Bastrop State Park

We recently spent January 24th-28th at Bastrop State Park, site of a massive wild fire in September, 2011. We spent about a week at the park in May, 2010, so we thought it would be interesting to return and see how the area had changed.

I don't possess the words to describe how different the area looks now. Burned trees still stand; they just don’t have any foliage, so you essentially have a leafless, branchless forest. The trees are dead, and they snap and break regularly under high winds. The underbrush, of course, was thoroughly burned, so now erosion from rain is a great risk. The after affect is that now you can see the land. Prior to the fire, you could not see anything except various types of foliage. Now you can see the swales and curves of the landscape. I had no idea just how hilly the park was.

This hill is near the new trail parking area just north of the Copperas Creek Camping area. You can see the new trail slanting across the hill at lower center. All underbrush is gone. All trees have been burned and are dead. In the past, you would have never seen the line of the hill due to trees and underbrush.

Charred trees along a re-routed trail. These are typical of the burned pines throughout the area. They still stand, waiting for a strong wind to snap them over or continued rains to dislodge them.

This is what happens to those burned trees after a while -- they snap over. Park literature warns hikers to stay on trails and be alert to falling trees. Some places look like play areas for giants playing pick up sticks.

Several trees, especially oak, have shed their burned bark.

For example, we camped in the same area we camped before. In fact, we camped right across from our previous campsite. We did not recognize the area. On our previous trip, the land looked fairly level. Trees and undergrowth just outside campsites disguised the true shape and contours of the land. On our visit now, we see that our campground is actually a ridge jutting out. Just outside our campsite, there are steep drop offs. Previously, the underbrush prevented anyone from seeing the drop offs or venturing out. Since the fire, a fence has been erected to prevent folks from wandering beyond their campsites.

View from our campsite -- #8 -- in Piney Hill Campground. In the past, we would not have been able to see those rigs in the distance due to pine trees and underbrush.

The fire has provided an opportunity for a good deal of work within the park. A new parking area for hikers, for example, has been put in near the Copperas Creek camping area. In fact, much of the Copperas Creek camping area itself has been upgraded with fresh pavement and some redesigned sites. Some hiking trails have been rerouted, and hikers are cautioned to be alert to falling trees.

Some of the Copperas Creek Campground escaped the fire. New pavement has been poured. This might be the best place for RV camping right now.

Even though much of Copperas Creek escaped the fire, the area surrounding it did not. This picture is taken from the exact spot of the picture above. I turned left 90 degrees to take this picture. You can see the line of Highway 71 through the burned trees. Previously, I had never seen the highway from any place in the park. Now it is visible from several places, including our campsite.

Some parts of the park escaped the fire, so you can still find very small islands of green here and there. The Piney Hill Campground, where we camped, still has a few tall pine trees along the paved road, which has been resurfaced. The area around the pool also escaped the fire, including the group barracks nearby. But the majority of the park did suffer, and suffer greatly.

The pool area survived the fire. Notice the living trees as well as the resurfaced parking area.

The Group Barracks area near the pool also survived the fire.

It is depressing to see this beautiful pine forest decimated. But fire is a natural act, and the area will recover in time. We saw signs of new life as we hiked around the park.

Hope for the future. These pine saplings are in contrast to the charred trees in the background and the charred brush around them.

San Felipe de Austin

I’m a history buff, especially regarding Texas history. I really enjoy the colonial era of Texas history leading up to the Revolution in 1836. So I was excited during our stay in Stephen F. Austin State Park to visit nearby San Felipe de Austin State Historic Site.

History peeks out from almost every corner of this area. The original town site is evident by the various roads laid out in a grid in this rural area. If you take the time to drive the various side-streets, you will discover a jewel here and there. For example, we came across the old Town Hall dating to 1842, a teacherage dating back to the late 1800s, and a church dating to 1837. Several structures in the area display Texas historic medallions.

Old San Felipe de Austin town hall, dating to 1842. The original town hall was built in 1830 and stood in Commerce Square near the site of the replica of Austin's cabin.

