Passport to Texas

Jacob Krebs. Image: Fredericksburg Standard–Gillespie Life

This is Passport to Texas

A tragic accident in 2013 took the life 18 year old Harper High School Senior, Jacob Krebs. Texas Parks and Wildlife, biologist, Joyce Moore.

Will and Mary Krebs raised him to be active in all facets of the community. He was an Eagle Scout. He was a re-enactor at the Nimitz Museum in Fredericksburg. Then he was a phenomenal athlete. He would run eight miles without any problem. He was training constantly. When Jacob died, Will Krebs came to me and he said, Joyce, I would like to memorialize my son. Could you help me? And so I said we should ask the Harper Wildlife Association if they would help us do this.

And they did, by creating a Youth Hunt for Wounded Warriors in Memory of Jacob Krebs. All participants had a connection with the military. Jacob’s mother, Mary.

Jacob loved hunting and he also loved wounded warriors. He was so proud to acknowledge any veteran that he saw. He’d walk up to him and tell him thank you. And in memory of Jacob as well as the kids of veterans, we decided to honor them and have a youth hunt.

Mary Krebs says, Jacob’s impact didn’t end there. He was also an organ donor.

Jacob saved the lives of four people on April the 2, 2013 and he has greatly enhanced the lives of at least 80 more around the United States through tissue, bone and cornea donations.

Learn about Jacob Kreb’s lasting legacy next week on the Texas Parks and Wildlife TV series on PBS.

Check your local listings.

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

Buffalo Soldier reenactors.

Recognizing Texas' Buffalo Soldiers Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

[singing] I was once a captured slave. Now I’m just a black man who came to be…

In the 19th Century, Black men who served in the 9th and 10th Regiments of Cavalry and 24th and 25th Regiments of Infantry of the United States Army were …

I am a Buffalo Soldier!

It’s said the Indians whom they fought during the Indian Wars gave troops the name because of their hair texture and their courage and ferocity in battle.

He feared and respected the buffalo. And he learned to fear and respect the black soldier as well.

That’s Buffalo Soldier reenactor, John Olivera, who says Buffalo soldiers played a major role in settling Texas.

Seventy-five percent of the soldiers that settled this area were Buffalo Soldiers. The only white men that were with them were the commanding officers. Almost all of the forts were manned and built by Buffalo Soldiers.

Texas Parks & Wildlife Department offers Texas Buffalo Soldier Outdoor Educational Programs.

Find their schedule on the Parks and Wildlife website.

The Buffalo Soldiers fought not only the Indians, and outlaws, but racism and prejudice. We had a job to do, and we done it.

That’s our show for today… Funding provided in part by Ram Trucks. Guts. Glory. Ram

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

Great fishing along the Guadalupe below Canyon Dam

New Lease Agreements = Angler Access Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

Thanks to new agreements between Texas Parks and Wildlife and private landowners, anglers have easier access to The Canyon Reservoir Tailrace—one of the top trout fishing destinations in the United States.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department leased four access areas from private landowners along this coveted stretch of water, located below Canyon Reservoir on the Guadalupe River.

Stephan Magnelia, TPWD River Studies Program Director, said: “This portion of the Guadalupe River is a popular trout fishery and is likely the most fished reach of river in Texas.”

By leasing prime fishing locations from private landowners Parks and Wildlife provide anglers with a unique trout fishing experience in Central Texas.

Through late spring, the “no fee” leases give anglers the opportunity for bank and wade fishing – as well as put-in and take out areas for kayaks and paddling equipment.

Texas Parks and Wildlife will continue to stock the Canyon Reservoir Tailrace with thousands of rainbow trout each week through late-January.

Visit the Texas Parks and Wildlife website for the locations of the new access points along Canyon Reservoir Tailrace, and the full list of trout stocking dates.

The Sport Fish restoration program supports our series.

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

Spirula shells. Photo credit: Fritz Geller-Grimm

Setting Your Sights on Unusual Shells Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

This is passport to Texas

Before you can sell seashells by the seashore, you first have to find them.

I feel the best time to go shelling is in the wintertime.

Paul Hammerschmidt is a lifelong shell collector. He says winter storms churn up the Gulf bottom, sending shells onto the beach. Improve your chances of finding intact shells when you avoid crowded shoreline.

If you get a chance to go to some more isolated beaches, like down on Padres island, or something like that, where the population of humans is not quite so thick, you’ll have a much better chance of finding some really unusual shells.

Such as a sweet little shell called baby ears, or another special shell worth searching for called spirula.

And it’s a coiled, snail-like shell. But it doesn’t belong to a snail—it belongs to a little squid. And it’s inside the squid, and when the squid dies, that little thing has a lot of chambers in it with gas, and it floats and washes up on the beach. Those are very pretty, bright white, and they’re very fragile, so you have to be careful with them.

This winter, instead of heading to the slopes for skiing, go to the beach for shelling…you can still have hot cocoa when you’re done.

Saturdays through the end of February Ranger Lisa leads shell hunting, identification and collecting workshops at Galveston Island SP. Find details in the calendar section of the TPW website.

The Sport Fish restoration program supports our series.

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

Beachcombing on Galveston Island in Winter.

Winter Shell Collecting in Texas Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

This is passport to Texas

Nobody thinks twice about collecting shells from the beach. But I started to wonder if it’s really okay since beaches are public land.

It’s okay to collect shells. The ones that are broken and come apart, they create the sand that’s out there, but there is no law against it [collecting].

Paul Hammerschmidt, retired from coastal fisheries, is a lifelong shell collector. He says collect responsibly to avoid creating problems for the environment or marine animals.

I highly recommend that you only take shells that are from dead animals—not live animals.

How can you determine if something is still alive? In the case of the popular sand dollar, small spines cover the shells of living animals…so look for smooth, spineless shells. If, like me, you’ve never found a sand dollar on the beach—there’s good reason for it.

I think it’s because everybody wants to get a sand dollar. And, too, they’re another very fragile shell. And when the waves are strong, they’ll get broken up, and you’ll just see fragments of them. A lot of times, the best time to find a sand dollar, is after a storm—and then very early in the morning—before anybody else gets out on the beach.

More tips on when and where to go shelling tomorrow.

We record our series in Austin at the Block House. Joel Block Engineers our program.

That’s our show for today… Funding provided in part by Ram Trucks. Guts. Glory. Ram

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