The Canyon, Texas Lumberyard To Open as New Local Venue

If you have lived in the Amarillo/Canyon area long enough, you have always heard it won't be long before Amarillo and Canyon merge.

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That isn't far from the truth because Canyon is growing. It seems to be a great place to move to, it's a small town not far away from everything that Amarillo provides. Canyon is creating a wonderful city that anyone would love to live in. They are home to West Texas A&M University, Palo Duro Canyon, the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum, and the CAP.

All of these make it the perfect place to raise a family. Canyon recently got an upgrade to their Wendy's, and HTeaO is opening. Construction has begun on Whataburger and the 2nd location of Pondeseta Brewing Co., and a WingStop is in the near future.

However, the growth continues.

Canyon will soon be home to an amazing venue complete with a restaurant and concert venue. The location will be in the Canyon Lumberyard. It is located on the east side of US 87 as you are pulling into Canyon from Amarillo.

Back in early 2023, we had heard rumors that someone had purchased the Canyon Lumberyard and the plan was to turn it into a large venue with banquet halls and an outdoor concert venue. At the time we couldn't share that information, because we couldn't confirm if it were indeed true. However, we finally did get confirmation.

Danny Byrd, of Feldman's Wrong Way Diner fame, purchased the land and has begun construction on this new venue for Canyon.

We stumbled into the purchase of the old lumberyard. It has a 4000 sq ft building that is fantastic on the inside. It's really old and with the old timber it's really neat looking.

The land also includes a big quonset barn, and the plan is to connect those two buildings. They are planning on turning the main building into a banquet hall, with everything you need to host a banquet, weddings, meetings, expos, etc. This space will be big enough to hold about 3300. They will be adding a kitchen entry area that will lead into the Quonset for dining. This area will become a new restaurant for Canyon.

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The restaurant will have a 36,000 sq foot patio and in the area of the pole barn, they will have live music.

The area also includes a ton of land up the hill, and the plan is to host large-scale concerts. Danny tells us they are planning to host concerts in the Summer of 2024. The permanent stage and concert area won't be done yet, but they will set up temporary fencing and still be able to host amazing concerts. The construction for the permanent stage won't begin until Fall 2024.

The goal is to have the other areas, including the restaurant and banquet room, completed by the spring of 2024.

What will make this restaurant and patio unique?

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It will feature a self-pour beer wall inside and out on the patio. When you arrive to the restaurant or patio you'll have your ID swiped, and you'll receive a bracelet. You will have a cup and you can walk up to the beer wall, which will be comprised of 30-40 different taps, tap your bracelet, and fill up your cup. The bracelet is connected to your ID and payment. You'll pay for the beer by the ounce. The plan is to do the same with the wine. They will also have margaritas.

What about the food?

We hope to have a unique menu. We're trying to produce food that doesn't currently exist in Canyon.

Eventually, when they get the large concert area built, it will feature several bars. These bars will be built out of the old railcars that were on the land. This part of the land will be able to hold 10,000 - 15,000 people. With that big of a capacity, this will bring in some big names in the music business in all genres.

Not only is this great for Canyon, but it's also great for music lovers. It gives more choices as to where to go to watch a great concert.

Danny said that eventually with the remaining part of the land they would like to work with the City of Canyon and put in an RV park and convention center.

What's it going to be called? The Lumberyard?

We don't know. Okay. We are working on names. If we don't come up with anything we like better than the lumberyard, then that's not that sure might be what it is, but we're trying to come up with something catchy. We just haven't found the right name yet. We might do a naming contest. You know, you name the place where they get you get your free food for a year or so.

This will be a huge addition to the City of Canyon. This will be huge for this area of the Texas Panhandle.

We are looking forward to the new restaurant and event venue for Canyon. Who's ready to go to a concert?

This Huge Cabin In Palo Duro Canyon Is Top-Notch Glamping

This cabin is (to us) the definition of "glamorous camping".

This three bedroom rental is tucked away in the Palo Duro Canyon. It's a cabin with serious room, meaning it can fit up to eight guests--a girls trip, family vacation, or any bigger group.

The cabin is available for booking through glampinghub.com and the description along with the provided photos is enough to catch the eye of anyone ready to get out of town and away from it all.....without having to go very far.

It's a beautiful place with woodwork throughout, full amenities, and all the mandatory electornics (and WiFi!). If a group of people were to split the cost of their stay between each other, it is without a doubt one of the most budget-friendly options for vacations.

The four day minimum stay required to make a booking is the only drawback to this diamond in the rough of a rental property--but it's nothing a little planning ahead and vacation time can't remedy.

Ranchotel: The Forgotten Landmark of Old Route 66 in Amarillo, Texas

The Ranchotel, located at 2501 W. 6th St., is a product of Route 66's heyday.

When Americans first began long-distance automotive travel, they typically stayed in hotels or camped beside the road. In response, clever entrepreneurs began to build what were called tourist courts. The Ranchotel is one of these.

It was built in 1940 and until recently, it was considered one of the best preserved examples of Route 66's tourist facilities. It was placed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1995 and was well maintained until 2020.

Even now, in spite of the building's fading beauty, there is still the nostalgic air held by many a historic landmark.