The Vagabonds (TRS Adventure Group) decided to have our yearly adventure in Colorado for 2025. The adventure would officially start on Sunday August 17th when we all meet at a campground in La Veta, Colorado. We would spend Monday-Thursday exploring various mountain passes and sights before travelling to Loveland on Friday for the Overland Expo Mountain West.
Since we were coming from different parts of the country, we would all leave at different times and take different routes to get to Colorado. Eric (Curious_hound) ended up at my house in Texas at 4:00 AM on Thursday August 14th travelling from South Carolina to Durango, Colorado. Eric had a reservation to not only ride on the Durango & Silverton Railroad on Saturday the 16th, but to do so in the cab of the locomotive.
(Eric in the cab of the Durango & Silverton Railroad locomotive)
Robbie (Robertmangrum.rm) was heading to Colorado from Tennessee and planned to drive as far as Oklahoma City on Thursday night, so we agreed to meet and camp at the Hog Creek Campground at Lake Thunderbird just outside of Norman, Oklahoma. The campground is only 2.5 hours from my house and was a pretty nice campground. The next morning, I woke up to a nice view from my tent as the sun came up over the lake.
It only cost $16.00 to camp here and the campground had a toilet and shower, but the shower area had poor ventilation, and the room heats up quick when the sun comes up. You definitely want to get your shower early if you shower in the morning.
Friday morning would be day two of our trip, and I knew we wouldn’t be meeting with the rest of our group until Sunday, so there was no pressure to get to any specific point today. The plan was to head west and figure it out as we went. We had no idea of what we’d see, or where we’d stop for the night. The only thing we knew for certain is that there’s nothing to see along the interstate and we wanted to avoid it as much as possible. We did end up on IS44 for a little while as we headed southwest towards US62.
As we approached Lawton, Oklahoma, I saw a mountain appear and realized that we were getting close to Wichita Mountain. Wichita Mountain is a small unique mountain range in southwest Oklahoma and is the home of Fort Sill, the Fort Sill Firing Range, and the Wichita Mountains Wilderness. Thanks to careful management, a remnant bunch of 15 buffalo has grown to a maintained herd of about 650, which live among the rugged rocky outcroppings, oak forests, and the mixed-grass prairie of the refuge. Rare in this area, a herd of about 285 free-ranging Texas longhorn cattle shares the Wilderness with elk, deer, prairie dogs and buffalo.
We headed to the top of Mount Scott to check out the view. At 2,469 feet above sea level, it was an easy drive to the top and provided a nice view but would be dwarfed by the 12,000+ foot views we would see later in the week.
Sometimes you can see and hear the United States Army firing field artillery from Fort Sill from the top of Mount Scott. Fort Sill consists of 94,000 acres, has been here since 1869, and has played a significant role in every major American conflict since. Fort Sill is also the site of Geronimo’s gravesite.
Geronimo (1829–1909) was a Chiricahua Apache leader and warrior who became famous for resisting U.S. and Mexican military campaigns during the late 19th century. For decades, he led raids and fought to defend Apache lands in present-day Arizona, New Mexico, and northern Mexico.
After years of conflict, Geronimo and his followers finally surrendered to U.S. forces in 1886, making him one of the last Native leaders to do so. Because of repeated escapes and his defiance, the U.S. government treated him not as a typical prisoner but as a prisoner of war, along with hundreds of other Chiricahua Apaches, and exiled them to Florida, Alabama, and eventually Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
Geronimo spent the final years of his life at Fort Sill. Though still officially a prisoner of war, he became a well-known public figure, appearing at fairs, parades, and even the 1904 World’s Fair. He died there on February 17, 1909, at the age of 79, from pneumonia after falling from his horse and being unable to get help in the cold. He was buried in the Apache cemetery at Fort Sill.
(Robbie & Zane)
The area is also home to The Holy City of The Wichita’s. The Holy City of the Wichita’s is home to North America’s longest continuously running Easter Pageant, “The Prince of Peace.” Since 1925, the Easter Pageant has kept alive the true story of the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
In the mid-1920’s, Reverend Anthony Mark Wallock looked out at the stunning Wichita Mountains and was inspired to create his vision of Jerusalem and the Holy Land. With the help of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s government work programs, Work Progress Administration (WPA) and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), The Holy City, as you see it today was constructed in 1934/1936 and sits on 66 acres in the beautiful Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge.