As old as these places are, they arrived after the real significance of this area. Stephen F. Austin founded San Felipe de Austin in 1823.This was the site where the original "Old Three Hundred" settled. In the period from 1823 to 1836, it was the social, economic, and political hub of colonial Texas, and many great historic figures of Texas history walked these streets. For a much more thorough description of the historic significance of the area, please refer to An Interpretation of the Cultural and Natural History of Stephen F. Austin State Park and San Felipe de Austin State Historic Site. 

For the tourist, the place to visit is the area that was plotted as Commerce Square. This is the spot where the Atascosito Road Ferry crossed the Brazos River; as such, it was the first place newcomers to the little colony saw once they stepped off the ferry. Today, Commerce Square offers a handful of sites to see. First and foremost, there is the statue of the Father of Texas.

Stephen Fuller Austin, the Father of Texas.

Down the walkway and off to the left is the old J. J. Josey general store, which now serves as a Visitor Center. There are a few displays in the center, and they are well worth viewing to get a feel of the important events that occurred in this community. During our visit, the curator spent a little time giving us some background. It seems that new facilities will be built across the highway from the current visitor center, and these facilities will give them more room for exhibits and educational programs. The groundbreaking should take place in the next few months, and completion should be in about 3 years or so.

J. J. Josey General Store, built in 1847. It was the last store built in the community after the original buildings were burned during the Runaway Scrape in 1836.  It now serves as the visitor center.

This is good news, for right now this place seems to be forgotten. It lags well behind its counterpart farther upstream, Washington-on-the-Brazos, which has the Star of Texas Museum, a living farm, and a visitor center, among other developments.

A replica of Stephen F. Austin’s log cabin sits near the Visitor Center. It is built in the traditional two-room dog run style. Although only a replica, the bricks in the fireplace are from the original structure.

Replica of Stephen F. Austin's cabin, where he conducted much of the official business of colonial Texas.

The town was burned when the Texans retreated from Santa Anna's advancing Mexican army, so no original structures of the town remain. Following the victory at San Jacinto, a few residents did return to the town site, but the little community never regained its place of importance and more or less faded away after nearby Bellville was named the county seat in 1846 and the removal of all county records was completed in 1848.

This brick-lined well was dug in Commerce Square in 1824. Today, it is the last architectural remain of the once thriving community. It was encased in 1928 for protection.

Good Eats: Hrushka's, Ellinger, Texas

There is a show carried by some Texas PBS stations called The Daytripper. Chet Garner, the affable host of the show, travels around the state with his crew and visits various locales for a single day. Usually in a 30 minute segment, he makes 3 to 5 stops at each locale he is visiting, and he always includes at least one visit to an eating establishment.

On a recent episode, The Daytripper crew visited LaGrange. One of the stops on this day trip was in a nearby town called Ellinger, where Garner visited Hrushka's, a combination convenience store/bakery/restaurant with a Czech heritage. The stop spotlighted the homemade hamburgers and kolaches. Since Donna and I were passing through Ellinger, we knew we had to stop.

We’re glad we did.

The store is right on Highway 71, so it is a convenient stop. We watched as regulars and travelers alike steadily streamed through this popular place, purchasing kolaches, jerky, and other goodies.

Donna and I ordered cheeseburgers all the way. They were great. Regular hamburgers cost $4.50 while our cheeseburgers cost $5.00 each. Patties are hand formed with fresh meat, and are topped with iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and pickles. The home made buns are toasted on the grill. They were delicious and as good as I’ve had in a restaurant in a long time. We were craving another round for days after our visit.

Next, we had desert of cream cheese cherry kolaches, each costing $.95. Again, we hit a home run. These were great. Hrushkas serves more than 15 types of kolaches, including traditional favorites like prune.

If you happen to be traveling on Highway 71 between Austin and Houston, keep an eye out for Hrushkas in tiny Ellinger. You’ll be glad you did.

