Wednesday Weekly: June 6

This week's Wednesday Weekly is going to be short and sweet. I know some weeks I was posting dozens of blog entries. This week it's just going to be this blog entry. Hopefully, you'll be able to catch up from the more post-heavy weeks.

While I did do an extensive amount of travel in the past week, it was just installing routers. I ended up putting on about 1000 miles going throughout Texas in a rental car. There was nothing eventful, and I just camped out in my hotel room after I got done with work.

Victoria was out of town for the weekend, so I initially just planned to hang around the apartment. I did find that that 2600 (computer security) meetup was going on Friday night, so I went to that. Saturday I decided to run some errands.

After running errands I got in touch with my friend Kyle. We both worked at TABC together, and it had been a while since we hung out. We took a little road trip to Lake Buchanan at the Llano County Park.

Shallow sandy beach area with calm water where people wade and play, with boats anchored in the distance and a sandy shoreline dotted with trees under clear blue skies Wide view of a sandy beach curving along shallow water with green algae visible near shore, residential buildings and trees visible across the bay Tranquil lake or bay view with calm brownish water, several boats anchored in the middle distance, and a distant shoreline under hazy blue skies Row of rustic camping cabins with metal roofs situated on dry grass with mature trees providing shade, overlooking a body of water Single camping cabin with white metal roof and covered porch, featuring wooden posts and screened windows, set on sandy ground with trees nearby Rocky limestone shoreline with scattered stones and sparse vegetation, including a weathered tree, extending along calm blue-green water Shaded picnic area with green wooden table under large oak trees, sandy ground with scattered pine needles, lake visible in background Parking area under mature oak trees with dappled shade on sandy ground, green grass patches visible, additional parked vehicles in background

We drove around a bit more and ended up at Inks Lake State Park. I bought an annual state park pass (guess what I'll be doing in the foreseeable future?).

Texas State Parks Pass card in green and maroon colors lying on blue denim fabric, displaying Texas Parks and Wildlife logo

The temps were a bit high. It ended up being around 102F (39C) outside. That didn't deter me from doing a little hiking and taking a few pictures. Inks Lake is very beautiful!

Shaded view of green lake water through trees with Spanish moss, showing wooded hillside across the water and kayakers visible on the surface Narrow dirt hiking trail winding through dense Texas woodland with overhanging branches creating a natural canopy Hiking trail ascending gentle slope with prickly pear cactus growing alongside, surrounded by mixed brush and trees Large patch of prickly pear cactus with distinctive flat green pads growing among native grasses and dead tree trunk Valley Spring Trail information sign showing trail map with dotted path route, photos of trail features, and Know Before You Go safety information Rocky hillside trail with exposed limestone slabs and scattered prickly pear cactus, ascending toward ridgeline under clear sky Swimming area along shaded riverbank with groups of people floating on colorful tubes and inflatables in green water Lake scene with multiple people relaxing on tubes and floats in calm water, overhanging tree branch framing the view, wooded shoreline in background Elevated panoramic view across dense green forest canopy toward distant lake, visible through trees from rocky outcrop Rocky canyon landscape with reddish-brown stone formations, native vegetation, and forested hillside descending into valley Natural rock formation canyon with white limestone cliffs surrounding small pools of green water, surrounded by scrubby vegetation and trees Rocky canyon with weathered limestone formations and scattered vegetation including prickly pear cactus, showing erosion patterns and native scrubland ascending hillside Gnarled dead tree standing on rocky outcrop with layered sedimentary rock formations visible, surrounded by green vegetation and wooded hillside Calm lake inlet with green water reflecting trees along wooded shoreline, aquatic vegetation visible near shore under clear blue sky Wide lake view with still green water, kayakers visible along distant rocky shoreline beneath tree-covered hills under bright sky Tranquil lake cove framed by overhanging tree branches, showing green water with partially submerged vegetation and wooded hillside in background Weathered wooden fishing pier extending over blue-green lake water with camping chair and tall light pole, rocky shoreline and hills visible across water Expansive lake view with sparkling blue-green water, forested islands and peninsulas visible in middle distance under partly cloudy sky Educational fishing regulation sign on wooden pier displaying illustrated fish species with measurement ruler and Does Your Fish Measure Up? heading, lake visible in background

After exploring those two parks, I dropped Kyle off and then went back to my apartment. I sat there and literally chilled out. It felt nice to relax in the air conditioning after being in the hot sun.

Unless I'm asked to do another site, yesterday will be my last day on this contract job. That means I'll have a little bit of time for exploring. Considering I have the Texas state park pass, I'll be hitting up a few more of those. Texas is a great state with a lot of diversity, so hopefully, I'll be able to show that as I hit up its state parks.

See more blog entries here