T0WN members are the best and so much fun! Thirteen members, Gloria, Marilyn, Carolyn D., Lisa M., Jacque, Linda B., Susan, Eola, Kelly, Sheila, Carrie, Marie, and Dawn, our special member back from Tennessee, arrived with games, food and special drinks for a wonderful time. We had fun catching up with one another and played Chicken Foot, Pictionary and Catch Phrase. Afterwards we went for a short walk to stretch our legs before heading back home. TOWNies always make an event a fun time. Just invite them and they will come.
And of course, Dolly, the perfect hostess, attended.
June in July
Hi All, We had a large crowd of hikers, Leigh, Jody, Janice, Kim, Debbie, Patty, Paula and me, with only scant protection today as only Waldi was a member of the Canine Protection Team. Berta started out with us, but after sitting down twice in 100 yards, I decided that she was not up for it. She is my lizard hunting dog and she had heard that the lizards on the greenbelt were scarce this year. It was true as during our 4 mile hike, nary a lizard was to be found.
We did revel in the massive growth of ragweed this year, so outstanding, that we all are thinking of trips in the Fall when we are showered with pollen.
We were able to cross the creek today with the sound and sight of water only a memory. Not a drop to be found but the ragweed was happy as we walked some on the creek bed too, staring gloriously at the top of the weeds as they towered over us. Even I, at almost 6 feet, had to crane my neck to behold the ragweed dancing above us.
The paparazzi was out today as we had our picture taken at the end of the hike. As one can see, we were glistening with moisture. Really, we were sweated.
Until next time.. Happy Trails, Marsha
Such a fine day to be on the trail. Mamie did a fine job of leading, but she could not withstand the lure of the cool, flowing creeks and shared the water with each of us. Sheba spotted a large Common Snapping Turtle, so Baby had to check out the tummy! AnnaE, KathleenC with Mamie and Baby, and Jacque with Sheba all enjoyed hiking, visiting, and tippy toeing through the creeks. At least no one fell!
Our discussions included: possibly hiking in Scotland, studying to become a US citizen, drinking wine in Philadelphia, snorkeling in Belize, having to give up your passport when leaving Russia, observing the total solar eclipse in 2024, cruising the Arctic to see polar bears, walking the Appalachian Trail, taking a safari in Africa… So many topics on our minds!
Come join us! We have fun! Jacque
Hey TOWNies!
The TOWN Austin women so enjoyed being at Guadalupe River State Park earlier this month. Seems like there was plenty for everyone to do. Eighteen women and three dogs made the trip: BarbaraW, DianeN, EffieK, JacqueA, JaniceB, JuneA (with Dolly), KarenK, KatelynB, KathleenC, KathyR, KatyK, MarieW, MaryVE (with Rosie & Speck), StephanieN, StephanieS, TracyP, and WillowD. Four of the women who attended are new members!
Interestingly, we had more tenters this trip than members driving vans or pulling RVs which surprised me. The tent pads are exceptionally large. But the slots for parking cars, RVs, and vans are surprisingly short. We all stayed in the Cedar Sage Camping Area. And several of us wondered later if the Turkey Sink Camping area had longer parking slots. The restroom in our area had been redone and had separate shower rooms which were quite nice.
Several campers arrived Wednesday, April 13, and immediately we began talking about our dogs and pizza.
Thursday morning, four of us hiked to the Discovery Center area and enjoyed the bird blind (where we saw doves, hummingbirds, wrens, goldfinches, cowbirds, and cardinals) and the Guadalupe River. Interestingly, the Guadalupe River is a true Texas river, flowing entirely within our state. DianeN had organized kayaking for Saturday morning, but it was obvious why she had to cancel the activity. The water level didn’t even come up to the knees of small kids. Lunch time of course meant pizza and two of us headed for Boerne and selected Inferno’s Wood Fired Oven & Spirits which was a good choice – tasty pepperoni pizza, a generous Caesar salad, and soda for less than $10. In the afternoon, four of us went geocaching and located two. That evening most of us met at DianeN and StephanieS’s site 24 to sit, visit, and enjoy a well-made campfire. Their site was large and had a particularly nice view. Some heard a howling animal which certainly got their attention.
