Passport to Texas

This is Passport to Texas

Outdoor recreation opportunities in Texas are as diverse as the Texas landscape, itself.

If the serenity of being on the water stirs your soul…try rafting the Rio Grande in Big Bend. Hear the whisper of the land as you raft through some of the most spectacular scenery in America.

Or consider canoeing or kayaking on Caddo Lake in Northeast Texas. You’ll have an “other worldly” adventure as you paddle through the mysterious maze of mossy bayous.

If birding is your expedition of choice, you can’t go wrong in Rockport, especially when the hummers are in full force.

Now, for a truly amazing variety of avian life, then consider any of the World Birding Center sites in the Rio Grande Valley. Serious birders have known for some time this sub tropical locale is a hot spot for great viewing.

Hiking, biking, camping, hunting, fishing, horseback riding—your Texas outdoor adventure awaits you.

Find the perfect Texas outdoor adventures for your “to-do” list when you visit the Texas parks and Wildlife website.

That’s our show… Reminding you that—Life’s Better Outside!

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

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This is Passport to Texas

Nightfall offers state park visitors a different perspective.

Make tracks to Inks Lake State Park in the Hill Country on the night of Saturday March 27, for their Moonlight Hike and Owl Prowl. Bring your flashlights and walking shoes and be prepared to listen to some strange sounds on your night out. [Male voice spouting cheesy pick up line] Wrong kind of night out. [Screech owl] That’s more like it.

You’ll meet at the Amphitheater to learn about owls and trail safety. [Sound effect of someone slipping and falling]. Um…watch your step. Later, you’ll explore the sights and sounds on the trail under a near full moon, and later you’ll call the owls to you. Kids 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult; no pets please… [Cat hisses] …deal with it.

On that same night, across the state, at Palo Duro Canyon State Park, you can take part in a guided night hike. What can you see in the canyon at night? Whatever it is…don’t feed it after midnight. [Short snippet from movie Gremlins] Reservations are required for this trek…and the deadline to make them is March 25.

On the evening of March 29, Estero Llano Grande SP, which is part of the world birding center, is hosting a Full Moon Party. Come celebrate the full moon [Wolf howl] and see all that the park has to offer after hours.

Find information on these events in the calendar section of the Texas parks and Wildlife website.

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

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Lake Texana

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In 1832, Dr. Francis F. Wells—a member of Stephen F. Austin’s Old 300—founded a town along a bend of the Navidad River, which eventually became known as Texana.

This was the western most settlement of Austin.

Cindy Baker is the interpretive ranger at Lake Texana State Park. She says Texana was a thriving community; it was in a good location, had abundant natural resources, and a shallow water port. It could have been great, if not for some short sightedness.

Two brothers showed up and offered for 100-thousand dollars to buy the town. Mr. Wells said, ‘No. We want 200-thousand. We love our town.’ And the two brothers—wanted to build a deep water port—so they went east, they found the Buffalo Bayou, they dug their deep water port, and they called it Houston.

But that’s not all… In 1883 the New York, Texas and Mexican Railway bypassed the settlement.

A man named Telferner came through and said, ‘For 30-thousand dollars, I’d like to put my railroad stop here in your town.’ And they said, ‘A railroad? We have a port. We don’t want your dirty old railroad.’ He moved seven miles north, and he named that stop after his daughter Edna. Within two years, everyone picked up and moved to Edna.

Making Texana a ghost town… Today the remains of the town sit at the bottom of Lake Texana, created in 1979 when the Lavaca-Navidad River Authority, built a dam on the Navidad River.

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

This is Passport to Texas

Spring break is that much anticipated week-long hiatus from school and work, which—for most Texans—takes place in March. And if you have a week to spare this month, and you live in the Hill Country, and are on the lookout for a nearby outdoor adventure, then get over to Inks Lake State Park. Bryan Frazier has details.

It’s hard to talk about spring break time of year without referencing Inks Lake SP.

A popular place, year-round. It’s one of our parks that has great and solid year round visitation. And with good reason.

You can find more SP Getaway information on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

That’s our show… we record our series at the Production Block studios in Austin, Texas…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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This is Passport to Texas

Before we had grocery stores, we had nature.

Whenever the edible wild plants were domesticated, tamed and cultivated, that’s when human culture could grow.

Human culture evolved, says Joe Roach, because people no longer spent their days searching for food in the wild. Roach, a park interpreter, occasionally takes visitors on wild food hikes in Tyler State Park.

The program is to have park visitors recognize and gain and appreciation of how edible wild plant support our human culture. We do that by taking a very moderate one half mile hike. We point out the various the various things that the Caddo Indians used [and others] when they were here. And we investigate how the human culture rose on the foundation of edible wild plants.

Roach warns never to eat any wild plant unless you are 100% certain it is safe, as some edible wild plants are similar in appearance to poisonous wild plants. One ubiquitous edible plant is the juniper tree, more commonly referred to as cedar.

You can make a tea out of them, or chew on the leaves. Some people have reported that it helps control various gum diseases. In survival training some people say you can chew on the juniper to freshen the breath.

And juniper berries are a classic seasoning for wild game dishes. There’s a Wild Food Hike at Tyler SP March 20; it’s accessible for the mobility impaired. Find details on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

That’s our show…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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March 20, 2010 — Tyler SP — Wild Food Hike — Explore the edible wildscape during a moderate, half-mile hike. Learn to identify and prepare some of the common edible wild plants and other benefits they have to offer. Accessible for the mobility impaired. 11 a.m.-noon (903) 597-5338.

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