Lajitas, Texas
Lajitas, Texas | |
---|---|
Unincorporated community | |
Coordinates: 29°15′42″N 103°46′36″W / 29.26167°N 103.77667°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Texas |
County | Brewster |
Elevation | 2,342 ft (714 m) |
Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
ZIP codes | 79852 |
Area code | 432 |
GNIS feature ID | 1339481 |
Lajitas is an unincorporated community in Brewster County, Texas, United States, in proximity to the Big Bend National Park.
History
The settlement is named for the Boquillas flagstone found in the area. "Lajitas" translates to "little flat rocks" in Spanish.[1]
Geography
Climate
Lajitas has a hot semi-arid climate with very hot summers and mild winters.
Climate data for Lajitas, Texas (Mar 1, 1978–Mar 31, 2013) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 89 (32) |
98 (37) |
102 (39) |
109 (43) |
113 (45) |
115 (46) |
113 (45) |
112 (44) |
110 (43) |
104 (40) |
97 (36) |
90 (32) |
115 (46) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 68.8 (20.4) |
75.0 (23.9) |
83.1 (28.4) |
91.2 (32.9) |
97.8 (36.6) |
102.2 (39.0) |
100.5 (38.1) |
99.1 (37.3) |
95.1 (35.1) |
87.8 (31.0) |
77.4 (25.2) |
69.2 (20.7) |
87.3 (30.7) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 51.7 (10.9) |
57.1 (13.9) |
64.5 (18.1) |
72.7 (22.6) |
80.8 (27.1) |
87.6 (30.9) |
87.3 (30.7) |
86.0 (30.0) |
81.5 (27.5) |
72.0 (22.2) |
60.5 (15.8) |
52.2 (11.2) |
71.2 (21.8) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 34.6 (1.4) |
39.1 (3.9) |
45.8 (7.7) |
54.3 (12.4) |
63.8 (17.7) |
73.0 (22.8) |
74.1 (23.4) |
72.9 (22.7) |
67.6 (19.8) |
56.3 (13.5) |
43.6 (6.4) |
35.2 (1.8) |
55.0 (12.8) |
Record low °F (°C) | 14 (−10) |
5 (−15) |
19 (−7) |
28 (−2) |
42 (6) |
59 (15) |
54 (12) |
61 (16) |
47 (8) |
27 (−3) |
23 (−5) |
10 (−12) |
5 (−15) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.33 (8.4) |
0.27 (6.9) |
0.23 (5.8) |
0.34 (8.6) |
0.95 (24) |
1.47 (37) |
2.16 (55) |
1.32 (34) |
1.57 (40) |
1.29 (33) |
0.30 (7.6) |
0.24 (6.1) |
10.47 (266) |
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.1 (0.25) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.001 in) | 2.17 | 1.43 | 1.14 | 1.51 | 3.22 | 4.17 | 5.78 | 4.47 | 4.35 | 3.56 | 1.85 | 1.50 | 33.79 |
Source: Western Regional Climate Center, Desert Research Institute[2] |
Economy
The Lajitas Golf Resort and Spa is a 20,000-acre golf resort business in Lajitas owned by Texas businessman Kelcy Warren, who bought the resort from previous owner Steve Smith while the business was going through financial distress.[3] It is located on the Rio Grande river, bordering Mexico,[4] between Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park.[5]
Government
For many years the mayor of Lajitas was Clay Henry III, a "beer-drinking" goat.[6]
Education
Lajitas is zoned to schools in the Terlingua Common School District.
Infrastructure
Airport
Due to the remoteness of the resort, Lajitas is serviced by the Lajitas International Airport, a private airport with a 5,000 ft (1,500 m) asphalt runway.[4]
In popular culture
Lajitas is mentioned extensively in Red Dirt/Texas Country artist Wade Bowen's song "Day of the Dead" recorded in October 2017.
References
- ^ "Old Cemetery In Lajitas, Texas, A Tiny Town That Abuts Big Bend National Park In Southwestern Brewster County, On A Bluff Overlooking The Rio Grande River In The Northern Part Of The Chihuahuan Desert". Library of Congress. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
- ^ "LAJITAS, TEXAS (414950), Period of Record Monthly Climate Summary". Western Regional Climate Center, Desert Research Institute. Retrieved May 6, 2015.
- ^ Fenton, Tom (2015-09-14). "Lajitas Resort: Why you better go now - El Paso Inc.: Publishers Column". El Paso Inc. Retrieved 2017-04-04.
- ^ a b Black Jack's Crossing Golf Club, Bradley S. Klein, Business Jet Traveler, August 2012.
- ^ Texas: Bordering on the bizarre, by Russell Baillie, New Zealand Herald, 5:00 PM Thursday Mar 16, 2017.
- ^ Cannon, B. (2004). Texas: Land of Legend and Lore. Wordware Publishing, Incorporated. p. 204. ISBN 978-1-55622-949-7.
Further reading
- Hilton, Evelyn. "Lajitas, TX". TSHA Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association.