6.9.14 Sunken Treasure

I wish that sometimes I could reach into my brain and pull out a memory, dust it off and take a good look at it. I have a hard time remembering some stuff in the past. Sucks getting old. Unfortunately the only thing I really remember from the last time I visited Hamilton Pool 22ish years ago, was that my boyfriend and I got pulled over by an older cop (on our way home) because I didn't have my seat belt on and my feet were sticking out the window(seat belts were still in the suggestion phase but he was trying to prove a point). Back then I liked water but nature wasn't as impressive then as it is now. Also, a camera back then had 12 or 24 chances to get one really great memorable shot that you had to wait until you used the whole roll and got it developed before you even knew if you got a really great shot.
Back to today... I had plans to go to Schlitterbahn but they fell through when I decided to sleep in. (Plus it might have been extra crowded today due to a surf competition). So I decided to do something that has been on my list for a while- Hamilton Pool. I checked the website and it stated that water conditions were ok for swimming but that there might be a long wait to even get into the parking lot. In order to make sure the area isn't trampled by humans, the Texas Parks regulate how many people/ cars are allowed into the park at a time. I found this very refreshing even though I had to wait an hour in my Jeep to get in. It was nice to be able to enjoy a watering hole that wasn't full of people.
There is a bit of a hike once you get parked. (the harder part is coming back up) At the fork in the trail you take a right. The right fork takes you to Hamilton Pool, the left takes you(eventually) to the Perdanales River. I went to the right first. I was shown a snake as soon as I got near enough to see the pool. Some boys had found a snake that was just chillin in some shallow water. Not sure what it was but I figured if I left it alone (and stayed on the other side of the pool) that he would leave me alone. I took a hike around the area, taking pictures from every angle.
I finally got in for a short swim and tried to takes some pictures of myself. That is one of the drawbacks to going places by yourself, very few pictures of myself actually at the places. And you may have noticed... no pictures of Kyleigh. Yep, no dogs allowed at all. No exceptions. I get it. They don't even allow too many humans in at a time. Ky got her fun in today though.
After all this fun having, I finished my hike and headed back, with squishy feet, to the trail that led to the river. This one was a long one. The funny part was that I am learning to enjoy the journey not just the destination. There were plenty of people going both ways on the trail that looked annoyed with how long the trail was. I had some girls tell me " you are almost there" I wasn't sure "where" that was but I enjoyed everything along the way. The "where" they were talking about was the river itself.
I have been to the Perdanales River at the State Park before and so far it is the only river that I have been in that is warm(in Texas)
 It was getting close to closing time. They empty the area out by 5:30 and lock the gates at 6. I crossed paths with a park ranger on my way back. He said something about how he enjoyed working in his "office." Now that I think about it, I wouldn't mind having an office like that.

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