Camping in a canyon (in CRAZY wind!), hiking, & BISON at Caprock Canyons State Park in Texas!
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- We've headed 7 hours northwest of Austin to the Texas Panhandle for a couple weekend adventures in our van. And first up: the gorgeous Caprock Canyons State Park!
We spent a weekend hiking out to a primitive campsite and sleeping in the canyon for a night (in CRAZY wind), which was....an experience 😂 , hiking one of the best trails in the park, and seeing tons of bison!
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North Prong Primitive Campground: tpwd.texas.gov...
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Caprock Canyons Honey Flat Campground (where we stayed for the week. Site #18): tpwd.texas.gov...
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👋🏼 About us
Hi y’all! We’re Adam, Kathryn, and Kona, an adventurous married couple (+ pup!) living on the road in our self-converted sprinter van! You can often find us driving all around the US and Canada, scoping out the best coffee shops, eating tacos and ice cream (we're a 5+ taco and 2+ scoop household), and enjoying nature.
We help travelers spend less time (and stress!) planning their trip and more time enjoying it! Our detailed travel guides, TH-cam videos, and travel resources share the must-visit local eats, popular and off the beaten path sights, and tons of tips to make planning your next adventure a whole lot easier.
Note: We’ve linked a handful of items so you can see exactly which products we take with us. Full disclosure--if you click on these links and make a purchase, we get a small commission at no extra cost to you. We will only ever recommend products we truly love, actually use during our adventures, and think you can benefit from too!
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Safety is our #1 priority and we want to stress that this adventure, and all future adventures, will be done responsibly and with the health of others in mind. Here are the steps we are taking everyday, including in these videos:
😷Masks and face coverings. We wear these anytime we are near others outside and especially indoors. If we don’t have a mask on in a video, it’s 99% because there was no one around.
❌Not seeing anyone outside of our household. We are currently living with 4 family members and have a strict “do not see anyone outside of the household” family policy. The only interactions we have with others is quickly grabbing takeout or going to the grocery store.
⏰ Exploring early. We have been starting most of our days before sunlight so we can limit our interactions.
🧼 Washing and sanitizing our hands
6️⃣ Keeping our distance. We are trying to stay at least 6 ft from others, which truthfully isn’t always possible (and then we make sure we cover our face).
I hope Texas hires you two for some travel ads. Seriously, your videos of it are amazing (well, actually all of your videos are incredible)!!
Thank you SO much, that means a lot to us! 💗
This is hands down my favorite episode that y'all have done, yet. We do a lot of camping, but I have never done a hike-in camping trip yet, and it's on my bucket list. I've been slowly building my gear for it. I've got that same burner you used with the orange bottom, and the orange case. I've seen a lot of videos of Caprock Canyons, and I love Buffalo, so we will hopefully be visiting this park in the next year. Thanks for being such an inspiring couple of campers.
This means a ton to us! We had a lot of fun filming this, mishaps and all lol! We have been wanting to do a hike in camping trip again for so long and were so glad the wind didn't fully stop us. Getting all of the gear is definitely a big investment, but we love that we can use all of it for traditional camping and backpacking. Or take some of the items (like the burner you got) on hikes if we want to cook a meal midway through!
Wow talk about the wild wild west! What a beautiful spot! I laughed out loud at Santa's feet sticking out of the chimney 😂🎅 you're so cute Kathryn... glad Adam's mom bought you that safety device, we always hope nothing will go wrong but you just never know best to be prepared! Thanks Mom, now I can stop worrying about them 😘 love you guys stay safe!
Hahahah I cannot stop seeing his santa legs! 🎅And the device is so great! We have texted my (Kathryn) mom from it during this trip and she loves it hahaha
You guys are troopers! All that wind and sand Would be too much for me!
Definitely made for an interesting adventure haha!
