Hill Country! (Day 1)

March 8, 2025

Canyon Lake, TX

John’s nephew Michael is marrying Victoria on Monday!  We’re really looking forward to celebrating with family and friends.

We decided to fly in on Saturday so we could explore a bit of Texas Hill Country.  Our flight left at 6:00 am, so we were on the road by 3:30.

We stayed in a small hotel near the wedding venue on Saturday.

Canyon Lake is a dammed reservoir fed, in part, by the Guadalupe River, which bends in a horseshoe shape in this location.  The Guadalupe is shallow and very clear; it seems to be well-used by fly fishers and,in the summer, tubers (there are many tube rental places here).

There are some walking trails nearby, too.  Our first trail was the Guadalupe Access – a few miles out and back.

John and I have different goals on trails.  Below is a photo of how John looks at me every time I stop to look at stuff.  He likes to walk at a continuous speed while I like to meander and nerd out.

This trail has cool flowers, lichen, plants, rocks, cacti, bones, and moss.  I know this because I stopped to examine all of them.  John did not stop. 

Also, check out these ants!!

The trail wound along the river.

And also through some tall grass (we call this tickweed because it just seems…tick-ish).

This was a peaceful spot.

John stepped on a giant thorn that pierced the sole of his shoe – fortunately, it did not puncture his foot. 

After hiking, dinner, and a nightcap we decided to push our ability to stay awake even more by going to astronomy night at the Comal County Public Library.

This library is amazing!  It has a seed library…

…and an observatory with a nice telescope.  We were able to see Mars, Jupiter (and its 4 moons), Venus and our moon. 

(Also, there were lots of cool birds here)