Friday morning twelve of us met at the Rust House and Honey Creek State Natural Area for a private hike arranged by DianeN and led by three volunteers, two of whom were from the Alamo Master Naturalists group. We first were introduced to the Rust House which was owned by the family who ranched the area and encouraged to tour the house and pay our $2 donation. From there our 2.5-mile hike began. Honey Creek Preserve is described as pristine, spring-fed, and fragile. We were introduced to the local culture and Texas natural history as we viewed grasslands, Ashe juniper woodlands, bald cypress trees, red buckeyes, sycamores, wildflowers, Antelope Horn Milkweeds which we coveted (!), and birds such as Field Sparrows, Summer Tanagers, Northern Cardinals, White-eyed Vireos, and Brown-headed Cowbirds in a trap. (What problems do cowbirds cause? Their spread has represented bad news for other songbirds: Cowbirds lay their eggs in nests of other birds. Heavy parasitism by cowbirds has pushed some species to the status of ‘endangered’ and has probably hurt populations of some others. The trap designed to catch cowbirds was interesting in that those birds are eventually killed. The cowbird females lay their eggs in the nests of other birds. The cowbird babies kill other birds’ babies. The trap attracts the cowbirds in with seeds and water, but the birds cannot exit.) Saturday and Sunday hikes are also offered to campers in the park. Reservations are made in the park office. A $2 donation is requested. Friday night, six of us drove to El Jalisco’s Mexican Restaurant for dinner (yes to eat again). It’s located on hwy. 46 enroute to Spring Branch, TX. The music was loud even outside and food good. No many leftovers!
Friday night a thunderstorm rolled through complete with lightning and rain. A few of the tent campers discovered their tents leaked a bit, but everyone made it safely through the night. The rain caused most of the hiking trails to be closed, so the Saturday morning hike had to be cancelled. The trails to the river and the overlook remained open, so many TOWNies visited the river and the bird blind. Saturday afternoon was warm, but not quite warm enough for swimming!
Both Friday and Saturday evening TOWNies enjoyed the hike to the overlook to watch the sunset.
Saturday morning six members managed to hike Honey Creek Preserve fortunately due to cancelations. And I joined them for a replay. They each seemed to enjoy the hike and the presentations from our two hosts. That evening at site 32 we held our potluck. BarbaraW and KathleenC did a good job building the campfire. We had plenty of wood, dryer lint, and newspaper to build the fire. At least 6 – 8 members had donated wood. The leftover wood was left for the next camper. And we had plenty of food: mixed fruits, homemade cookies, vegetarian chili and hot dogs, beef hot dogs, potato hot dog buns, sauerkraut, a variety of chips, broccoli salad, grated cheese, mustard, mayo, ketchup, Cole slaw, potato salad, diced onions, and smores. And after dinner, six of us played dominoes using double 15’s.
Sunday morning, KathleenC led a hike for six of us. DianeN and StephanieS wanted to hike six miles, MarieW 2 miles, and KathleenC, and Jacque 3 miles. So, we walked portions of the Barred Owl, Painted Bunting, and Live Oak Trails and separated at various points. After hooking up the Casita, I headed to the dump station and encountered another camper who knows Susie Aguirre. She noticed the TOWN magnetic bumper sticker and said she knew a member! On the way back to Austin, one of us received an (undeserved?) speeding ticket in Bulverde, so avoid that town!!
Thank you to Diane Nunez for her time and effort spent reserving our private hike and making the arrangements for kayaking despite having to cancel.
And thanks to Kathleen Coyle for volunteering to co-lead this outing at rather late notice.
KathleenC and JacqueA
Afternoon TOWN Members! Four of us – Debbie, KathleenC with Baby and Mamie, and Jacque with Sheba – started from the parking lot talking about last night’s discussion about Purple Martins and how challenging Zoom can be. All three canines were eager to be on the trail, sniffing, and splashing the creek water. The trail condition has consistently improved, and more limbs having been trimmed and removed. The most surprisingly to me are the size of the root balls pulled from the ground by the winds. The City of Austin employees are doing a good job!
We discussed Debbie’s first time walking with us, using a hiking stick, which route to take, and additional activities the members of TOWN Austin enjoy. KathleenC mentioned returning from recent trips to Las Vegas (for her daughter’s wedding) and camping in Dinosaur Valley State Park last week and staying in an AirBNB Rv! Jacque talked about the recent camping trip to Palmetto, how beautiful the wildflowers and plants were, what our meals were like, camping in Rvs, tents, and cabins, and driving to Shiner to see SandyS and pet Tilly. And we all talked about eating at a DQ or Pizza Hut! And the most surprising topic was that Debbie, and Kathleen are all three vegetarians – what they eat and the discomforts of failing to eat right. Jacque is definitely not a vegetarian and does enjoy BBQ occasionally!
