EXPLORING NATURE: COMANCHE SPRINGS

Two things that once brought me a great deal of happiness are no longer available.

Both came from Pecos County in Texas.

First, I miss the Pecos cantaloupe. At one time, this sweet melon was as famous as Fredericksburg peaches are today. Lyndon Johnson and Dwight Eisenhower both were fans. It was a sweet, flavorful Texas treat.

Farmers grew these cantaloupes as early as 1910 and they first gained favor after being served on train dining cars.

Meanwhile, another Texas treasure was Comanche Springs in Fort Stockton. This marvelous spot featured six artesian springs coming up at one location before running away to eventually join the Rio Grande River.

A bathhouse was constructed and the huge artesian pool became a recreational mecca for people throughout Texas.

I remember on one visit I sat beside the shaded pool and there were loudspeakers playing music – the tune I particularly remember was “Some Enchanted Evening.” It was a wonderful pool and the water was cool and crystal clear. The Pecos cantaloupe,

The Pecos cantaloupe, meanwhile, was great as a breakfast dish, a luncheon treat or as a sinful dessert with scoops of vanilla ice cream. Blue Bell even offered a Pecos cantaloupe flavor.

Ahh, but things do change.

Farmers grew fewer and fewer cantaloupes in Pecos as both irrigated land and pickers became harder to come by. Finally, the artesian springs dried up as massive amounts of water were siphoned off for irrigating fields of alfalfa.

There is now a conventional swimming pool in Fort Stockton. And farmers still grow limited acres of cantaloupes – but nothing like in the good old days.

I miss the Pecos cantaloupe. I also miss a chance to swim in the marvelous Comanche Springs.

I even miss hearing “Some Enchanted Evening.”