Category: Uncategorized (Page 28 of 46)

Hi all.

We had a nice hike today with Effie,  also known as  Nanook of the North and returning for her first hike after foot surgery, Jacque and Sheba who came bearing plants and lore of hikes, Carolyn,  who had returned from the carnival,  Kim,  who was seeking rabbit ears, and Marsha. 

 The main attraction today was the fact that we were all attracting mosquitoes. It is with great sadness that I announce the mosquito season has officially started.

There were turtles in the water and birds in the air, but certainly the most outstanding feature where the mosquitoes. Sheba  also entertained us with her 2 legged ability to do the downward facing dog.

Overall, it was a great day.  Until next time….

Happy  Trails, Marsha 

Hi all,

 Despite the fabulous weather there were only 3 brave hikers and Sunday, Kim, Debbie and Marsha. We were even without canine companions. The weather was perfect with the need for some gloves initially but then nothing but rejoicing in the glorious morning. The trees were whistling with the wind and the birds were singing.  We stayed away from the Creek and stayed in the woods more.

Until next time….

Happy Trails, Marsha 

The list of 12 sign-ups was impressive for our first official morning outing.  Then the cancellations came in bunches of linked communications, with only phone numbers.  My departure was so distracted, I put hair cream on my face.

We had moved the start time from 11 am to 10, so the ‘no-traffic’ benefit to daytime kayaking has changed to ‘slightly less traffic.’ When Your Leader was stuck in traffic, the three new-to-kayaking and on-time members had lined up, checked in and were waiting under Janne’s encouraging eyes.

By any measure, this first official outing was a success!   We took off with seven and came back with eight.  It was a beautiful day.  Two hours on the water never fail to freshen one’s outlook, and the lunchtime fellowship provided sustenance for the soul as well as our Shady Grove favorites.

The water was perfectly calm until we got in the boats, then a light breeze blew toward us as we headed for Redbud Island.  A fresh morning with a light cloud cover, perfect for Melody P and Effie K. to get the basics of paddling.  Another basic:  don’t push yourself.  They wisely decided to not risk after-paddling soreness by making the whole loop around the island, instead admiring the views, dogs, and cypress roots at the bottom end, meeting up with the rest of the group when they came around the top.

We had observed a woman paddling a black log-like boat on the water, and were told by a fellow-paddler alongside us that the woman was practicing for the Texas Water Safari.  The course is San Marcos to Seadrift, and is held in June (https://www.texaswatersafari.org/texas-water-safari/).  The conversational fellow-paddler turned out to be (surprise ! ! !)  Peg Gavin, in her own boat, who had caught up to us.

Our lunch provided even more nourishment than Shady Grove’s familiar fare.  Each of us had a gift of further contacts, ideas, plans for the future to pass along to the others.  We started off with Gloria W demonstrating her Nordic walking poles, which Janne B, who is Danish, said her neighbor uses, hale and hearty at over 80.  Maria’s planned-unit intentional community development now has a website (www.buenavidaic.com) to show how the property will be developed. Judy A. tipped us off to an excellent T’ai Chi teacher: Heloise Gold.  Peg, who pointed out an Osprey to us, high in the trees, is a member of a group which meets early on the first Saturday of the month to survey the birds on a designated stretch of the Colorado River.  If you are interested, you can contact her or go to the Facebook page for the Austin Bastrop River Corridor Partnership. She and her husband have recently retired and are involved with Red Cross disaster mental health support training.  Effie K. is our new Publicity Chair, her husband is a photographer; they will be updating the TOWN activity photos, so she will be attending a lot of new outings, and already has plans for one of her own.

Below, I am including a photo of Melody who is the most color-coordinated of the eight of us in our boats, having a wonderful time on the water, and the yellow irises sent by Gloria, a nice example of the little surprises around the lake.

On Wednesday the 17th, TOWN is  having Lisa McMillan’s Bonus evening kayaking, and on the Wednesday the 24th, Gail will lead another evening outing. The next Daytime Paddle is Thursday May 9th.  Wishing everyone fair weather and a wind at your back! LindaF

Hi all,

It was a nice but small hike today with Adia, Jenny,  Lisa and Junko and Marsha. The cool weather was perfect  and Junko even went swimming after perfectly thrown sticks in the Creek. 

We had a late start but still got 4.92 miles in. Marsha’s church was treated to a straggled congregant but all is well. The group was able to enjoy the birds as they sought shelter in the unexpected  cold.

So until next time…. Happy Trails,  Marsha 

Spring was definitely in the air, the water sparkled, we could smell the shady places, and a light fresh breeze made us all feeling frisky before we even got in the boats. There could not have been a lovelier day to be able to paddle at last.  

The group that assembled (DianeN, GailPC, GloriaW, JudyA and LoisK in her own boat) took off all together.  Their leader was carried back by the current while answering plumbing questions on the cell.  If you bring your cell phone, bring earbuds so you can paddle AND talk. I took the short cut up the north side of Redbud Island for the spectacular views of the cliffs and the downtown.

