Where the Bison Roam

Popular Texas state park expands with 2,200 more acres to explore

Caprock Canyons has 2,200 more acres to explore.

Popular Texas state park expands with massive 2,200-acre acquisition

A popular state park in the Texas Panhandle that's known for its roaming bison population is getting a major expansion after recent land acquisitions by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD).

Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway, located at 850 State Park Rd. in Quitaque, approximately an hour-and-a-half north of Lubbock, has added approximately 2,200 acres. It will now encompass 17,500 total acres of the Caprock Escarpment in Briscoe County, according to a press release.

TPWD first expanded the park with the purchase of the 1,066-acre Rocking W Ranch in 2024, and then the department acquired the 1,120-acre Hawkins Ranch in January 2026.

"The Hawkins Ranch is the last piece of property to the west [of the park] that protects our viewshed of the canyon and affects our watershed," said Superintendent Donald Beard in the release. "The Rocking W Ranch was also important because it expands the park to the northwest, allowing the Texas State Bison Herd potential access to the high plains."

The release said a 5,000-square-foot, fully furnished "barndominium" was included in the purchase of the Rocking W Ranch property, and it will be used for "future family-style retreats for activities like hiking and horseback riding."

Park visitors have access to more than 90 miles of trails at Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway for hiking, biking, horseback riding, and bison-watching. Lake Theo, a 120-acre lake on the south side of the park, is open for swimming, fishing, and no-wake boating.

Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway TPWD encourages visitors to take caution when observing bison.Photo courtesy of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

Wildlife enthusiasts can search for bats roosting in the Clarity Tunnel, an abandoned railroad tunnel that 500,000 Mexican free-tailed bats call home from late April through mid-October. TPWD said even more local wildlife can be found by visitors with the acquisition of the Hawkins Ranch, such as quail, mule deer, coyotes, bobcats, and more.

The park is also a designated International Dark Sky Park, meaning overnight campers have unobstructed views of the stars in the sky thanks to light pollution reduction and prevention efforts.

"At night, Caprock Canyons transforms into one of the darkest and most awe-inspiring skies in Texas," the International Dark Sky Association said. "Far from urban light pollution, the park’s remote location allows visitors to experience an exceptional view of the Milky Way, countless constellations, and celestial events in their purest form."

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airport news

Here's why Houston's George Bush airport has such long security lines

Trump Sends ICE Agents To Airports As DHS Remains Unfunded

Photo by Antranik Tavitian/Getty Images

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George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston has become the symbol for how the ongoing partial government shutdown has wreaked havoc on the nation’s air travel system.

While long security lines have hobbled airports across the U.S., Bush Intercontinental’s problems have been more pronounced. Frustrated travelers at Houston’s largest airport have confronted warnings of four-hour wait times to get through security, as many Transportation Security Administration workers aren’t showing up for their shifts since they’re not getting paid during the shutdown.

“And we’ve been in this airport since 8 o’clock in the morning. Very tired, queuing and queuing and very slow,” Edgaer Fernando, who was traveling to Guatemala, said on Tuesday.

Union and airport officials have offered a variety of reasons why Bush Intercontinental seems to be worse than other airports.

These include the Houston airport having one of the highest callout rates of TSA workers in the country due to the economic challenges they are facing, higher passenger traffic as the airport is a major hub for United Airlines, and a busy tourism month for Houston.

More TSA workers in Houston are not coming to work compared to other cities

Both Bush Intercontinental and Hobby, the city’s other major airport, have had some of the highest callout rates in the U.S.

While 11 percent of TSA workers nationally did not show up for work on Tuesday, at Bush Intercontinental, that number was nearly 40 percent. At Hobby, it was even higher — 43 percent. The callout rate in Houston has averaged between 35 percent and 40 percent, said Johnny Jones, the secretary and treasurer for Council 100 of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents TSA workers nationwide.

But Bush Intercontinental is much busier than Hobby, having served over 48.4 million passengers in 2024, compared to 14.6 million passengers at Hobby.

Jim Szczesniak, director of aviation for the Houston Airport System, said that at Bush Intercontinental, 37 TSA checkpoint lanes are usually operating. Only between a third and 50 percent of lanes are currently being operated, he said.

“We worry conditions will only get worse at airports across the U.S. until Congress ends this shutdown,” Szczesniak said in a video posted on social media Tuesday.

TSA workers were already dealing with financial difficulties and debt from last year’s shutdown, and with higher costs for groceries and gas, employees “are just tired of it," Jones said.

“There could be a million factors, but I can just tell you as simple as this: If everybody’s being paid, you wouldn’t have no lines,” Jones said.

Bush Intercontinental is among the nation’s largest hub airports

The Houston airport is one of the nation’s busiest and is also a major hub for United Airlines. Of the 48.4 million passengers that went through the airport in 2024, 34.8 million were from United Airlines.

“There’s high call outs, but it’s also the excessive origination point for a lot of flights,” Jones said.

With the high volume of passengers, the Houston airport might have also been experiencing a staffing shortage even before the shutdown, as no TSA workers have been hired around the country in about a year, Jones said.

March has been a busy month for Houston

Besides spring break travelers, Houston has hosted a variety of high-profile events this month.

These include games during the World Baseball Classic and CERAWeek, a major energy conference with more than 10,000 participants from around the world. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo reportedly drew 2.6 million attendees, many from outside the metro area, during its three-week duration. And this week, two of the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 games will be played in Houston.

“While the delays are frustrating for travelers, they do not appear to be impacting tourism. In fact, Houston is experiencing the strongest month of March in terms of hotel rooms and reservations in the city’s history,” Mayor John Whitmire said in a statement.

Wait times at Bush Intercontinental seemed to improve on Wednesday as it took less than two hours to get through TSA security.

“Everyone’s trying their best. And thanks to all the TSA members who are here,” Raj Chauhan, who was traveling to Miami, said on Wednesday.

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