Come hike with us! We enjoy talking and catching up with each other. The trail presents a good environment, and we enjoy folks we encounter!
Jacque
As always this past weekend was fun and food-filled. I want to thank all who made this such a special event!
We had ladies arriving from Tuesday on for camping, hiking, birding, biking and historical educational activities. A huge thank-you to Gloria B for extreme efforts made in our quest to kayak the San Marcos. Alas…we were foiled again by the City of Luling….sigh. Also a big thanks to everyone for another successful Dutch oven dinner accompanied by delicious desserts with special thanks to our chefs and preparers.
We also made a visit to our honorary TOWN horse Tilley and her owner Sandy S who graciously took time out of her busy schedule to give us a tour.
We had somewhere around 20 members and guests attend this year. Thank You to each and every one who attended….you are all the epitome of the love and friendship we all know as Austin TOWN!
Check out our pics on Meetup!
Linda B
I’m not sure who ordered the weather but it was just beautiful this morning – not too warm with a lovely breeze. Our docent, Bill Kibler, was so knowledgeable about the architecture and which part of Texas history was represented in the main buildings and cisterns. A little tidbit – the architects who designed the central area were only two years out of school when they won the bid. Bill was also quite knowledgeable about all of the plants that were just spectacular. This table holds cuttings of each of the plants in bloom that week. Volunteers change the display a few times a week. We were all intrigued with the chocolate daisy…that really does smell like chocolate!
Joining in on the guided tour of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower, led by Docent Bill Kibler were TOWNies: Jaya S., Effie K, Marion M., Christine N., Adela R., Gloria W., Debbie B., Kathleen C., Laarni, C., Stephanie N., Marie W., Janice, B., Karen K.
There was lots going on at the Center including the second weekend of native plants sale which drew some of our members after the tour.
Bill started our tour with a search for Athena, the owl who comes back to nest most years. I could see some activity but couldn’t tell if was Athena or a chick. We went into the building that is used for events, lectures, and that’s where we saw the display of flowers in bloom that week.
We continued our tour looking at the Savanna that is the look of the land around the center and learned about controlled burns to keep the area as it has been for many eras. We went thru the children’s garden or “the yes, you can” garden where children can have the run of open areas with a stream, waterfall, digging sand and lots of other intriguing play areas. Known to some but certainly not to me was the build out of the Fibonacci Sequence that determines the buildout of a wall throughout the area. That is my in depth knowledge of this mathematical principle and that might even be wrong.
We concluded our tour in the theme gardens. Each box was blooming with familiar and not so familiar plants. As the tour ended, some of us, including our docent, got our lunch at the cafe and enjoyed each others company for a while longer and there is no trip to the Center that doesn’t include the gift store.
Thanks all for making this such an enjoyable event. KarenK
Hi All, Seven TOWNIES, Carolyn, Jody, Jenny, Debbie, Janice, Leigh and Marsha, protected by the Canine Protection Team of Waldi and Berta, braved the perfect weather today and hiked over rolling hills that were dotted by wildflowers, affectionately
identified as “little purple things”. These are not to be confused with “bigger purple ones”. I gallantly took one for the team walking point and breaking up spider webs, one of which housed a spider, albeit a little one, that surely was ready to pounce on the next hiker in line had I not met the spider eye to eye and carried it abit, while I frantically tried to get it off me. Fortunately for the spider, I was able to harmlessly brush it off and fortunately for the hiker behind me I was able to convince the spider that the ground was a better home that the hiker behind me.
We have learned that Berta does not like to hike on rocks and looks imploring at Leigh for a ride. Leigh remained strong today and ignored the baleful looks.
Sunday hikes will be canceled after April 16th as I will be out for hip replacement. Yes, I can still hike, but the hip pain starts in the evening and worsens. Arthritis be damned! We are TOWNIES!
Until next time… Happy Trails, Marsha
Hi TOWNIES!
