Hiking in North Texas Part 3: Arbor Hills

Since yesterday was overcast and not too hot in the morning, my family decided to go hiking again to build up our endurance for hiking on a vacation we have planned for early next year. We really want to try Cedar Ridge Preserve, but since we had already been in the car with the kids for 12 hours this week we were not looking forward to another 2 hours in the car. So we decided to hike the paved trails at Arbor Hills Nature Preserve in Plano. (Even though I really don't consider walking paved trails hiking, more like recreational walking).

The parking lot was quite full, and I was surprised to see there was a new parking lot expansion since the last time I was there.

We got out of our car, and my husband took one of my kids to the restroom before we got started. While they were in there, I looked at the park map in front of us. And I was surprised to see the Arbor Hills now has a whole series of un-paved nature trails! I guess it really had been years since I've walked around there. I still remember the observation tower and new paved loop under construction. The online maps still do not show these additional trails, so it was a very pleasant surprise. So we decided to take the Outer Loop trail.

We had to walk on the paved trail for a little while until we got to the turn-off for the Outer Loop trail. The first mile or so was very shaded.

We came across a few benches on the trail:

Best buddies...

...but we had to separate them only minutes later.

The trail went close to a fence and apartment building in the back, and eventually opened up into this meadow. This area had no shade and we became real hot and sweaty.

We saw the observation tower eventually, and decided to alter our path to check out the view.

This was the view:

We then walked the paved path for a while again:

And took another detour on the Old Pond path.

Finally, we made it back to the parking area, with the playground we promised the kids could play at after our hike.

We were all hot and exhausted by this time. We had walked about 2 1/2 miles. My daughter crashed on the sofa after we got home. I think we are going to put our hikes on hold until the fall when the weather is a little cooler.

Arbor Hills Pros:
*  Close to our house
*  Plenty of parking
*  Free!
*  Playground and picnic facilities
*  Paved and unpaved trails
*  No bikes allowed on unpaved trails, there is a separate mountain bike trail

Arbor Hills Cons:
*  Crowded on a Saturday morning
*  The unpaved trails were not labeled nearly as well as at Oak Point. There were a lot of smaller trails that broke off from the main trails that were not labeled, and we had a hard time knowing which way to go.

We will keep Arbor Hills on our hiking rotation for the fall. Have you been there lately?

Texas Road Trip: Victoria

If you know me or read this blog, you may think we only do Disney vacations. But my kids have seen a fair amount of other places, and we try to explore different parts of Texas every year.

Since we have family in Victoria, Texas, we make the 6- to 7-hour road trip there several times each year. My kids love going there!

On our most recent trip there this week, we took the kids to the Children's Discovery Museum. This place is not open during holidays, so we can only go there if we visit over Spring Break or summer. But the kids can keep busy here for hours!

The museum has a costume and puppet selection with a stage where the kids can put on a show.

It also has a giant Lite-Brite.

And a large arts and crafts station, as well as a pretend veterinary hospital, shopping market, playground, milking cow and other Texas-themed stuff.

On this trip, we also visited some places that showcase Texas history. My husband and father-in-law went to the Museum of the Coastal Bend. And all of us made the 30-minute trip to Goliad to see the Presidio La Bahia, a Spanish fort and battle ground built in 1749. I was surprised at how large it is.

I was afraid my kids might find this place boring, but since they could touch the cannons and climb on parts of the fort, they found it interesting.

The visitors' center showed a 15-minute video explaining some of the history of the fort. We also saw a list of the names of men who died in battle here, and found the name of a relative.

Across the road from Presidio La Bahia is Goliad State Park, which has the Mission Espiritu Santu. We did not visit this since it was closed for renovations.

We did visit the famous Fannin Battleground a few miles away.

There was a small museum inside that explained the major events that took place in the area that led to Texas independence. Since I am not a native Texan, I never learned these details in school.

This monument stands where bodies from the battle were found.

On this trip, we also drove 30 minutes to the coast and spent the day at Lighthouse Beach in Port Lavaca.

This beach is a campground and RV park, but it only cost us a total of $3 for a day-pass for our car.

If you have been to beaches in Texas, you probably realize that they do not compare to beaches in Florida or the Caribbean. Texas is not known for its nice beaches. But my kids don't care! They had a blast in the water and on the sand. Since it was cloudy, the water was murkier than usual--we couldn't see ANYTHING in there!

This beach is very shallow for a long ways out.

There is a long boardwalk and bird sanctuary.

And the beach also has a splash park and two playgrounds. Bonus!

When we visit Victoria in December, we always drive 30 minutes to the nearby town of Cuero to see the fabulous Christmas in Cuero light display in the park.

Have you visited Victoria?

Hiking in North Texas Part 2: Ray Roberts Lake State Park Greenbelt Corridor

Earlier this month we tried a new hiking place, and this weekend we decided to explore another hiking destination in the Dallas area. We went to the Ray Roberts Lake State Park Greenbelt Corridor, which is a 10-mile hiking and biking path that starts at 380 and ends at the dam at Ray Roberts Lake. It is 10 miles each direction, so 20 miles round-trip. It also has a separate equestrian trail and a canoe/kayak launch site, since the greenbelt path follows the Trinity River and connects Lake Lewisville with Ray Roberts Lake.

To get there from McKinney, we went west on 380 until shortly before Denton. The entrance to the trail is easy to miss, but there is a brown sign you can see from the road on the right side.

