Seminole Canyon, located nine miles west of Comstock, Texas off US 90, features native-painted petrography more than 4,000 years ago. When Egypt began to build its pyramids, the shamans of the local native foragers painted their dreams on the walls and ceilings of the shelters along this canyon.

His favorite color choice was red: a mixture of ocher rock, sotol or yucca juice, and deer fat. Due to the harshness and shelter from the wind and other elements, many of the petrographs have survived to this day. They were painted on limestone. Their once brilliant colors have been hidden by the soot and smoke from many fires started by the natives in these shelters.

Many shamans are depicted holding a atalatl. They have human or animal feet. Some have the head of a cougar and the antlers of a deer. Their arms are outstretched and they have medicine bags hanging from their wrists. Sometimes his arms are depicted as wings.

Two plants were the shaman’s favorites for causing hallucinations and visions: peyote and datura. The cult of peyote was represented as red or black balls. Holding a plant that represents the cult of the datura.

A circle always represented the entrance to the spirit world. A wavy line shows the way. On the other side there is usually a monster of some kind. The monster has a stuck spear.

Many of the petrographers have succumbed to the elements and mottling of limestone and the ravages of man.

Daily tours are given to this petrography. Expect to spend about two hours for the tour: one and a half hours for the tour itself and another half hour to return to the visitor center. The descent into the canyon is over 800 feet, going down uneven stone stairs. Then you have to ascend to the two shelters. There are places to rest along the way. Drink water and dress in layers.

Another twenty-five miles to the west is the small town of Langtry. Judge Roy Bean called this city home. He was appointed Justice of the Peace with the help of the Southern Pacific Railroad, which ran from New Orleans to San Francisco. He promptly meted out justice in accordance with the Western Pecos Law. She ran a salon called Jersey Lilly, named for British actress Lillie Langtry. He was in love with her photo and wrote many letters inviting her to visit her. He even told her that he named the city. When he arrived for the visit in 1904, Judge Bean had been dead for four months and was buried in Del Rio, Texas.

When a prisoner was brought in, Judge Bean would lock the room, select a jury from among his clients, and celebrate court, with the Texas Revised Statutes of 1879 and a pistol on the desk. It assumed the reputation of “The judge of the gallows”. The records, however, show that he never hung up on anyone. For a cattle thief or horse thief, the punishment was the expulsion of Langtry and the confiscation of his horse, pistol and all other property. If the person ever returned, they would be hanged. Few survived crossing this wasteland without horses and firearms.

In the modern visitor center there is a fifteen minute film describing the life and times of Judge Roy Bean. The Jersey Lilly Pool Hall and Hall, and Roy Bean’s Opera House and Seat of Justice (his home) where he wanted Lillie Langtry to perform for him. An interpretive path of the cactus garden completes the attractions of this site.

Langtry is a lively city of thirty inhabitants. Meals are almost non-existent. So bring your own or stop at Comstock or further west.

Be sure to start at the Pecos River lookout. Looking south, you will see where the river flows into the Rio Grande and the hills of Mexico. To the north is Highway 90 and the rugged cliffs along this mighty river. Along US 90, Border Patrol agents are seen in their cars searching for illegals who have crossed the river and are attempting to cross the Sonoran Desert.