Jumping into Barton Springs on New Year’s Day is an Austin tradition. Chris LeBlanc photo
I leapt into 2020 at Barton Springs Pool today, along with several hundred others who realized that a Polar Plunge into Barton Springs Pool barely merits a cup of hot chocolate.
The water temperature at the spring-fed pool in downtown Austin hovers around 70 degrees year-round (that despite a rumor that it’s always 68 degrees.) And 70 degrees actually feels quite comfortable when the air temperature is in the upper 50s.
That’s the thing about swimming at Barton Springs in the winter. There’s less of a difference between the air and water temperature, so it’s not that shocking when you get in. The cold comes later, when you get out and stand on the edge of the pool, dripping wet.
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My husband and I managed just fine, though, and so did plenty of others who ventured down for the party.
A couple of outdoor heaters were set up just outside the gates, so air-cooled swimmers could thaw out before heading home.
I spotted a man in a dinosaur suit, a woman in a shark costume, a guy wearing a weird red, white and blue onesie and others out to help Austin maintain its reputation for weirdness.
And that spring water helped baptize the new year for me.
This new Priority Mail stamp depicting Santa Elena Canyon at Big Bend National Park will be released in January 2020. Photo courtesy US Postal Service
One of my favorite places will appear on a postage stamp in 2020.
I’ve stood in the middle of the Rio Grande, taking in the exact same image of the high rock walls closing in on Santa Elena Canyon of Big Bend National Park that’s depicted in a new Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express Flat Rate shipping stamp unveiled this week.
U.S. Postal Service art director Greg Breeding designed the stamp and Dan Cosgrove did the artwork.
Another stamp depicting the Grand Island Ice Caves, on Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, was also unveiled. Both stamps will be released on Saturday Jan. 18, 2020 and available online at www.usps.com/shopor at your local post office.
I picked up lots of trash at North Padre Island National Seashore this weekend.
If you need convincing that we’ve got a plastic problem on our planet, take a stroll on the beach. When a weekend scuba diving trip got cancelled, I headed to the Texas coast to dip my toe in the surf.
Some of the trash had washed in from the ocean.
I got distracted between sets of leaping through the waves at North Padre Island National Seashore. Fishing nets, ropes and other flotsam had washed up on shore, and beach goers had left plastic bottles, empty plastic sacks and broken bits of plastic toys all over the beach. Pulverized bits of colorful plastic, along with enough plastic bottle tops and utensils to fill a backyard swimming pool, littered the edge of the dunes. I found a couple of dead seagulls, too, and wondered if their bellies were full of plastic chips.
I know some of the junk had floated in from the ocean, but plenty of it was tossed there by lazy beach goers. I’ll never understand the mindset of someone who ditches their single-use items in a national park – or anywhere. I wish I could load it into a dump truck and deposit it in their front yard, or fill their car with it.
I found a bunch of plastic sacks. Pam LeBlanc photo
A sign posted near the beach encourages visitors to take away more than they bring. As I walked up and down the beach, I picked up some of the trash. Imagine if everyone took away more than they brought.
And it’s not just Texas beaches. During a recent trip to the Dominican Republic, a walk on a beach turned up a bunch of plastic doll heads. (Creepy!) A trip to surf camp in Costa Rica last summer introduced me to a whole beach coated in pinky fingernail-sized chips of plastic.
I wonder if any of the dead birds had eaten plastic. (Sorry, I know this is not pretty, but it is reality.) Pam LeBlanc photo
I can’t stand to see beautiful places choking in garbage. We’ve got to all do our part to use less plastic in the first place, and properly dispose of what we do use.
Remember that saying? Take Three for the Sea. Any time you’re at the beach (or lake or river or back country) pick up three – or 103! – pieces of trash.
Our most beautiful places appreciate it. And I do too.
The 31st annual HummerBird Festival takes place in Rockport-Fulton Sept. 19-22, when thousands of ruby-throated hummingbirds migrate through the area. Photo by Juan Bahamon
Every year, millions of tiny hummingbirds pass through Texas, pausing to fatten up before making the 20-hour, 800-mile flight across the Gulf of Mexico to their wintering range.
Rockport and Fulton will roll out the welcome mat for the buzzing birds, whose wings flap up to 70 times per second. The 31stannual HummerBird Celebration, set for From Sept. 19-22, will feature tours, banding demonstrations, photography talks, guided field trips, lectures, workshops, outdoor exhibits and vendors.
The sleekly glamorous ruby-throated hummingbirds, which begin their migration from as far away as Canada, get star billing, but other species, including rufous, black-chinned, buff-bellied and Allen’s hummingbirds, will likely make an appearance, too.
