2 Days in Big Bend National Park - Day 1 Itinerary #WriteAPageADay

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Big Bend National Park

Big Bend National Park is South-Western Texas's most underrated and isolated national park. Due to its remoteness, it is not easily accessible. But, trust me when I say, it is as beautiful as the other national parks we visited.

There are some great places to hike, with beautiful scenery of rivers, mountains, and canyons. The park is vast and it takes a minimum of 2 days to cover the best places. We couldn't spend more than 2 days. It's on my plan for a second trip someday.

Desert Landscape, mountains, Hotsprings, and remote ruggedness of the place make this park unique. You can even visit Mexico by crossing the river at Boquillas.

The best time to visit Big Bend National Park is fall or spring. But, we visited in Winter in December month. It is very cold but manageable. I heard, visiting in summer is not suggestible due to the heat. 

Spotted this bird in Fort Stockton on the way.

Where to Stay, How to reach?

The nearest town is Alpine or the ghost town Terlingua. Alpine is 1hr drive to Big Bend National park and Terilingua is 15 mins. The nearest airport is Midland / Odessa which is 3 hrs from Big Bend or Elpaso airport which is 4.5 hrs.

Flights to Austin / San Antonio might be economical.

Here are some cheap flight options:

On the first day, we stayed in Alpine. On the second day, we stayed in The Summit at Big Bend near Terilingua.

Other accommodation options here:

The drive to Alpine is beautiful after it crosses Sonora. We drove to Alpine from Austin, TX. 

On the way to Alpine

Places to see:

The entrance fee is $30 / vehicle. The nearest gas stations are at Panther Junction visitor center and Rio Grande village. 

There are 3 important regions to cover: Maxwell Scenic drive, Chisos Basin, and Rio Grande village.

To travel from Santa Elena Canyon to Rio Grande village it takes around 1 hr. So, it's better to plan to visit the Chisos basin and Santa Elena canyon on the first day and drive to Rio Grande village on the second day.

In the morning, we drove to the Castelon visitor center after collecting the map from the entrance station. We started the scenic Ross Maxwell drive. You can collect junior ranger booklets at the Castelon visitor center if you have kids.

Ross Maxwell Scenic drive:

The scenic drive is 30 miles and it takes 45 mins to reach the last point - the Santa Elena canyon parking lot. 

Sam Nell Ranch - It's a 0.5-mile out-and-back trail leading to an old ranch site. The trail is well-shaded and maintained well. This is also a great spot for bird and wildlife viewing.

Lower Burro Mesa Pour off - This is an easy 1 mile out and back trail. Do it if time permits.

Sotol Vista Overlook: At mile 7.9 of the scenic drive, don't miss this overlook. This was the most beautiful overlook of the drive. We were there around Sunset and the beauty is beyond words. My photos couldn't capture the majestic mountains and different layers entirely. 

Sotol Vista overlook

Mule Ears Overlook: We stopped here and had our picnic lunch. There is an easy hike to view mule ears like rock formations.  

Mule Ears Overlook

Tuff Canyon Trail: This easy desert trail is to the south of mule ear springs and Chimney's trail. It's 0.75 miles. 

This whitish canyon is made of Tuff, a welded volcanic ash. The trail will lead to the canyon. During the rainy season, the canyon may fill with pools of water. 

 

Santa Elena Canyon:

This is the best hike in Big Bend National park and one that shouldn't be missed at all.

Santa Elena Canyon Trail

This is the last stop of Maxwell scenic drive. It's a moderate hike of 1.7 miles round trip but it requires a lot of climbing. 

Our Day 1 Itinerary:

We reached Castalon Visitor center after breakfast and started our drive through Maxwell scenic drive. We stopped at Mule ears overlook and Sotol vista overlook. 

Since there are some little kids on our trip with us, we couldn't do a lot of hikes. But, I planned to take Lower burro mesa pour off trail. 

We drove to the Santa Elena Canyon trail parking lot. Restrooms are available at the parking lot. We started hiking the Santa Elena canyon trail (1.7 miles out and back) at noon. There is one place where we have to cross the river. The trail is rocky and it's a bit difficult there with slippery rocks and dirt. But, once we cross that part, the hike is marked and clear.

It takes to an elevation of 610 ft. There are magnificent views along the trail and the ending view of the canyon is wonderful. 

We drove back to the Sotol Vista viewpoint to view the Sunset. It's beautiful.

We couldn't hike more as it was becoming dark, but if time permits, we would have covered Chisos Basin.