Man if only we saw this video earlier! We just got back from Caprock yesterday. We set up in the EXACT same spot on top of that hill with the rainfly off (bc stars and view) and thought the wind would die down (about 20-25mph winds). They did not. Put the rainfly on. Got worse. Gale force winds collapsed our tent on top of us and we had so much dust in our eyes and tent that we just literally picked up our tent with everything in it and went down to about 20ft from your final spot seeking shelter from a 4ft tall bush in the riverbed. Could not recommend that riverbed enough. All that said, had an amazing time on the trails and seeing the unique nature there! Great video!
Ya we should've wised up like you and moved! That wind was relentless! 😂
Another amazing trip guys! You are having a blast. Thank you
We have really been enjoying our home state!
Pretty cool video thanks for sharing
Thanks for watching Denny!
I’m from Texas and had no idea about this state park! BEAUTIFUL thanks for sharing!
We are so happy to share it with you! It's a VERY special and beautiful place!
My husband and I recently found your channel and we love it! I can totally relate to that camping experience. I once camped in a wind storm and the tent came unstaked and the shingles off the bathhouse were flying around the campground!
Woahhh that’s intense!!! 😱😱 We hope y’all were okay during that! Definitely makes for a crazy story to tell!
holy wind! the landscapes were beautiful!
Holy wind is right lol! So insane, but those views made up for it!
What a funny name! Kitty-quay
Definitely not how we would've pronounced it!
You guys are awesome!
Thanks so much for watching and the kind words! 💗
Camping and exploring nature blows me away but not like this LOL. Glad you all survived :) What a beautiful park with amazing views. My 7 year old daughter was cuddled up with me while watching and when you all were looking for the Bison she said "Well maybe the wind blew them away" LOL. Much love and can't wait for the next video !
LOL! Definitely were blown away by this park! 😂 And your daughter may be right...maybe they did blow away that day! 😜
Another great post, thanks for sharing. Stay safe and healthy, can’t wait for the next post!
We're glad you enjoyed it Mark! 😃
Wow, what a vista! Thanks for sharing.
The views were 😍🔥! Thank you for watching!
Love that park. When I was there I did that hike the opposite direction.
Those night sky pics are 🔥🔥🔥
And I saw a crab claw, but Santa’s legs are believable. Another great video!
Thank you Jared! And I like the crab claws too! That's a good one!
Should be the Adventures of A Plus K Plus K (just kidding!)! Great seeing Kona in the adventures some more. Amazing views on your hikes, sorry about your crazy wind there, especially that one night in the tent .
Hahaha it totally should be! Or A+K²! We loved having Kona join us for this trip, it was so nice to spend time as a family in our van house and even in the shaking tent lol!
Hello Adventurers, and WOW! Texas really does have really scenic areas. The hike to the top of the canyons was AWESOME! Really enjoyed the bison too, so many of them! Great video👍👍! Looking forward to the next video. I'm coming to Texas this year, Big Bend National Park!
Ahhh Big Bend is the BEST! Our favorite part of Texas for sure!
Loved Caprock. I remember checking in, pulling around the corner and being met by a group of Bison. I didnt know if I should move, stay put or attempt to back up. Was an amazing park, the landscape was incredible. Thanks for the throwback !
The bison are so cool to see! We have loved finding them all over the park. Glad you enjoyed visiting Caprock as much as we did!
@@AdventuresofAplusK I remember taking pics. And then looking at them after, thinking....these do not do the beauty any justice. Safe travels !
It's so hard to capture the full beauty in photos or videos!
The stars at night, are big and bright! We may have to check this place out. We aren’t much of campers, but seeing the stars out like that might change our minds 😎
👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 Deep in the heart of Texas! (We 100% had this planned as a caption for those photos on Instagram haha). The night sky here is pretty spectacular!
@@AdventuresofAplusK Great minds think alike! 😂😂. Can’t wait to see the pics on Instagram!
I knew yall would head out there soon, I'll be there next week!
We've been LOVING it! We've seen _significantly_ more bison than we have humans and the views are epic. We hope you have a great time!
Such a beautiful area, really reminded us of Sedona. You guys were brave for tent camping out there, but as always your positive attitude shone through, sandy sleeping and all! 😊
It has major Sedona vibes! But without crowds!
