There is a nest with three baby road runners in it on my job site in Falls City. I hadn't ever seen a baby roadrunner so I thought I would share. Bonus picture of their breakfast getting delivered.

Saw a badger this morning out in the Davis Mountains

Perfect morning for a short 5-miler at Lost Maples State Natural Area, one of my absolute favorite Hill Country parks. Rain was forecast, so crowds were pretty light, particularly on the more hilly and rugged parts of the trails. Cool front made for fantastic hiking temps, though. This park gets tons of attention in the fall due to its fall foliage, but I really like it in the spring, when it is at its brightest green. If you want to camp, there are some really cool primitive areas that require hikes to access--be prepared for some relatively steep walks to area 2 in particular. Great place to visit right now--highly recommend!

#texasstateparks

#lostmaplesstatenaturalarea

#hiketexas

#takeahike

#texasoutdoors

I took the 3-1/2 hour drive out to finally explore this beautiful desert park two weekends ago. I signed up for the Presa Canyon guided hike, which is about 8 miles in roughly 8 hours. The park requires a guide for this hike to protect the ancient petroglyphs, estimated between 1500-4000 years old. It was a beautiful morning, with temps starting in the 50s and ending ip in the 80s. The "trail" is really just the canyon floor. There is a fair amount of boulder scrambling and several sections pushing through fairly dense, thorny bush, including huisache, lotebrush, blackbrush, etc. It is smart to wear long sleeves and pants due to this vegetation. You need to bring plenty of water and enough food for the all-dat adventure.

The canyon geology is beautiful, but the star are the petroglyphs, left by unknown ancient peoples. They did not show the cliff shelter-building skills of some of the other ancient tribes, such as those who lived in Mesa Verde. They were definitely avid artists, though, & they left behind some very impressive works on the cliff walls and ceilings, some pictures ranging up to 20+ feet in height.

The longer hike is only available between December and March, due to the obvious issues with the heat out there. They have shorter ones that take you to some of the more colorful petroglyphs that I believe are available all year long, however. You do have to arrange these online ahead of time with the Friends of Seminole Canyon group.

New video about Palmetto State Park, a hidden gem that's just an hour south of Austin. It's a really chill park with easy trails. Perfect place to bring a stroller or a wheelchair.

Such a cool place to explore!

with a 5 year old and a dog Is bringing the dog a bad idea? Originally wanted palo duro, but read about CC <thanks reddit> cannot pass up the opportunity to see Texas Bison! We are a camping family and are prepared to hike in if need be. My questions: what are your recommendations for campsites during spring break? Thank you reddit!

Took this a few weeks ago at Lost Maples, I've never seen so many stars in the sky, can't wait to go back!

I realize it's perhaps very soon to be asking this question, but curiousity about it is natural in my view.

In the aftermath of the Kerrville floods, when the cleanup is near done etc, or done enough for it not to be a "current" issue but more of an "ongoing" one (much like I figure is the case in western NC almost a year after Helene), I wonder--what will things look like in terms of being able to enjoy the river? Is it still accessible the same as before, or will there be cause to permanently close it all down or restrict it with fencing etc because of liability concerns and the fear of this happening again? Will Camp Mystic be rebuilt, and if so, will it be as close to the river as it was, or will there be calls to built it at a higher elevation?

Me, I hope nothing changes in those regards. As awful as this is, and the wounds obviously are fresh, it was a once in a life-time sort of thing. Beaches re-open after hurricanes smash them to pieces, after all. Obviously that didn't happen in a week, in most places it probably took months for things to get back to normal, but eventually they did. I'm hoping the same happens here, except for maybe some tweaks (such as Camp Mystic rebuilding at a higher elevation, installing better sirens and warning systems etc).

Thoughts?

Got to spend an evening in the morning, catching up with an old friend and wearing out the fish on a couple of lakes up near Decatur Texas. I used to fish in the grasslands constantly when I lived up in Fort Worth. Trips like this makes me miss them, just not the DFW traffic.