A full day at the river

We woke early and ate our bacon and eggs (the traditional river breakfast) before we headed out to look at the water (pond, creek, and river) and wander the campgrounds.

These are small stoves, but work just fine.

Breakfast taco anyone?

Then I headed to the cliff trail, but DH returned to read at our room. We had seen poison ivy on the trail up from the river and he is susceptible. I (knock wood) have been fortunate all these years. I respect the vine, but I refuse to make this pilgrimage to the river without at making least walking the cliff trail once (and maybe more).*

Walk down the trail with me…

The strangely growing laurel has provided a "hand-hold" down the first section of the cliff trail for as long as I can remember.

Here is a look from down the second set of "steps." [Funny, my knees worked a bit better in the past and I didn't hold on so tightly.]

On the other side moss, a tiny plant and a stunted tree grow from the limestone cliff.

So early in the season there are still limbs growing over the trail. I suspect that the path will be cleared of much of the lower-growing limbs by the hands of young adventurers and brave souls who decide to jump from the cliff (forbidden, but a rule honored in the breach).

A few short steps and I am on the cliff. I am afraid of heights and more "wobbly of foot" than before. I always take great care at the top of the cliff.

Looking upriver from the cliff (note the warning sign on the other side of that cypress tree).  This is a deep section of the river - it is a good spot to get away from the busy swimming area and actually swim.

Across the river from the cliff.

Looking downriver

There are large boulders on the cliff and this is growing from the base of one.

Continuing down the upper trail I saw more milkweed growing.

The trail goes under and slightly around this rock outcropping. We have always called it "the nose." There were somewhat recent rockfalls nearby so I stopped to look up and see what might be happening along this area of trail.

Where "the nose" meets the cliff wall is a decent crack.

Rain, floods, plants and such take a toll on this cliff face.

The other side of "the nose"

 So much of this trail is fairly wide - protected on one side by the cliff and the other by all kinds of small shrubs and trees. But, if one is not mindful, it is easy to take a wrong step. The path is rocky and full of roots - easy to trip. And this day the path was still wet from evening rains.

The path continues with a steep drop to the right.

Here I am looking back down the trail.

I have to pay attention when I stop to take photos as it is easy to get too close to the crumbly edge of the upper trail.

The canopy changes with each step.

This is the spot where you climb down from the upper trail. It is only about 3.5 to 4 feet. I exercise discretion, sit, and side down until my feet hit the rock below.

Here the lower trail goes two directions. I can go left and up river or right and head down river.

I decide to go down river just a bit to see what things look like on that part of the trail. We often use it as a "take-out" point when tubing, although I am not sure we will tube this far on this visit.

This shows that everything is still dripping along the trail.

As I came around a corner and into a small clearing I saw this purple leatherflower vine blooming. I suspect this will be another casualty when the crowds arrive. There is a another clematis** we sometimes see here - the scarlet leatherflower. And, of course, old man's beard is a very visible clematis growing on fences from here into south Texas and elsewhere.

They don't look real - like a 60's hairstyle

Bird planted pyracantha - devil shrub.

Add caption

The river is moving at a good pace, but not too fast for tubing.

The trail looks a little uneven here. It is just a matter of watching your feet and step

Looking back down the trail.

Looking for fairies among the cypress roots.

This log partially blocks the river (lower) trail.

Our campground has two sets of rapids. This is the second set. When I was a child it was the wilder of the two. Now the water flows swiftly over the rocks and you can see little by way of rapids.

Upstream at the start of the second rapids.

Having reached the camping/swimming area, I looked around at some of the massive trees. This one is showing damage and rot.

The injury shows in a seam all the way up to where the limbs branch out.

Old trunk often full of trash.

More of the big guys at the river's edge

Swimming area/rope swings

This is where we usually take photos

First set of rapids in the swimming area

The trail moves along to a shorter cliff at the mouth of Buffalo creek. This is looking down with the creek to my left. I thought I had photos of the creek. Perhaps I have more photos to download.

Looking down Buffalo Creek (Do you hear the echoes of little boys playing with a "waterwheel"?)

Looking across and up river.

Another up river view.

DH watching perch in the water below (He is probably waiting for me to slip down into the river with his cell phone. Nope. didn't happen.). This is from a second trip down the river trail at the swimming area. We came for our photo and I thought this a good one of the spot - the point between the river and Buffalo Creek.

The hill up to where we are staying. I wonder how many times I have walked up this hill - returning from a swim or tube trip, after a volleyball game, at dark with the lightning bugs all around, with ice cream money in my hand, or to feed the ducks the last crusts of bread (I know this is not "parallel," but I will have to work on it later).

I headed  back up the road from the swimming area to find DH reading outside the room. I had forgotten to give him the key so he drank his coffee and found a book in the car to read while he waited.

Our kitchen table

The library and town:

We then headed to town to visit the library. I would like to say that we always visit the local library when we travel, but I would be lying. We DO always visit this library because it (as do many in Texas) provides free Wi-Fi. For years I have checked my work email and handled what I could when on vacation here. Now that there is no work to be concerned about, there is still a need to communicate with family and friends*** and to check the weather.

