Guadalupe Mountains National Park Announces Summer Interpretive Program
Schedule
(Pine Springs, TX) Guadalupe Mountains National Park Superintendent John
Lujan announced the park’s schedule of interpretation programs for Summer
2011. The park will offer a wide variety of patio, ranger-led hikes and
evening program from Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend. These
programs will provide excellent opportunities for visitors to learn about
the plant life, wildflowers and wildlife, geology, ecology, human history,
and night skies of the Guadalupe Mountains as well as learn outdoor skills
to have a safe visit to the Guadalupe Mountains. Whether coming for a day
hike on the 86 miles of trails, a visit to historic Frijole Ranch, Williams
Ranch, Pratt Cabin or Ship on the Desert, a foray into the second largest
gypsum dunes in North America, a weekend stay in the Pine Springs or Dog
Canyon campgrounds or the Frijole Ranch Group Campground or a backpacking
experience in the backcountry or wilderness area, the Guadalupe Mountains
offers wonderful opportunities for solitude, recreation, family fun and
learning and exercise, including ranger-led programs.
Every Wednesday and Thursday, from June 1 through September 1, and Monday,
July 4 (Independence Day Holiday), there will be Patio Talks at 10:00 AM
and 2:00 PM at the Pine Springs Visitor Center. These short (15-20 minute)
talks may encompass any topic relating to the park, so stop by, chat with a
ranger and learn about the Guadalupe Mountains.
On Sundays, May 29, June 19, July 3, July 17, August 7 and August 21, there
will be open houses at Ship on the Desert from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Take a
tour of this historic home with a park ranger or explore on your own.
On Sundays, June 5, July 24, and September 3, Pratt Cabin will be open in
McKittrick Canyon. Tour the historic cabin with a park ranger. Please
make sure to bring sun block, a hat or cap, and plenty of water and snacks.
On Sundays, June 26, July 31 and August 28 and Mondays, May 30 (Memorial
Day Holiday) and July 4 (Independence Day Holiday), put on your hiking
boots and join a ranger on a longer hike to such places as Guadalupe Peak
(the highest peak in Texas), the Permian Reef, The Bowl, Pratt Cabin or the
Notch. Please contact the Pine Springs Visitor Center at (915) 828-3251
x2124 to find out where the hike will go, the time and location where it
will meet, the duration, difficulty level (Easy, Moderate or Strenuous) and
any other details, and accompany a ranger on an adventure in the
Guadalupes. Please make sure to bring sun block, a hat or cap, and plenty
of water and snacks. Please call ahead, as some of these hikes may not be
appropriate for small children.
On Sundays May 29 (7:00 PM), June 12 (7:00 PM), July 10 (7:00 PM) and
August 14 (6:30 PM), there will be ranger-led Evening Bird Walks at
historic Frijole Ranch.
On Friday, June 17 and Saturdays, July 16 and August 13, the Gypsum Dunes
Salt Flat Visitor Contact Station in Dell City will be open from 3:00 PM –
5:00 PM, then join a park ranger and explore North America’s second largest
gypsum dunes, on the west side of the park, by the light of the full moon.
Meet the park ranger at the Gypsum Dune Salt Flat Visitor Contact Station
at 5:00 PM and bring a flashlight, drinking water, snacks, walking shoes
and a sweater.
Beginning Friday, May 27, the park will offer evening programs at the Pine
Springs Campground on Fridays and Saturdays (except June 17, July 16 and
August 13). Evening programs presented will include Exotic Species:
Strangers in your Backyard, Signs of Wildlife: What you may be Missing,
Islands in the Sky, A Very Dry Reef: A Look at the Permian Reef, Across the
Cosmos: Appreciating the Night Sky, Elk in the Desert, Star Party Astronomy
Program, The Bizarre and the Beautiful: Invertebrates of the Guadalupes,
Overloked and Underfoot: Reptiles of the Guadalupes, History of the Peoples
of the Guadalupes, The Burning Issue: Wildfire and our National Parks,
Birds of Prey, From High Tide to High Desert: Water in the Guadalupes, 23
Days Eating Dust: the Butterfield Overland Stage and Migratory Birds.
Families will want to ask about our Junior Ranger, Junior Paleontologist
and Senior Ranger activity booklets at the Pine Springs Visitor Center.
Children of all ages who complete the activities will receive a certificate
and badge and are eligible to purchase a Junior Ranger or Senior Ranger
patch.
Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts are eligible to earn awards made available
through partnerships with the National Park Service. Please inquire at the
Pine Springs Visitor Center (915) 828-3251 ext. 2124 for more information.
A park slide presentation is available in the Pine Springs Visitor Center
Auditorium. Ask the park ranger at the information desk to start the film
for you. A push-button operated film about McKittrick Canyon, narrated by
Petroleum Engineer Wallace E. Pratt who was instrumental in the creation of
Guadalupe Mountains National Park is available on the patio of the
McKittrick Canyon Visitor Contact Station. The Pine Springs Visitor Center
and bookstore, which is operated by the park’s non-profit cooperating
association partner Carlsbad Caverns Guadalupe Mountains Association (
www.ccgma.org) are open daily from 8:00 AM until 4:30 PM (closed Christmas
Day). Be sure to stop by to get a map, site bulletin, brochure, post card,
books or film about Guadalupe Mountains National Park. The McKittrick
Canyon, the Frijole Ranch Ranch House, Dog Canyon or Gypsum Dunes Salt Flat
(Dell City, TX) Visitor Contact Stations are open irregularly. Please call
the Pine Springs Visitor Center at (915) 828-3251 ext. 2124 to find out
whether they are open.
For additional information about Guadalupe Mountains National Park, please
contact the Pine Springs Visitor Center at 915-828-3251 ext. 2124 or visit
the park’s website at www.nps.gov/gumo/.
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