Since buying our camper in 2023, I’ve had my eye on visiting Palo Duro Canyon State Park, and this spring, we finally made that trip happen! While, I’m not shocked that I fell in love with this little canyon paradise in Texas – ya girl loves a desert – I was very surprised that I also fell really hard for the town of Canyon, Texas too, located just over 30 minutes from Amarillo.
THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT PALO DURO CANYON STATE PARK
The State Park Fee is High: While most places have a fee per car (and it typically is good for 24 hours to 5 days, Palo Duro does it per person, and it’s only good for the calendar day. So, if you go for sunset and then sunrise the next day, you automatically have to pay again 8 hours later. Anyone 13 and up pays $8 per person, per day.
If You Want to Go for Sunset, Leave Early Because There Can Be a Long Line to Enter the Park: When we were there during a fairly peak time of spring break, they only had one person working the booth. When we pulled up to see sunset the Saturday night we got there, it took us an hour to get into the park. It was wild. The photo above is after already waiting 30 minutes to get to this point.
Weather Can Be Extreme Here: We were there in March and saw a dust storm rolling crazy walls of dirt and massive tumbleweeds, we saw below freezing temps, we were so hot that we were in shorts and tees, and weather so cold that we had to buy sweatshirts for the kids. It was all over the place. In the summer, heat can be extreme. So come prepared for anything and be sure to check the weather the night before, because it feels like it can change pretty rapidly.
Watch for Wildlife: When we were there, we saw some small lizards and some deer, but the big things we saw were a coyote and a handful of big horn sheep! There are several species of birds in the park, several rodents, and reptiles as well.
Bikers Yield to Hikers: There are several trails that are shared by both mountain bikers and hikers. It’s important to know that while bikers do technically yield to hikers, still be on the look out (and ear out) for bikers so you don’t cause or become a member of an accident. While the outdoors are for everyone, not everyone has taken the time to learn the etiquette for trails.
HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR TIME IN PALO DURO CANYON STATE PARK
Because the weather was a little crazy and inconsistent, and the price was high for a single calendar day, and we had our 5 and 3 year old with us we didn’t do quite as much as we normally would in a park. However, we did do three hikes that we really, truly enjoyed.
Light House Rock: This is the big boy in the park. This trail takes you to the famous lighthouse formation that you see when you hear about this park. It’s a 6.1 mile out and back trail, that’s rated as moderate. I would put it between easy and moderate with only the scramble to the top of the formation to be moderate. It’s a really beautiful hike that passes badlands, and goes through the desert. I would 10/10 do this hike again. My 3 and 5 year olds did this hike but required a fair amount of assistance around the lighthouse formation. Keep a close eye on your kiddos on this trail.
Triassic Trail to Goodnight Peak for Sunset: We saw the sign for the Triassic Trail as we passed by, and on a night that my parents gifted us a date night, we decided to stop at this hike. We saw people sitting on top of a hill for the sunset and they told us about continuing on the trail. This ended up being my favorite trail of the trip. It overlooks badlands and has an incredible view of sunset. This is a pretty easy 1.6 mile out and back trail that you can take a little more on to if you want to.
Paseo del Rio to the Cowboy Dugout: This easy 2.5 mile out and back trail is a lovely stroll along the river, which even though it wasn’t flowing hard, it was still a really lovely stroll. Plus, the highlight is a cowboy dugout replica of one that was there in the late 1800s. It’s a really interesting and unique piece of U.S. history. Plus, I’ve been reading the Little House in the Prairie series to Charlotte and she really loved seeing a dugout. It made that part of the story come alive for her.
What I Would Add Next Time: On my next trip to Palo Duro Canyon State Park (and I know there will be another one) I want to do several trails: CCC, Juniper Cliffside Trail, Rojo Grande, Rylander Fortress Cliff and the Comanche Trails. There are a lot of hike to do here, and I think when my kids are just a year or two older, the doors to these will all be open to us.
HOW THE TOWN OF CANYON, TEXAS STOLE OUR HEARTS
Canyon isn’t a huge town, with a population of about 15,000 people. But we had a lovely, albeit basic, campground that was really close to their downtown square and only 20 or so minutes from Palo Duro Canyon State Park. It was the perfect location to stay for a week. I would absolutely stay there again if I was going to or through Canyon, Texas again.
The first thing to note of Canyon, and also of Amarillo, is every single person we encountered was so kind. There was such a vibe of hospitality there, everyone was just so welcoming. From grocery store employees to bartenders and locals out in the wild that we met along the way. Matt and I just commented again and again on the kindness of everyone.
Then, on top of it, there were some really fun or cool things in the town. It had a lot more to explore than I expected.
