Monday, February 11, 2008

Day trip to Lake Livingston

It was sunny and warm yesterday as I noted on my post. It took us a while to get it together but around three we finally got in the car and head north to Lake Livingston. The lake is an hour drive away, and it is somewhat silly to drive that far to see a lake when we could just as easily walk to the end of our street and see Lake Houston, but sometimes you just have to get out and about, ya know what I mean?

As this sign points out, there are seven ecological regions in Texas. We live in the blue band called the Gulf Coast, but our forests are considered "Piney Woods."
I think the name "Piney" is funny. If the woods were made up of oak trees would they have named it the Oaky Woods? The Elmy Woods?
We actually get a lot more rain than the Pacific Northwest most years. People carry on about rain in Seattle, their average of 36 inches is nothing. We have had 36 inches in a day here.
Any hoo, Bernie, Laura and I took a nice slow amble through the nature trail. It wasn't very exciting really. We saw a few big bull frogs in the frog pond, and two other people.
Ho hum.
The Cedar Waxwings usually have come by now and stripped the live oak of their beautiful berries.
Wonder what gives with the Waxwings this year?
Lake Livingston.
There are a lot of lakes in Texas, yet only one lake, Caddo Lake, is natural. All the rest are man made. It is pretty incredible to think about that fact.
You can rent a camping cabin for thirty bucks a day right on the edge of the lake, or a space for ten bucks. B. and I have been here once before and thought it would be very relaxing to come here and camp sometime in the five or six days a year when it isn't too hot or cold to be enjoyable.
We always compare places like this to our home town of San Diego.
If this dock was in So. Calif. it would be crawling with people. Mexican music would be blaring, picnics and kids would be everywhere.
We saw one boat head out, and two people fishing from the dock. The lake has bass and catfish, crappie, and sunfish.
As we left the park we saw this sign.
I guess some people don't like spiders....


A very pretty sunset....




And we stopped for dinner at a local restaurant. Drinking beer and/or alcohol "Even in Brown Paper Bags" is illegal. I think that is funny.
I wonder which towns you can drink your booze on the street if it is in a brown paper bag?
Any takers for beer drunk out of a pretty gift bag?
Hof Brau restaurant.


Bernie ordered Chicken Fried Chicken.
I ordered a half portion of Chicken Fried Steak.
A full portion fills up a serving tray and hangs over a bit.
Does everyone understand the difference between Chicken Fried Chicken and Chicken Fried Steak?
Anyway, it was a nice day.
Made me want to find a good book and go back and sit by the lake under a tree and read.


4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ahhh...Texas and its many lakes and fine foods!

I lived in the far northern part of the "Prairies and Lakes" region of this wonderful state. We lived right on Lake Texoma, where striper-fishing is a big business. My family ate their fair share of chicken-fried steak and chicken-fried chicken, too. I prefer c-f chicken because I really, really, really don't like the taste of beef. That was unfortunate years ago 'cause I married into a beef-farmin' family (Kozy Korner Farms' Registered Red Angus Cattle in Kentucky).

Great photos, Jill!

A Lady said...

Aw! I wanna go lay out by a lake and pretend to read a good book!

Lovella ♥ said...

Jill, my comment just left was unallowed I think .. I'll try once more.
First I complained about you mentioning rain there when I can see the blue sky and shorts and capris when we are again seeing grey skys and constant drizzle. I don't want to hear about your rain. .. snicker.

The scnery is gorgeous there and so reasonably priced to stay. Good find.

It's good to see Mr. B up and strolling about and Laura. . I'm waiting for my virtual invite to paint the town red.

Anonymous said...

I wonder if that Hof Brau is like the original one in Munich, Germany? Dan and I went there in college when were were studying in Europe. I think that was the most inebriated I've been in my entire life. I ordered a beer (in German), and they came back with the largest mug of the darkest beer I've seen in my life. I think I ate pretzyls there, but I can't remember for sure. It was after a dinner elsewhere. Good beer. Bad hangover.