Saturday, April 24, 2010

Pedernales Falls State Park

Since returning to Austin in early March, we have tried unsuccessfully several times to "take flight" again and see the wildflowers in the Texas Hill Country. One thing or another prevented our departure, one of the most recent being a faulty switch that prevented Millennium Falcon from going into reverse gear. Undeterred, while waiting for repairs we made a quick trip to Johnson City to visit Jimmy and Danine Jacks and see the flowers in Blanco and Burnet Counties. Here are a few shots from that trip,




plus a couple taken at our farm in Hamilton County.



On Monday of this week we picked up The Falcon at the Volvo repair facility outside Waco and raced back to Austin with plans to pick up The Royals and head west. However, our Car Karma still wasn't good. Outside of Austin The Falcon blew a coolant hose and had to pull over until another could be installed. My Tahoe, in the meantime was in the shop for an alignment and balancing. Maybe solving three problems was the charm. All work was done and we took off on Tuesday and hope to be out for a couple of weeks.

We are camped in Pedernales Falls State Park, where the weather is wonderful and we have a lovely campsite (#15 if you're planning a visit. It is very private and is surrounded by clumps of Texas Persimmon, Live Oak and Ash Juniper ("Cedar" to all you Texans).





The park is only an hour or so west of Austin and about 15 miles from Johnson City. The scenery is classic Texas Hill Country, with the added benefit of several miles of riverfront on the lovely Pedernales River. Wildflowers are in bloom, and good rains over the winter are providing plenty of water. On Wednesday we explored the falls, with the dogs enjoying the opportunity to cool off at the river's edge, or chill out in camp.





Thursday provided more chances to hike and enjoy the fields of wildflowers in the park. That evening, we had company. Jimmy Joe and Danine Jacks came for dinner, and we celebrated JJ's 67th birthday. It was a wonderful chance to continue old friendships.

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