Rural north of Austin, HELP!?!~ (Leander: parks, about, interest)

[TexasHorseLady]

San Marcos River, perhaps, what you have in mind?

[HappyTexan]

There's plenty of open spaces still left..you just have to leave the popular cities as subdivisions have all but wiped out the pastures and fields.

[brucemc777]

I sure have learned not to trust Google Earth!... (Toll road where they showed green belt up to several weeks ago, about four house's distance from the house my wife chose to rent for a year, and my only reference was Google Maps/Google Earth).

Anyway, what the heck. the satellite imagery is a phenomenal resource, and I have to think the pictures cost them a buck or two.

Went to Brushy Creek park yesterday. No scorpions. Did mess with a few ant hills though. Examined them with a little stick out of curiosity. Those little guys swarmed like a mess of angry hornets! Have to find out how to tell the regular ants from the nasty ones - a technique that preferably does not include me getting bit. Kind of little to try to see what shape their faces are or if they have a marking on them of some sort!

And... TexasHorseLady, we will have to stay in touch. At least by reading my rants in this forum/blog, you have some sense of my insanity, which I have to think would be helpful when the time comes to find a place to buy.

Has anyone yet had the chance to compare Time/Warner "Road Runner" internet service vs. the highest speed AT&T offers in the area with their fiber optic? Over the years I have developed an equal distaste for both AOL & AT&T, so given the coice of two evils, I am trying to pick the best. I am using the Time Warner (same guys who own AOL by my memory) highest tier, which is something like 10Mb down, and something between 512Kb to 1Mb up, but it sure does not feel like the 10Mb down I had before - sometimes I am reminded of what I had with dial-up. Have had a tech out to confirm connections. I am wondering if it is just too many people running bandwidth through the cable, as where I came from, many times cited, was rural, so much less congestion (I suspect).

Last for now, any suggestions on a good lady pediatrician? My daughters range from 5 to 12 (four of them) and from my experience at Austin Regional Clinic, I want to go to a solid professional doctor's office, not a clinic mill; a doctor who will take the time to get to know the girls so they can develop a level of trust before getting stabbed with a needle in the arm (don't you love how they send in a nurse to do the dirty work?).

[brucemc777]

Anyone know of any private land owners in the Austin area (OK, draw about an hour's ride arc around it) that will allow (for free or fee) fossil hunters on the property, specifically where dinosaur fossils have been found? Want to take my four girls out a'huntin', but am clueless (couldn't tell, could you...).

Oh... also... Is there a state or local park anyone could recommend that I can go for a walk in and for a good while not see any houses or buildings anywhere? Living in an ocean of rooftops is driving me nuts.

[TexasHorseLady]

Pedernales Falls State Park might be a good place for your walk.

[arrow_keys]

If you want rural and want it to stay rural (with real farms and things like that) look north and east of Austin. I wouldn't look west. Maybe Coupeland or as far north as Taylor.

[love roses]

In reply to fossil hunting...I found these 2 places.

1.Pease Park: "Worn oysters in the creek gravel, pyritized fossils in the gray material in bed on Lamar side. Good for small children."
2.Northwest Park: "Sharks teeth can be found in layers in the creek bed. Not too easy to get those. A lot of interesting specimens have been pulled out of Shoal Creek, including two relatively complete small plesiosaurs. If you findone call the UT Geology Dept."

[TexasHorseLady]

If you're wanting to look at fossils on site, not take them away with you, the Austin Nature Center has a dinosaur walk with footprints.

[brucemc777]

Thank-you!

As to taking any fossils in general, I have been forewarned that if it isn't on private property, I will be struck by lightning if I try to take it. As to the dino-footprints, finally I now know where to take my girls to see them! I had heard of them but never was the place identified...

Now I am mapping out all these parks, both for nature and fossils. I have the highest hopes for fun on those walks, but there are times that one or more of my girls will mutiny - "I'm tired!" "I'm hot" "I'm hungry; is there a McDonald's near here?" Yeah. McDonald's. Just the thing I want to see when I am trying to get away from all of that...

[love roses]

I feel ya' about the McDonalds. Sometimes, I think it's the only word my daughter knows.