@@AdventuresofAplusK sans crowd is key!
Wow beautiful starry night at 6:35!
We've been loving these dark Texas skies lately!
We try to go clockwise on the Haynes Ridge\North Prong loop to avoid that steep descent, but I have descended it multiple times, and it can get sketchy. One of my favorite trails. And yeah, that wind and blowing dust can be pretty intense up here. Hope you enjoy the rest of your Panhandle adventure. If you haven't, take a drive on Hwy 207 through the canyon and past Lake Mackenzie - incredibly scenic.
It's definitely an adventure going down! Have you gone up from South Prong? We did that the other day to Haynes Ridge Overlook and it was pretty fun going up! We actually slept on 207 last night and the scenery is AMAZING! 😍
@@AdventuresofAplusK I still need to go up South Prong. I love the Haynes Ridge/North Prong so much that I tend to keep repeating it, but I really need to do more of the hikes at Caprock, especially since it's only about 1:15 away from me. Glad you saw 207. I saw you're going back to Palo Duro, so my only other recommendation is to hit Lake Meredith, with is under-appreciated.
We really liked the views from South Prong too! And if you combine it with Haynes Ridge and North Prong it apparently makes the Upper Canyon Trail. We wish we could've swung by Lake Meredith. We almost were going to camp for free there!
Wow Amazing views, thank you so much for sharing your amazing videos,keep safe, avid fan..
Thank you so much for watching! 🥰🥰
It's time for the annual bison wellness check to keep the herd healthy. Aka... They had a doctors appointment.
It was pretty cool to see them all heading to their appointment together!
Great Video as always
Thanks William!
Girlfriend and I will have to head there at some point, looks beautiful! I didn’t know it existed before this
We hear it's often overshadowed by the nearby and more popular Palo Duro Canyon, which we have been to (and are heading back to next!), but we think it's just as beautiful! The bison give it an extra fun touch!
Beautiful area. you both did a great job of not going "airborne" during the night. Ya'll are doing the same things tracy and I are during this covid exp. Traveling thru our own state and taking notes for future visits, lol. Enjoy your many travels, be safe S/T
So glad we didn't fly away lol! 😂 And we're enjoying exploring more of Texas! We hope y'all are enjoying your adventures too!
@@AdventuresofAplusK we are. last weekend we drove the "Billy the Kid" trail in Lincoln County. It's not long but a big part of the 1890's . The movie Young Guns was filmed out there.
So fun!!
Looks fun! I never van camped but did primitive camping. I have gear in my trunk. It's too cold but I can in the future. Here in Arizona it's 31F at 9 AM in eastern Arizona which is foothills with evergreens out here and mountains nearby. There's big wind on occasion up here. I am moving to a new location in a week, nearby (a rental). Have fun in Texas!
We love primitive camping! I bet it's amazing in Arizona! Are you close to Flagstaff? We love the forest vibe out there!
@@AdventuresofAplusK I'm on the very edge of the forest of mountains in the east central area. Yes, the forest is wonderful, the high country.
Love western Texas & the Llano Estacado. Our favorite area there is Palo Duro Canyon near Canyon Tx (where else could it be but Canyon?). My personal favorite is Adobe Walls & the Billy Dixon gravesite. Never been to Caprock Canyon but it’s now on our list. Enjoyed the video & stay safe👍👍👍👍😷🙏🏻
Palo Duro is great too! We just spent the day there today actually! Caprock Canyons is just as beautiful, but with wayyy less people! We need to check out those spots you mentioned too!
@@AdventuresofAplusK Try the hike to Lighthouse Rock at Palo Duro.
We sure did!
Thank you for the recommendation on the Garmin!! We were just hiking in Colorado a few days ago and had the random thought of "what would we do if something happened to us?!" Definitely going to buy those!
We put it off for _so_ long because the cost was a bit hard to swallow at first (hence why we asked for it for Christmas haha), but it's such a great safety device to have and worth every penny!