The festival will feature tours, lectures, banding demonstrations, vendors and more. Photo by Phil Stranahan
Private residences, dubbed Hummer Homes, will open for early backyard bird viewing the Saturday before the festival. The three-day festival officially kicks off with a free welcome reception at 5 p.m. Sept 19 at Rockport Center for the Arts, 101 S. Austin Street in Rockport, and an opening barbecue dinner at 6:30 p.m. at the Saltwater Pavilion at Rockport.
On Friday, representatives of Sky King Falconry in San Antonio will make a presentation, and Saturday begins with a Hummer Breakfast on the grounds of the History Center of Aransas County, and ends with the keynote presentation from Greg Miller, a world renowned birder portrayed by Jack Black in the movie “The Big Year.”
A WingDing Event, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Sept. 21 at the Rockport Country Club Clubhouse, will raise money to rescue and rehabilitate injured and abandoned birds. For more information go to www.windsrescuecenter.com.
In between, a host of activities are planned to celebrate and educate the public about the nimble little birds, which can fly fast, screech to a sudden halt, hover and adjust their position up or down like nature’s version of a helicopter.
Hummingbirds flap their wings up to 70 times per second. Photo by Diane Loyd
Don’t blame the organizers if the birds don’t appear in force, although they almost always do. In 2014, a front blew through and the hummers failed to show in their usual impressive numbers.
To purchase tickets, volunteer, or get more information about the festival, go to www.rockporthummingbird.com, or contact the Rockport-Fulton Chamber of Commerce at 361-729-6445. Tickets may also be purchased onsite at the Martha Luigi Auditorium Box Office, 1803 Omohundro Street in Rockport.
Cyclists bomb down new trails at Spider Mountain Bike Park near Burnet. Photo courtesy Spider Mountain
Spider Mountain Bike Park, where a ski lift carries cyclists to the top of a hill so they can focus on the ride down, has added two new trails to its network of twisty routes.
One, dubbed Tarantula, features a 115-foot stretch of boardwalk that’s elevated 7 feet off the ground. There’s also a wooden wall ride (painted like a huge Texas flag), bridges and ramps, so riders can fly through the air as they rumble down the 900-foot trail.
“Tarantula is designed for both those who are new to mountain biking and those who live and breathe it,” says Deseree Hernandez, director of operations. “Beginners can roll through to have fun or go expert-style and show off their freeride skills.”
The new wall feature at Spider Mountain is painted like a Texas flag. Photo courtesy Spider Mountain
Recluse, the second new trail, isn’t quite as daunting. The rolling, 300-foot route rides like a pump track between the existing Viper’s Den and Itsy-Bitsy trails.
All the trails at the park are marked green for beginner, blue for intermediate and black for expert, just like trails at a snow ski resort.
“Our concept was to make Recluse a light blue trail,” Hernandez said. “It’s a great way for riders to progress from Itsy-Bitsy, our easiest trail, to a blue run with more challenges. But it’s also super fun for more experienced riders.”
To celebrate the new trails, the park will host a party this Saturday, Aug. 3, complete with a ribbon cutting, a train of riders coming down both trails, competitions and an evening party. Activities start at 10 a.m., with the Texas State Whip-Off Championship at 11 a.m. and the Wall Ride Competition at 1 p.m. An awards ceremony is scheduled for 2 p.m. and a post-race party starts at 7 p.m.
The new Tarantula trail features five new technical features, including this one. Photo courtesy Spider Mountain
When I visited the park last February, the day after it opened, I loaded my bike onto a ski lift that once whisked skiers up Al’s Run at Taos Ski Resort in New Mexico and bombed down Itsy-Bitsy alongside the park’s crazy-like-an-over-grown-kid mastermind, James Coleman.
James Coleman, the owner of Spider Mountain. Pam LeBlanc photo
Coleman grew up in Austin and dreamed of owning ski resorts, which he now does. He lives in Durango, where he’s the managing partner of a company that owns Purgatory Resort, Arizona Snowbowl, Sipapu Ski & Summer Resort, Pajarito Mountain, Hesperus Ski Area, Nordic Valley Ski Resort, and Colorado’s largest snowcat skiing operation, Purgatory Snowcat Adventures.
Cyclists ride a ski lift up Spider Mountain near Burnet, Texas, on Feb. 9, 2019. Pam LeBlanc photo
Spider Mountain is the only lift-served mountain bike park in Texas, and the only year-round park of its type in the United States.
Want an idea of what it feels like to ride the new Tarantula trail? Watch this video from Spider Mountain:
Spider Mountain is at 200 Greenwood Hills Trail near Burnet, about 60 miles northwest of Austin. Park hours are noon to 7 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, plus holidays and spring break. Day passes are $50 for adults ($45 youth or senior; free ages 10 and under). To ride the lift without a bike, pay $20 round-trip adult or $15 youth or senior. For more information go to spidermountain.com.Want to stay overnight? Thunderbird Lodge, a no-frills hotel and marina, is located next door.
