The Beach Bums

Within the last year we've gone
from Alaska cheechakos to

Florida beach bums.

Well, at least for a week.

Can you see all there is here?

Here's a pic we took on our current trip.

What do you see?

Hint:   Here is where it was taken:

No; it's not in Louisiana or Florida.

It's in south east Texas, at Martin Dies State Park, 
north east of Houston, 
about midway to the Texas-Louisiana state line.

Here's a color of the pic above. 
See the 2 alligators?

They came about 4 feet from shore and stayed there for over 30 minutes.
So, we put the camera about 2 feet from the water's edge,
and placed the tripod as low on the ground as possible. 

For safety's sake, we used a 6 foot cord to fire off the pictures, while staying back.

But when the one on the right came around behind the other one and touched it's tail….
that guy jumped about 10 feet out of the water (fortunately away from the camera) before making a giant splash in the deeper water.

Needless to say, we stayed far back after that for a long while!

But soon they got calm again, and we where able to snap a few more pics

as they stayed far away form each other…...

probably expecting a little treat from us campers on shore.

There is a lot of green, East of San Antonio

A few weeks ago we showed you what the area west of here looks like
down by the Rio Grande, at Seminole Canyon State Park.

Well, that is not what all of Texas looks like.

This week we headed East, (about an equal distance from that western trip),
and stopped at Stephen F. Austin State Park, 
three-quarters of the way between San Antonio and Houston.

Green growth was everywhere.

Pretty lush, wouldn't you say?
(at least for what most consider about Texas.)

So much hanging Spanish Moss made us think we were more like in the classic South.

But, do you know what really surprised me?

When I turned from taking a picture…….

I thought I saw Huckleberry Finn…...

just fishing on the Brazos!

Blanco Market Days

Any April weekend is a time when just about every small Texas town has a local "market" around the courthouse. 
And Blanco, north of San Antonio, is no exception.

You can tour the old courthouse, which was turned in to a hospital back in the 1940's 

and has been decorated with some "local" metal art they are hoping to sell.

Of course, there are religious items.

People watching can be fun. 

Many bring their dogs as a weekend outing. 

Some bring all generations along.

But, what is most fun is to watch is little kids' faces.

and their anticipation of a special treat.

Of course, you can see the local crafts,

which will always include some cowboy things

and paintings by the local club.

You'll always get a chance to buy some sort of a Texas hat

and listen to real TX music.

Some have been to enough of these, 
that they wander off for some quiet time

and some take this chance to practice their own hobbies.

And while glass might not be what you'd expect to find

you can be sure that in the midst of all of this, 
there will always be an American flag!

Texans go out of their way to see Bluebonnets.

And it looks to me like even an angel come down to touch a few.

Some call them Lupin. Some call them Lupines.
We call the bluebonnets. But they are not always blue.

Some might be pink.

And some might be white.

And some are mixed in with other kinds.
Like the Red poppy in the pic above.

And these can fill a field, just like the bluebonnets.

But, like in all flowers, their beauty is really seen when you look close up
and see the texture of each individual one

and the complexity of the entire plant.

The Black Seminoles

Wondered why they call this Seminole Canyon State Park? 
We are nowhere close to Florida or the Seminole tribe.

According to what the Rangers tell us, many freed slaves joined the Seminole tribe back in the Southeast. And even escaped slaves were accepted well in the tribe.

But during the "Trail of Tears" in the 1830's and arrival at their new western home in Oklahoma, there must have been some disagreement between the Natives and the Blacks.

Many of the Blacks broke away and moved to this part of Texas and northern Mexico to do their own farming. They got to know this land well.

Later, in the 1870's and 80's,when the whites wanted to expand into the Wild West across the Pecos River, the Comanche Indians were still active here and caused much trouble for the whites. So the army hired local Blacks.  They were really good at scouting, fighting, & controlling the Comanches. And so, this state park has been named in their honor.

Here is a place that commemorates a battle just about a mile form the current Pecos river bridge.

Many of their descendants still lie in small towns of this area and northern Mexico.

(PS they have nothing to do with the Buffalo Soldiers further West; that is a different story).


Well, hope you enjoyed the last few days' "visit" to central Texas on the Rio Grande.

Remember, not all is brown and lifeless here.
There is even one shrub, the "palo verde",  who's branches stays green most of the year.

Come check it out.


Well, it is now time for us to go and learn a little something of other places along the road. 

Adios for now.

The Pecos from above

While at Seminole Canyon State Park, we drove a few miles to see the famous Pecos river of Texas.
After all, they say  this is where the Wild West begins!

Writers compare the the land around it and the river's rage to "hell, death, and violence".

On this day, it looked really calm to us.  But pretty big.

They say that when the water rises, it's a really strong.

The railroad bridge they built in 1923 was 50 feet above the water.
The rapid and rising waters tore it away in 1953.
And so were the temporary replacements in '54 and '55.
So, now the new one's 273 feet above the river and the highest  river crossing in the state.
Looks pretty safe to us from here.

But as you look down to where it joins the Rio Grande,

you see that it's sediments have built up a delta and narrowed the width of the Pecos before it joins the the river with a larger flow.

It would be kind of neat to be here above and watch a flood cover that up.
'Cause just like violence on TV, it is much better to watch it from your arm chair than to be within it's midst!

Hiking to the Rio Grande

The mornings at Seminole Canyon State Park started in the mid 50's last week.
The clouds would clear off by about 11 AM and then the temp would rise to about 85.

So, we decided to take a round trip 7 mile hike along the rim of the Seminole Canyon towards the Rio Grande.

Well, by the time we got there, it turned out to be closer to 95.

and it started to show in the dogs' panting.
Fortunately there are 2 covered tables for a picnic and drink under the shade.

After a rest, we made it to the Rio Grande and this is what it looks like here.
There were 2 boaters who motored up from Lake Amistad, trying some fishing along the vegetation growth.

The river is pretty wide because of the damn downstream, below the Lake Amistad.
There were 2 boaters who motored up from the lake, trying some fishing along the vegetation growth.

Here the river is lined by high cliffs which will definitely make it difficult to cross at this particular spot.

BTW, did you notice the spiny "Ocotillo" on the pic above? It's all over this area.
It's a thorny plant with many arms that hardly ever turn from grey to green.
And hard to see at certain times of the day!

Fortunately at this time of the year, many have bright red buds which let you know where their arms' tips are.

And like many dangerous things in the desert, quite beautiful they are, if you give them some attention.

They look like really tiny roses.

Just be sure to use that red as a warning flag to keep away from their long, sharp thorns…...'cause they are at just the perfect height to scrape your legs or arms (and maybe even your eye).


And while in the desert, you should always keep your eyes set low, to see any snake that might be there.
Fortunately for us there were none to see.

But there's a lot down by your feet, too, to please your eye, if you pay attention.

Yes, lots of variety!

So go out there and enjoy what Spring might show you,

Who knows …..
you might find a bird's nest, nicely protected by the yucca's needle-sharp blades.

And by the way, just don't try to push them aside to take a picture of what's inside!

Not that I did that. 
It's just my advise.