A lot of bull

We were enjoying the morning at Riverbend Park when Leon commented "There is a bull out there.". "I know," I replied. "there is a pasture full of cows over there.". Leon's comment was "No, this one is on this side of the fence.". And sure enough, he was!


He knew the grass was greener and so he grazed for hours. I was glad our campsite had plenty of room for us and a grazing bovine. I did call the local police department to let them know as I figured the farmer might want his bull back. When we returned from town we had no bull and had missed all the action but the scene of the crime was obvious. And that is no bull!

Smithville, Tx

Our campground is located on the outskirts of Smithville, an old railroad town on the Colorado River. Our first stop was the visitor's center located where else but by the old train station.



The current claim to fame is being the location for several movies filmed here such as Hope Floats, Tree of Life, and others with which I am not familiar. We enjoyed a bike ride through town looking at the historic downtown district.
Not much was happening early on Saturday.






We pedaled on into the historic area of older homes, many with a Victorian flair and a little gingerbread. The town seems to take pride in its homes and many were freshly painted in pastels. I liked that! This bed and breakfast isn't pastel but they have a geocache in their side yard. The yard was covered with plastic Easter eggs and in the side yard they have a railroad car. I think the owner's grandfather worked for the railroad. It is called the Katy House, the nickname for the MKT railroad line.




This area in Bastrop County is known as the Lost Pines Forest for the large stand of Loblolly pine trees that cover thirteen miles. These trees are more than 100 miles from the closely genetically related pines of the Piney Woods region in east Texas. In 2011 the area suffered from a tremendous fire that claimed many of the pines, not to mention many homes in the area. A lot of the rebuilding is still evident.










We have enjoyed getting to know this part of Texas and exploring these little towns.

Camping on the Colorado

After we made the loop over the river and across the bridge twice we finally spotted the little sign for our campground. It turned out to be a quiet, out-of-the-way place that suited us fine.




It is a city run park and I called Ashley when we couldn't spot the place even after following the blue trailer park signs. Aren't cell phones wonderful! She told me to look for the train sculpture. Glad to know that is what this is! Didn't look much like a train zipping down the highway. It would be nice if they had a sign on the road rather than after you turn into the campground.  Is it just us? Maybe! At least we did not go under the 10'3" bridge and scrape as many folks do!

Fifteen dollars a day for seniors or $75 a week with wifi is a sweet deal in this neighborhood with water and electric at each site and a nearby dump station.  The restrooms could be spiffed up a little but we don't have to use them.

At the rear of the park we found site 4 to be the perfect space. There were only two other campers in the small park with about 19 campsites.



We are not parked alongside the Colorado River but it is a short walk away and makes for a nice evening stroll. We chased away an armadillo on the way and then heard coyotes in the night.





Saturday morning we loaded the bikes in the truck and headed into Smithville for a ride. As we were leaving the park there were 716 bikers lined up ready to head off for rides from 17 - 60 miles (with hills). No thanks! We got out of their way.



When we returned a couple of hours later we unloaded the bikes and road up to see what the Pedal thru the Pines ride was all about. We were greeted with cheers and people waving pom poms as they thought we were the first returning bikers. What excitement! We did decline the free food they offered.
Next weekend the park is filled for the annual motorcycle rally: Thunder on the Colorado. Now that should be excitement but we will opt out of that one, but we might catch the parade in town.