Hiking Fools - Sun., May 5

What do you call a group of people who love to hike, make silly puns, sing a few bars of whatever song happens to pop into their heads, and play pranks on each other? Hiking fools (AKA San Antonio Hill Country Hikers).

Sunday morning I dragged myself out of bed to make the 8:45 a.m. start time at O.P. Schnabel Park Trailhead in northwest San Antonio. The park is part of the Leon Creek Greenway.

Meanwhile, Bob did a ten-mile run on the Riverwalk from our RV park into downtown San Antonio and back.

Once again our hike leader, Paul, took us on a mostly shaded hike. Did he stick to paved trails? Nooooo. He must know the park like a truck driver knows interstates. He had us traipsing through the woods on deer trails, gravel and rocky paths, over the "river" and through the mud. But we didn't end up at grandmother's house. We ended up right back where we started 5.7 miles later. Thankfully in the description of the hike, Paul told us to wear hiking boots or sturdy shoes. Especially nice to have on my boots for the steep rocky section of trail and for the mucky mud.

The heavy rain we had last week created more than mud. Wildflowers bloomed, grasses sprouted seeds, and the trees were vibrant green.

The hike wasn't the breakneck pace of last Friday evening's Tobin Park walk. Today we took time to smell the blooming sage, look at deer who were looking back at us, and take pictures. In honor of Cinco de Mayo, one guy broke out singing "La Cucaracha."

I am amazed by the variety of scenery in San Antonio and that we keep learning about new places to be out in nature. The locals on the hike talked about how much they like San Antonio's greenspace initiatives and vote for them whenever they are on the ballot. The greenspaces are well used by animals, birds, and people in the region. We saw many deer on our hike. The mud revealed tracks of deer, raccoons, people and dogs.

Runners with marathon numbers were on some of the paved trails. We were told they were running a half marathon. It must have been very popular because when we finished our hike the runners were leaving. Police had to direct traffic; the start/finish of the half marathon was across the main highway from the park we were in.

Surprise, surprise: I have photos from the hike today. Don't I always? Here they are...

Wooded glen.

Most times there is no water here.

Rain lilies.

One of the many deer checking us out.

This huge rock wall reminded me of a hike we took at the Ledges
area in Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio.

Our hike leader, Paul, said there usually isn't water here. All of us were impressed by this pretty, seasonal "lake."

Instant lake, just add water.

Wildflowers on the rocks.

Isn't this inviting?

Check out those roots!

Egyptian goose.

Paul talking, Kim, Carmen and Eduardo.

Paul capturing a moment.

Can you say "spring cleaning?" That's what we did all afternoon. It was way past time to clean our 5th wheel carpets so we rented The Rug Doctor machine from WalMart and Bob, bless his heart, made many passes of the carpet cleaner over all the interior carpet. When he had done enough, I took over and made a couple more sweeps of the living room carpet. It looks so much better!


Sunday night TV is 60 Minutes and Amazing Race. We finally sat down and relaxed with dinner, then later with a bowl of ice cream and cookies. Well deserved. Thank you, honey, for being the "heavy lifter/ muscle" in the carpet cleaning. It's so nice to walk on the carpet now.

So ended our second busy weekend day in a row. Even the cats are exhausted!

"I wanna hold your hand paw."

We love each other.

The end.

Unidentified Callers -- Thurs., July 19

San Antonio, Texas:

The insistent phone rings, you pick it up. Nothing, no voice, no "hello," nothing. The most infuriating thing is, "they" don't leave a message. The voiceless, nameless "they." Who are these people?

Sometimes, when a telemarketer calls, you get two seconds of silence before "they" start speaking. That gives you a chance to hang up as soon as you hear the voice or the recording. But when there's nothing, and they keep calling back for days on end, you begin to wonder..."Did I miss something important?"

Here's a way to find out who's calling. Go to 800notes.com Directory of UNKNOWN Callers on the web. I discovered this site a few years ago. You enter the phone number of the person who called you into the appropriate box on the left-hand side of the site (if you know it, otherwise it won't work) and hit "Search." If other people have reported the number, you can read about who the callers are. Spread the word.

I researched the calls I've received for the past three days and found out it's Shell Vacations. I identify them in my phone's directory and ignore the call. If you have a call blocker or ignore app, you can use those.

On the 800notes.com web site I have identified spam calls from: People trying to offer me a bogus job, YAK service in Canada (which reroutes calls so you won't know who they're from), "You have won a $1,000 gift card from Walmart," Shell Vacations, insurance companies and more. Handy website if you want to know who's calling you with bad intent.

In the right-hand column of the web site you can look at the most recent threads, read the latest news about fraud, and read articles about their web site, including FAQs (which is informative).

If no one has reported the number, you can fill out a report on their web site and check back to see if anyone else has been receiving calls from the same number. Very useful website. The only thing better would be if the web site could help stop the calls or report them to the Attorney General's Office.

On to life in general...

Picked up my car this morning from Grande Ford Light Truck Service. Total repair bill $142 and some change. Pretty good when it's under $200. They did an oil change (lube, oil, filter), replaced air & fuel filters, checked brakes, suspension, battery, and a "clunking" sound when turning the steering wheel. The Escape pod has a clean bill of health. Now all my car needs is a full detail, including engine cleaning, to remove as much caliche dust as possible. Then my baby will be "purring" again. Grande Ford just called me and they have someone there who will detail the whole car for me. I'm taking it in on Monday! Woo hoo.

