I've got some extra free time this weekend and I was thinking about driving up and doing a little scouting for dark skies for Milky Way season. I know it's not a solid piece of ground but a patchwork of public/private land but is the public stuff A) marked and B) accessible from the roads? The only stuff I can find is about the picnic day use area north of Dalhart. I was hoping there'd be a few guys in here with a little more first hand knowledge. I'd also love to photograph some pronghorn if I can find some.

Just driven through it once or twice. There is definitely a whole lot of nothing up there. I believe the "picnic areas" you mentioned do allow overnight camping, so if you are capable of boon-docking it, it certainly seems like a great area for dark skies.

Some of that area was a gunnery range for the Dalhart AAF in WWII. An agronomist doing some work up there decades ago, showed me a .50 spent casing he found.

I really enjoy the area to the northwest of there. You might extend your trip that direction i fyou get bored. Capulin, Johnson Mesa, the Dry Cimarron, The old Eklund hotel in Clayton, the dinosaur trackway at Clayton Lake, lots of Santa Fe Trail swales off the Cimarron cutoff. McNees crossing is easily accessible.

Let me know if you want more info on any of that.

Here's a pdf from Texas P&W for their pronghorn hunt. It includes a parcel map.

PDF file

I actually considered doing the Clayton-Folsom-capulin loop first but I didn't know how well 456 is maintained by NMDOT given that it's not a paved highway.

Don't really know what to tell you. It's been a pretty dry winter, so it could be in good shape.

If you've never done Capulin, go there. But one of my favorite NM drives is over Johnson Mesa. Cut off at Des Moines, go to Folsom, then take 72 over the top to Raton. However, I don't know if it's open yet. They don't plow it in the winter.

It's worth it to take 456 north from Folsom toward Branson CO. Where it goes through the Dry Cimarron is spectacular. And then you can take 456 east, as long as the pavement holds out. It's a good road, and the dirt part is doable in a car...assuming the state has not let it go to pot over the winter.

McNees crossing is just a little north of Clayton. Some pretty obvios Santa Fe Trail swales there.

I'll look for some pics.

Here's some of my old posts about the area

https://texags.com/forums/54/topics/2508033/replies/40197540

https://texags.com/forums/34/topics/2926678/replies/51027673

Well Canyon, you convinced me. Looks like I'm gonna do the dry cimmaron loop Saturday and then camp at Thompson Grove and make my way back to Lubbock Sunday.

Do you have a more scenic route home instead of 87-I-27? I drive the Lubbock to Dumas route multiple times a month for work and need something new. Thoughts on 385 to Hereford then cut over to FM 168 the rest of the way home?

We used to take 354 from 87 to Channing. Desolate road, but some views of the Canadian breaks. Check if it's open, was closed due to grass fires. Channing is worth looking at, it has the old XIT ranch business office, an old courthouse, and crumbling Main Street.

If you've never taken Boys Ranch road into the back side of Amarillo, that's different. And Boys Ranch itself is an interesting stop.

If you take 385 through Vega, there's a little bit of old Route 66 to see, and you cross the Sandhills south of Springlake.

You could kick over toward Canyon and see Buffalo Lake NWR. And you should find the web site and schedule a tour of the Catholic Church in Umbarger. Art work done by WWII Italian POWs.

CanyonAg77 said:

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We used to take 354 from 87 to Channing. Desolate road, but some views of the Canadian breaks. Check if it's open, was closed due to grass fires. Channing is worth looking at, it has the old XIT ranch business office, an old courthouse, and crumbling Main Street.

If you've never taken Boys Ranch road into the back side of Amarillo, that's different. And Boys Ranch itself is an interesting stop.

If you take 385 through Vega, there's a little bit of old Route 66 to see, and you cross the Sandhills south of Springlake.

You could kick over toward Canyon and see Buffalo Lake NWR. And you should find the web site and schedule a tour of the Catholic Church in Umbarger. Art work done by WWII Italian POWs.

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I was just in Springlake yesterday. That drive up through there is much nicer than 27. And occasionally you will catch a muley running around.

OP, you might want to consider lake Meredith at some point on your travels. I have a farm just north of there and we go run around down there with the kids. As sad as it sounds, we camp there frequently. Jump in the pickup and "camping" in less than an hour.

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I drive the Lubbock to Dumas route multiple times a month for work and need something new.

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Would you mind adding 40 miles to the drive? Go to Kress, take FM145 east. Then north on FM2301, then east on TX 86. Turn north on 207 to Claude. It takes you by some spectacular scenery in Tule Canyon, right below the lake MacKenzie dam. Then you cross the plains again, and cross Palo Duro Canyon on the way to Claude. The south drop into PD on 207 used to be featured on Texas Country Reporter.

If you come through on a Thursday through Saturday, 11:001m to 9:30pm, come to Canyon on 87, go SW on highway 60, and eat at Rafter G in Umbarger Friday night fish fry is excellent. Buffalo Lake NWR closes the gate around 8pm, so allow for that. Interesting little place. Then just drop south on 168 all the way to Anton, head back into Lubbock on US 84

I'm usually making stops along the way headed up there, but I may use that as my way home next time. Thanks.