McAllister Park, Walk #5

Today's photos:

So, this morning it was back to McAllister Park to walk the last section of trail I had intended to cover last week. Where walk #4 on Monday of last week was along the west side of Mud Creek, I walked the east side today. This side of the creek has mesquite savanna mixed with oak thickets.

I did see one family of four deer. The youngest fawn seemed unusually curious about what I was doing, but I didn't try to get photos of them. There was also a small rabbit that apparently had absolutely no interest in sticking around to be photographed as it made a mad dash into the underbrush as soon as I saw it.

This is probably as good a time as any to state another obvious fact. Ideally this type of walk should begin at sunrise. For whatever reason, my body function is virtually non-existent that early in the morning. I am usually getting to the trailhead between ten and eleven.

If I can't start the walk by eleven, then I opt for an evening walk. In the mid-summer heat we are experiencing, even with good acclamation and plenty of water to drink, I don't advise walking between 1 and 6 pm.

Cathedral Rock Nature Park (0n Three and a Half Hours Sleep)

Today's photos:

Extreme fatigue plays tricks on human perspective in every sense of the word. This has been an incredibly intense and demanding week for me culminating with only three and a half hours sleep last night.

Even as I set up this post, I am struggling to stay awake. The only thing I can say with any certainty at the moment is that this is a park with trails through diverse ecologies and compelling natural beauty.

I will be revisiting Cathedral Rock Nature Park, hopefully soon, on a morning when I am more rested, alert and capable of being fully present. (And preferably on a day with a dew point well below the 75 degrees that it was this morning.)

The San Antonio River, Park Segment, Part 2

Of course, it just wouldn't be the San Antonio River without a yellow-crowned night heron.

More photos from yesterday evening:

I have previously written about my fascination with trees. It is probably obvious to regular viewers of this blog that I also have a fascination with streams, creeks and rivers. As with the trees, this goes back to my childhood.

I grew up in and around St. Louis and Columbia, Mo. Hinkson Creek, which is comparable in size to the San Antonio River, flows across property my family owned just north of Columbia. Both the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers are a fundamental part of the lore and culture of the region.

I am generally not consciously aware of my childhood memories, but there is something reassuring and calming for me when I am walking the waterway trails. I look forward to eventually adding the Leon Creek and Medina River Greenways to the trails I have covered for While on a Walk.

The San Antonio River, Park Segment, An Evening Walk, Part 1

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

This evening's photos:

My original plan was to walk the dirt trails on the east side of Mud Creek in McAllister Park this morning. One reason that didn't happen is because it rained fairly heavily over the Mud Creek watershed late yesterday afternoon. I suspect this morning the dirt trails were mud.

And then life started happening. By late afternoon, still no walk. It was well into the evening when I finally headed to Brackenridge Park to walk the Park Segment of the San Antonio River. I walked the trail along the river south from Tuleta Dr past Mulberry Ave continuing south along the drive between Brackenridge Golf Course and the river.

This drive dead ends at a foot crossing across the river at Woodlawn Ave and River Road. I didn't make it quite the entire distance as the sun was setting. It was about fifteen minutes after sunset when I returned to the car.

Despite the late hour, I did get a prolific number of photos, so I will post the second part of this walk tomorrow.