm
>> Texas State Aquarium: www.texasstateaquarium.org
>> Texas State Fair: www.bigtex.com
>> Texas Motor Speedway: www.texasmotorspeedway.com
>> Texas Stadium: www.dallascowboys.com/stadium_fanInfo.cfm
>> USS Lexington: www.usslexington.com
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