14 Townies braved the gales and cold of March: Lisa McMillan and her 2 grandkids Harley and Lexi, Maria Vidal and her cockatiel Hami (Yes, she tent camped with Maria), Bev Travis, Tracy Pennington, Janice Bittner, Cindy Schiffgrens, Kay Smith and her cousin Darlene, Sandy Behrman, Carol Scott, and Janet Fitzsimon-Barr, and for a day or two, a new member Jennifer Foyt. Most Townies stayed at the state park in RV’s, tents or screened shelter. The majority came in Wednesday night or Thursday.
Thursday was an “on your own day” since the 6 hour drive from Austin can take its toll. The campsites are well-spaced, with beautiful pine trees. The park was full, but there are plenty of beautiful, quiet, well-marked hiking trails. Janet and Sandy stayed at Carol Scott’s lake cabin just up the road from the park, and Kay and Darlene were in their Winnebago in Carol’s driveway. Some ladies visiting Jefferson, a very charming little town with red brick streets and tasty homemade ice cream.
On Friday morning, we split up into 2 groups for a morning boat trip into the cypress bayous. Signs on posts in the water mark different paddle trails, with letters and a green stripe for Texas and a red stripe for Louisiana. The majority of the lake itself is actually in Louisiana It is a maze of backwaters and bayous sporting names like Alligator Bayou, Old Folk’s Playground, Cathedral, and Government Ditch. It was too cold to see any alligators, but a few turtles were seen along with herons, egrets and a pileated woodpecker. Afterwards, a group felt courageous so they had lunch at the Lighthouse Grill. Although the décor and neon signs were “different”, they had an excellent meal cooked by one energetic woman -who we also concluded was the waitress, chef, cashier, and probably the dishwasher too!
Janet went to the Caddo Lake National Wildlife Refuge to birdwatch, which is only a short drive from the state park. There is a gazebo with illustrated descriptions of the agreement to make Caddo Lake “Wetlands of International Importance” under the Ramsar Treaty (Named after Ramsar, Iran, where the treaty was signed.). The refuge itself was only created in 2000, after the federal government closed down the Longhorn Army Ammunitions area once it was deemed safe to be a park.
More info is in this article: https://caddolakeinstitute.org/ramsar/#:~:text=Original%20Designation%3A%20On%20October%2023,Lake%20State%20Wildlife%20Management%20Area.
There was a ranger night hike on Friday night with several Townies in attendance and about 15 other people. One of the topics was – did you see the sparkling of the spider’s eyes using your flashlight? Sadly, some Townies felt they did not make the grade on this task. We saw the first Lightning Bugs of the season, so pretty in the forest. Later that night a storm blew through that, luckily did not produce hail as feared, but did get some campers wet.
On Saturday, Bev, Maria and Tracy went kayaking and then Maria made a scrumptious brunch of eggs and potatoes and sausage. Kay, Darla and Sandy went bicycling to the National Wildlife Refuge, then Carol and Sandy shopped in Jefferson, about 25 miles away. And, they brought home fudge!! Janice and Janet went to the park ranger hike where trees were the topic. Did you know there were sugar maples at Caddo? Some of the bald cypress are up to 400 years old. Later, Cindy and others went to the Art in the Park talk where once again, some Townies felt they fell short of talent in this department, too. Cindy saved our reputation by producing a beautiful watercolor.
Saturday night we had grilled burgers on Carol’s deck that overlooks Big Cypress Bayou She has a laminated map that helps understand all the twists and turns that make up Caddo Lake. Most of us left on Sunday, but some folks were staying longer. So much history, colorful characters, and awesome flora and fauna. Although the weather was a little trying, as it can be this time of year, it was agreed that Caddo Lake is a special place, indeed.
Until next time, Janet and Lisa