Talking was the order of the day at lunch at Shady Grove as we all had a lot to catch up on, and make plans for the new season. What began as an experiment and a chance to get together during our “off” season, has turned into a calendar offering we can all enjoy.  Gail will have sent out the announcement that we are going to add the daytime kayaking to our monthly schedule. Mark your calendars for THURSDAY, the 11th of April.  Lisa McMullen has volunteered to add another evening outing, Wednesday, the 17th of April, followed by Gail on Wednesday, 24th of April.   Each of these outings is posted to TOWN ahead of time; we look forward to seeing you on the water.  The views are spectacular, nothing could be more relaxing, and it is suitable for all levels of strength and fitness. LindaF

Success and fun!

Five of us gathered with four canines to hike Turkey Creek, Thursday, March 28^th.  DebbieB with Aggie, Jacque with Sheba, JanneB, LisaS with Junko, and SarahA with Bella.  And the dogs did well together and ran bunches!

We hiked about 4.5 miles in 2.5 hours.  We did take a long-cut as I did miss our trail back to the trail back to the trail back to the creek.  Everyone was a good sport and we just visited even more.  We did encounter a hiker and her dog who was interested in our group.

Hiking and talking is such fun.  Join me next time!  Jacque

Participants in game night were Sheila, Jacque, Karen, Sandy, Susan, Marie, Lisa, Joan, Melody, and Carolyn, along with canine house guest Chloe. We enjoyed visiting with one another, and of course, in TOWNIE tradition, eating tacos with all the fixings, and much more.

Welcome to Melody as this was her first TOWN event. Susan brought a beautiful puzzle, but after getting all the pieces out we decided it would be an all night event. Balderdash and Taboo were the games of choice for the evening. We also had a few cheery cards to sign for one of our very special members.
We had lots of laughs and will do it again.
June

Hi all,

We had nice Greenbelt hike yesterday with Kim, Lisa,  Adia,  Jacque, and Marsha along with canine companions  Sheba and Junko.  

The heat us starting to creep back and the  creek is lowering each week. In need of nice rain. Flowers are still dancing in Spring and the cardinals serenaded us with delightful  notes.

Until next time….

Happy  Trails, Marsha 

Hi all,

 We had a nice hike today of 7 people and 3 wild dogs. Debbie, Jacque, Lisa, Kim, Adia, Carolyn, and Marsha were joined by Sheba, Abby, and Junko.

The most amazing part of the hike was when Sheba was able to balance on her 2 front legs and relieve herself on a rock. The rock was much taller than she was, but it did not stop her. It was a new variation of downward dog pose in yoga. It was very impressive.

We also were entertained by a herd of squirrels that were making so much noise that we were sure it had to be a mountain lion. We were graced by the presence of bluebonnets, phlox,  common wild onions, wood violets, Texas buckeye  and a variety of other flowers that were beginning to show off their Spring blooms.

 The weather was perfect…

Until next time…

Happy Trails, Marsha 

Brazos Bend Trip Report
Submitted by Sandy Smith and Marilyn Fowler
The following folks attended: BeverlyT and pup Chico, plus granddaughter Hannah arrived on Saturday; CarolP and Patches, ChristineF, Lisa McM, Gloria B, Jacque , JaniceB, JudyD and Mike, AnnaE, LisaMgo, im F, LindaBW and Tom, LindaKW, MarilynF, Sandy , SandyS (son Kody and granddaughter Kayla visited Sat morning), SaraF and Jacksom, SharonR and Billy, SusanW, JanetFB
and KarenV. A special treat was having TPWD’s KimS (former TOWNie) and Ranger John join campfires on Friday and Saturday nights.

Everyone enjoyed seeing beautiful birds and alligators of all sizes. We encourage all to share their bird lists with all to see what was flying.

There are several lakes in the Park, stranded remnants from decades of devastating floods of the Brazos River; as the floodwaters brought in topsoil and sediment from upstream, marshes established and attracted the exotic wildlife we saw firsthand.

Everyone got photos of alligators, baby and senior, and those with good cameras got some excellent bird photos that we hope to see on Facebook and at our gatherings. Did you know that you can estimate the age of an alligator by looking at the length between the tip of the nose and the eyes (one inch equals one year)? However, once an alligator reaches maturity, the equation
no longer applies.

Another point of interest in the Park is a historic steamboat landing: The Yellow Stone stopped at a point on the northern edge of the Park in the 1830-50’s to load fuel and continue upstream to the capital of Texas in Washington, supplying critical supplies for the Texas Revolution. You cannot visit the boat
landing as the trails are closed, and next time we’ll try in advance to arrange for a special tour of the landing area.

Thursday night we enjoyed our group dinner at Jay Café, where chicken-fried anything was the meal of the evening, as well as cobbler and pie. Our “Luck of the Irish” Potluck Friday night provided about twenty delicious dishes, most of which were green.

It was a large group of TOWNies and many went on their separate hikes and bike rides. Saturday night we went to the amphitheater to hear bluegrass music from the Brazos River Pickers.

The weather turned out to be much better than predicted: We had little sunshine, but the intense humidity was mediated by lovely breezes and shade. Storms never materialized, and on the last night there were stars!

A couple of TOWNies agreed to share a shelter, but when they arrived they found a thin layer of condensation water over the floor, so they left early. Janice B was in a shelter, but she had brought a plastic mattress. Be sure you check with the Park before renting a shelter so that you, too, come prepared.
She is a tough TOWNie!

It was a great group of folks and everyone looks forward to our next trip to Brazos Bend State Park.

SandyS and MarilynF