What a great time we had last week at McKinney Falls SP! Plus, an excellent member turnout made it even more fun to visit, eat, laugh, and enjoy the park! Our January gathering at McKinney Falls for camping and our Holiday Party is a tradition of many years. Why? The park is close to Austin and allows our members to come to the Holiday Party just for the day or we can camp for the week. Constance Whiston describes our TOWN Austin group as starting in the winter of 1997, over 25 years ago, and we can thank her and three more women for the fun we had last week! Amelia Greene, our newest GOLDEN TOWNIE, worked with Constance to start our group. Per Constance, “the greatest gift to the Austin Chapter of Texas Outdoors Woman Network came when Amelia Greene volunteered to create a membership roster and newsletter. Not long after Amelia stepped in, we began taking membership dues and had a new web site (thanks to Amelia)!” If you’re interested in reading the history of the early TOWN groups, check this link https://townaustin.org/wp/town-history/ .
The camping began Wednesday, January 11th and grew to 8 members in RVs, 3 in tents, 2 in vans, and 6 staying in 2 cabins. Wednesday evening, five of us enjoyed dinner at a nearby Cabo Bob’s, a favorite destination of SusanW’s.
We had our first hike the morning of Friday, January 13th, led by JanetFB. Nine of us (carefully!) crossed the Lower Falls while sharing hands, managing the large rocks, and hiked a portion or all the Homestead Trail. And it was well worth the effort! Due to high water, it’s been perhaps 4 – 5 years since we safely crossed the Lower Falls.
Friday evening LindaBW arranged reservations for seventeen of us to eat at Casa Garcia’s Mexican Restaurant and Cantina. And the dishes and beverages (!) were very tasty! And I thank Linda for all the calls she made and dealing with our separate checks issue!
Saturday, January 14th, we met at the Dining Hall about 9 am to set up tables and chairs. Members began delivering pot-luck dishes and desserts. TOWN supplied plates, plasticware, and beverages. We offered two hikes: one at the Lower Falls for those who were not at the park Friday and the second along Onion Creek. So, JennyF and KathleenC led 12 hikers on the Homestead Trail. And eight of us walked a portion of the trail along Onion Creek. Three of us continued to the Rock Shelter and then toured the Smith Visitor’s Center. I asked the Park staff what year Onion Creek flooded the Visitor’s Center and was told 2013. Water from the creek entered the Center at a 2 – 3 ft. height. Onion Creek crested at 41 feet that year! When standing on the patio at the Center, that is so difficult to picture!
We planned to begin our potluck between 1 – 2 pm. So, after hiking, members were warming food, and organizing the potluck dishes including desserts. EffieK was accepting new member and renewal applications. Our potluck dinner had a wide variety of dishes and plenty to eat – hors d’oeuvres, salads, soups, veggies, BBQ, breads, sodas, water, chocolate popcorn, cookies, and more chocolate. We certainly did not leave hungry!
Following our dinner, we began the White Elephant Exchange. I heard someone say candles were very popular gifts this year. As usual, there was lots of stealing items. It’s fun, whatever you end up taking home!
The Gear Exchange items were very popular as usual. It seems we had more donated this year than last. Tuesday, I delivered all the remaining items to Austin Pets Alive (APA) Thrift Store. The staff was quite pleased with the variety and amount and thanked our group.
Clean up was led by CarolC. She is a Super Woman with a broom moving trash to the cans! Don’t get in her way! (Leaving the Dining Hall trashy would have cost us an extra $100.) After storing tables and chairs, a few of us played games for a while, then closed the Dining Hall. And a big, sincere thank-you for everyone setting up tables and chairs, then taking them down and cleaning.
We then adjourned to Eola and SusanW’s site 42 for a lovely, warm campfire built by Susan. It was indeed relaxing to just sit and visit.
The forty-one members and guests attending the week and/or the Holiday Party were:
AngieB, BevT (with Chico), CarolC, CarolJ (with Jellybean), CarolynD, CarrieL, ChristineN, CindyS, DanielleB, DianeN,
EffieK, EolaL, FloM, GloriaB, Heather, Jacque, JanetFB (with Jilly and Barnie), JennyF, KarenK, KathleenC,
KellyC, KimF, KobyF (with Daughter Mikayla), LindaBW, LindaF, LorettaD (and Sister Gale), MarieW, MariaV, NancyL,
OletaS, PegG, SandyO, SandyS (with Silkie), SharronH (new camping guest), SheliaG, SusanW, TaskinaC, and TracyP (with Aunt Beth)
Thanks so much for attending, cleaning, leading hikes, and birding, sharing, and assisting others set up tents. We laughed, visited, enjoyed eating, etc. We know how to have a fun time!
I loved seeing each of you and am so looking forward to the event in 2024!
Jacque
Your President