A shockingly pleasant surprise!

Last May 18th (this date is important), I camped at Copper Breaks State Park in Texas on my way to my volunteer assignment at Dinosaur National Monument in Utah. I have enjoyed the different Texas State Parks that I've camped in, so I decided to buy a Texas State Parks Pass while I was there. The pass costs $60.00, is good for one year, and eliminates the daily use fee (which is in addition to the camping fee) for pass holders. I received a temporary pass which was good for a month and was told I would receive the official pass in the mail in about a month.

Fast forward to the end of August; I still had not received the pass, so I called the Texas State Parks and Wildlife office and told them I had not yet received the pass and that I was planning on camping in several state parks on my way down to Laguna Atascosa. They said they would send it out immediately. They said they did have a record of me buying it, but sent it to an address I didn't recognize.


Fast forward again to late October. (I didn't stay at any Texas state parks on the way down). I still had not received the pass. I called again, and again they said they would send it out, but that it would take about a month. Well, I received my last batch of mail on January 8th, and guess what? Still no park pass. At the rate this was going, it would expire before I ever got it!


Do you remember me saying that I will be meeting my sister, Pam, and brother-in-law, Stan, at McKinney Falls STATE PARK in Austin, TEXAS, for nine nights of camping in about thirteen days? If I had the pass, it would save me $36.00 in daily use fees. Not to mention that I had planned to stay at Choke Canyon STATE PARK on the way there for a few nights. So, today I decided to call Alternative Resources, my mail service in South Dakota, to put my mail on hold until I arrive at Balcones Canyonlands NWR. I asked if they could check my mail to see if there was an envelope from Texas State Parks and Wildlife in my box. Luckily, I was sitting down when the person came back to the phone, because she told me that "Yes, you have an envelope from them." Holy Mackerel!!! After only eight months, I think I'm finally going to get my state parks pass. It would be nice if it didn't expire in May, but I'm not holding my breathe on that. Anyway, I told Alternative Resources to send my present mail tomorrow and then put any new mail on hold.


That news was almost more excitement than I can stand in a day. ;) It's a good thing the rest of the day was spent on more mundane chores likes grocery shopping, training sessions with Emma the Wild Child, and restocking the orange halves I put out for the birds. I also went for a hike on Mesquite Trail and was able to walk Emma on the back roads since the hunts are over for the year. No danger of getting shot or dodging arrows anymore.

A parting shot of a black-bellied whistling duck.....

Thanks for stopping by....talk to you later, Judy