The Caprock escarpment of the Texas Panhandle has always given people fits.
In 1841, the Republic of Texas’ Santa Fe Expedition, a failed commercial and military mission, struggled so much navigating the Caprock’s bluffs and arroyos that the party split up and eventually surrendered to Mexican forces. In the 1880s, a rancher named Bill Koogle was driving a mule-drawn wagon toward the lip of the escarpment when his mules stampeded. Koogle leapt to safety, breaking both legs, while his spooked mules plunged off the precipice—a location known today as “Koogle Jump-Off.”
I face my own challenges with the Caprock Escarpment on a recent bicycle ride across the historic JA Ranch, skirting the Caprock between Clarendon and Goodnight. My quadriceps burn as we pedal 500-foot climbs to the tabletop of the High Plains, and my grip strains on my handlebars as we descend bumpy roads of gravel and sand through the drainages of the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River.
Enjoying this article?But more than anything, I’m exhilarated as I ride through an area of the Panhandle rich with canyon scenery and frontier history. Departing from the Donley County Courthouse in Clarendon, we ride gravel bikes—essentially beefy road bikes with bigger tires that can handle all kinds of surfaces—50 miles across the JA Ranch, ending at the Charles and Mary Ann Goodnight Ranch State Historic Site. The route is a variation of Goodnight’s Grind, a race held each October.
“It’s one of the few safe routes going across the Panhandle, with little to no vehicle traffic, which is always a bonus,” says Chris Podzemny, my guide for the ride. “The Panhandle is known for being flat, but then we have the Caprock where it drops off anywhere from 300 to 1,000 feet. There aren’t many roads like this that traverse the Caprock.”
Podzemny ought to know. As a community health ambassador for the Amarillo-based Fairly Foundation and a director of the nonprofit Six Pack Outdoors, he promotes bicycling and builds and maintains mountain-biking trails throughout the Panhandle. When he finds time to explore, Podzemny pedals to distant reaches of the Panhandle on his gravel bike.
Departing Clarendon, we follow paved roads for about 10 miles before hitting dirt on County Road X. Here the Caprock crumbles, giving way to endless views across the Mulberry Creek drainage. We descend through layers of red, orange, and cream-colored rock—reminiscent of nearby Palo Duro Canyon—before crossing Mulberry Creek and then traversing a high valley where the escarpment hems the horizon in every direction.
Coming across an old schoolhouse that once served the children of JA Ranch employees, we spook a barn owl. It flaps away, its white breast and wings flashing against the deep blue sky. A few miles later, we arrive at the JA Ranch headquarters, where a handful of houses, stables, and a post office make up the community of Paloduro.
Charles Goodnight, a pioneer rancher, established the JA in partnership with English financier John Adair in 1876. Starting in Palo Duro Canyon—two years after the U.S. military expelled the Southern Plains tribes in the Red River War—the pair gradually expanded the ranch to more than 1 million acres. Goodnight kept peace with Comanche leader Quanah Parker by agreeing to supply the Comanches with two cows every other day in exchange for them leaving the JA herd alone. In 1879, Goodnight and Adair moved the headquarters to its present location, where Adair descendants still reside in a Yellowstone-esque ranch house.
From the headquarters, we pedal another 23 miles up and down the Caprock bluffs before emerging on the rim at Koogle Jump-Off, and then we cycle a few final miles on pavement to the Goodnight Ranch State Historic Site. Charles and his wife, Mary Ann, built this Victorian ranch house in 1887, and it still feels like a beacon on the plains.
I take in the scene as we load up our bikes, watching the distant sky as cumulus clouds give way to afternoon rain virgas. The fatigue of the ride settles into my muscles and joints, though I know full well my trials are trivial compared to those who navigated this landscape in the 19th century. But I like to think we would’ve shared an appreciation for the beauty of this place.
Four classic bike rides around the state
Northeast Texas Trail
Following old railroad beds, this 130-mile ride from the Dallas area to Texarkana is moderately challenging with sections of pavement, crushed stone, dirt, and gravel surfaces. Check the Northeast Texas Trail Coalition website for updates on section closures and new additions. netexastrail.org
Lake Mineral Wells State Park & Trailway
A 20-mile former railroad bed that connects Mineral Wells and Weatherford, this ride’s flat grades and gentle curves make it accessible to all levels of riders.
tpwd.texas.gov
Fresno-Sauceda Loop trail
An intense 60-mile ride through Big Bend Ranch State Park, this trail is for expert mountain bikers. The International Mountain Biking Association designated the route as “epic,” a distinction for “immersive rides that are technically and physically challenging, beautiful to behold, and worthy of celebration.”
tpwd.texas.gov
San Antonio River Walk Hike and Bike Trail
Stretching from the Museum Reach to the Mission Reach, this 15-mile route links San Antonio’s five missions via easy paved trails.
nps.gov