Chisos Basin

It takes around 1 hr to reach the Chisos Basin Visitor center. A few fantastic hikes in the Chisos mountain range are Window view trail, Window trail, Lost mine peak trail, and Emory peak trail. You can stay at Chisos mountain lodge but they fill up quick.

Here are some great hikes and spots to cover in Chisos Basin.

Window View Trail :

This easy trail of 0.3 miles round trip is a must-stop.

Balanced Rock (Grapevine hills trail) :

Grapevine spring road is a dirt road, it is graded but most of the vehicles can go. When it rains though, it's better to have a 4-wheel drive vehicle. You have to drive around 6.4 miles on this road to reach the trailhead. 

The destination of Grapevine hills drive is Balanced rock. This 2.2 miles out and back trail is easy but has some steep inclines in some areas. 

We definitely would have done this hike on day 1 if we had enough time.

Lost Mine Trail:

This moderate hike is recommended by many as a must-do. But, with kids, we couldn't opt for this 4.8-mile hike. It takes around 3 hrs to complete this hike and parking is limited. 

Window Trail:

This 5.6-mile round-trip mountain hike is also recommended by many, but we couldn't opt for kids. This trail gives panoramic desert views but there are a few spots without any railings. The return of the hike is uphill.

On Day 2, our plan is to cover the Rio Grande village region. Here is our day 2 trip. 

Until next time,

Word count: 1074

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Mini Book Reviews of my Recent reads #WriteAPageADay #FridayReflections

 I have become quite busy and blogging has taken a back seat. I have read many books recently but needed more time to write a detailed review on my blog. Thanks to these blog post ideas, I like the idea of writing a mini-review :-)

I am also linking this post to #FridayReflections. Happy to participate in #FridayReflections after a long time. 

Here is the list of my Recent reads:

The Hacienda by Isabel Canas

I wanted to read horror this year just to change my mood. So, picked this book from some friend's recommendation on Instagram. 

The story is written with a world war background in Mexico. 

Loved the story. It says 'Mexican Gothic', but not very scary for me. I liked the way the story is written from 2 people's perspectives. The ending seemed stretchy and boring. The characterization is great. Loved Andres, Beatriz and Paloma. A good thriller. I liked Beatriz and her determination to stay in a haunted house and make things work. 

My Rating : 4/5

Purchase Link : Amazon

Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey

This is also a gothic thriller in similar lines to the Netflix series "The Haunting of the Hill House". Vera returns to her family home when her mom is ill. There are many stories and secrets hidden in the home which pull Vera in different directions. 

The narrative is engaging throughout. The plot opens up a little bit slower. The story is great but I don't like that many things are left unsorted by the end. It would have been good if they mentioned what's in the letters from Francis to Vera. There are many other loose ends in the plot.

James's character is a mystery. His purpose and his stubbornness in keeping the home in his name are unclear.

My Rating: 3/5

Purchase Link: Amazon

The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell

Loved this. A perfect thriller I would say. Till the last few pages, it's impossible for us to predict the storyline. 

The story narrated by different people makes it still enjoyable. How the stories of 2 other people intersect at one point is interesting -  Tellulah, a teenage girl who disappears, and Sophie, the girlfriend of the new school headteacher. There are many other exciting characters with mystery around them.  

It is from the New York Times's best-selling author and this book is recommended in Goodreads reader's choice awards. 

 

My Rating: 5/5

Purchase Link: Amazon

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

I haven't read a perfect thriller like this in recent days. I can imagine why this book has been one of the best books in 2022 in the thriller category.

The plot has many twists and the story is narrated by multiple characters. So, we get to know the plot through the characters and their perspectives.

Many school friends meet together for the marriage of their friend Will. They all reach an island with no network to attend the marriage. Every person has their little secret. A few people learn some truths about their friends on the island. It is interesting to read about the many shades in each character.

The narrative, mystery, and characters make this book one of the best thrillers. One might remember reading Agatha Christie's books after reading the story.

My Rating: 5/5

Purchase Link: Amazon

What books do you recommend to me who likes thriller and horror genres? Please do let me know in the comments.

Until next time,

Word count: 579

 

An Open Letter to Blogchatter #WriteAPageADay

 Prompt: An Open Letter to BlogChatter

Blog Chatter is a website for the blogging community to share their blogs, and participate in multiple writing-related activities. I might have been a member of blog chatter for 4 years or so. It was under some other name when I joined this blogging community.

Here is an open letter:

Dear Blog Chatter,

Hello.. 