 The parking lot off of 380:

The trail map:

The self-pay station:

There were "chemical toilets" at the start of the trail:

The trail is crushed limestone and is 10-15 feet wide:

There are a few trail off-shoots that lead to the Trinity River:

And we crossed under a railroad track bridge:

So we walked almost 2 miles up the trail and then decided to turn back because I wasn't sure how far my 3-year-old could walk with the round-trip included.  Here are the pros and cons for this hiking trail:

Pros:
*  Ample parking
*  Wide trail that is suitable for bikes and jogging strollers
*  The first several miles are shaded by trees
*  We could hear a lot of birds and woodpeckers

Cons:
*  Since it is a state park, the entrance fee is $7 per person. Kids 12 and under are free.
*  The toilets really stink. When we were returning, we could smell them from quite a ways off. We do use the bathroom in a lot of parks, but my kids were really grossed out by these.
*  There is no water fountain here--the closest one is 6.5 miles up the trail when it crosses FM 428.
*  There were no mile markers on the trail, which I thought was odd since there were so many runners.
*  The scenery did not change. We were surrounded by trees, but it all looked exactly the same with almost no variation. The trail has a scenic overlook that overlooks a meadow further up, but it was about 5 miles up the trail. The river was muddy and had trash on the side.
*  While there were a few picnic tables in the parking lot area, there were no benches or tables on this trail. We just moved to the side of the trail to rehydrate and refuel.
*  I was warned about this from a website before we arrived, but there appears to be a lot of poison ivy here on the sides of the trail.

Refueling

We are glad we tried it, and we were able to hike a good distance with the kids, but I think this trail is better suited for cyclists or runners who can go a further distance and cover more ground with a better variety of scenery.

Have you been on this trail? Do you like it?

Spilling the beans (again!)

We finally told our kids about our next vacation! We've had this booked for nearly 2 years and have managed to keep it a secret from the kids. Even though it's still over 4 months away, I wanted to tell them so that they can learn about the finances behind the vacation. We still have to save some money over the summer for this trip, and I want my kids to understand that these big trips just don't happen without some financial planning and sacrifices. We are going on a 7-night Disney Cruise and will celebrate our 10 year anniversary and my daughter's birthday on-board.

For the big reveal, I sent the kids on a scavenger hunt around the house with clues about our vacation. The final clue was a puzzle that revealed our cruise.

The first clue was an aerial view of the Orlando airport with its airport code.

The next clue showed a photo of something we would do on our trip...

Airplane watching at Maho beach in St. Maarten!

A few more clues revealed information about the language spoken at our port destinations and a photo of the Halloween tree. (Our cruise will have special Halloween-themed activities).

And then of course the final puzzle.

My kids have never had the surprised, screaming, over-the-top reaction you see on many videos--but they were excited and have talked about the trip non-stop for the past 2 days. We've started watching some YouTube videos about the ship and our destinations.

So it's nice to have this secret revealed and out in the open at our house. Although I'm running out of ideas on how to surprise them with our next vacation.

How far in advance do you tell your kids about your vacations? How do you prepare them and get them excited?

Hiking in North Texas Part 1: Oak Point Nature Preserve

I was raised in Colorado. While I don't miss the snow, cold weather or downhill skiing, I DO miss all of the fantastic hiking. I have fabulous memories of hiking the trails at Mount Falcon Park as a kid with my family. I love the workout that comes with hiking in the mountains, and the sense of adventure that comes with turning a curve and never knowing what view you will see around the corner.

Now that my home is in North Texas, the hiking opportunities are not the same. Hiking is also not part of the state's culture like it is in Colorado. But I miss it, and I want my kids to experience hiking. And since an upcoming vacation next winter will involve some significant hiking, I want to get my family prepared so that we can enjoy the views without being so wiped out.

This part of Texas has a lot of paved walking and cycling paths, but I was somewhat unfamiliar with dirt trail hiking choices. I stumbled across this article, and we decided to try hiking at Oak Point Nature Preserve since it is the closest to our house.

Oak Point is one of Plano's newer parks on the east side of town. It has 3.5 miles of paved trails and 5 miles of soft surface trails. This park was also appealing to us because cyclists are not permitted on the soft trails, which we figured would be easier with our kids and dog.

Ready for our adventure.

We parked in the main parking lot off Los Rios Blvd. and walked on the paved path for a few feet until we saw the trail head for the Caddo Trail. Once we got on the dirt trails, we followed Rowlett Creek under tall trees that covered the trails in shade.

We saw some interesting tree root systems along the way.

And we had to climb over some large tree trunks throughout the paths. We figured these were there on purpose to deter cyclists from entering the trails.

The trails were narrow, so we had to walk single file. We ran into several benches along the way. My youngest kept saying, "We're exploring the forest! We're in the FOREST!"

We came out of the trails to the paved path at the south side of the lake. We stopped for a snack and to observe the turtles, frogs and fish.

Lots of turtles

We saw some cyclists on the paved path taking photos of something, and one came by and warned us about a copperhead snake on the path ahead.

We decided to walk back to our car on the paved path on the other side of the lake, but next time I think we would go the opposite way and explore the dirt trails on the other side of the creek. We were there a little less than 2 hours, and none of us were too wiped out. The kids say they want to return there to hike again.

We plan to try out a different hiking spot next week. Have you been hiking in North Texas? Where do you recommend?