@@AdventuresofAplusK absolutely! Safety is a priority! We will use your link as well 🙂
100%! And thank you guys, we appreciate it!
thanks A+K
Visited this park recently and it's amazing! Me and my wife like it better than Palo Duro since it's less crowded. The Bison's are everywhere! Great video!
We agree! We just did Palo Duro for the second time yesterday and the crowd levels were a lot higher than Caprock. We had a great time, but it was a bit of a surprise after seeing hardly anyone for a week.
@@AdventuresofAplusK Both parks are amazing. Have you guys seen the Texas play in Palo Duro? Planning on checking that one out over the summer.
We haven't! The first time we did Palo Duro was in the summer, but we went on a weekday and it must have been a day they weren't doing it, as the park was EMPTY!
Have y’all ever been to Arches National Park or Bryce Canyon here in Utah? Much love for y’all and Texas!
We have been to Bryce and Zion! Hoping to hit up the others this year!
I Love the desert Southwest! Just wondering why you have to camp within 50 feet of the outhouse? Or was that a joke?
We _think_ it's a rule so they can keep campers within a specific area so they don't have more land damaged by people/tents than necessary.
Such a beautiful area! I didn't know Texas would have a view like this in the state! How was your freeze dried meal? Thank you for sharing!
We had no idea either! This part of the state has some gorgeous canyons. Can't wait to share more! We love the Wild Zora meals. We have been getting them for about 3 years now and love them because they are super healthy and have clean ingredients.
@@AdventuresofAplusK Thank you!
Nice tribute to Drake. LOL “Started from the bottom now we’re here!” 👍🏻.
😂😂😂 I couldn't help myself lol!
Love your videos! You spotlight the location, inform and make it fun!
Notice you are now wearing a Patagonia. 🎄. Which do you like better, the Columbia or the Patagonia? 🌻
Good eye! So far I love them both equally. I only replaced the Columbia because I got a big rip in the back and the pocket zipper broke and thankfully REI had a great sale! They are slightly different in terms of the material used to keep you warm, but they both have equally kept me warm during cold days, as well as fold up nice and compact! I know that is not helpful at all 😂
@@AdventuresofAplusK thanks!! Hi!!!
Exactly what I needed actually- I’m looking for a packable jacket - we are hitting Yellowstone in early June! 👍🏼
Check us out sometime CampTravelExplore
Garmin device? You guys been watching Creek Stewart? Lol! Good idea.
Haha lots of our WA friends who backpack and hike have it and we've been eyeing it for a long time. Great device to have!
By a town called “kitty-kway” 😂
What did the bison say to his son when he left for college? Bye son 😅🤣 I had to
Classic!
Nice! What route did y’all take up there?
We parked here and took the trail to the campsite: goo.gl/maps/Etiq65fjeEjiVpWGA
Made a list of where I'm going and seeing for each state, this is is on my list for Texas. I was thinking maybe I shouldn't, but you guys just convinced me, I should. Great Video! Absolutely love your videos!!! Can't wait, til I get to do this myself.
We have had the BEST week here! It's not busy at all (probably due to the time of year, but we didn't see a single person on a hike we did yesterday and only 4 people on the hike we did in this video) and the views are breathtaking. Highly recommend it!
Caprock is cool, but Palo Duro is even better. No bison in Palo Duro but the scenery and hiking is better.
What type of Osprey backpack was Kathryn wearing in this video here?
We both have Osprey Atmos 65. We have a link to all of our gear in the description 😊
Is it safe to leave our stuffs inside the camping tent and leave for hiking?
We have done it a few times and have never had any issues. Just make sure the tent is secure so it doesn't blow away!
another vid that got recommended to me that I somehow missed...come on TH-cam.
Guess you gotta start from the beginning so you don’t miss any 😜 we don’t blame you if you decide to skip past the first 30-40 videos though. Cringe 🤭🥴
@@AdventuresofAplusK I thought I did! LOL...I have seen all the early ones...the Seattle camping...etc. And you're way too hard on yourself! They were just fine. :)
Welcome to the high plains where the saying goes: “We had a tornado once, but the wind got up and blew it away.”
