Exploring the Beauty of Texas

I had the opportunity to brag about North Carolina recently.  I presented a program at our monthly Outdoor Club meeting about hikes we've taken, especially along the Blue Ridge Parkway.  I pulled together pictures from DuPont State Forest, Linville Falls, Moses Cone, Mt. Mitchell, Julian Price and Stone Mountain for my presentation.  They enjoyed stunning scenic shots along the parkway to breathtaking waterfalls to colorful wildflowers and babbling brooks.  They all agreed that North Carolina is indeed a beautiful place.

What most of my friends back in North Carolina may not know, Texas is a beautiful place as well.  Many people believe that Texas is flat, dry, dusty and brown.  There are sections of Texas that resemble that description, but others sections rival the beauty found in North Carolina.  Texas is broken down into seven distinctive sections as shown in the map below.

I am thankful we live in the section of Texas known as the Pineywoods.  The Pineywoods is named for the thick forest of pines found through out the region.  I've commented to people from home that if I didn't know I was in Texas, I would think I was back in North Carolina.  Driving around Tyler is not much different scenery than driving around Charlotte.  Neighborhood streets are lined with yards of green, tall trees and flowering shrubs.  Interestingly, you can drive 5 miles down the road and be out in the middle of the country surrounded by green pastures and blue skies.

Pictured below are shots from various locations in the Pineywoods area.  The first is Caddo Lake State Park located in the North East section of Texas near Louisiana.  This is the park where I managed to stroll thru Poison Ivy.  The second picture is from the historic Azalea Trail in Tyler.  The third picture is a fall shot at the Rose Garden, also in Tyler.  The last picture is a scenic shot taken at the Mineola Nature Preserve.

Top L: Caddo Lake State Park; Top Right: Historic Azalea Trail
Bottom L: Rose Garden; Bottom R: Mineola Nature Preserve

We've visited Brazos Bend State Park in the Gulf Coast region.  This area runs along the Gulf of Mexico and is known for sea marshes, barrier islands, estuaries and bays.  It is nearly level.  Houston and Galveston are major cities in the Gulf Coast region.

Brazos Bend State Park

The other area we had a chance to visit is the Hill Country in Central Texas.  This area is known for it's rolling hills and grassland. The terrain is hilly with granite domes and caves.  It is also known for it's wildflowers in the spring.  We spent a weekend camping and hiking at Inks Lake State Park.

Inks Lake State Park

As you can see, Texas is more than flat, dry, dusty and brown.  There is beauty to be seen everywhere you go.  We look forward to exploring other regions of the state.

The Journey's We Take

A year ago, Jon and I had settled into a good routine.  During the week, I was in Charlotte and back to Hickory/Conover on the weekends.  Jon usually came down to Charlotte on Tuesday or Wednesday.  So, receiving phone calls and texts on Monday asking if he could come see me sent warning bells off in my head.  Of course, I now have an hour to ponder and speculate what is going on.  Did he just want to see me?  Possibly but not likely.  Was there a problem between the two of us? Oh, god I hope not.  Or was it a work situation?  If you are like me, you know all of those scenarios flew around my mind.  That seemed like the longest hour.

As we all know now, it was that work wanted him to transfer to Texas.  It was very obvious that this was the path we would need to follow.  That began the hardest period of my adult life.  I was lost in the thought of having to start over.  The only saving grace was having my best friend and soul mate there with me on this journey.

I moved a lot while growing up.  I learned at the ripe age of 6 that people would be in my life short term.  Our car was loaded and we said goodbye to our neighbors and great friends on Carr Street in Greensboro.  I remember crying so hard I got sick.  I went to 10 schools in the 12 years of regular education, so I eventually built up a lot of walls.  I became friendly and everyone knew me, but getting close to others took a lot of time and courage. In my mind, people were just temporary until the next move.  Why let them get close and hurt me when I move again?

Those who saw past the introverted new girl, found a friend for life.  Kim Holladay from the 4th grade - we still email all of these years later, Bonnie Bryant Howland and many others from Hawthorne Junior High School - still a part of my life, albeit not as frequently as I would like.  Ronette King from Broughton High School.  Denise Stanford Cook from UNCC and the way too long list of Jaycees from North Carolina.  (I would try to name them all, but I would sadly forget to list someone and all heck would break out!)

