I was going to include this story in the previous post because we visited the State Park on our way home from Bandera, but it turned into SUCH AN EVENT, it gets its own post. Government Canyon State Natural Area had been brought up as a “oh we should stop there on our way through San Antonio” a few times. It has dinosaur tracks! Yes! We LOVE dinosaurs! So cool! All that jazz. Now add the extra incentive of my new found goal. We were going to make it happen this time! We were going to just whisk in there, check out these dinosaur tracks and then mosey on into San Antonio for a relaxing lunch before making the 5 hr drive back to Jacksonville. Easy peasy assumption. And we all know what happens when we assume, don’t we. 😉          We pull in, get our trails map and start looking for our destination. It’s probably right around where we parked right? Nope. 2.5 miles. One way. Nathan and I take a quick parent side bar that basically consisted of him looking at me like I was nuts while I said, “we can do this! We gotta do this! We’re here, now is the time.” All that motivational stuff. And because he knows (and loves) my kind of crazy by now, I got a hesitant “you know I will try.” The kids were warned that this wasn’t going to be easy and would take a while, but they just yelled for dinosaur tracks.

At around 9:30, I packed 7 bottles of water, like 8 packages of snacks in a backpack, and we were off. The first 1/2 mile was was excitement and energy. A lot of telling the kids to stop running and save their energy. The trail was what I would call easy. It was rocky, but well maintained and scraped and mostly shaded. They had 1/2 mile markers along the way to keep you going or like one in particular warning you that if you were already out of water to turn back! 😆 By about 3/4 mile, Nathan started carrying Archer. The rest of way, we swapped out carrying Archer and stopped about every half mile to drink water and give the kids a snack. Ashlyn kept in stride with Daddy the whole way there which is no easy feat! We had to refocus Weston a few times from picking up every cool looking rock, stick or millipede.

FINALLY we reached the tracks and we were already SO TIRED. The kids mustered some more energy to be excited about the sight of legit theropod and sauropod tracks side by side. I mustered some energy to geek out a bit explaining the difference between the species and even caught a tadpole with hindlegs for the kids to see up close.

It was pretty amazing to imagine what all those tracks stayed in tact through. Although I did hear Ashlyn mutter, “this wasn’t as cool as I thought it would be.”

The walk back was a blur of whining from the kids and catching up to Nathan who either had Weston or Archer on his back and just trucked it. I was quite surprised by the number of families we passed on their way to the tracks that had little babies, toddlers, kids even and NO visible water or backpacks. Our last swig of water disappeared just as we got back to the trail head. ^^still managing to smile after 3 miles^^

I took out my phone to text mom that we were exhausted and would not be driving into Jacksonville that evening and saw that it was 1:30!!! 😳 I was in awe that the kids managed all that on snacking alone. We promptly headed out and were eating lunch by 2. It was actually really surprising to see a State Park so surrounded by development. But I guess that’s what is happening on out skirts of cities everywhere these days. I made it as far as Buda that evening while Nathan drove all the way into Houston for work the next morning. The kids were happy to jump in the pool at the motel and even said it made up for the hard walk that day. Taking 3 kids ages 7 and under for a 5 mile hike can be classified as insane. And I’m happy to say I didn’t get a call from a divorce attorney the next week. 😆 Since this trip, I’ve had 3 people ask me if I felt it was worth it after all. I’m going to stick with yes. Sure this trip could’ve waited till the kids were a little older, but we seized an opportunity and showed ourselves what we were really made of. The tracks are cool, but not super exciting. I am glad we saw them now. With all the encroachment going on out there, who knows how much longer they’ll be in that good of shape. Even with the protection of the state park. My two takeaways from this experience? We’re in the process of shopping camelbacks for the kids and Ashlyn is now the owner of bonafide hiking boots. That girl earned them (and needs them 😉)

-Lindsay