Hahahahah love it! 😂😂
Haha!
My wife and I were wondering, what card game you all were playing?
Hi y'all! It's called Quarry Quarrel! Someone who watches our videos sent it to us. Her brother created it! Lots of fun! quarryquarrel.com/
@@AdventuresofAplusK Nice, Thanks so much, I just bought the game!
I have a question. What was you Least favorite state?
We have enjoyed every state we have been to, all for different reasons. There are some we love more than others, but we can’t really think of a least favorite.
mounara
Oh, hello surprise video on a Friday! 🥳 Wow, those night shots were a lot better than 'decent' as you said! I love the look of yellow tents, especially when lit up at night. So beautiful! ❤️ Kona was so adorable in the tent, it looked like she was trying to clean the sand off you Kathryn! 🐶 I bet those hanging ferns look amazing in the summer... but you'd have the blistering heat to deal with! At 16:46, what was that? Marmot? Prairie Dog? Something else? Stunning state park and looking forward to the Q& next episode 🙌
Surprise!!! 🥳🥳 I was way too tired from not sleeping in the tent to edit this on time 😂 The tent night shot is my new fav! I haven't tried that before, but really happy with how it turned out. Kona is the best little tent buddy, we are so glad we had her with us! Those little buddies were prairie dogs! There are SO many of them here!
Ahhh we loved it! Wild camping, beautiful views and those bison!!! Wonderfully filmed and edited. Thanks so much for the great vlog as always guys!
🥰❤️Thanks so much y'all!
Y’all are so fun! Thx for another fabulous vlog!! I’ve heard of those Garmins; very thankful Adam’s Mom got one for you!! Love All-Trails & will have to check out ur new coffee device!!!😊Will ur Q & A be next week’s vlog? I look forward to it!! Stay safe!!!
The Garmin has been so great so far! I know my mom appreciates us having it! And yes it will! We filmed it the other day and I am just editing it now. It'll probably be very long haha, we answered a lot of questions 🙌
@@AdventuresofAplusK we like long; so go for it!! Lol
Curious to see how long it'll end up being lol! Worst case, folks can listen to it like a podcast 😉
@@AdventuresofAplusK 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂!!!!!
Greetings friends! WOW! Another great adventure exploring the rugged/rural parts of Texas. Really enjoyed the beautiful scenery and your very fascinating (comical???) overnight experience. Looking forward to more cool experiences. Thanks for your hard work!
Hahahaha it was a mix of fascinating and hilarious! But totally worth it for the scenery and getting to be more remote for the night!
TAKE A DRIVE THROUGH DALHART TEXAS, BORN HERE IN 1968 AT COON HOSPITAL.
I'm not sure we will make it that north this time, but we will be back!
So is vlogging getting easier?
Gets a little easier with every video, but still a lot harder than it looks 😉
wonder how much snow that place got this week?
Probably a ton! We are VERY glad we were back in Austin and not in the van during the winter storm. Our heater couldn't work due to the diesel gelling up, so that would've been brutal!
You guys are sooo cool doing what I only dream I could do!!!!
We are super grateful to be able to do this! ❤️
Obviously a crazy nightl! I admired you for tent campy on rock ground, but that admiration clicked up a couple of notches knowing you put up with that wind, too!
It was a wild night! In the moment, especially around 2 or 3 AM, when we couldn't sleep it wasn't so fun, but now that we are days removed from it, we just laugh and smile thinking about the experience!
That panhandle is always so windy!! Looked beautiful! But man... the dirt and sand in your tent was crazy! Those bison are so neat!!! Great getaway!!
We have started to learn that wind is very very normal here lol! So much fun regardless!
Well this was quite the experience! You practically slept or tried to sleep through a tornado! The hike looked like a really good one! Wow Texas has some amazing views! It’s nice you can make coffee while camping....I drink mine with creamer. I’ll see you next Thursday!
That is what it felt like lol! So worth it for all of the views though! Next time we will bring little mini creamers with us 😋
I live in the panhandle, and the wind can be crazy. We say 25 is a breeze. 40, its getting windy! Glad you enjoyed the camp! You should try Palo Duro Canyon!