Hiking Stephen F. Austin State Park

Stephen F. Austin State Park has a series of interconnecting trails (see Map of Trails). When added together, they tally a decent 5.86 miles, if my math is correct. On our hike, Donna and I fashioned a loop trail that took us along the river, around the camping areas, beside the neighboring golf course, and back to our camp site. (see Map of Park for info on campgrounds and other features; we were in campsite #39)

Here is a listing of the trails we took and their respective distances: 

• Cottonwood Trail: .85 miles
• Riverbend Trail: .43 miles
• Brazos Trail: .27 miles
• Sycamore Trail: .45 miles
• Ironwood Trail: .80 miles
• Pileated Trailed: .67 miles

 By combining these trails, we ended up with a short hike of 3.47 miles.

We started at the Cottonwood Trail. We would also end our hike here, as the Pileated Trail ends here, thus forming a complete loop. There is an amphitheater located just off the trailhead. Park staff offer programs here throughout the year.

Amphitheater behind Cottonwood Trails Trail Head

Just a few feet down the trail is an animal blind where you can view wildlife, especially birds. Several bird feeders hang on the off side of the blind. Unfortunately for us, there was no animal activity here at the time of our hike. 

Wildlife viewing area off the Cottonwood Trail

The Cottonwood Trail is a well maintained trail, wide enough for a vehicle. As you might expect, tall cottonwood trees line the trail; in fact, cottonwoods are prominent throughout the park.

Trail through the cottonwoods is level, wide, and clear. What a treat for an old hiker!

After nearly half a mile, we came to the Copperhead Trail junction. With a name like that, there is no way I was going to be able to get Donna to try that trail, so we continued along the Cottonwood Trail.

Near the end of the Cottonwood Trail, we turned left on the River Bend Trail. Although trail signs are prominent throughout the park, at this particular junction signage is lacking. The trail running off to the right is clearly marked as the Raccoon Bend Trail, but the trail continuing west and crossing the Cottonwood Trail is not marked at all. However, the map is very clear, so we journeyed down the trail, which soon became the River Bend Trail. At this point, the trails became a single path, though very clear and well maintained.

Trail junction where the Copperhead Trail becomes the River Bend Trail

This trail continues west for a short distance, then turns north at the park boundary. You’ll see a fence line at this point. After a short walk, you catch your first glimpse of the storied Brazos River. A glimpse is all you get at this time, because the brush is very thick. However, as you follow the trail east, there are several spurs that offer clear views of the river. Now, I love Texas history, and I love the role the Brazos River has played in that history. But the Brazos on the day we viewed it was just a muddy river. It is rather broad at this point, so it must have presented a formidable obstacle to early day travelers.

East bank of the Brazos River. Notice the bluff, which is probably similar to that on our side of the river. Think about what an obstacle this must have presented to early day travelers who needed to cross the river.

Much of our hike was spent on level footpaths through the woods, like this section of the Sycamore Trail.

Once we took the Sycamore Trail, we began heading away from the river. Near the end of the Sycamore Trail, we approached a ridge. At the trail junction, we opted to turn right where we would junction with the Ironwood Trail. Up to this point, our hike had been entirely in the woods, and we had been separated from any signs of civilization. From this point on, though, we would see various signs of civilization, including a golf course, camp sites, roads, and even a water tower. 

Golfers were active on the day we hiked. I love the Spanish Moss that drapes the trees.

Palmettos along the trail near the golf course

The Ironwood Trail passes near the water treatment plant for the park, then loops around the outside of the tent camping area and the screened shelter area. On the opposite side of the trail, there is a golf course, and golfers were active on this beautiful day. After dipping down into and out of a dry creek bed, the trail approaches the park road near the park entrance and intersects with the Pileated Trail for the final leg of our hike.

This stretch of the trail runs parallel to the main park road. There are several bridge crossings along this stretch. On the left and across the road, the group barracks appear. These are neat, well-maintained buildings. A blue water tower looms beside the trail near the junction with the nature trail, which heads towards the screen shelters. Then the trail crosses the park road.

One of the bridges on the Pileated Trail near the water tower

This final section of the trail is lined with various bird houses – are they blue bird houses? – and eventually comes out near the amphitheater where we began our hike less than 2 hours earlier.

Near the end of the Pileated Trail; our hike is almost done.

This is a good trail system. As we age and our legs and knees grow weaker, we tend to look for trails like this where there are few steep climbs and challenges. Our hike today was really just a pleasant walk in the woods, and that is exactly what we are looking for.