Passport to Texas

Outdoor family fun

State Parks: Summer Vacation Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

How will kids occupy themselves now that school’s out? Our state park guide, Bryan Frazier has a few ideas.

57 –Kids have had the calendar for a long time; school is out for summer vacation. And to your point: what do you do? Where do you take them? Where are safe places that are family oriented? Where are places that are reasonably priced? Where can they go frequently? What can we do so that they’re just not watching TV and playing video games? Think about a state park. I would recommend getting a state park pass, and you’ve got the summer covered, whether that’s swimming, hiking, biking, or fishing. It’s an unlimited amount of outdoor recreation, education, something just as simple as a leisurely hike near a creek in a state park, or something that’s planned as a family get together or a weekend. We have the spectrum of outdoor recreation experiences. This summer can be action packed with lots of different things in a state park.

Thanks, Bryan.

Find outdoor adventures at texasstateparks.org.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet, supporting outdoor recreation in Texas; because there’s life to be done.

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

Mother’s Day in a Texas State Park

State Parks: Getting Mom Outside Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Mother’s Day is fast approaching, and our state park guide, Bryan Frazier, recommends giving Mom the gift of the great outdoors.

47 – There’s a dilemma sometimes of ‘what do I do that’s special for my mom?” So, I want to encourage people to think not only outside the box – think outside. Take your mom on a hike, on a scavenger hunt a la Geocaching; sign her up for a Texas Outdoor Woman’s workshop, or sign the whole family up for a Texas Outdoor Family guided camping experience. Or, just go together with the family and enjoy some time along a nature trail. There are moms out there that love to fish, too. She will never need a fishing license inside a Texas State park with the free fishing in state parks program. So, there’s lots of different things to do, from the spontaneous to the planned event. Check the calendar at texasstateparks.org and this year – maybe this maybe mom needs a trip outside.

Thanks, Bryan.

Find myriad outdoor opportunities to share with mom on mother’s day and every day at texasstateparks.org.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet, supporting outdoor recreation in Texas; because there’s life to be done.

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

Sirloin with Sugar Snap Peas, © Courtesy Texas Beef Council

Outdoor Activity of hte Month: Picnics in Parks Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

May is Picnicking Month at Texas Parks and Wildlife and our state park guide, Bryan Frazier, recommends heading to a state park with your favorite foods.

56 – Do we really need any incentive to eat while we’re doing something we enjoy? This is one more time to do that. And, it seems like, when you’re outdoors, whether you’ve cooked over a campfire or one of the grills in the picnic area, or whether you packed it ahead of time and put in all your favorite foods and snacks (it can be everything from sandwiches or hotdogs, to venison to veggies), take it with you, and find a beautiful place. It seems food tastes better with a great view. And some of our state parks have fantastic places for picnicking. There’s day use areas that have picnic tables. There are picnic tables in most all of the campsites you can find. And then there are designated areas along lake shores. Or, sometimes maybe you’re on this remote wilderness trek backpacking, and there’s a little rest area or a bench off the trail. Take your lunch there and enjoy it. It can really be a unique dining experience when you get a picnic with a view.

Thanks, Bryan.

Find picnicking information at www.texasstateparks.org.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet, supporting outdoor recreation in Texas; because there’s life to be done.

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

Snowy Owl

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

Birding is one of the fastest growing outdoor hobbies in the United States, and Texas and its parks are major birding hot spots. Our State Park Guide Bryan Frazier tells us more.

51 – You have hundreds of different bird species, and incredibly rich and diverse birding habitats. From the lower Rio Grande Valley, all the way up to the panhandle and east Texas. You have this vast array of colors of birds. Now is the time to get out and enjoy them. You have the great Texas Birding Festival [Classic]; the 17th year it’s going on. It’s tournaments, it’s sit ins. You can do birding checklists, you can help parks do birding counts. There’s lots of different way to get involved in a public way. Or you can just sit in your backyard by your bird feeder and watch the vas array of birds that will come there. But birding, identifying the species…take your binoculars, take your camera, take your kids. And show them just how enjoyable that can be to see those creatures that live here year round or just seasonally.

Thanks, Bryan.

Find additional information at texasstateparks.org.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet, supporting outdoor recreation in Texas; because there’s life to be done.

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

McKinney Falls State Park, Austin, Texas

StateParks: Fundraiser for Parks Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Business owners understand what it takes to keep the doors open. Our State park Guide Bryan Frazier tells us about a business that’s raising funds to help Texas State Parks keep their gates open.

59 – For the second year in a row, Whole Earth Provision Company stores (and they have outdoor clothing and outdoor gear, and they have eight different stores in metropolitan areas all over Texas) of their initiative, they have agreed to make state parks the beneficiary of a fundraising drive for the entire month of April, for donations taken by cashiers when patrons check out. And, for every $20 donation that people make, they’ll get a free five dollar gift card for anything that cash will buy: from fees or state park store merchandise. That’s at Whole Earth Provision Company for the entire month of April.

On the 13th & 14th, Whole Earth Provision Company sponsored the Banff Mountain Film Festival at the Paramount Theater in Austin. And all proceeds of the tickets of that film festival went to benefit Texas State Parks. This is the second year in a row that Whole Earth offered this very generous donation and fund drive to help Texas State Parks.

Thanks, Bryan.

Find additional information at texasstateparks.org.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet, supporting outdoor recreation in Texas; because there’s life to be done.

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