Late Texas Highways photographer Jack Lewis captured this classic family road-trip scene in May 1970 on Farm-to-Market Road 170, northwest of Lajitas. The teepee picnic shelters were part of a 1960s effort by the Texas Department of Transportation to design rest stops reflecting regional heritage, such as wagon wheel shade structures on Interstate 10 west of Sonora and oil derrick shade structures on Interstate 20 east of Tyler. The teepee shelters, which are still standing, overlook the Rio Grande and Mexico. On the Texas side, Big Bend Ranch State Park surrounds the rest area.
From the February 2021 issue
