32 texashighways.com
DRIVE | DETOUR
pads. Birds and bats fl y into them.” She
pauses, then adds: “But from a distance,
they’re like dancers on the horizon.”
To experience “The Great Texas Wind
Turbine Trail,” start in Sweetwater, where
the Welcome to Sweetwater offi cial greet-
ing sign on Interstate 20 is affi xed to a tur-
bine propeller blade. From there, search
west 66 miles on I-20 to Big Spring and
east 40 miles to Abilene, while looking 50
miles north and south of I-20.
The Abilene-Sweetwater
Wind Loop
Coming from the east, exit I-20 at Abilene
and drive southwest on US 277 to FM 89
and head west. On the left is the Horse Hol-
low Wind Energy Center, one of the biggest
wind farms on the planet with 421 turbines
dotting two counties and 35,000 acres. On
Map:Alan KikuchiArea of
DetailArea of
Detail 50 miles50 milesAbileneSweetwater
RoscoeSnyder
Big SpringSterling CityWingate
BallingerAustinFort WorthSan AntonioAbileneSweetwater
Brazos
Wind Ranch Trent MesaBuffalo Gap Wind Farms
Horse Hollow
Wind Energy
Center
Turkey
Roscoe Track
Wind FarmSouth Trent MesaRoscoeSnyder
Big SpringSterling CityWingate
BallingerAustinFort WorthSan Antonio1532010 3510878483