Thursday, October 02, 2008


Enchanted Rock State Park

I enjoyed my time in Bandera, but I spent way too much time watching CNBC. I don’t know if it was just an addiction, but the coverage of the credit crisis seemed particularly riveting. Even so, I’m probably better off to be back on the farm in Temple, replacing the satellite with a few fuzzy local stations. And, of course, replacing my time in front of the TV with time mowing, hammering and other work. Interestingly, the great weather I had in Bandera seems to be in effect here in Temple as well, with lows in the 50s and low humidity.

On the way from Bandera to Temple, I visited Enchanted Rock state park and spent the day hiking. I hiked a loop trail around the rock and then up to the summit. Here are a few views from the loop.

And a view from the top.
Enchanted rock is a pink granite mound rising from the hill country around Llano. It is the second largest of its kind in the United States. The first known white visitor was Cabeza De Vaca in 1536. Before that, local Indians visited and considered the site to have magical or spiritual powers. They could hide at the top and not be seen from below, so they felt it made them invisible. And, they thought there were ghost fires, because the noises as the rock heats and cools sound like a fire burning, but they could not see it.
Pretty cool history for a big piece of granite, but I just kept wondering how many granite countertops you could make with it.
Oh well, on to Temple.