We were surprised to find the library open and we snagged some comfortable chairs in the lobby. After checking our mail we looked at the fundraising books and picked out a few. Our conversation with the librarian went to Rock Springs and Camp Wood. We went back in time to hear of early settlers and newcomers who adopted the library as their pet project. She grew teary as she described one patron who had remembered the library in her will (the renovation starts in August).

What do you do after making the librarian cry? Well, we went to the thrift store. This place raises money for the local children’s home. It is a great cause and we always find something we don’t really need there.**** Today’s trip was like many past trips. We found books (Yoga for Dummies & Pottery Making) and snagged an old curtain to use for catching agarita berries (more on that tomorrow, I guess).

We stopped at the glitzy “outfitter” store and purchased a minnow net for our new grand nephew (the others have been to the river, so I think they must have minnow nets. This new nephew (Turbo is the nickname, I understand) is brand new. The net is an invitation for future river adventures).

Friends:

Then we headed home to wait for our friend KJ.

KJ is one of those people I have known my whole life. Our mothers were friends and in many ways we children “grew up” together.  During this visit we discovered what I guess I should call “our mothers’ secret.” My mother always talked about what good kids KJ and her siblings were. Their behavior set a high bar and we always seemed to fall short. Well, apparently (a motherly?) their mother always talked about what good kids my siblings and I were!

Imagine that. Our mothers conned us!

I have to wonder if they did it unconsciously or if they conspired to encourage us with exaggerated tales of the haloed children of their “best friend from the first grade.” Perhaps they simply loved each other so much that they loved everything about the other (kids included) and so we were blessed with imagined reputations of excellence in conduct and sibling relations.*****

Now, that is not to say that we weren’t all good kids (and each set of siblings seems to continue to get along), but I suspect we all got into the average amount of mischief and we fought with our brothers and sisters to a reasonable degree for kids in our generation. And between the families we continue to have this strange closeness that allows us to fall in with each other will little trouble after long periods of separation. I know that I would trust any of them completely.

In any event, KJ arrived and we showed her around the campgrounds – including the screened shelters where we camped as children. Then we headed to the local diner, enjoyed the buffet, and stayed sharing stories (and retirement advice/experience) for hours.******

DH and I then headed for the river – a float from the low water crossing to our swimming area. It took about 30 minutes. We have made the float faster, but recent years have been endlessly slower and full of scraping bottom and walking. Today we floated the entire way. The river was wider – there has been much bank erosion, but recent rains have raised the water level and are pushing enough water through that the current carried us over and around all but a very few rocks. Even those we bounced off before continuing on at a good pace.

Long before we reached it we had decided to walk around the waterfall. This spot has changed a bit and was not worth the risk today. We have ridden down in the past, but recent years  have been so dry they left no option to float down this short drop. This river can be tricky, and we decided to wait for another day – with our family devil-dares and those wise in the ways of wild water present, advising, and standing by.

DH ran back to the crossing to pick up the car and we headed off for another wildlife hunt as the sun went down.

Our count******* for two days:

1 coyote (crossed the road in front of the car between Burnet and Marble Falls)

30 or so white tail deer (we are cheating here as many relatively tame deer wander

            the streets of the local town.

Lots of exotics behind their game fences

3 cottontail rabbits

2 jackrabbits

1 peacock

2 llamas

Loads of sheep and goats

20 cows

2 hounds

1 turkey

A dozen or so cardinals

The voices of roosters, doves, cricket frogs, bull frogs, and numerous songbirds

Then at dark we headed down the road to the river to watch the lightning bugs. During the drought there have been no lightning bugs, no fireflies.

Perhaps our memories are dim, but it seemed to us that we had never seen so many fireflies in one place before this evening. They were stunning against the black woods and the darkening riverside.

I tried to catch the fire – if only for a moment.

Multiply this streak by hundreds. The place was alive with fireflies.

Most of the photos were black, but this guy stayed long enough for us to catch - with the camera anyway.

It is time to sleep again – one more breakfast and one more swim and we must leave this place.

Sunset on the pond.

NOTES:

*My sister used to race me. One would take the road and one the cliff trail and we would see who could get back to our room first (or down the the swimming area first, but no jumping off the cliff!). She and the cliff trail were unbeatable.

**We have found clematis all over the world. I usually recognize one of these plants by the "crazy: seeds.

***One friend was to join us for lunch. Another is expecting us for the great agarita harvest on Friday. We needed to touch base.

****We have found formals and china, jewelry and puzzles, and just about anything we needed or just thought we did.

*****I am apparently more of a “rule breaker” than was imagined. This is the truth. Even today, I walked to the back of the restaurant and plucked a length of fig tree branch (only about 10 inches, people, and it had no figs on it) without asking anyone. Scoff law, I am!

******We have made plans for a return engagement in the early fall – this time with more family and games!

*******You can see more of the creatures on another post.  http://walkinthepark-padimus.blogspot.com/2015/05/flowers-crawlies-and-beasties-along.html