We've been in Texas nine months now.  I came into this knowing that I had to make it work or else I would be miserable and lonely. We are amused at the people who tell us "I've lived here for 10 years and have never been to Tyler State Park" or "I didn't know Tyler had a Women's Roller Derby Team".  I joked with Jon before we moved that we would be so freaking busy, we wouldn't know what to do with ourselves.  Since moving here:

• Jon joined the Astronomical Society of East Texas 
• I joined a Book Club and a Women's Social Club
• We joined the Outdoor Group of East Texas and the East Texas Trekkers
• I found a wine club that does monthly wine tastings
• Jon volunteered with the Ore City High School model rocketry club
• We both helped with the running of the inaugural Tyler Mini Maker Faire
• Found the local Jaycee chapter and are trying to get involved with them
• Found the closest HOBY site and are trying to get involved with them
• We signed up for the Texas State Parks annual passport to visit any park for free
• Participated in the UT Tyler Broadway Lights series for 2013 and have subscribed for 2014
• Became members at the TJC CESSE Planetarium and Discovery Science Place

We put together our calendar for the fall and can't believe how much is already on it. I'm looking forward to spending time with my husband as we explore more about our new home state of Texas!

Just watch out for the poison ivy! (Despite the popular belief that Texas is dry and dusty, much of the area we live in looks very similar to North Carolina, right down to the terrifying poison ivy.)

Did you know about Volkssporting?

It's interesting to me to learn about new groups and organizations.  Especially to learn that these groups existed in North Carolina and through out the country.  I think it speaks to the greater problem most groups have of "how do we share who we are to the world"?  Being a Jaycee for more than 20 years taught me that first hand.

The group we've discovered is called the East Texas Trekkers who are a part of the American Volkssporting Association.  Volkssporting promotes personal physical fitness and good health by providing fun filled, safe exercise in a stress free environment through noncompetitive walks, and hikes, bike rides and swims. The AVA has almost 300 chartered clubs nationwide.  For more information click this link for the AVA website.

Jon and I found the East Texas Trekkers before we moved here, but did not participate in our first event until January.  I was excited about meeting this group and having people to meet for walks.  We woke up that January morning to cold and rain outside.  The walk started in Longview, which was about an hour drive from Tyler.  We struggled with a decision.  Do we stay home where it's warm and dry or drive an hour in the pouring rain with the possibility that no one else shows?  We had not explored Longview yet, so we made the decision to meet the group in Longview.

I don't recall all of the people who attended, but I believe there were at least 8 of us who walked 6.2 miles (10K) in the on again off again rain.  We dried off the best we could and headed out to Jason's Deli afterwards to eat lunch and learn more about the group. We decided to join at the next event.

This group focuses primarily on walking.  There are other groups that include biking as activities.  Most walks are 10K (6.2 miles) and most have a 5K option (3.1 miles).  There are mainly two types of walks scheduled.  The first, Traditional, is one where the registration table is open for several hours so people can get there when they like as long as they finish the course by a set time.  The other is called a Year Round Event (YRE) that is accessible almost any day of the week.  The walkers box is left at a local business, so the start and finish times are based on that business' operating hours.  Someone traveling from out of state would have the ability to do a YRE anywhere along their journey.

There is a small yearly dues fee (ours is $15.00 first year for single or family; $10.00 per year after).  You have the ability to earn credits for each walk for both the event and the distance.  If you choose to earn the credit, you pay $3.00 to walk.  Otherwise, you can currently walk for free.  The first event book is for 10 events.  After 10 events, you turn that into AVA and receive a certificate, patch and pin.  It increases in different increments.  The distance credits are based on kilometers walked, again on distance increments.

Our group is smaller, so we're only currently scheduled for one event per month.  We're hoping to see that number increase as we are able to grow the group. Larger groups near us have regularly scheduled weekly walks.

Another interesting aspect of these walks is they also have challenge walks.  For example, one challenge walk is to do an AVA sanctioned walk in each of the State Capitals.  I've met a few people who are really close to meeting that challenge.  I know it will be a while before Jon and I can think about starting those types of challenges.

We just walked our official 6th walk with the group.  We did the Longview YRE, Faulkner Park YRE, Azalea Trail Traditional, Caddo Lake YRE (2 times) and the Nacogdoches YRE.  We've earn credit on 5 of those walks, so we're halfway to completing our first event book.  We're looking forward to an event scheduled in Dallas on November 16th.  It is called the JFK Memorial Walk and takes participants along the areas involved in that tragic day.

