标签德克萨斯下的文章

南帕德里岛，美国得克萨斯州 South Padre Island, Texas (© Jeff R Clow/Getty Images)

一望无际的天空 An endless stretch of sky

南帕德里岛，美国得克萨斯州

南帕德里岛位于得克萨斯州墨西哥湾海岸的近海几英里处，是该州最大、最长的堰洲岛。像南帕德里岛这样的堰洲岛通常与海岸平行，是大陆抵御风暴的第一道防线。南帕德里岛通过一座大桥和大陆相连，每年都有成千上万的游客来岛上游泳、划船、钓鱼、放风筝，或者惬意地躺在沙滩上晒太阳。另外，岛上还分布着各式各样的精致沙堡，这些引人注目的沙堡由世界各地的艺术家创作而成。

South Padre Island, Texas

Located a few miles offshore on the Texas Gulf Coast, Padre Island is the largest of the state's string of barrier islands. At 113 miles in length, it is also the longest barrier island in the world. Barrier islands usually run parallel to the coast and, as the name suggests, serve as the mainland's first line of defense against storms.

Since the Port Mansfield Channel was built in the early 1960s, Padre Island has been split into two parts, South Padre Island, pictured here, and North Padre Island. Connected by a bridge to the shore, the resort town of South Padre Island draws in thousands of visitors every year for swimming, boating, fishing, or simply lounging on the beach. Others come for the trail of elaborate sandcastles scattered across the island, created by professional artists.

大弯国家公园中里奥格兰德河的景色，德克萨斯州 View of the Rio Grande River in Big Bend National Park, Texas (© Ian Shive/Tandem Stills + Motion)

In Texas, even the riverbend is big

We're celebrating the 77th birthday of Big Bend National Park, the place the National Park Service calls 'one of the last remaining wild corners of the United States.' To get here, you have to be committed. This rugged terrain, which covers almost a million acres, is one of the most remote spots in the country—it's hours from the nearest towns or the closest airport, making it one of the least-visited national parks in the country. Those who do make the effort to get to Big Bend are rewarded with an undeveloped natural beauty, and silence, two things that seem to be in short supply these days.

At Big Bend you'll find craggy hiking trails, red mountain vistas, limestone canyons, and hot springs alongside the famous Rio Grande. There's also the wildlife you'd expect to find in the Wild, Wild West, including rattlesnakes, packs of javelinas, and 20 species of bats. But it's the huge night sky unencumbered by light pollution that draws stargazers to Big Bend from all over the world. After all, everything, as they say, is bigger in Texas.

在德克萨斯州，连河湾都很大

我们正在庆祝大弯国家公园77岁生日，国家公园管理局称之为“美国仅存的野生角落之一”。要到这里，你必须全力以赴。这片崎岖不平的土地占地近百万英亩，是美国最偏远的地区之一，距离最近的城镇或最近的机场只有几个小时的路程，使它成为美国游客最少的国家公园之一。那些努力到达大弯的人得到的回报是未开发的自然美景和沉默，这两样东西现在似乎供不应求。

在大弯，你会发现崎岖的徒步小径、红色的山景、石灰岩峡谷和著名的格兰德河旁的温泉。在野生的西部，你也会发现野生动物，包括响尾蛇，标枪和20种蝙蝠。但正是没有光污染的巨大夜空吸引着来自世界各地的天文爱好者来到大弯。毕竟，正如他们所说，德克萨斯的一切都更大。

银河下的圣埃伦娜峡谷，德克萨斯州大弯国家公园 Santa Elena Canyon under the Milky Way in Big Bend National Park, Texas (© Stanley Ford/Shutterstock)

Big sky at Big Bend

Seventy-six years ago today, on June 12, 1944, Big Bend officially became a US national park. The park covers more than 800,000 acres in West Texas along the Mexico border. This vast area—big enough to swallow Rhode Island—contains mountain, river, and desert ecosystems, including the largest protected area of the Chihuahuan Desert in the United States. Far removed from any urban centers and the light pollution that comes with them, Big Bend boasts some of the darkest skies you'll find in the lower 48, earning it a designation as an International Dark Sky Park. Even after 76 years, Big Bend still glows.

Where the wildflowers grow

In honor of National Wildflower Week, we're looking at a field of blooming bluebonnets, the state flower of Texas. If you notice bluebonnets and other blooms while traveling down Texas highways, thank the state's Department of Transportation, which sows tens of thousands of pounds of wildflower seeds along roadways each year.

But wildflowers aren't just pretty to look at. Most of these native plants grow on their own—without the need for cultivation—helping preserve water, protect against erosion, and provide habitat for birds, butterflies, and other critters. Plus, they have a restorative quality for the mind, just as wildflower-lover Lady Bird Johnson once said: 'Where flowers bloom, so does hope.'

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