Dove season opened last week, it was too hot to hunt, but I decided to go down to our farm pond to see if I could bag a few birds. I gathered all my stuff -- my 410-pump shotgun and shells, game bag, a chair and water bottle.

I then realized I had forgotten something. I had not purchased a hunting and fishing license! In a previous column, I urged hunters to purchase their license early. I should have followed my own advice. So I put my stuff away, as dove hunting will have to wait a few days until I get a license.

Last week, I wrote about our recent trip to the Texas Panhandle and experiences in Palo Duro Canyon. I forgot to mention the outdoor musical "Texas" that is presented in the park outdoor amphitheater every summer. The play ended its run a few days before our arrival, however we have previously seen the production and would recommend it to everyone.

The musical will resume next summer and if you plan to attend, secure reservations well in advance. Contact www.texas-show.com for more information.

After leaving the canyon, my wife Nelda and I then visited the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum on the campus of West Texas A&M University. Our son Matthew is the assistant curator of archeology at the museum, and he gave us a personal tour. Panhandle Plains is the oldest and largest museum in the state. It will celebrate its 75th anniversary this year.

We saw just about everything on our tour, including western history, Indian art, oil well drilling rig, windmills, dinosaurs and firearms. The Samuel Colt firearms collection was exhibited for a limited time at the museum. For a firearms enthusiast like me, it was very interesting.

Another fascinating exhibit was the diorama of Indians dressing a buffalo. Plains Indians used the buffalo for food, clothing, shelter and tools. We also viewed a detailed video that showed an Indian field-dressing a buffalo with a flint knife. It showed the removal of intestines, and how the Indian used the stomach and bladder for containers. The Indian cut the meat into strips for jerky and then showed how the hide was cured.

Matthew said museum officials were concerned how the public would react to the video and if complaints would be received. With thousands of visitors this summer, however, no one has voiced a negative reaction to the graphic video.

The museum has three floors, and one could spend all day there looking at exhibits. If you are traveling anywhere near the area, it would be worth the time to visit the museum and learn about the history of Texas and the Panhandle.

One stop many people make while visiting is to the famous Big Texan Restaurant in Amarillo. It is well known for its 72-ounce steak and the offer that if you can eat it and the entire trimming in one hour, the steak is free. Sounds impossible, but several people have accomplished the feat. No one tried while we were there, though.

In a previous visit to the restaurant, I enjoyed a buffalo steak there. Matthew and I were looking forward to eating buffalo steak again. Unfortunately, it no longer is on the menu. Rattlesnake and mountain oysters are available. We ordered a traditional steak.

The steaks were OK, but I have eaten better in other restaurants. It is the atmosphere that makes a visit worthwhile. The main dining room walls are lined with mounted game such as deer, antelope, buffalo, aoudad sheep and longhorn cattle. Also, the waiters are dressed in western attire, and roaming musicians play and sing traditional western songs. In addition, there

is a shooting gallery and

a gift shop.

Other things to see in Amarillo include the Quarter Horse Museum and the Museum of Art, and the Cadillac Ranch. Located 12 miles west of the city, visitors will see 10 Cadillacs buried nose deep in a field. The cars were placed there by the Amarillo eccentric Stanley Marsh to represent the golden age of automobiles from 1949-1963.

When most people think of the high plains and the Panhandle, they picture a flat, desolate place. In the winter, that may be true but I think most visitors are surprised at how many places there are to see and enjoy.

Lubbock also has interesting things to see, such as the Rancher Heritage Center, Windmill Museum and the Buddy Holly Center.

If you visit in the summer, several ranches in the area provide a cowboy breakfast served on the edge of Palo Duro Canyon. Several years ago, we rode in a wagon to the edge of the canyon and were served a breakfast cooked in Dutch ovens over a campfire of scrambled eggs, sausage, biscuits and gravy, juice and coffee. Everything cooked over a campfire tastes better.

Check with the Amarillo and Canyon chambers of commerce for more information about the area.

Nelda and I enjoyed our visit with Matthew and seeing some of the sights. We plan to go back to the Panhandle as soon as possible.

Former Soil Conservation Service employee and longtime writer Mat Taylor offers his outdoors column for Dispatch Record readers. He can be contacted at (254) 518-2262 or via e-mail at mntaylor@agristar- .net.