If
you want to see a fabulous park, I’m sure you won’t be disappointed with Balmorhea State Park. There's a huge, spring-fed swimming pool that's unlike anything
I’ve ever seen before. The water temperature is supposed to be in the lower
seventies but I went swimming there before 9:00 in the morning
and felt great both in the water and when I got out. I'm sure the deserted pool I found was due to my visit being before Memorial Day.
A pool with no swimmers!
I talked to Krista, who works at the front desk of this park, and asked her what cienega was after seeing the word on a sign. You'll see her answer below. She was quite helpful in answering my questions.I also read, and was amused at, the “no fishing” signs and had to take a picture of one of them. If you want to fish, this isn’t the park for you. Thanks to this policy, visitors can watch fish of various sizes swim in the waterways around the park. While swimming, I got nipped at by swarms of minnows.
I learned a new word. Cienega is a Spanish term for
wetlands. You’ll see these wetland areas where there are signs telling all
of us to stay on the path.
If you’re wanting to view CCC construction, look for
the telltale light brown stone in the park.
A park employee informed me that the attractive motel building and stone around
the pool were constructed (in the 1930’s) by this group who did so much of
enduring value for our parks. The lodge rentals looked tempting since I saw what
looked like a picturesque river right next to where renters of these temporary vacation
dwellings were barbecuing – just a short distance from their back door.
When I looked for trash, I found the majority of it
outside the fence around the pool. I could identify the snacks sold
locally by the plastic wrappers I found; they made up a majority of my bag of trash. I
also found a complete outfit of clothes for an unusually shaped male. The
swimming trunks and flip-flops would fit a big man and the shirt looked like it
would fit an average size boy (about a ten year old). I left this outfit on top
of a garbage can in case owners came to look for their clothing.
Once again, I left this park too soon. Although I plan
to come back here, I look forward to my next month’s park.
