Category: General

Pedernales Falls State Park Bird Blind

by John L, posted in General, Pedernales Falls State Park

After the storms on Monday, I headed out the Perd to see if the rains had any impact on the water level. While out there I remembered that there’s plenty about this park that I haven’t experienced yet. One of those things is the bird blind at the park.

My expectations were really low because I thought “low budget and state park must mean bench and tree = bird blind.” Boy was I wrong.

If you haven’t had the pleasure, put it at the top of your list for your next visit to the park.

From the park store, head towards the main falls. Keep an eye out on the left side of the road for the parking area for the blind. It is well-marked and should be easily found.

To get the most out of your visit and to be respectful of others at the blind:

  1. Turn your radio off before you turn into the parking area.
  2. No talking unless you are able to whisper (not all people are able to in my experience)
  3. When you park, try to park at the far end of the lot away from the entrance to the blind.
  4. Close the door to your car as quietly as possible
  5. Don’t set your alarm. Lock your doors, but no honking of the horn to set the alarm.
  6. Enter the blind quietly (don’t let the gate slam)

There are two large bird blinds once you enter. The first one on the right, pictured below, has a few hummingbird feeders.

I saw several different species in just a short time in this blind.

There is another blind in this area that has a special visitor right now.

I was lucky to get there around feeding time. The volunteer, Mr. Strickland, said that the baby fox, pictured below, shows up every day around 5pm and stays about an hour.

According to Mr. Strickland, there is a mother and a couple of other young foxes. However he had not seen them in a few days and the worry is that something might have happened to them. Hopefully this little guy is not on his own so young.

The park is in the middle of a large project at the blind/surrounding area. They are building a large star gazing area. Mr. Strickland said that there would be a telescope and accompanying facility. I look forward to visiting this facility when it opens.

TPWD Sheldon Lake Video

by John L, posted in General, Sheldon Lake, TexasStateParks

Great short video on Sheldon Lake State Park and Environmental Learning Center.

Sheldon Lake State Park

by John L, posted in General, Hiking, Sheldon Lake, TexasStateParks

Park #17 on our Texas State Parks adventures was Sheldon Lake State Park. This park is just East of Houston about 20 minutes from downtown.

We almost missed the turnoff to get into the park because the entrance was blocked by a passing train.

entrance to sheldon lake state park

The park office was closed because they don’t want to be open on the weekends when people may visit. Just kidding of course, but it did seem odd. There was no entrance fee so that was nice.

There were plenty of picture opportunities at this park. The front of the park has several ponds with lilies and other blooming flowers around.

pond at sheldon lake state park

Each pond had it’s own personality. Some looked calm.

sheldon lake state park
The detail in the full size is pretty decent for an iphone. Click the image to see the full-size image.

And others looked like “several things in there could kill me.”

pond at sheldon lake state park with many tree stumps
No distortion here by the way. That’s just an optical illusion from how the stumps and leaves are naturally arranged. Very interesting result from a quick point and shoot with the iPhone.

 

We saw some wildlife along the trail.

rabbit on trail

And were warned of some others.

A recent picture of an alligator spotted at Sheldon Lake State Park can be found at another blog. The picture there was taken by Sandy over at “What Shall I Make Today?” Click the image for her alligator pic.

Between the smaller ponds at the front and Sheldon Lake is a great observation tower. The elevator is powered by solar panels. (Elevator currently undergoing maintenance. Call ahead to check availability).

observation tower

sheldon lake

the bent pine tree

Be careful at the Bent Pine Tree. While standing and reading the sign we noticed our feet were quickly covered in ants. They weren’t fire ants, but still annoying.

Overall a nice park with much to offer for visitors of all ages.

McKinney Falls State Park (2nd try)

by John L, posted in General, Hiking, McKinney Falls State Park, TexasStateParks

My friends and I decided to give McKinney Falls another chance. Maybe February just isn’t the best time to visit the park. After some much-needed rain and a different choice in trail I gained a new appreciation for the park. The wildflowers were blooming and it was nice and green.

We parked by the Smith Visitor Center and took the trail along the river, past the visitor center, and on to the rock shelter.

This massive tree was along the trail.

As you walk under the rock shelter used by the Native Americans so long ago take notice of the nests of spiders along the roof of the cave.

If you’re brave enough and the conditions are good take the path from the cave down to the river.

It is rather steep and slick so be careful. It was worth it for us though.

I’m glad we gave this park another chance. Hopefully some of the pending increase in funding from the legislature will make it to the other sections of the park.

Barton Creek Greenbelt

by John L, posted in Barton Creek Greenbelt, General, Hiking

Off of the soap box and onto the trail. I’ve been sitting on this post for a busy couple of weeks. For those that have the pleasure of experiencing the Barton Creek Greenbelt you’ll agree with me that it’s an amazing escape from an even better city.

Less than two miles from the capitol there is a trail that takes you along the creek bed for more than 7 miles. Last Saturday we did the full trail; almost 15 miles. You can park at the Barton Springs Pool and start the hike there. The trail follows along the creek past Highway 360 and MoPac for about 7.5 miles. We park at the pool, hike to the end, and come back to get to the full 15 miles. Get there early and you won’t have to fight the crowds or walk miles just to get to the trail from your parking spot.

flowers at trail

trail in austin

water in barton creek

Luckily we had some rain in the preceding days and there was some water in the creek. Everything was really dark green and full of life.

creek

There are several places along the trail where you’ll encounter rock climbers of all talent levels. I don’t have any good pictures of the climbers from that day, but here’s a few of the rock faces along the trail.

rocks on trail

rocks on trail

Austin is Underrated

by John L, posted in General, Hiking

I recently read an article that claimed Austin is overrated. That same article also said “Go to Houston instead.” I won’t do the internet community a disservice by linking to that hack. You’ll just have to take my word on it. I’m just not that good of a writer.