It's been a pleasure being part of your community or should we say our blogging community :-) I love the new look of your website with bees and bright yellows.

I am an old friend if you remember me. I joined this community initially to understand the blogosphere. How it works and all. How a blogger writes a post, researches topics, research keywords so that their post comes on the top of the search results, how they choose the best headline, what is SEO, how they incorporate SEO in their articles, how they create infographics, what tools they use, How do they promote their posts blah and blah...

In very less time, I could get some knowledge in all those topics, thanks to you. 

I enjoyed reading others' blog posts in blog rolls and even made many friends. I also submitted my blog posts and felt so happy getting a badge as a top blogger for some of my posts. Cool 😎 

I participated in multiple campaigns and received some free products to review and also many books. 

I also participated in the A2Z challenge, maybe twice. Here is a wonderful A2Z post list about my Colorado Travelogues. 

I also enrolled in an Alexa improvement campaign and improved my Alexa rank and learned some tips on how to maintain the rank.

Thanks to you for being a friend and guide to many bloggers. 

We, bloggers, enjoy writing blogs as for many of us it's a passion. We are ready to spend more time, tune our skills and become better bloggers with good motivation from blogging communities like Blog chatter.

It's been great so far and I wish we have more fun together learning in the future and showing the power of Indian blogging to everyone else. 

Cheers to more creative collaborations 🥂

Until next time,

Word count : 365

The Things I am Grateful For #WriteApageADay

 Prompt: The Things I am Grateful For

Love and Family come first when I think of gratefulness. But, this post is about the things that I am grateful for and not people/feelings.

Phone:

I am grateful for the advanced phones that we are able to enjoy these days. Mine is a Samsung Galaxy and my husband's an iPhone. So, you can understand we usually have an iPhone Vs Samsung war :-)

Coming to the benefits, I read a lot of books on my Kindle App on my phone. That's easily accessible any time when I want to read. 

When I get bored, I scroll through Instagram and Facebook. I use Instagram a lot for my travel research - saving the list of places that I want to go, noting unique accommodations, find out the best trails and Instagram-worthy spots. 

I use the Evernote app for all my to-do lists and notes. Be it the blogging post ideas or travel notes, I have it all organized in Evernote which I can access from my laptop as well. 

Nature:

Is it a thing? or Mother Nature? 

I am grateful for this Earth, its beauty, and the peace nature provides. Just watching the colors of the sky, and enjoying the mesmerizing Sunrises and Sunsets calms my mind. Nature has been such a stress-relieving power. 

Food:

I am not a foodie. But, I believe What we eat matters a lot. I cannot handle hunger well, I get cranky and angry. Good food ensures a good mood. 

Fortunately, I need not watch weight much due to my genes, but eating healthy is important to me. I am grateful that I can afford good and healthy food. Food is a basic necessity and we should always be grateful for it.

Money:

Life is so tough without money. I am grateful and content with whatever I have. 

Work / Brain activity :

I am grateful that I have something to keep me busy. An idle brain is dangerous. I like learning new technologies, spending time on hobbies, and having time to do activities to stimulate my brain.

Life will be boring without this, right?

Basic Necessities:

I read in childhood about the basic necessities in our life - Food, cloth, and shelter. 

I am grateful for these 3 things, without which we cannot be happy.

What are a few things you are grateful for? Let me know in the comments.

Until next time,

Word count: 398

Favorite Song #WriteApageADay

Prompt: Favorite Song

 It is difficult to pick one song when we listen to multiple wonderful songs. But, I will tell you about one song which made an impression on me. That musical experience stayed with me for so long even after many years. 

That song is 'Paruvam vanaga' from Film : Roja. Music by AR Rehman and sung by SP Balasubrahmanyam and Sujata. 

Below is the link for the audio download. 

https://www.pendujatt.net/kannada-songs/song/paruvam-vanaga-avalm.html

What's Special about the song?

If you listen to it, you will realize its beauty. This might be one of the earliest songs that I enjoyed on my sony walkman. The start of the song and the instruments used are wonderful. Of course, Balu and Sujata sang very well, but the music stands out and dominates the experience. 

It is equally beautiful watching this song in a movie with snow mountains. This audio reminds me of snow, beauty, love, and nature. 

Later, I became a fan of AR Rehman and AR Rehman might have produced better music than his first film, but for me, nothing beats the music of Roja. The other songs are melodious too. The instruments, beats, and chorus might just be a part of the song, but when they come together in a perfect way, it creates the best experience.

What's one such song that mesmerizes you and makes you forget where you are and transports you to somewhere beautiful?

