Passport to Texas

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife.

Biking is a practical way to stay fit, save on fuel costs, as well an environmentally conscience style of transportation. Use your two-wheeled transportation to escape the hectic urban jungle and ride amid nature for a change of scenery.

Many Texas state parks offer a wide range of biking trails for your enjoyment. There are trails for all abilities, from beginner to advanced, making it easy for anyone to get outdoors to enjoy the natural world in truly intimate way.

Designated biking trails are numbered to indicate their difficulty level. Beginner Level is a course that only requires basic riding skills. Intermediate Level cyclists must have off-road experience and knowledge. Difficult Level tracks demand an advanced biker who can navigate various terrain conditions.

You will enjoy your ride more when you ride with safety in mind. Always wear a helmet. Be aware of hazards in your path such as ruts, rocks and even wildlife. Also, check the air in your bicycle tires regularly to avoid flats and accidents. Pack a large bottle of water—at least eight ounces for every hour of riding.

Find information about biking in state parks at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show for today…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 

 Biking in State Parks: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

You don’t need much time or money to feel like you’re miles away from the responsibilities of life in the urban jungle. Just find a paddling trail.

Paddling trails are simply segments of the coast, or river, or in this case now a lake.

Ron Smith, with Inland Fisheries, is part of the paddling trail team. The newest paddling trail is at Lake Arlington. When you’re on this 10.9 mile shore-hugging path, the only decision you’ll have to make is where to go for refreshments when you take out.

We tell them where to put in, where to take out, where the regulations are, where the fun spots are, and some of the historic things about the area.

Moreover, you will see things you never thought you’d see in an urban setting.

You start to get into a more natural setting. And you go by the dam—most people don’t get to get that close to a dam—and then you turn, and you go past an undeveloped area along the shoreline, and you start seeing wildlife. Then you go behind an island into a little more of a riverine sort of setting. And you start seeing herons and all kinds of different wildlife that pop in and out of the trees. Really a unique paddling trail. We’re excited about this one.

So close, yet so far out. The Lake Arlington paddling trail dedication is August 14. Find more information about Texas Paddling Trails at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 

 Lake Arlington Paddling Trail, 2: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

On August 14, Texas gets its newest paddling trail located at Lake Arlington.

We’re very excited. This will be our first lake trail. And, not only that, it will be our first urban trail.

Ron Smith, with Inland Fisheries, is part of the paddling trail team. The new 10.9 mile trail hugs the shoreline of Lake Arlington, and is a partnership between the Arlington and Fort Worth Parks and Recreations departments.

The cities actually split right there on the lake. So, it’s a neat partnership for us and for them.

Smith was part of the team that surveyed the proposed site for the Lake Arlington Paddling Trail.

You know, one of the things we do here is we’re providing and improving public access to waterways around the state. So, when we go out, we look certainly at the access point. Does it need improvement? Do we need an additional one? We like for our trails to be between four and twelve miles.

What to expect when you put in at this new trail….that’s tomorrow.

That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 

 Lake Arlington Paddling Trail, 1: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Wildlife Restoration Program

Squirrel hunting is often a child’s first introduction to the sport. As Texas Parks and Wildlife television producer Ron Kabele tells us, the tradition is beginning to fade.

One of the reasons is the habitat is going away. A lot of the good squirrel habitat is hardwood bottomland. And, it’s pretty well accepted that we’ve lost just a tremendous amount of the hardwood bottomlands in East Texas.

In a segment this month, the television series follows a father as he takes his daughter squirrel hunting where the healthy habitat still sustains a squirrel population.

This is a beautiful place. And the squirrel habitat—I haven’t seen like this since I was a kid hunting in south Alabama. (gunshot) Macy, be sure he’s dead before you pick him up. I know that. This one? Whoa. That’s cool.

Kabele says biologists he’s talked to fear squirrel hunting may not survive the future, but they keep hope alive.

And so, we’re wanting to continue that tradition in hopes of instilling conservation ethics, and just a love of being in the out of doors.

You can view this story on the Texas Parks and Wildlife television show in August. Find a link to stations that air the series at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 

 TP&W TV--Squirrel Hunting: A Fading Tradition: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Wildlife Restoration Program

The Hunt Texas Online Connection is a high tech way for hunters to find landowners with hunting opportunities.

We feel like hunters need all the help they can get to find opportunities, and so that’s one of the reasons we’re doing this.

Linda Campbell oversees the state’s Private Lands and Public Hunting program. The Internet was an obvious choice when deciding how to match landowners and hunters.

Well, we know that people use the Internet to find all kinds of opportunities. And more and more that is the tool people use to plan vacations and plan trips. And so, this is just one more way that we can connect the providers of opportunities with those seeking them.

Hunters may review current opportunities on the website.

As a hunter, you search the site by the type of game you’re interested in, the way you wish to harvest, the location, the county, and other attributes. So, you can do all of this and then narrow it down that way.

To contact a landowner about a listing, hunters must create an account with a user name and password.

Find a link to the Hunt Texas Online Connection at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show… with support from the Wildlife Restoration program…providing funding for the Private Lands and Public Hunting Program. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 

 Hunt Texas--Hunters: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download