Stephen F. Austin SP, San Felipe, Eagle Lake, & Sealy,TX

I-10, EXIT 723 took us to Stephen F. Austin SP located near San Felipe, TX.  This SP is located in the "Prairies and Lakes Region" between the "Piney Woods" to the east, the "Panhandle Plains" & "Hill Country" to the west.  With moss draped pecan bottoms along the Brazos River and patches of woodlands with black fertile soil, the area is sometimes called "cross timbers" or "Blackland Prairie".

Prairies are home to a variety of animals and birds including the nine-banded armadillo.  Did you know that they always have 4 babies at a time?  All 4 babies develop from the same egg making the quadruplets identical.  When born, they are either all male or all female.  They are noted as the Texas "speed bump." 




The state Mockingbird is here along with Wood Ducks.  Cottonwood trees abound and the Texas state flower (the Bluebonnet) is starting its spring bloom.  They get their name from the shape of their petals that resemble bonnets worn by pioneer women to shade them from the sun.

In 1823 John McFarland operated a ferry on the Brazos River near this location.  In the fall of same year, the site was chosen by Stephen F. Austin, (known as "The Father of Texas"), with the help of Baron de Bastrop to be the main site in Texas for colonization.

Known as the "Birthplace of Anglo-American Settlement in Texas" , San Felipe de Austin was named for Stephen F. Austin, who brought his first 300 Texas colonists here in 1823.  When coming to the Mexican frontier, the settlers were to give up their US citizenship, speak Spanish, and become Catholics.  This historic settlement was home for Texas' first English language newspaper (the "Gazette", 1829), origin of the Texas postal system and saw the beginning of the legendary Texas Rangers.  San Felipe served as the location for the Conventions of 1832 and 1833, and the Consultation of 1835 - meetings that led to the Texas Declaration of Independence.  The town was burned in 1836 to prevent the Mexican army from capturing it and rebuilt a few years later; but, never regained its popularity.

There is a replica of Austin's dog-run cabin nearby where he conducted business of the first colonists. 
The J.J. Josey Store, built in 1847, has been restored and is now a museum displaying merchandise of the pioneer era. 

Site #4 (next to the park Host) pull-thru is nice with full hook-ups.  We beat the rain for set-up.  Rain did not start until 9 p.m. with some rumbling of thunder.
Our afternoon ride took us to Attwater Prairie Chicken Refuge near Eagle Lake, TX.  There are some who can live without wildlife and some who cannot.  :)  The Attwater Prairie Chicken is one of the most endangered birds in North America.  Once a thriving wild bird, there now are fewer than 50 of these birds left in the wild due to loss of their habitat.  In 1972, the Attwater's Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge was created near Eagle Lake. 
There are about 10K acres of protected habitat where captive-bred birds are released into the wild to help restore the population.  Some of their worst enemies are the red imported fire ant who devour needed insects for the young chicks to survive.  Skunks, opossums, and coyotes eat the eggs.  We drove the 2 mile loop and there skulking in a marshy ditch was an unusual bird with a quick walk that darted into the prairie grass before a good photo shoot.  In reading my literature...it was a Prairie Chicken. 
   
There are walking trails and blinds with benches to observe the wildlife.  Huge deer tracks and there are a few feral hogs in the area.  A park volunteer said there were occasional Otters in the nearby river and a 12 foot aligator in one of the ponds.  Hawks swoop up/down in search of prey and Coots and ducks are on the ponds.  A squawking flock of Sandhill Cranes flew over as we were leaving. 

Sunday afternoon was our last ride through this refuge.  Heavy rain during the night had ditches and prairie fields flooded.  No prairie chickens seen; but, there were deer whose coats blended with the prairie grasses, and armadillo, and the Texas buzzards.
J stopped at Hinze's BBQ pit for a pound of their pecan smoked BBQ to nibble while watching the wildlife.  YUM! 

As we returned to our travel home, the kids were playing in the fresh mud the park used to fill in a low spot on a campsite and riding their bikes.  Rain has stopped about daybreak.  Overcast all day.  Tomorrow we pull out for new adventure.

...Happy Birthday to ME...






Take care...safe travels.
Until next time...see you by the campfire...