Let me know in the comments.

Until next time,

Word count: 248

A Typical Day in my Life #WriteAPageADay

 This is my first post of the year, in the second month of the course. Blogging has taken a back seat due to other commitments. 

Here is a fun blogging activity: I will write a post every day in February. This initiative is from Blogchatter.

Today's Prompt: A Typical Day in My Life

Morning: 

I am not a morning person, unfortunately. Still, I wake up at 6.15 am to get my younger son ready for school. After having Coffee prepared by my hubby, I prepare breakfast for my kid. I send him to school and make my elder one ready for school. 

Then, I prepare breakfast for ourselves, and get ready for my office. Fortunately, I am still working from home, so I take my comfy time to get ready before attending our first office call at 10am. Cool 😎 

Work time is till 4.30 PM, lunch at 12.30 PM, and multiple breaks in the middle. You know? Housework in the middle of office work 😉

Evening:

My Evenings are a bit slow and relaxed. Sometimes, I will have tea and snacks. I give snacks to the kids and I might start cooking at 6.30 PM. So, until that, it's either a little bit of Netflix / dance class some days / driving to pick /drop kids at any classes. 

Cooking usually takes 45 to 1 hr. We usually target to complete dinner by 8.30 and sleep by 9.30 PM. 

What stands out in my day?

I love watching Sunrises and Sunsets. From my home, I get to watch the beautiful colors of the sky. How is this Sunrise? 

I love having coffee and talking to hubby in the mornings, which lifts up my mood for the whole day. Those peaceful 10 to 15 mins are an important part of my day.

I love pickup and drops to and from school. I love the conversations with my younger one in the car while picking him up from school and conversations with my elder one occasionally dropping him to some class. I cherish those moments.

I love 'ME TIME' when I watch Netflix for some time in the evening. It's not often that I get to enjoy a show for more than 1 hr.

I love reading a good book for 30 mins before sleeping in the night. 

How is your typical day and what stands out for you in a day?

Do let me know in the comments. 

Until next time,

Word count: 411 words

My Top 10 things to be grateful for in 2022

 I have stopped posting my gratitude lists being busy with much important stuff in life but I would love to try one last post in 2022 to show my gratitude. 

10 things I am grateful for in 2022:

1. Move to Texas:

Technically, we moved to Texas at the end of 2021, but we started the new year in a new place. I am grateful for the better weather, better health, and great environment. 

Initially, I was hesitant if I would like the place after coming from a scenic place. Thankfully, Austin is better than other cities in Texas. 

The rolling hills, lakes, and beautiful hikes are solace for the mind. 

Sunset Deck in Balcones Canyonlands National wildlife refuge, hike to Mt Bonnel and the scenic viewpoint, Oasis Restaurant on Lake Travis, Zilker Park, Blue hole regional park in Georgetown, and holiday lights at peppermint parkway are impressive so far. Grateful for the beauty of nature and I wish for more scenic hikes in the new year.

2. Dance School and Recital:

It was painful to leave the old students from Colorado and start my dance school from scratch in Austin. But, by God's grace, this has become easy and less stressful.

Within 6 months, my dance school grew and we even did our Annual Recital! 

By the way, here is the link to our Youtube channel to watch the recital.

https://youtube.com/@Kaladeepika

I am grateful for the Parents and students who trusted me even though I am new to Austin. I am happy about the recital as students could showcase whatever they learned. 

Now, it's holiday time of course. Time to relax, enjoy and replenish for the new year.

3. India Trip:

I am grateful that the India trip was not as stressful as I expected. The trip was short but we could visit all near and dear. I am happy to bring my parents along with me to the US.

Feeling blessed that all things went smoothly during the visit, especially with the extra rules after covid. 

4. Parents' visit to the US:

I feel fortunate to have brought my parents along with me. They are our moral support and a large help for 3 months. It feels like the time is running quickly and within a few months, they will return back.

These are some moments I and my family will cherish forever in the future. We could celebrate Diwali with them, and kids could learn Ramayanam, Mahabharatham, and some Telugu from them. I am grateful that I am being pampered especially by my mom. :-)

5. Learning Cypress and Javascript:

It's always the happiest feeling for me to learn a new language and implement something useful. I am grateful for my job which helped me to learn Javascript and cypress. 

Image by Dhruvil Patel from Pixabay 

I am doing a lot of experimentation and learning this year. This year has been the best year for my technical advancement. I also learned Kotlin and Appium at the beginning of the year. A few more feathers to add to my resume :-)

6. New Home:

I am grateful for the new home we bought. It's a single story as I always wished for. 

