1. TRAVELMySA.com | Keyword: Travel
SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS SUNDAY, JUNE 15, 2008 Section State
LBJ’s country
It was the land and the people of the Texas
Hill Country that provided comfort and
sustenance to President Lyndon Johnson
Page 2K
MYSA.COM
As the hot weather approaches in
Central Texas, I find myself scoping
out cool places of respite among Cen-
tral Texas’s spring-fed rivers. The cool-
est way to stay cool, in my book, is to
kayak and swim among their crystal-
clear waters. One of my favorites, the
Llano River, is a delight to swim in
and kayak, offering miles of refresh-
ing paddling over fluted limestone,
large boulders protruding in mid-river
and little crowd and fanfare.
It’s an easy getaway. Just get out a
Texas road map, pack your bathing
suit and river sandals and head up
I-10 West for a couple hours to the
town of Junction, where on Main
Street you can still get a family-run-
motel room for less than $40, and
where a ranch-turned-state park offers
tubing, kayaking, swimming, biking
and hiking among wild turkeys and
wild hogs.
“Paddling the Llano River makes
me happy — it makes me get right,”
says Junction native Rob Marion,
whose grandmother, Tempie Reynolds,
left him 100 acres of riverside land.
His family has owned land on the
South Llano River since 1888. “Being
on the river totally clears my mind
and helps me gain focus.”
I tend to agree with Marion. While
paddling down a river, your eyes are
forced to focus ahead. You’re constant-
ly aware of what’s 20 feet ahead of
you, 50 feet ahead of you and 2 feet
ahead of you. When you have some-
thing on your mind and want to take
time out to see your latest issues from
all angles, this way of seeing and
thinking seems to force you to take a
different perspective — subconsciously
or not.
An easy and effortless trip would
be starting at South Llano River State
Park and paddling several miles into
Junction. For a more enticing paddle
that includes more rapids, more dra-
matic scenery and few people, try put-
ting in at one of the crossings farther
south down U.S. 377. There are a few
outfitters in town who rent watercraft
and offer shuttle services. Rhonda of
South River Canoes graciously offered
her shuttle services to me. She gave
me such great advice about the river
Llano River region: Land of Living Waters
The waterway offers cool,
refreshing getaways in
Kimble and Mason counties.
MYSA.COM
Keyword: Travel
Take a virtual float down the
Llano with a slide show of the region
BY KARLA HELD
Special to the Express-News
See PEACE/4K
W
ith gas prices inching skyward, more
folks are opting to pitch their tents
closer to home this year for the fam-
ily vacation — and with a new infusion of
cash sprucing up Texas state parks, the influx
of campers couldn’t be timelier.
“We’re seeing bigger crowds than we’ve
seen in quite some time, which is really a
good thing,” said Brent Leisure, director of
the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s
Prairies and Lakes region. “Even though the
circumstances may not be the best for every-
body, it is giving us a better opportunity to
present ourselves and make ourselves availa-
ble as a less-expensive alternative — and folks
are certainly taking advantage of it.”
Judging from the crowds on Memorial Day
weekend, park attendance is up this year —
22 percent more reservations that weekend
compared to the year before — and though
nobody can say for sure whether gas prices
are a factor in that rise, common sense says
folks are sticking closer to home.
What does that mean for you, the potential
camper?
“If folks don’t have their reservations, they
need to be making them as soon as possible,”
warned William Granberry, director of the
agency’s Hill Country region. Campsites at the
most popular parks, such as Garner, Inks
Lake, Guadalupe River and Pedernales, tend
to fill up quickly on the weekends, so a reser-
vation — either online or by phone — is the
best way to be sure that you’ll have a space
when you arrive.
The good news is that thanks to a hard-
fought increase in appropriations approved
last year, the agency will receive an additional
$25.6 million for operations and $69 million for
repairs. So park visitors will be seeing more
interpretive programs, more ranger walks,
more activities for families and, in some
parks, greater hours of operation. Just as im-
portant, though largely out of sight, will be
improvements in the parks’ infrastructures.
Water lines and sewerage services, many of
them dating to the ’30s and ’40s, will be re-
placed, and restrooms will be refurbished and
replaced, as well. In the San Antonio region
alone, 14 parks will be receiving improve-
ments. Here’s a quick roundup:
Government Canyon State Natural Area,
closest to home, will expand hours of oper-
ation — the most frequent request — begin-
ning on July 1, when operating hours will be
7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Currently, the park opens at
Sunsets are fantastic at Inks Lake State Park, about nine miles west of Burnet.
PHOTO COURTESY TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFE
PEDERNALES FALLS STATE PARK
2585 Park Road
6026
Johnson City
(830) 868-7304
Drive time: About
an hour
There’s no better
place to cool off
than downstream
from the rocky falls
that give this park
its name. But
there’s much more
to do: hike back to
the tranquil, lush
Twin Falls; hang out
at the bird blind; or take your mountain bike and explore
some of the 20 miles of backcountry trails.
GOLIAD STATE PARK
108 Park Road 6
Goliad
(361) 645-3405
Drive time: About two
hours
Cultural and natural
resources merge in this
outstanding state park
on the San Antonio
River, which boasts
Texas’ first large cattle
ranch in the 1700s at
Mission Espiritu Santo.
Cinco de Mayo has its
origins here at the birthplace of Mexican General Ignacio
Zaragoza, who led Mexican troops to victory against the
French in the Battle of Puebla. Take a kayak and paddle
the Goliad Paddling Trail, explore the park’s hiking trails
and take a dip in the Olympic-size swimming pool.
GUADALUPE RIVER STATE PARK
3350 Park Road 31,
off Texas 46
Spring Branch
(830) 438-2656
Drive time: About
50 minutes
Towering
limestone bluffs
provide a
backdrop, while
ancient cypresses
line the banks and
give much-needed shade. A tubers’ and kayakers’ delight,
this river is great for swimming, as well. A great spot for a
family gathering, a barbeque and a time to chill out.
Explore the five miles of equestrian and mountain-biking
trails, or to really get to know this Hill Country ecosystem,
camp on Friday night to join the 9 a.m. guided tour of the
adjacent Honey Creek State Natural Area (call park to
confirm).
A Mexican scrub jay seeks out seeds
just outside the bird blind at Peder-
nales Falls State Park near Johnson City.
COURTESY PHOTO Goliad State Park brings together
cultural and natural heritage.
Guadalupe River State Park offers the
splendid backdrop of limestone cliffs.
COURTESY PHOTO
COURTESY PHOTO
MYSA.COM
Keyword: Travel
Choose a park, watch a video, map your
tripand make reservations
See FAMILY/3K
Gas prices got you
down? Load up the
car for an adventure
close to home.
BY TRACY L. BARNETT
tbarnett@express-news.net
Dive in!
School’s out, and what better way
to celebrate than a dip in a local
swimming hole? Our interactive,
multimedia Water Fun Guide will
show you the way to 20 of them.
Keyword: Travel