Travel & Outdoors
January 18, 2024
A Fern Fairyland Enchants Hikers in the Unlikeliest of Places
A cool, green oasis delights visitors who venture off the trail at Caprock Canyons State Park, in the Panhandle.
Panhandle
Latest
1-28 of 28 Articles
Travel & Outdoors
November 6, 2023
Six Great Texas Hikes for Families With Kids
Whatever you do, don’t forget the special snacks.
Film & TV
October 16, 2023
Ken Burns’s ‘The American Buffalo’ Isn’t Really About Bison
It’s about the violence that white settlers wrought upon the West—and the path to redemption.
Parks & Recs
September 20, 2023
After a Summer of Heat Deaths, Texas Parks Debate How to Protect Hikers
Six hikers died from heat-related causes in Texas state and national parks this summer. Should trail closures on the hottest days be standard?
Health
September 11, 2023
When Is It Too Hot for Texas Teens to Play Football?
When my son joined a middle school team, I researched heat safety. What I found was troubling.
Film & TV
July 10, 2023
Anne Rapp Immortalized Small-town Texas on the Big Screen. But She Can’t Stop Her Hometown From Fading Away.
During Anne Rapp’s Hollywood career, she worked with the biggest names in movies. Now, at 72, she’s ready to tell her own stories about her Panhandle upbringing.
Sports
March 10, 2023
This Panhandle School Is the Tiniest Girls Basketball Powerhouse in Texas
The Nazareth Swiftettes have won 25 state championships in less than fifty years—and they just hung another banner for 2023.
Critters
November 11, 2022
Where to Watch Thousands of Sandhill Cranes Storm the Texas Skies
Each winter, a wildlife sanctuary near the Panhandle hosts one of the world’s largest gatherings of these beautiful birds.
Film & TV
June 2, 2022
‘Deep in the Heart’ Gives Texas the ‘Planet Earth’ Treatment
The visually stunning new nature documentary, narrated by Matthew McConaughey, is a delight.
Texas Country Reporter
May 23, 2022
97-Year-Old Lucy Dean Record Is a Queen of Western Swing
The piano teacher turned touring musician from Lockney has been inducted into several halls of fame across the U.S.
Music
May 20, 2022
A Trip to Turkey, Texas, Where Western Swing Is Still King
Bob Wills fans flock each spring to the tiny Panhandle town to “dance all night, dance a little longer.”
Style & Design
February 17, 2022
The Unhinged Amenities at T. Boone Pickens’s $170 Million Ranch, Ranked
Bet you can't guess which old-time crooner's front door is, for some reason, included on the oil billionaire's property.
Politics & Policy
February 9, 2022
Retiring Kel Seliger Hopes Someone Else in the Texas GOP Will Stand Up To Dan Patrick
The old-school conservative spoke with us about partisan gerrymandering, Patrick’s hold on the state Senate, and Donald Trump.
Art
December 27, 2021
How Georgia O’Keeffe’s Texas Years Shaped Her Art
While teaching in the Panhandle, the painter fell in love with the “wonderfully big” plains—and acquired an eye for light that would make her one of the all-time greats.
Where to Stay Now
November 9, 2021
Art Is Everywhere in Amarillo
With a creative scene that includes the classic Cadillac Ranch and vibrant downtown murals, this Panhandle city, home to a new boutique hotel, invites you to stay and enjoy the scenery.
The Texanist
April 12, 2021
The Texanist: Do You Miss the Texas County That Is Now Part of Oklahoma?
A man from the Sooner State has a question about the other Red River Rivalry.
Energy
March 31, 2021
America’s Offshore Wind-Powered Future Begins in a Texas Shipyard
In announcing an ambitious renewable-energy push this week, the Biden administration highlighted a vessel under construction in Brownsville as proof of the economic opportunities of going green.
Libations
October 29, 2020
Five Things You Didn’t Know About Texas Wine
The Southwest—not California—was the birthplace of the U.S. wine industry; the Panhandle—not the Hill Country—is where Texas grapes grow best; and other little-known facts.
BBQ
October 29, 2020
BBQ News: A Very Bad Take About Barbecue in America
Plus, our very own BBQ Fest culminates in a virtual backyard barbecue this Sunday.
Travel & Outdoors
October 7, 2020
Tour de Texas, Week 5: Getting by With a Little Help From My Friends
At first, I had only cows and wind turbines for company on lonely stretches of Panhandle highway. Then supporters showed up to help the miles go faster.
Being Texan
January 22, 2020
Small-town Benefactors: The Merchant Prince of the Panhandle
High finance in the High Plains.
Sports
March 11, 2013
Hoop Queens
Half a century ago, the women’s basketball team at Wayland Baptist College set an extraordinary record that may never be broken: the longest winning streak in sports history.
News & Politics
January 20, 2013
Boone Pickens and the Roach Motel
The controversial home of an embattled college president is a symbol of a Panhandle brawl full of conspiracies.
News & Politics
August 31, 1995
Waterworld
Roberts County landowners are battling to save the Ogallala Aquifer—and what remains of their agrarian past.
Travel & Outdoors
July 1, 1988
The Meanest River
Yes, it’s muddy, it’s treacherous, and it smells bad enough to gag a skunk; but it’s also the only thing between us and Oklahoma.
Being Texan
January 1, 1988
This Land Is My Land
Growing up, I took the Panhandle’s plain nature for granted. Only after years away and a sentimental journey home did I take it to heart.
Sports
October 1, 1987
The World According to Coach
Never say Kant, Socrates it to ’em, and other collected wisdom from Texas’ Friday-night philosophers.
Parks & Recs
August 31, 1983
Texas Primer: Caprock
Across the Panhandle stretches a thin red line that divides doughty plains dwellers from Texas’ lesser changed.