I wanted to share with my friends and family more about these groups in case you might want to look into it.  In North Carolina, I see clubs in Asheville, Charlotte, Durham, Fairview, Landis, Snow Hill, Winston-Salem and Clemmons.  To see what clubs are in your area, click this link AVA Club Listings.  For my new Texas friends, click here for the East Texas Trekkers.

No, my new job is not director of recruitment or marketing for the AVA!  As I mentioned above, I know it is hard for clubs to promote themselves.  This is just my way of letting others know this group exists.  I didn't know; did you?

What I like about this group is it keeps me exercising.  I know right now that on September 14th, October 5th and November 8th I am going to walk at least 6.2 miles that day. Or, if Jon and I are looking for something to do, we can check out the events schedule on the website to see what else is near us. In addition, I'm meeting new people and seeing parts of the state I wouldn't normally visit.  Yes, I'm the geeky dork who wants to start collecting patches and pins.  I'm ready for the 50 state capitals challenge.  Are you?

Rockets Red Glare

Shortly after moving to Texas, Jon and I noticed numerous businesses advertising they sold fireworks.  None of the stores ever seemed to be open, but they were everywhere.   Almost every drive we took, we would see an occasional stand.  Jon passes a huge building located on Hwy 31 everyday going back and forth to work.  We kept wondering why there were so many, but why were they never open??

With the wonderful invention of the Internet and google, you can look up the answer to almost any question immediately.  Jon pulled out his phone one day after we passed another random stand to find out the answer.

We learned fireworks are legal to shoot off anytime of year, as long as it does not violate a city restriction (we can't ignite any in Tyler city limits).  These stands are only allowed to be open for short periods of time around July 4th (June 24-July 4) and New Year's Eve (December 20-January 1).  For certain counties near the Texas/Mexico border, fireworks can also be sold May 1 - May 5 for Cinco de Mayo celebrations.

We stopped at two stores this weekend to check out what they sell.  One place, Pappy's, looks like a vegetable stand from the road.  Jon picked up a few items from them.  We visited one other place and picked up a variety pack.  We're joining our friends from the outdoor club for a 4th of July gathering and plan on lighting up the night sky with our own fireworks display!

Happy Independence Day!
Be safe out there....

Oh the places we will go...

It's been a while since my last post.  When I started the blog, I wasn't working.  I came up with a list of potential topics and even photo ideas to go along with the story.  I was ready to post on a regular basis.  Then, an opportunity for work came my way.  I will admit, I became spoiled not working.  I exercised almost daily and cooked dinner for us nightly.  Since I started work, my free time for exercise, blogging and cooking seems to have disappeared.  Hopefully we'll get into a better routine soon. 

Since moving to Texas, Jon and I spend as much time as we can exploring the area.  We travelled to many of the Texas State Parks for camping and hiking.  Our new home brings us closer to states new to us.  Last weekend, we camped at Petit Jean State Park in central Arkansas.  We both took Friday off from work so we could get an early start on the trip.  Our drive was uneventful, except our GPS trying to send us down gravel roads with rivers running across them.

This state park is different than the ones we've experienced in both North Carolina and Texas. The main road runs thru the park and there is not a gate to limit access after hours.   There is not a registration process, unless you plan to camp.  We were in a group site, so there was nothing we needed to do except set up out tent.  The group site offered a private bathroom restricted to our group.  We enjoyed not having to wait in line for a shower.

Several of us in the group decided to hike to Cedar Falls Saturday morning.  This hike is approximately 2 miles round trip.  It starts with a half mile down the mountain and levels out from there leading to the falls.  The falls are beautiful and reminded me of North Carolina.  I worried about the hike back knowing that we had to go back up what we had just come down.  It was not nearly as difficult as I expected, primarily due to frequent stops to allow others on the way down to pass us on the trail.

Cedar Falls

We spent the afternoon exploring other parts of the park, including the upper observation trail for the falls and several scenic overlooks.  After we returned to the campsite, I noticed that part of our tent looked odd.  It turns out one of our poles broke.  We pretty much took most of the tent apart so Jon could restring the poles.  Fortunately his repair worked and we had a completely functioning tent!

In all my years camping, I had not experienced Dutch Oven cooking.  It is quite popular with the outdoor group we joined, so Jon bought me the necessary items for Christmas.  While Jon worked on repairing the tent, I worked on getting our potato dish ready to cook.  Everyone enjoyed the dish and I look forward to future meals in the dutch oven.

