Howdy Ya'll,
LOL- Texas welcomed me in it's "BIG" style way!!!! LOL
On Friday the 29th, 8 tornados landed in Texas- all around where I was. One landed just 5 mins away!! My friend Bud (from San Antonio) had told me to stay away from the tornados....I laughed and said I'm not looking for them- they came to me!!! LOL He then asked why I would go to tornado alley???? I told him that if someone had told me it was tornado alley I might have chosen a different area to stay in!!! LOL I was just very glad I wasn't in my tent!!! The wind, rain, thunder & lightening were wild!! I took some pictures of the stormy sky. (see #1- #7)
On Wednesday 1/3/07 - I went out for my first adventure. I went to the town of Belton and Temple. In Belton I saw the local dam. They did a unique thing with this dam. They painted the walls of the dam like a big mural. The pictures on the wall depict things about the local area, as you can see from the pictures I took (see #8 - #19) . I then went to Temple which is the next town over. I went to the Miller Springs Natural Park. This park offers camping, picnic, and hiking. The terrain is very tough going, but for people like me there was an "easy" trail!!! LOL There was a wooden walkway that I followed. Each board had the name of a person or group carved into them-- much like what they do with bricks on walkways. (it shows who donated money to help build walkway) I saw two buzzards/vultures while I was there. They were huge!! They are kept well fed with the road kill along the highways. Unfortunately, many deer are hit and killed out here. Speed limits of 70mph and deer don't mix well!
On Friday 1/5/07 - I went out a bit further- about 200 miles out! I went out to Glen Rose. This is about 3/4's of the way upto Fort Worth area, off Interstate 35. I first went to the Fossil Rock Exotic Wildlife Park. This is a open range park, where exotic animals roam. You can either drive your car through the 10 mile park or sign up for a guided tour. I chose to drive myself. There were over 45 different kinds of animals here. It only cost $15.00 entrance fee (for off peak season). You can also purchase a bag of grain feed for the animals. When you 1st enter thru the gate you cross a cattle gate. For those who don't know what this is- it is a bunch of pipes laid close together on the ground- keeps animals from leaving an open gate. Well when you drive over them it makes a racket!! Now these smart critters are too funny....once they hear this noise they start moving towards the road way. One of the group will stand in the middle of the road- just to make sure you stop!!! LOL You throw the grain out to them. Some try to get into the car with you!! LOL (as you'll see in the pictures #20- #60) If you try to leave before they feel like you've fed them enough- they step back out in front of the car!! LOL This was a totally awesome experience!!!!! About half way through the park you find yourself at a gift store & restaurant. I stopped here and got a bite to eat- then I continued on my way. This is a definite must do - if you are in the area and like animals!! I then traveled about 10 mins from this park to the Dinosaur Valley State Park. Now this was also an interesting place! It has camping, hiking, picnic, camp store like most parks. What makes this park unique is you can see dinosaur tracks here. Inside the rangers station there is a room that has many visual aids/displays that show you what you'll find in the park (footprints) and who made them and how, plus much more information. I followed the map and found several tracks. The only problem is most of them are under water in the river bed of the Paluxy River. The water level was kind of high. I met a couple there. The gentleman was saying that he had been there once when the river bed was dry. He said you could really see all of the tracks then!! But like I said- I did see some and I took pictures (see #61- #75) - I hope that you'll be able to make them out too! This too is a must see!!!
On Saturday 1/6/07, LeeAnn, Jack & I went to Topsey. This is about a 30 min drive from Killeen. We went to see some more animals. We went to theTopsey Exotic Ranch & Drive Thru Safari. This is a much smaller park than the one in Glen Rose. But we had a lot of fun anyways. (pictures #76 - #124 ) I hope you enjoy all the pictures from my Texas travels so far.... there will be more!!!
So I'm off for now...take care of yourselves- Love Donna
SEE PICTURES IN ALBUM #58:http://picasaweb.google.com/Pandadmd5880
1 comment:
I love that animal park u went thru with Leeann and Jack. That fat zebra has to be pregnant. I love that camel that looks like it is chasing the truck. Those Yaks are huge. You look like you were having fun the baby goats, Leeann too. The cactus was humungous. I want to go there so bad when I get to TX.
Love ya,
Babs
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