Balmorhea Pool: A West Texas Oasis

[Big Dad]

http://www.wideopencountry.com/balmorhea-pool-west-texas-oasis-threatened-black-gold/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Partner&utm_term=TxHC&utm_campaign=TxHC

[Scott Mc]

Hard to believe this is by Fort Stockton, their isn't shiet out there lol.

[GhostTX]

We went by there just last week. Didn't stay to swim but it's pretty cool. The middle of that deep area goes down to 25'. There's a high dive board to the left on that shot and the depth there is 20'. There's small fish in there, 3 of which are unique to the pool, catfish and turtles. Water is crystal clear and you can see to the bottom, which is deceiving since it doesn't look as deep as it actually is. The thing is a state park, and there's cabins there to stay in. I'd definitely like to revisit it and actually stay the day there. The place was created a part of FDR's New Deal jobs program (like Hoover dam). Prior to that, the spring made that area a swamp-like wetlands in the middle of west Texas.

http://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/balmorhea

People go there for scuba certification, too.

[JC316]

Been diving out there back in 2012. The water is freaking cold, but the fish are amazing. I made a thread about it on here.

http://www.dfwmustangs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=32893

[GhostTX]

Been diving out there back in 2012. The water is freaking cold, but the fish are amazing. I made a thread about it on here.

http://www.dfwmustangs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=32893

Nice. I forgot about that thread. We were down that way for a vacation. As that thread mentioned, we went to the McDonald Observatory. Tuesday nights, they have Star Parties and you get to look through about 8 telescopes. Very cool! I saw Saturn and it's rings. Incredible. The Fort Davis area (Davis Mountains) are beautiful. I wouldn't have thought Texas had that, especially west Texas. We wanted to go see the Marfa lights, but didn't have the time.

[GrayStangGT]

That is one cold ass pool, but a cool place to visit. Fort Davis is just down the road also and has the McDonald Observatory. Go even further south and you get into Big Bend, Terlingua, Lajitas etc.

[Gear_Jammer]

I've lived in Texas my whole life and even went to school at TX TECH in west Texas, but never heard of that place. It sound really cool. I've been thinking about taking the family on a National Lampoons Vacation-like drive across Texas (including staying in cheap cheesy hotel/motels) on Spring Break 2017 and that would be a cool spot to hit.

[GrayStangGT]

Be sure to hit up the original Reata Restaurant in Alpine if you go out that way, and Hotel Limpia in Ft. Davis is a cool place to stay.

[GhostTX]

Be sure to hit up the original Reata Restaurant in Alpine if you go out that way, and Hotel Limpia in Ft. Davis is a cool place to stay.

We checked out the Hotel Limpia. It's...quaint...for sure. My wife found these vacation houses in Fort Davis, which we enjoyed a lot more than those tiny hotel rooms:

http://www.athousandmilesfromnowhere.com/

[ram57ta]

My dad and I went there on a summer camping/adventure trip when I was 14 back in 1986. We camped at Balmorhea one night and I went swimming....holy crap that water was cold. On the way there we stopped in Saragosa for a snack and some gas. Pretty much everything in Saragosa was erased in the tornado a few years later. We also visited Fort Davis and stayed at the big hotel. We had reservations to look out of the big telescope at Mcdonald Observatory but it was too humid and they cancelled on us and a bunch of other people so we had to make due with a smaller one they had. We drove thru Terlingua, camped one night in Big Bend (and floated across the river into Boquillas and had lunch). We also visited Carlsbad Caverns on this trip as well as Cloudcroft. We got to see the Marfa lights and several other things in New Mexico and Texas. It was a fun 2 week trip even though it rained almost every day.

[GrayStangGT]

We checked out the Hotel Limpia. It's...quaint...for sure. My wife found these vacation houses in Fort Davis, which we enjoyed a lot more than those tiny hotel rooms:
http://www.athousandmilesfromnowhere.com/

Last time I stayed there I stayed in what they called the carriage house, but I think it might have burned down in the wild fires they had there a few years ago.

[Gasser64]

Seems like a nice vacation spot. Whats to see out in the high desert area? Any cool old abandoned towns to visit?

[Cmarsh]

Great rock and fossil hunting in that area too. We were just out there this Summer.