On Sunday, most of us set out to hike the Seven Hollows Trail.  The map listed it as 4.5 miles and moderate to hard.  I disagree with the moderate part and strongly agree with the hard part.  The trail took us up and down thru the hollows to view streams, deep forest woods, numerous stone facings and quiet glades.  Some of the beautiful sights along the trail included the Natural Bridge and the Grotto.  We had a love-hate relationship with this hike.  We loved the incredible scenery, but hated the difficulty of the trail.

Natural Bridge

On our last trip, we experienced an apple stealing squirrel.  On this trip, the birds decided to get in on the action.  First, we discovered several crows on one of the picnic tables enjoying an afternoon meal.  Jon and I chased them off.  I took a heavy dutch oven lid and covered some of the food with it to hopefully protect it from the birds.  Not only did they get the food out from under the lid, the opened a box of crackers!

Not to be outdone the Chuck Will's Widow decided it wanted to steal our sleep.  The Chuck Will's Widow is a relative of the Whippoorwill.  The description we found noted the birds "incessant call".  Needless to say, the bird sang it's song for hours on end in the middle of the night.  All of us wished we had a BB Gun. 

Other than a disrupted sleep, we had a great time on the trip.  We couldn't ask for nicer weather.  We enjoyed getting to know more new friends from Tyler.  Our next camping trip is scheduled for sometime in early fall.  We look forward to new places to go.

Click below to visit my Photobucket site for pictures from our trip.

Photos from Petit Jean State Park

Oh, nothin' could be finer...

Than to be in Carolina for a Panther football game!

I need to set the record straight on one thing right from the start. This girl is a Carolina Panther's football fan and will NEVER become a Dallas Cowboy's fan.  It's not that I personally have anything against the Cowboys.   I probably will never become a fan of another team.  I guess I should elaborate.

I was never a big NFL fan until the Panther's started playing in Charlotte.  Most years, I would only watch the Superbowl with friends, usually picking the underdog to support.  The closest teams to Charlotte are the Redskins and the Falcons.  But, I never felt an affliation with either of those places.

The Panthers are the only NFL team I've supported.  I started going to one or two games a year, then had the chance to buy season tickets.  I became the woman who carried on conversations about football stats and players.  I cheered loudly and never left until the last second ticked off the clock.  I went to games that were colder than I like, wetter than I like and hotter than I like.  I had so much fun!

I became that person who says "we" when talking about the Panthers.  "We" should have made this play or "we" just didn't have it in us this game.  I became an ultimate fan of the Carolina Panthers.

A true fan doesn't stop cheering for their team or change teams just because they move to a new area.  A true fan continues to support their team from where ever they are.  A true sports fan understands why I will not become a fan of another team.

The picture above is the final score of the Wild Card game between the Panthers and Cowboys in January 2004.  The Panthers went on to beat St. Louis in a double OT thriller and Philadelphia to move on to the Superbowl against New England. What an incredible season, even if it didn't end up with a Superbowl win.

Oh, nothin' could be finer
Than to be in Carolina
For a Panther football game!

Stand and cheer for the Panthers
Stand and cheer for the team
The pride of both Carolinas
And city of the queen
Carolina!

Stand and cheer for the Panthers
In our grand ol' name
Nothin' could be finer
Than to be in Carolina
For a Panther football game!

From the mountains
To the Ocean
Carolina, Carolina best of 'em all!
From the endzone
To the endzone
Carolina, Carolina carry the ball!
Oh, nothin' could be finer
Than to be in Carolina
For a Panther football game!

Nothin' could be finer
Than to be in Carolina
For a Carolina Panther football game!
Carolina!

From Carolina Girl to Cowgirl?

It is hard to believe that six months ago today Jon and I started the drive from North Carolina to Texas. Six months ago my heart broke saying good bye to my family, friends and the state I lived most of my life.  Jon had to deal with both a sobbing wife next to him and a not-so-happy cat in the back seat.
 
Change is stressful.  Change is scary.  Change is sad.  That was me, stressed, scared and sad.  I spent most of the first two months settling into the apartment and getting unpacked..  My daily excursions allowed me to learn how to get around town.  During the first month or so, I had limited contact with people other than Jon.  It was a difficult time and I shed many tears.  The last few months sped by and each day gets better than the last.   
 
I made the decision to embrace the changes and accept where I am.  I miss North Carolina, my family and friends so much and will consider North Carolina my home for a long time.  But, can this NC girl become a true Texan?  What exactly is involved in "becoming Texan"?  What does someone need to know when moving to Texas?

Join me on my journey to discover the answers to these questions.