Passport to Texas

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

The seed for her career as a professional bass angler took root when Diane de la Garza was a child.

When I was a little girl, my father and my mother took me fishing, and my parents always made the time to take us out and to introduce us to the outdoors. And for that, I will always be grateful.

De la Garza and her husband Hector, both professional bass anglers, are part of this year’s Texas Parks and Wildlife Expo October 4 & 5, in the Fishing Fundamentals area.

So, we’ll be sharing stories….sharing techniques…sharing ideas…answering questions….it’ll be a blast.

De la Garza says Expo is a tremendous opportunity to introduce children to the diverse outdoor recreational opportunities available to them, such as fishing.

It is so important for parents to take the time to take their kids out fishing. Honestly, it doesn’t matter if you catch any fish or not; what you’re doing is you’re creating memories. And, the lives that we have today—we get so busy. And I know for me, looking back, some of the best memories that I have of my family is when they took me out fishing and getting to experience the outdoors.

Professional bass anglers, Diane and Hector de la Garza, will be at Expo on October 4th & 5th, in the Fishing Fundamentals area. We have information at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show….with support from the Sport Fish Restoration program… funded by your purchase of fishing equipment and motor boat fuels For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

This month the Texas Parks and Wildlife television series follows a group of kids from Corpus Christi [insert audio from raft trip and play under script] as they take a raft trip down the Rio Grande for an outdoor classroom experience that ends up being about more than fun and games. Abe Moore went on the trip with them, and produced the story.

So, while the kids are going down the river, we kind of go off into little segways as to highlight what struggles are happening to the Rio Grande, and one in particular are the ranchers down there. They rely completely on the Rio Grande for its water, to water all their crops.

We quit growing cotton; we quit growing grain, corn during the summer just to try to save all that water for winter vegetables.

It was amazing just to see how much they learned about the different aspects of all the things that are tugging on the Rio Grande, from an invasive water-sucking tree that they learned about to the decline in fish species and kind of the many pressures the river deals with. So, they had quite the leaning experience for sure. There were times I was with them that I really felt that they’re getting it. They’re figuring out what it’s all about; what the world and what the river means to us.

For more information about the TV series, go to passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show… 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

Come early and stay late is the advice Ernie Gammage has for folks who plan to attend this year’s Parks and Wildlife Expo—a free event that offers a natural introduction to the outdoors.

I think especially for folks that don’t have relatives who live in the country, who don’t have that rural connection that so many people had back in the old days…it’s important to introduce our children to the joys of being in nature and recreating in the outdoors. And you can do that at the Wildlife Expo.

Gammage, Expo Director, says the agency has an ulterior motive for providing this weekend event.

We hope that everybody that comes to Expo—whether they’re tried and true outdoor recreationists—or maybe it’s their first time to ever wet a hook, will use the Expo as an opportunity to gain an interest, gain a skill, and then go on and try it on their own.

Rock wall climbing, kayaking, scuba diving, fishing, shooting, and mountain biking are only a few of the activities in which visitors may partake at Expo.

You know, Expo is on 35 acres, it’s all outdoors because it’s about the outdoors, so wear sunscreen, wear comfortable shoes, wear a hat, and be prepared to have the time of your life.

Parks and Wildlife Expo is October 4th and 5th from 9 to 5 daily. Find information at passporttotexas.org

That’s our show… 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.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Expo, 2 Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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

Each October, Texas Parks and Wildlife HQ in Austin gets an extreme makeover when it’s transformed into EXPO, a 35-acre playground in the Great Outdoors.

Expo is a great opportunity for Texans to learn all about the things that they can do in the great Texas outdoors, and it’s free.

Ernie Gammage is Expo’s Director.

Texas is really blessed with opportunities for recreation in the outdoors. Things like camping, hunting, fishing, rock climbing, kayaking, mountain biking, hiking, all of these things you can do in this great state—in a lot of different kinds of habitat. And, if you come to the Wildlife Expo and don’t know how to do these things, you can learn and actually do them.

Parks and Wildlife Expo is October 4th and 5th in Austin. You can go to the agency’s website and click on the Expo link to start planning your visit.

Come early stay late, because if you came all weekend you still wouldn’t get to do everything. You can paddle a kayak, you can rock climb, you can learn all about conservation, you can see wild animal shows…it is so much fun.

You’ll find additional information about Expo at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show… 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.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Expo, 1 Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

[Music: Give That Man a Job…establish, and then fade under script]

A new interactive educational website designed for seventh grade students…examines depression era Texas in the 1930s… and contributions made to state parks by the Civilian Conservation Corps…the first New Deal recovery program instituted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Since this is geared toward seventh grade students, it had to fit within the curricular requirements that Texas teachers need to teach to. So, we basically wanted to lay out a foundation with the depression relief theme, and give students context to the New Deal programs.

Sarah Lisle is an interpretive planner with State Parks; she oversaw the project.

We talked about the Nature Lover’s movement in the United States and the whole idea of conservation. And then from there, we talk about how the CCC actually built parks in Texas, and how they helped communities at the same time.

The Linden Heck Howell Texas History Grant from Humanities Texas made this site possible.

This whole narrative is complimented by a great deal of primary sources that we were able to put together in this format, where you can view newspaper articles, and photographs, and listen to music, and watch videos. It’s just a really rich resource for teachers and students.

We have a link to the site at passporttotexas.org.

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

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