Bob is very busy at work getting the 2011 year-end financial statement done. That is his goal before we leave for Yellowstone. Oh, and even though he's controller, he is now in charge of hiring a replacement receptionist for the company. Two people were interviewed yesterday and two more to interview today. (He received over 40 applicants.)

This morning I spent time planning our overnights on the way to Yellowstone. It's so much fun to ferret out RV parks/campgrounds along the way. We won't have the Escape pod this trip to run ahead and check RV parks or campgrounds so I'm trying to suss out how easy it is to get in and around the campgrounds. Free wifi is always a plus, especially since Bob will be working on the road. We can give our air card a rest. If needed, hopefully there will be a library, truck stop, Barnes & Noble, Starbucks or McDonalds nearby just in case we can't get internet any other way.

Last night, I didn't sleep much so I cat-napped with the cats for four hours in the middle of the day. I feel much better.

Life is very interesting, you never quite know what will happen next.

Welcome to John and Ellen at Connected to the Vine Photography.

Day Tripper, Yeah! -- Sun., July 15

San Antonio, Texas:

Today's post has nothing to do with The Beatles, other than their songs playing in my head when I do stuff.

Our 10K (6.2 mi.) Volkswalk today took us through the entire Friedrich Wilderness Park. I think our feet tramped every trail. 

One of the oldest working windmills in Bexar (pronounced bear) County, Texas. There is a water tank at the bottom of it which provides water for wildlife.

A level section of trail.

Lots of juniper forests, smelled good.

Anyone know what kind of flower this is?

My new boots earned their keep today! I will need inserts to soften the blow across the balls of my feet. Other than that, they're lightweight and comfortable.

Our walk today was more in the category of a HIKE. We started out on paved trails. That didn't last long. The easy trails were in the first mile or two. From there, we went up, down, around, over rocks, over roots, through forest, on ridge tops. By the end of the hike we were aching for the car.

Up...

and up

By far the hardest section of trail!

 

So happy for ankle-high hiking boots.

Day trippers, yeah!

Humidity haze.

Ahhh, sit down and rest for a few minutes. Happy face.

Up, up, up.

Double click to enlarge trail map below...yeah, we've just about finished every trail in this park!

"It won't be long Yeah, yeah, Yeah, yeah, Yeah, yeah."

 

Norwegian Wood (NOT)

 

Almost back to the car. Yay! We've got a lot more hiking/walking to do to get in shape for Mesa Verde, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Mt. Rushmore, and the Black Hills. One more weekend before our trip. I see more Volkswalks in our immediate future.

Today's hike took us three hours. We high-tailed it back to the 5er for tuna fish sandwiches with avocado and a nice long rest.

A few miscellaneous photos from the past week:

Love the name of this place. (Hey Bob!)

Our favorite used book store.

Sunnie waiting to be washed.

Bob enjoying Mariners vs. Ranger baseball.

Bowie the laundry cat (not to be outdone by Sunnie)

Kitty snuggles.

Time for laundry (as soon as the sun goes down!). Might be a good night to enjoy the pool.

Enjoy your Sunday and the rest of the week.

Travel Bug out.

Riverwalk South Volkswalk -- Sat., July 7

San Antonio, Texas:

Forecast temperature for today: 100F. Yowser, that's hot.

Downtown San Antonio has on-street metered parking, some of the meters are ten-hour meters, so I looked for one of those. We found one across the street from the El Tropicana Hotel where we started our walk. Normally it takes us two hours to walk 10K, but I wanted to build in a cushion for sightseeing, reading historical markers and taking photos. I put in money for four hours.


Because of the temperature, our 11K (6.8 mile) Volkswalk had to start early. We made it to the start point by 8:00 a.m., not exactly early. The temperature was already in the mid-80s and it was humid. Luckily we spent a good portion of our time along the Riverwalk in the shade of trees, bridges and buildings.

All told, we were out just about four hours and learned so much about this part of San Antone. Temperature when we finished was 92F. 

Tomorrow we'll do Riverwalk North Volkswalk which is 12K. Let's see if we can get going earlier.

I'll let the pictures tell today's story...

Bob on one of the many "benches." River in background.

Ducklings next to trail.

Reading history plaque at Embassy Suites.

The Riverwalk.

All my ducks in a row.

What kind of flowers are these?

San Fernando Cathedral..first place of worship for Texans.

Stained glass backlit by the sun.

Bexar County Courthouse

Bexar County Courthouse

Fascinating. We had no idea.

Lady Justice Fountain

Front courtyard at Bexar County Courthouse.

Detail with eagle in tower.

Bexar County Courthouse, side view.

Hotel underground parking garage...surprise! A trompe l'oeil.

Directional signs.

Historic Pioneer Flour Mills

Historic homes -- Edward Stevens Homestead Museum.

Loved this gate!

Susan on another cool bench.

San Antonio skyline from Riverwalk.

A flood control dam.

Tower of the Americas

Tower of the Americas Courtyard.

Rental bikes around San Antonio.

Rental bikes map.

Riverwalk and tour barge.

 

Bob on Riverwalk; restaurants galore.

 

Most cities have a river: San Antonio has a River Walk.

Swallows.

Humongous hibiscus flowers.

Cityscape.

Vietnam War Memorial.

Ornate building facade.