Day Trips

The year 2005 was a year that saw more than its share of natural and man-made disasters, but the news for Texas day trippers wasn't entirely bad. First, the bad news:

1) Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast from Beaumont, Texas, to Mobile, Ala., leaving thousands homeless and closing a vibrant playground to the rest of us. The good news is that the resilient inhabitants moved quickly to rebuild, and many of the crawfish bars are back in business. Finding a hotel room south of I-10 is still difficult, but investing some of your tourist money in the area can be a win-win experience.

2) The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department hemorrhaged bad news after the Legislature reduced the funds to maintain our sagging state parks system for the fifth year in a row by an additional 5%. The parks were forced to cut back on services, hours, and staff. Of the 120 properties held by the state for the public, almost 50 were impacted in a major way. Many of the parks had their days of operation reduced to four days a week.

Balancing the state budget on the backs of natural areas and park users is shortsighted. Rather than investing in the state's future during good economic periods, the Legislature has chosen to dig our natural resources into a deeper hole of neglect in the name of short-term tax cuts. The results could be disastrous for our children and grandchildren.

3) The ride is over at AstroWorld. The theme park across the freeway from the Astrodome was getting a little long in the tooth, but skyrocketing real estate values ultimately locked the gates.

Opened in 1968, the park was intended to complement professional sports' first domed stadium. The park has been operated for the last 30 years by Oklahoma City-based Six Flags.

And now some good news:

4) Texas was one of a number of states that lifted the longtime ban on out-of-state shipments of wine to residents' homes. A Supreme Court ruling in May struck down laws in two states barring out-of-state wineries shipping directly to consumers, paving the way for the new legislation. This change will be good for consumers without hurting local wineries.

5) Larry McMurtry wrote a new ending to his used book store in Archer City. Maybe it was partially due to the success of his latest movie script, but the author of The Last Picture Show said that the economic fortunes of the town's main business have improved enough to keep the store open – at least for now.

6) Public outcry persuaded the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department commissioners to reject a plan for selling 46,000 acres of Big Bend Ranch State Park. Part of the land's value is its low usage. Operating our state parks system by selling off parcels is as shortsighted as the lack of adequate funding.

7) After waiting 12 years Texans can finally visit Government Canyon State Natural Area. The 8,622-acre natural area 16 miles from downtown San Antonio offers hiking, biking, and other activities, albeit on a reduced schedule of four days a week.

8) Quietly working behind the scenes, the Nature Conservancy expanded protection of Devils River, the state's most unspoiled river, to 150,000 acres. With the sale of 88,000 acres surrounding the river's headwaters to a conservation buyer, a large section of the 60-mile river in West Texas will have limited development.

9) In Arkansas' Cache River National Wildlife Refuge, three outdoorsmen spotted the ivory-billed woodpecker, which had been considered extinct since the 1940s. In Monahans Sandhills State Park in West Texas, a graduate student identified a new species of stag beetle. At Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park, volunteers spotted four species of butterflies that had never been recorded in the U.S.

10) Hill Country Sun of Wimberley has new owners. After nearly 16 years of putting together one of the best travel publications in the state, Madonna and Allan Kimball sold the widely distributed newspaper to Julie and Ralph Harrington, formerly of the Houston Chronicle.

Thank you very much for reading another year of "Day Trips," and may God bless.