November 13, 2023 Still Meandering in Texas Among the Cotton and Oil

We woke to a beautiful day and headed south,

Past farms:

And cotton:

  

  

  

  

  

  

And then we saw oil fields for over 100 miles:

They were everywhere:

Drilling even more:

The towns have just exploded with oil production and increasing population.  It reminds me of North Dakota many years ago.

So I had to do some research…

“The Yates Oil Field is a giant oil field in the Permian Basin of west Texas. Primarily in extreme southeastern Pecos County, it also stretches under the Pecos River and partially into Crockett County. Iraan, on the Pecos River and directly adjacent to the field, is the nearest town. The field has produced more than one billion barrels of oil, making it one of the largest in the United States, and in 1998 it remains productive, though at a diminished rate. Since fracking has exploded in the Permian Basin, the Yates field has seen very heavy activity in the past three years. Estimated recoverable reserves are still approximately one billion barrels, which represents approximately 50% of the original oil in place (OOIP).

The Texas oil and natural gas industry, which leads the U.S. in production, reached new record production highs in June and July 2023, surpassing all-time highs set 30 and 40 years ago, in an analysis published in August.

Year-to-date through July 2023, Texas production accounted for 43.3% of all oil production and 27.4% of all natural gas marketed production in the U.S. By September, these numbers increased, accounting for 43.4% of all oil produced in the U.S. Texas’ natural gas production accounts for 27.5% of overall U.S. production.”

Links for more info:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yates_Oil_Field

https://texas2036.org/posts/texas-oil-and-gas-production-hits-records/

https://www.thecentersquare.com/texas/article_d5caf110-6cfb-11ee-bfbd-d3818b5b56fe.html

https://oilmanmagazine.com/the-future-of-the-texas-oil-and-gas-industry-predictions-and-trends-for-2023-and-beyond/

WOW!  Between cotton, cattle, gas and oil, Texas is the place to be for a good job!

We landed at a Escapee Campground in Pecos.  We were there in 2008 and what a change.  They have two sections now – for overnight or part timers and for long timers (those who are working with the oil or other jobs).  It is not a destination park but a nice overnight place.

Pecos was this little town (sort of run down) in 2008.  With the explosion of jobs, it has truly expanded to meet the population demands..  What a change.

The weather turned cold and rainy so we just relaxed!

Tomorrow we continue west so stay tuned and enjoy today.

Stats for today:

Miles Traveled:  220 Miles

Texas:  Milwaukee Avenue; US-62; US-385; Truck Loop 1910; US-385; Truck Loop 338; I-20; Raul Florez Blvd; Country Club Drive; Frontage Road; Moore Road