Enchanted Rock – Spring 2014

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With our next big trip coming up and new gear to try out, we figured an overnight camp would be a great way to break it all in. We chose to go out to Enchanted Rock, TX. It’s about 1.5 hours away from us, has primitive camping, and a good deal of hiking trails. Plus, its namesake massive granite dome is a fun challenge to climb!

Day 1

When we got out to the park, the weather was absolutely perfect, hovering around 60°F (about 15.5°C). It’s a bit chilly when you first start, but by the time you get warmed up, it’s bliss. We had both been out to Enchanted Rock once before. Both of our individual trips had been short and neither of us had gotten to see much of the park. We were excited to take in the trails and the scenery. With our tent pitch booked, we started our first hike out to Moss Lake, where we’d set up camp for the night.

The trail we took (the name of which I can’t remember) was over some rough terrain, but nothing too serious. Mainly, the path was rocky. The views were lovely and Billy was enjoying climbing up whatever rocks he could. We packed Starkist Lunch-To-Go with extra crackers for an easy meal on the trail (make sure to pack a large ziplock bag to hold trash so you can pack it out). After enjoying the day, we found our campsite, picked a nice spot, and set up for the night.

A Night Under The Stars

With our spot picked and our tent up and fully ready for the night, we started on dinner. We have a small camp stove, basically a burner on top of a propane can, and a small mess kit. We had also made dinner packs for ourselves. There are tons of recipes online to make dinner kits out of freeze-dried foods and minute rice. They are light to pack, quick to prepare, and delicious to boot! We’d also packed some protein bars and other snacks to enjoy.

The sun was almost below the horizon when dinner was finished and packed away, so we went through our checklist before turning in for the night. Our food and smellables went into a bag and away from our camp in case any critters decided to come rummaging, and we hit up the toilet one more time. Lucky for me, Enchanted Rock has a composting toilet near each of the two primitive camps. If there’s a toilet nearby, we tend to camp closer to it rather than on the other end of the campsite. Inevitably, I’ll have to pee in the middle of the night and I’d rather a shorter walk in the cold than a longer one.

I’d love to say that our night was peaceful and lovely, but it wasn’t. Another group of campers nearby stayed up into the wee hours of the morning, loudly enjoying their weekend out with friends. I can’t blame them. It’s not like the site was packed as it was only our two groups out there. However, it did keep us up most of the night, which was a bummer.

Day 2

The great thing about camping with no set schedule is that you don’t have to set an alarm clock. I love the chance to wake up on my own as the sun breaks the horizon and nature comes alive. We were lucky to have that on our morning at Enchanted Rock. What was unlucky is that I woke up flat on the ground. My bargain-buy used sleeping pad was a dud! We got up and dressed, had a breakfast of oatmeal and other snacks, and then packed up camp.

Our second day was much the same as the first; enjoying the trails, having an easy lunch, and simply having a wonderful day. We walked near the dry creek bed, hunted for arrowheads (with no luck), and truly enjoyed ourselves.

At the end of our hike, we made a go of the massive granite dome that is Enchanted Rock. I don’t know if it’s like this all the time, but man was it windy at the top! The weather was starting to change by the time we headed up the rock, and the wind was something else by the time we got to the top.

With many of the trails hiked and the big rock conquered, we considered it a successful trip. Except for my sleeping pad, all of our gear was a hit and the trip to test it out was a blast. We hiked back to the car, took one more look at the beauty of Enchanted Rock, and headed home.
Cheers,
Lydia and Billy