Well, if this hike wasn’t a death march (in the true TOWNie tradition of JennT) with the heat and humidity, it was pretty close.
Seven of us (BarbaraS, CarolC, CarolynD, Dawn, Gail, Jacque, and JeanetteS [member from TOWN-Bastrop] with her picture-shy dog Casper) gathered at the horse parking lot for McKinney Roughs Nature Park. We failed to see actual equines but saw plenty of scat evidence. Our goal was to hike about 5 miles and stop for lunch at the Lost Pines Resort.
We started on the Roadrunner trail (0.8 mi) which took us to Coyote Road (for 1 mi). Hiking and, naturally, visiting, we investigated plants, and Dawn spotted a dead caterpillar being eaten by ants. We rescued the caterpillar (photo is attached). We found the intersection for Deep Sandy, but the trail was closed due to water damage. So we continued walking Coyote Road to Pecan Bottom trail. The group took a break while I investigated the closed trail leading to the cut-off for Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort, our lunch destination.
Locating the gate to the Hyatt, I found the entrance to be piled with branches against it, left from recent high water. CarolynD selected the faster, more efficient approach and verified with the McKinney Roughs staff that the trail to Hyatt was definitely closed. So, we opted to not be rule breakers and not go to the Hyatt for lunch.
We continued hiking Pecan Bottom (1.0 mi), which intersected with the Buckeye trail (0.6 mi). This is definitely the steepest route in the park. We located Meditation Point, had lunch, relaxed a bit, and of course talked. However, CarolC was convinced that we had not been at Meditation Point, so four women continued to locate it and three of us headed to the trailhead.
Our total distance hiked was 4.07 miles with a moving time of 1:42 at an average of 2.4 mi/hr. Time on the trails was about 2.5 hours. It was not the hike I had envisioned, but it was definitely fun, and we enjoyed visiting and getting to know each other better.
Thanks to all six of you (plus Casper) for joining me. Lead a hike — we’re a fun group!
Jacque