Since the house is at a bit of elevation, I enjoy the Sunrise and sunset and the views from the home every day. The Sunrise views from Patio are wonderful. The morning sunlight brings positive vibrations for the whole day.

The move is definitely stressful, but I am glad my parents are here to help. We could complete the moving at last though we were exhausted. Now, is the time to relax a bit and settle in.

7. Health:

So far, my health is great. I have to see how it goes in the future. I could join yoga on and off, but I want to focus more on yoga next year.

The weather definitely helped. With my mom's help, I could rest more, read more books and focus on my dance school.

8. Books:

I am grateful for the amazing books that I got to read this year. After coming to Austin, the first thing I searched for is the library. The library is not as great as Colorado but met my criteria.

Kids also loved the library and we read a lot of books this year including the ones from the little lending library near our home. 

I was certainly busy and couldn't publish many reviews this year, but here are some of the best books that I read in 2022:

• The Guest List by Lucy Foley
• The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks, Sarah Pekkannen
• The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty
• Burying Eva Flores by Jennifer Alsever
• Inner trek by Mohan Ranga Rao
• Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom

9. Kids and School:

It is a frustrating move for our kids as they had to change schools multiple times this year. I am grateful that they could move on to a new place, and new school even though they miss their friends due to moving. 

The next year continues to be tough for them to adjust to a new school. I am grateful for understanding kids. 

10. A Long drive and a road trip:

We could go to Port Aransas this year and it's a wonderful beach vacation. Unlike our other trips, we stayed in a comfy Airbnb for all 3 days which is a walkable distance from the beach. Here is the link to Travelogue: https://www.fantasticfeathers.in/2022/09/a-perfect-weekend-getaway-from-austin.html

I am looking forward to our future trip at the end of the year. I am so excited about a long drive. Our travelogue will be up in the new year. Until then, I will be busy planning our trip. I am grateful for this holiday season and family time. 

So those are my top 10 things to be grateful for in 2022. What are you grateful for this year?

I wish you all a happy holiday season!

Until next time,

The Pirate and R by Daniele Forni - Book Promo

Book Details:

Title: The Pirate and R

Author: Daniele Forni

Publisher:  Clink Street Publishing

Print Length: 30 pages

Reading Age: 5 - 8 years

Genre: Educational book, kids books

Blurb:

The Pirate and R is a simple introduction to the statistical software R, specifically aimed at future data scientists.

 

Got to www.thelittledatascientist.co.uk for more codes to use and to stay up to date regarding future publications.

Purchase Link:

Amazon

Until next time,

The Children of Moonstone Beach by F V C Miller - Book Promo

 

 Book Details:

Title : The Children of Moonstone Beach

Author: F V C Miller

Genre: Children's stories

Publisher: Clink street publishing

Print length: 182 pages

Blurb:

Do you have a moonstone tucked away at the back of a drawer? If you do, then dig it out, hold it close and read this heartfelt adventure, because you are invited to dive wholeheartedly into the magical world of Moontide, where almost anything can happen with a moonstone in your hand.

 

Join four unlikely friends as they are thrown together on a beach far away from their homes in London amidst the chaos of the Covid pandemic as it hits the UK.

 

Troubled, lost, sad and with hearts searching for more, they unknowingly kickstart a chain of events which sees them swept up into a new and spellbinding world; one that has been waiting patiently for their arrival for a very long time.

 

With royal dragons, howling wolves, evil magic-maker pirates, a sea nymph, a bog monster, flying cats and a war to wage, the children must find out who they really are before they can embrace the magic they hold within.

Buy on Amazon

Until next time,

Go Figure!: The astonishing science of the female body by Lisa Falco - Book Promo

 Book Details:

Title : Go Figure!: The astonishing science of the female body

Author: Lisa Falco

Genre: Woman's health

Publisher: Clink street publishing

Print length: 330 pages

Blurb:

The story is about a body in continuous transformation.

 

This book unravels the mystery surrounding women's biology and explains what is happening underneath the surface.

 

We all know that the female body changes cyclically every month during the reproductive years, and that it completely transforms during puberty, pregnancy and menopause. However, most of us ignore the fascinating details. What triggers those changes and what are the sometimes unexpected consequences?

 

The facts are as mind-blowing as entertaining. Based on the latest research, all information is presented in an easy to read manner with plenty of anecdotes; from historical prejudices to personal experiences, with some evolutionary ideas in between.

Buy on Amazon

Until next time,