The Holy City is a private/public partnership with the Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge. Although federal funds were used to construct and furnish the facility no government entity, federal or state or otherwise, contributes to the ongoing operation and it operates solely by donations.
Leaving The Holy City of the Wichita’s we saw a bunch of prairie dogs and a buffalo, but the pictures from the truck didn’t turn out very well.
We also saw this danger sign alerting us that artillery may be fired over the road in this area. That’s definitely not a sign you get to see very often.
We continued our journey west and stopped at the Dollar General in Hollis, Oklahoma. Right next to it was an old Gas Station that someone appeared to have taken great pride in and we just had to get a picture of it with our trucks.
From Hollis we continued west towards Memphis, Texas where we stopped and refueled at a Loves Travel Stop before finally making it to Amarillo.
I had always heard of the Big Texan 72-ounce steak challenge. You can’t cross Texas without seeing a billboard for it. Since 1962 the Big Texan Steak Ranch has offered a challenge; If you can eat a 72-ounce (4.5-pound) steak, baked potato, 3-piece breaded shrimp, side salad, and bread roll in one hour, it’s free. They actually have a Live Stream so you can watch people attempting the challenge.
History of The 72-Ounce Steak Challenge:
Soon after the original Route 66 Big Texan open its doors in 1960, owner Bob (RJ) Lee was amazed at how many REAL Texas Cowboys, were coming in for his HUGE TEXAS SIZE STEAKS, that his menu offered. He also saw how much fun his out-of-town patrons & visitors were having watching these true Texans trying to “out do” each other’s carnivorous appetites.
Most of his Big Cowboy’s dinners came from a near-by stockyard operation & would stop in after a long day’s work. Fridays was payday at the stockyard & he would cash their paychecks & offer 25 cent beer.
One Friday, he put several tables together in the center of the dining room & sat all the cowboys together & told them he wanted to see who could eat the most one-pound steaks in an hour. The cost was $5 per eater & whoever ate the most got to keep the entire entry-fee
The rules were simple; you could not get up during the contest or have anyone help you eat, you did not have to eat the fat & if you got sick, you were out. The cowboys put in their money, took a seat & the contest was on, steaks were flying.
One of the eaters took the lead by swallowing two steaks in ten minutes. Next he politely requested a salad & a shrimp cocktail be served with his third steak. He consumed the extras, then this soft spoken giant called for his fourth steak & ask for a baked potato & a bread roll. He wasted little time on devouring those items & called for his fifth steak.
As the hour contest came to an end, this gastronomic superman had eaten:
4-1/2 pounds of steak, (which is 72 oz’s) baked potato, shrimp cocktail, salad & a bread roll.
In his amazement & delight of the crowd, Owner Bob (RJ) Lee stood up on a chair in the middle of the dining room to proclaimed that: “from this day forward, anyone who could eat the entire 72 oz dinner-in one hour– gets it for FREE.
On that date in 1962 the legendary 72oz Steak Challenge was born & to this date the contest stands strong.
We decided to stop at the Big Texan and eat dinner. I couldn’t persuade Robbie to take the steak challenge, but we did see someone complete it while we were there. They have a table with six chairs up on a small stage with six timers on the wall letting everyone know how much time you have left to finish your steak. The guy in the photo below actually finished it in time. We ended up getting some burgers and a brisket sandwich and the food was pretty good. While we were there a guy named Elvis came by and sang us a song. No, he didn’t sound like that Elvis.
Below is a video from Man VS Food where Adam completes the 72-ounce steak challenge.
Leaving The Big Texan, we headed over to Cadillac Ranch. Cadillac Ranch is a public art installation and sculpture in Amarillo, Texas. It was created in 1974 by Chip Lord, Hudson Marquez and Doug Michels, who were a part of the art group Ant Farm. The project was funded by Stanley Marsh 3 and was located on Marsh’s land along IS40 (US Route 66). The installation consists of a row of ten Cadillacs (1949–1963) buried nose-first in the ground spanning the successive generations of the car line – and the defining evolution of their tailfins.
