Armadillos and Bobcats

There's a State Park between Luling and Gonzales, Texas that will take your breath away.  Palmetto State Park is nestled among huge trees with a nice little lake for fishing, canoeing or paddle boating. There is also the San Marcos River that meanders through the park and can be accessed at several points for kayaking, tubing or just cooling off.  The hiking trails are just awesome and take you back to another time and era with the canopy of trees overhead, the palmettos growing along the paths and the sounds of wildlife in the woods off the paths.

We prepped most of our food before leaving home so we could spend more time hiking, sightseeing or just chilling out in camp with a good book.  

I made an awesome spinach dip with spinach and green onions from my garden.  That went great with the grilled chicken and corn on the cob.  I tried out a recipe and baked blue berry muffins in orange peels that had been scooped out and wrapped in foil.  That was so good and so easy and was done by the time the coffee had perked and eggs and sausage were done.  There is nothing better than cooking on a fire outside.  That is probably my favorite part of the outdoor life.  One thing we did learn and that is Jiffy Pop popcorn in the little aluminum skillets do not do well on a campfire.  At least they didn't for us.

While we were all three taking some "relax" time and reading our books, Daisy, the wonder camp Shih Tzu, started alerting us to something moving around in the trees just behind our tent.  At first we figured it was a squirrel or a bird, then we saw the little scavenger.  It was a small armadillo.  Guess he was looking around for some scraps.  Raven walked toward him and he scampered down the bank toward the river.  Later, as the sun started to set, we caught a glimpse of a small bobcat a few feet into some brush on the other side of the tent watching us.  He took off when we made eye contact, but we kept Daisy close just in case mamma decided to come looking for easy prey on a leash.

We have learned that the people we meet while camping have so much in common, regardless of their backgrounds and where they are from.  We all share a love of nature, a longing to be one with the elements and a deep respect of the beauty that God has gifted us.  When everyone is packing up to leave at the end of the weekend, it is with sadness that we say goodbye and with a hope that we will meet again soon at another campsite on another day.