Passport to Texas

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

Whether you’re a native Texan or got here as soon as you could…the place to be on Saturday and Sunday, March first and second is Washington-on-the-Brazos state historic site–the “Birthplace of Texas,” where we’ll be celebrating 172 years of Texas Independence.

Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site honors the 59 men who met there in March 1836 to declare Texas a free and independent nation.

Throughout the weekend historical re-enactors, skilled artisans and period musicians will transport visitors back to a time when Texas was a struggling young nation.

In addition, a special ceremony will be held Sunday afternoon honoring Texas’ past and present ending with a Texas sized birthday cake. Maybe it won’t really be as big as Texas, but it’ll get pretty darned close.

Because it’s a party, tour fees will be waived on this special weekend so all Texans—as well as those who simply love the Lone Star State–can learn about our common heritage.

So, make plans to be in Washington, Texas, at Washington-on-the-Brazos Saturday and Sunday, March 1 & 2, between 10 a.m.-4 p.m. both days to celebrate Texas Independence …at the “Birthplace of Texas.”

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

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

After whetting their appetite for the outdoors during a Becoming an Outdoors Woman Workshop, many women seek outdoors opportunities closer to home. The Texas Outdoor Women’s Network, or T.O.W.N., provides an outlet for nature loving women to connect.

It has increased my knowledge, my confidence and my friends.

Susan LaMere, coordinator of the Fort Worth Chapter of T.O.W.N, says women benefit when they find friends who share interest in the outdoors.

I’m a personal trainer, so in my opinion, being active period is a benefit and I think that lot of people don’t want to exercise by themselves. They may not go out and ride their bikes but they may go out with other people. One in particular, she’s 60 years old and she did not know how to ride a bike two years ago. One of the other women in the group taught her how to ride the bike and now, you know, she just loves it.

LaMere believes T.O.W.N. allows women to try new things while making close connections.

It’s a ready made group of people who are going to accept you for who you are, you know, whatever you want to do. I say over the past few years, some of these people have become very close friends of mine.

LaMere says that the group is open to any woman interested in learning.

We just want to expose people to the outdoors.

That’s our show…with research and writing help from Kate Lipinski… we receive support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program… working to increase fishing, hunting, shooting and boating opportunities in Texas. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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

A prescribed burn is a purposely set controlled fire.

Prescribed burns have long been recognized as a management tool.

Prescribed burns can be a cheap and effective way to manage habitats. Texas Parks and Wildlife offers free workshops to help private landowners learn more. David Synatzske is the manager of the Chaparral Wildlife Management Area

Most of ours are generally a one or two day workshop where we’re introducing landowners to the potential of fire for them. It’s more of a maintenance kind of activity rather than a restoration type of activity. Restoration fires are something that involve a lot more thought, a lot more preparation than your maintenance type fires. And we’re just trying too provide the knowledge there that this is a tool that’s available for our land managers and something for them to consider in their use of management whether it be brush management, population management, mechanical verses prescribed burning verses any of the other practices that might be out there available to them.

Parks and Wildlife will not conduct burns for landowners, but can provide biologists to assist landowners in surveying their property to see if a burn is right for them.

Find information on these free workshops at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show…we had research and writing help from Kate Lipinski… providing funding for the operations and management of the Chaparral WMA.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Prescribed Burns, Part 2 of 2 Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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

Fires can be very healthy for habitats

If you’re just getting started in prescribed burning, it’s a very valuable tool. It’s something that was one a way of maintaining the environments that we had.

David Synatzske is the manager of the Chaparral Wildlife Management Area. He says there are two main types of burns.

Basically, there are restoration fires where you are trying to restore habitats; where you’re trying to get back to what habitats were at one time. Then you have maintenance fires, fires that maintain the existing habitat.

Those fires are used to accomplished different goals.

People burn for different reasons. Some people burn to open country up, to control brush encroachment. Other goals might be to simply create a change in under story, to create more grass or to create more forbs.

There are different ways of conducting burns.

If you have a fairly open type of habitat and you only want to control the undergrowth, you may burn it with a backfire as opposed to a head fire.

The season the burn is conducted also has a dramatic impact on the results. More on that, tomorrow.

That’s our show…we had research and writing help from Kate Lipinski… providing funding for the operations and management of the Chaparral WMA.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Prescribed Burns, Part 1 of 2 Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

A couple of years ago, if you owned a motorcycle, an ATV or any other kind of off high vehicle, it was hard to find a place to ride off road.

Steven Thompson manages the off highway vehicle program for Texas Parks and Wildlife

Until recently, Texas had many vehicles and very few legal venues to go to. And it created a situation where it was legal to manufacture these machines, to buy and to own these machines, but there weren’t legal venues to go to. People tended to ride in places that were inappropriate. It was inappropriate because it may have been trespassing onto private land or trespassing on to public land and there may be good reason not to ride there.

The OHV program is trying to change that

There are not any parks where motorized vehicles are allowed. And so my program creates partnerships with the national park service or the national forest service, the Texas Forest Service or working with non-profits like the Texas Motorized Trails Collation. And we have a grant program where we give them money to acquire lands that will be used specifically for motorized recreation. And the parks are designed, they’re constructed, they’re managed and maintained specifically for off road recreation.

The OHV Program has helped create 16 different venues with more in the works.

For more information, visit passsporttotexas.org

That’s our show…with research and writing help from Kate Lipinski… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Off Highway Vehicle Program, Part 2 of 2 Play Now | Play in Popup | Download