Mountain biking and hiking near Smithville,TX

Spent Friday and Saturday mountain biking near Smithville, TX at Rocky Hill Ranch. That's a pretty cool place! I was pretty much by myself on Friday. Went for a warm-up loop... then opted for a siesta :)

Trails are numerous. Some are clearly more advanced than others... Fortunately I had no incident to report.

I was planning to sleep at the ranch. They have some camp sites. It was too early to setup camp so I drove to a nearby state park, Buescher State Park. It is not all that big but it is quite nice and their campsites are luxurious. That's without mentioning the clean, warm showers! Ended sleeping in the park... I just could not resist. I do not remember the last time I actually camped near the car. Went full out and drove to a grocery store 5 mins away to get some additional supplies. I prepared a feast for dinner. The Perrier was flowing. Quite an event for those of you who missed it! Besides, I could not believe how quickly Jetboil boils water at sea level. It is the first time that I use it at this "altitude". Anyhow, thanks again Mel and Cedric for this great gift!

It was also the first time I used my Outdoor Research Bug Bivy. It is roomy, even for my 6 ft and 2XX lbs. I liked quite a bit to open the eyes during the night and see the stars thru the mosquito net.

On Saturday morning I tried my mountain board on the low slope hills in the park. Was quite fun. Happy that no one saw me, though. Not sure I looked very graceful...

As I was exiting the park I saw that there was another state park nearby, Bastrop State Park. The 11-mile road connecting the two parks seems great for road biking. Will have to come back and try it. It is nice and shady for the most part. Bastrop SP seems much bigger and fancier than Buescher. There is even a golf course there! That reminds me... There is a canoe rental at Buescher.

Time to go back mountain biking at the ranch. There are a few more cars today. Looks like I did not read the memo about cars...

Another few hours of fun! Unexpectedly I also learned a bit more of the Texan culture... 

Came back to the car completely exhausted but quite happy about this fun outing. On the way home, I stopped by this BBQ shack. I would have paid to take a picture of the place when I entered and everyone looked at me and stopped talking. Customers were not too familiar with Frenchies, I guess!

Life is good... even in Texas ;)