As far as I’m concerned, there’s very little better than the simple act of walking with a friend. Just being outside sets a great tone but to do it with a friend or friends, well you just can’t beat that.
This past weekend, I had the opportunity to take a hike in Meridian State Park about 70 miles south of the Dallas-Ft Worth (DFW) metro area. As you probably know, Texas and the DFW area is being hit hard by the Covid-19 virus so, for those of us with any sense, we haven’t had the opportunity to get out much this year. Sadly, I don’t see that changing for quite some time with the possibility of another stay at home order.
With that said, getting out in this fairly isolated park was just what I needed. Usually, I do these walks by myself but this time, my brother-in-law decided to go with me. Mike has been part of my family since he started dating my sister in the 70’s and they’ve been married since 1977 so, he’s as much my bother as my blood brother is.
We took off early, it’s July in Texas so out of self defense from the heat, most outdoor activities occur early in the morning. The park is about 10 miles from my brother’s ranch, so it took no time to get there, we were on the trail by 06:30. Mike walks on paved walking/biking paths near his home so he only had athletic shoes to wear, he would find out why I wear my Keen’s later.
Central Texas is rugged country, limestone is everywhere and when you’re ascending or descending, the ever present greyish white stone can be difficult to navigate. It was though nice to once again hear the crunching of the gravel under my boots, it’s become a very Zen experience for me and a joy I discovered on the Camino.
Limestone Walls
There are a couple trails, the longer Bosque Trail wanders around Lake Meridian through the woods (bosque) and up and down the canyons and ravines that feed run off rainwater into the man-made lake. In Texas, the person in front gets to watch for snakes and also gets to clear the trail of cobwebs as you walk down the trail. I saw no snakes on this trip, but I found every cobweb in the park.
In my posts about my 2017 Camino, I mentioned that it seemed as if every morning, Old Santiago planned a little early morning wake me up climb. Apparently, he did the same Saturday morning. All in all, it was not a big climb but, it did get the heart pumping.
Mike also got to find out that walking on smooth and level paths is very different than walking on natural paths, uneven surfaces and with steady elevation changes. Unfortunately, he took a fall as he lost his footing coming down an incline. No serious damage fortunately but he is going to invest in some boots. I hope he does and that he joins us on more of our hikes…whenever that is.
I enjoyed sharing my joy of hiking with Mike and, other than the fall, I think he enjoyed it too. He was surprised to find that we’d done all of this in about two hours. He was also surprised at how sore he was. Like I said, walking on level ground is very different than walking in the wild. But, we all know, it get’s easier if you keep at it.
Mike’s welcome anytime, who knows, maybe I can convince him to come walk the Camino with me in 2023. I can be pretty persuasive when I want to be. Right Mr. G?
I hope to do another hike soon and the Professors are interested as well. The Government Canyon State Natural Area is north of San Antonio and has several very nice trails. The area is wild and it the recharge area for the Edwards Aquafer. It’s also very close to Enchanted Rock, a big plus. Probably have to be in the Fall as it’s getting very hot now, and, there’s that other thing.