Hahahaha we believe that! 🌬 We are heading to Palo Duro next! We have been before and loved it, so we're excited to go back.
We've been hearing a lot about Texas state parks lately. Going to have to visit and spend some time there for sure! So neat to be able to see the bison herd there as well. 🦬
The state parks here have made us realize how many amazing state parks we have likely missed out on in other states since we are always so focused on the National Parks. Definitely going to be seeking out more state parks as we travel because they tend to be less crowded, hidden gems!
@@AdventuresofAplusK yes we feel like that about state parks too! So many amazing ones to see.
Those bison, that nighttime tent picture, that beautiful scenery right outside your tent and EVERYWHERE and so much more!!! AWESOME, AWESOME, AWESOME! We need to come see this for ourselves! I just loved watching Konie wash your faces! 🤣 Another great vlog guys❣️
Yes y'all do! LOVED it so much! And made even more memorable with almost flying away and the bison friends!
The beautiful sunrise after the windy night more then made up for gritty teeth! At least l hope it did 😊
Bison are magnificent animals and you don't realize how huge they are until you see them in person, sort of like seeing a moose for the first time!
Enjoy your camping trip!!😊🍁
Oh it 100% did! I think we'd both suffer through another night to wake up with that view! Although, we were happy to be back in the comfy van afterwards 😂 Bison are very cool! These ones were a bit different than the other kinds we have seen, which makes sense based on the DNA, but still really awesome!
Keep up the good work guys!
Thanks y'all!
@@AdventuresofAplusK anytime bud
Lol all that dust & wind 😆 but the place looked beautiful 😍 Kona is soooo cute she looks like my doggie 🐕❤️
It was NUTS! 😳 Kona had such a great time, we love her tent snuggles! 😍
That was GORGEOUS!!!! Canadian here coming down to Texas to go camping same time of year. The views are stunning! (Would pass on the wind though 😆 ) Thanks for sharing!
We loved this backpacking trip so much! This park is very underrated!
Scenery was cool, but I’m sorry you guys had to deal w/ the wind.
The wind was so nuts! Just a typical day in the panhandle (so we hear haha)
Beautiful
It was so gorgeous there! 😍
The ferns at the fern cave look like that in winter. In summer they are green. Been there probably 50 times since the first time I visited caprock canyons in the mid 1980s. It's always an enjoyable hike.
Wow, 50 times?! That's impressive!
@@AdventuresofAplusK not so much if you consider it's over a 35 year period. There's a 4×4 road on the eastern side of the park that is alot of fun to drive also if you like that sort of thing. I enjoy doing that as much as hiking and biking the older i get.
I’ve been to a lot of Texas, but it never looked like that! 😲
We totally felt the same way the first time we made it up to this area when we went to Palo Duro! And even still felt it this time!
Awesome ! I do wonder what you feed Kona though ??
She eats Honest Kitchen Grain Free Chicken dehydrated food
My girlfriend and I camped at Caprock Canyons in our minivan last week. We had a lot of wind Wednesday night and Thursday morning (Feb 3/4), but like y'all, we loved the park. Got beautiful sunrise photos at the canyon behind the RV campground, too. Enjoyed your video.
Ahhh nice! We were there at the same time as y'all! Where did you camp? We were at the Honey Flats campground last Sunday-this past Friday afternoon.
@@AdventuresofAplusK We were in site 22 at Honey Flats, across the road from the prairie dog town. We sleep in our Toyota Sienna minivan, but supplement our camping with a quick setup screen tent. Fortunately, we packed the tent up Wednesday night before the winds got really bad. Saved us from fighting the wind when we broke camp Thursday morning. Nice to meet y'all. Happy camping!
Hahah no way! We were at site #18 in our sprinter van and totally saw your site with the tent. How funny! It's nice to meet you!
How did you keep wifii? Did you use a booster?
We have hotspots with AT&T and Verizon! We have a WeBoost but don’t think it really helps at all.