The Barton Springs Greenbelt is a great example of how Austin is underrated. That’s right. I said it. Underrated. How can that be? Good writers say Austin is a great town for food, sports, live music, politics, festivals, drafthouses, and races among other things.

cap 10k
borrowed from http://www.flickr.com/photos/danyanjared/

They usually still say it’s a city and most people outside of Austin probably think of it as a city. It’s really so much more.

McKinney Falls State Park, Bull Creek Park, Zilker Park, Northwest Hills, well the list goes on and on of great places to hike and enjoy the outdoors. And they’re all within the city limits. It’s amazing when you think about it and even greater to experience it.

Think about Austin right now. Session is going strong and it’s crazy around the capitol.

austin capitol with crowd outside

Multiple giants of industry are opening new offices or expanding (VISA, Google, GM, Samsung, Apple, etc). Movies are being filmed all over the place. There’s an F1 track in case you haven’t heard. I’ll admit that the track is not actually in Austin, but everyone in town felt the effect of the race going on that week. Every week there is a major event of some kind. It’s just crazy around here. Yet a few blocks from the capital you can escape and find yourself out in the middle of nowhere it seems. You go from the pictures above to this:

greenbelt

This picture was taken less than two miles from the Texas State Capitol. Overrated? No way. I can only begin to paint the picture for you. You have to experience this city to understand why many Austinites feel the way they do. I’ve been here almost 9 years now and I’ve only just begun on my Austin adventure.

Solaro Estate Vineyard

by John L, posted in Food in Central Texas, General, Texas Wine

After our hike at Government Canyon State Park this morning we stopped at Solaro Estate Vineyards on our way back to Austin. The wine at this vineyard is excellent. This is the first wine using Texas grapes I have liked after many tastings at many local vineyards. I highly recommend it for those in the area.

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They have a great tasting room and live music on the weekend.
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TexParks Twitter

by John L, posted in General

I created a twitter account for the blog. If you follow TexParks you will get pictures and updates during my hikes in addition to the posts later on. Follow TexParks!

I’ll be hiking the Barton Creek Greenbelt today so follow TexParks and join me on my hike!

Hart’s Firehouse BBQ

by John L, posted in Food in Central Texas, General

On my recent Texas State Parks day trip I stopped for lunch at a BBQ place in Lampasas, TX called Hart’s Firehouse BBQ. This joint has been open since 1965, with different owners along the way, and has a great atmosphere to go along with some good BBQ. It’s located at the intersection of highway 281 and Plum St in Lampasas, TX.

Firehouse BBQ front of store
Firehouse BBQ in Lampasas, TX

We arrived right before lunch on Saturday and found ourselves second in line. The lady in front of us proceeded to order sandwiches for the entire staff of the city of Lampasas. As I waited in front of the “please order ahead for large orders” sign I took a look at the restaurant’s interior. It was a nice country homey place with plenty of seating and natural light. They have plenty of outdoor seating and parking which is always a plus.

Entrance of Firehouse BBQ in Lampasas, TX

Once the City Office staff were given their order we were up to bat. The first thing I noticed about the menu is they seem to like their spice. This is good for me, but I can understand how some people wouldn’t like the extra kick. For those people, you probably shouldn’t stop at a place with fire in the name.

I got the two meat BBQ plate with brisket and jalapeno sausage.

two meat plate at firehouse brisket and sausage with green beans and potato salad
Two Meat plate at Firehouse (pic borrowed from texasbob.com)
Entrance of Firehouse BBQ in Lampasas, TX
Patio area at Firehouse BBQ in Lampasas, TX

The brisket was good brisket. The sausage was good sausage. Nothing to brag about, but good food. The green beans and potato salad (jalapeno potato salad of course) were pretty darn good. The jalapeno in the potato salad was a nice touch and wasn’t too spicy at all. The spicy sauce was excellent and I recommend it for the sausage. Overall it was an ok place to stop between parks/hikes. Having been to as many great BBQ places as I have had the pleasure of eating at, it is difficult to impress me when it comes to Texas BBQ.

Perk’s Coffee – Lampasas, TX

by John L, posted in Food in Central Texas, General

Another stop on my recent Texas State Parks day trip was to a nice little coffee shop in Lampasas, TX called Perk’s. We were greeted by the smell of good coffee and tea brewing and a smiling owner named Monty. We’ve had good luck finding great coffee spots on our trips and I’d have to say we struck gold once again.

Perk's Coffee in Lampasas, TX
Perk’s Coffee in Lampasas, TX

Along with a great iced tea, Italian soda, cafe americana, and an assortment of tea bags to choose from Monty also has a selection of pastries to choose from for a much needed sugar boost after the trip to Gorman Falls. It turns out Monty is a pastry chef by trade and just has the coffee shop on the side. His cake shelves were all empty though he proclaimed that they were all full this morning when he opened at 10:00 am. All the cakes on display were custom orders which were picked up promptly at the opening of the store.

He did have some unique cupcakes available for us to try out. They were made with four different chocolates and had a chocolate chip cookie baked into the center. Try one…or two if you happen to stop in. I promise you won’t regret it.