There was no signage identifying the site, making it hard to convey the installation was an artist-made sculptural piece. Seeing the installation up close required some want-to. “You used to have to stop on the road, take your life in your own hands, go through a barbed wire fence, and hope for the best,” says Tom Livesay, director of the Amarillo Art Center in 1974.
A year later, journalist Charles Kuralt, host of the folksy On the Road program on the CBS television network, passed by in his bus, pulled over, and put Cadillac Ranch on the map. He was charmed. “At first, we thought someone might be trying to raise little baby Cadillacs,” Kuralt says. “Then we thought maybe the farmer just parked them this way each year after he bought a new model.”
Next came the bullet holes, an instinctive reaction around the Panhandle. “If there’s something out there and you don’t know what it is, shoot it!”
Then came the spray paint. First as simple graffiti tags—names, expressions of love, expressions of hate. Then wholesale paint jobs. “I was kind of outraged when people started spray-painting it,” Livesay says. “I asked Stanley what he thought of that, and he said, ‘I don’t give a damn.’ It showed ownership. People had to care enough about it, or hated it enough, to come see it. And they did.”
Cadillac Ranch was originally located in a wheat field, but in 1997 the installation was quietly moved by a local contractor to a location two miles (three kilometers) to the west, to a cow pasture along IS40, in order to place it farther from the limits of the growing city. Both sites belonged to Stanley Marsh 3. Marsh was well known in the city for his longtime patronage of artistic endeavors. As of 2013, Stanley Marsh 3 did not own the Cadillac Ranch; ownership appears to have been transferred to a family trust some time before his June 2014 death.
Here is a list of the Cadillacs at Cadillac Ranch:
- 1949 Club Coupe
- 1950 Series 62 Sedan
- 1954 Coupe de Ville
- 1956 Series 62 Sedan
- 1957 Sedan
- 1958 Sedan
- 1959 Coupe
- 1960 Four door “four window” hardtop Sedan de Ville (flat top)
- 1962 Four Window Sedan
- 1963 Sedan de Ville
Below: Charles Kuralt’s On the Road visits Cadillac Ranch.
This is how Cadillac Ranch looked when Robbie, Zane and I visited it. The sun was setting when we arrived, and I wasn’t sure if there would be enough light to see it and take photos, but I was actually happy with how they turned out.
We had hoped to camp somewhere near Amarillo, but we couldn’t find any campgrounds. Either there was no answer by phone, the reviews were bad, or the campground was going too far in the wrong direction. I think Robbie’s wife was a little concerned that we didn’t have any idea where we were staying and were ‘winging it’, but I like travelling that way.
Looking at Google Maps I saw that there were some campgrounds north around Lake Meredith, but those were first come first serve and there was a chance they could all be taken since it was a Friday night. They were also a little out of our way.
Following the route we were taking, I saw that the city of Dalhart, Texas had a camping area in their park, so we headed there. We thought the campsites were going to be $15 but when we got there the sign said $30. It’s a self-pay area where you put money in a supplied envelope and deposit it. The sites had water and electric, but we didn’t need it. There was also a bathroom. $30 was a bit much, but still cheaper than a KOA campground or staying at a motel.
We got there around 11:00 PM and made camp. It was actually pretty quiet and nobody else was camping there. In the morning, we found out why you should always check your shoes before you put them on.
Stay tuned for day three.
Vagabonds Colorado Adventure 2025 – Day Two Map:
- A = Hog Creek Campground at Lake Thunderbird
- B = Mount Scott Lookout / Wichita Mountain
- C = The Holy City of the Wichita’s & Prairie Dog Village
- D = The Big Texan Steak Ranch
- E = Cadillac Ranch
- F = Dalhart City Campground
Photo Gallery:
Jim Oaks is the founder of TheRangerStation.com, the longest-running Ford Ranger resource online since 1999. With over 25 years of hands-on experience building and modifying Ford Rangers — including magazine-featured builds like Project Transformer — Jim has become one of the most trusted authorities in the Ford Ranger off-road and enthusiast space. In 2019, he was loaned a Ranger FX4 by Ford Motor Company to test and document across the TransAmerica Trail. Jim continues to inspire and guide Ranger owners around the world.