Palace Coffee – This is located right on the old square and it had some truly incredible coffee. The lattes were strong and coffee-forward, and flavors added to it were very balanced. Plus, the space was absolutely incredible. There was so much more to this space than meets the eye. The space opened up in the back to a giant study-style room with a beautiful mural on one wall and a giant chandelier. They also had a really nice selection of board games. So, one of the days there, we had a windstorm and freezing temps, so we stayed indoors. Luckily, we found refuge here where we played Candyland as a whole family. It’s a super sweet memory for me.
Pondaseta Brewing Company – My parents watched the kids for us to get out and have a little brewery date and we hit the jackpot with this one. We got a couple of side dishes and a flight of beer. We’d kinda fallen out of love with visiting breweries and this reignited a love for it in both of us. The beer was spectacular. So much flavor, but also well-balanced. It took us all of 15 minutes to be in deep conversation with the locals. I love a vibe like that. We had planned to make this a quick visit, seeing as my parents were watching the kids, but we got caught up in conversations and trying more beers that it was probably a 2-hour visit. The brewer’s wife was at the bar and called him to bring me brewery stickers (the brewery itself was out of them, but he had some in his backpack) and we took home a couple of 6 packs to enjoy.
Honey Buzz Winery – We were just a handful of minutes of this meaderie and we decided to go one day after a hike for a mead flight and some lunch. Their food options were very simple, but sometimes simple food is some of the best – especially when someone else prepares it for you – the only thing I wouldn’t recommend in their “charcuterie” because it was little to-go containers of a few slices of cheese that just was unimpressive. But the sandwiches and queso we got were wonderful. And the mead! Wow! It was off the charts. It was also strong, so be mindful of that if you’re getting a flight all to yourself. In addition to the delicious food, there is a super cute shop where they sell their honey, gifts and crafty things!
Tex Randall – A Little Roadside Kitsch – I love kitschy roadside stops. Something small, and seemingly silly, that makes a nice little stop on a road trip and makes you giggle. Tex Randall is just that. It’s a massive cowboy that was built in 1959 as a marketing scheme for a western store. When the store closed, the statue fell into disrepair, but restorations were done in the 2010s and it’s now a fun little stop that adds charm to Canyon, Texas.
Kylie Hiner Memorial Park – We love when we’re able to find a nice park for our little ones to burn out some energy, and this little city park was perfect for that. We kicked off a couple of mornings with an hour or so at the park. This park is accessible, has a good amount of things to play on, and there were a lot of local kids that our kids enjoyed playing with.
WE ALSO WENT IN TO AMARILLO AND ENJOYED A HANDFUL OF THINGS THERE
Amarillo is a less than 30 minute drive north of Canyon, Texas. Because of that, you can do all the things you want in Amarillo while getting the charming coziness of Canyon. There are several things to do in Canyon if you find that you want to fill your time a little more up in Amarillo.
Cadillac Ranch – One of the biggest kitschy draws is Cadillac Ranch which sits alongside Route 66! It’s a fun little stop to make. For the Love of Wanderlust Tip don’t buy spray paint. Most people have way too much and they leave partial cans on the ground or hand them to people as they’re walking out. I’ve been twice, years apart, and this happened both times. Read my more complete guide to Cadillac Ranch here.
The Big Texan – This is a Route 66 restaurant famous for their ridiculous food challenge of a 72 ounce steak and all the fixin’s. We tried to get my dad to do it, but he chickened out at the last minute. The food was pretty decent, the beer was eh, but the kids were enthralled by the cowboy hats that their kids meals came in for them to take home and the shop was very cute.
Amarillo Museum of Art – This is a free art museum that is on the campus of the local university. It’s not huge, but it had some really interesting exhibits, including one that was art literally made of money. It’s a collection of art that we still talk about now.
Yellow City Street Food – This was a high-rated restaurant that we found on Google Maps and it did not disappoint. They had really delicious tacos, burgers and more! Everything we ate was so tasty and the people working there were so incredibly kind and hospitable. Bonus points that they all went above and beyond for our kids, which is never expected but so appreciated when it does happen.
For Those of You Road Tripping with Kids
We’re still rocking the screen free road trips for our kids. It’s actually getting easier as the older they get. I have definitely found the older they get, the more they play together, talk together, and sometimes that means the more they fight too, but we’re working through that now too. But I am thrilled that thousands of miles into road trips we are still able to take some pretty big road trips without screens.
While I had intended on spending a whole week exploring Palo Duro Canyon State Park, what I didn’t expect was falling in love with the area around it. The park was beautiful, but truthfully, the cost kept us from going as often as we would have. The weather was unexpected, and we didn’t intend to want to find as many indoor things as we did. But, what we discovered was a town that was unbelievably charming and hospitable with so many unexpected offerings for families and anyone who enjoys shops, kitsch, good drinks and more. This was a charming community that I would absolutely choose to spend more time in. And I cannot wait to go back again someday.
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