Posted by Night Flyer on January 31, 2002 at 15:44:34:
Palo Duro Canyon (Hard Wood Canyon)
In the flat featureless panhandle of Texas, 20 miles south of Amarillo (and Interstate 40), lays a 16,000-acre hole in the ground. The canyon which is approximately 120 miles long, 20 miles wide, and 800 feet deep was once used by Native Americans as a refuge from the driving winds of the plains, outlaws hiding from the law, ranchers and tourists. It has now reverted back to a refuge for drifters and outlaws. The terrain is rough, the rocks are sharp, the hiding places are plentiful… the perfect hideout for a nomad pack. With the close proximity of I-40 corridor the canyon is an ideal hideout for highway bandits, the local law enforcement of Amarillo doesn’t have the resources to scour the area for the bandits, so they try, in vain, to patrol the roads better.
Several nomad packs and bandits fight for control of the canyon but with the vast area it covers no one group can control it all.