Author Archives: Ashley Landis

RECAP & A SHORT BREAK

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selfiegrid

Well, I didn’t want to, but I’m going to have to take a break from 24inTX for the month of March.

In the next 3-4 weeks, I’ll be covering three major sports tournaments, the SXSW festival and I’ll be out of town for a few days for family reasons.  Unfortunately, that schedule doesn’t leave much time for my own adventures.  Happily, though, I’ll be working on someone else’s dime!

I’ll be back to traveling this amazing state in April, just in time for wildflowers!

Until then, I’ll leave you with a list of the top 10 things I’ve learned so far from 24inTX:

10)  Doritos make better kindling than newspaper.
9)  Never write off a place by what it looks like from the street.  It will probably surprise you.
8)  I love sleep, but sometimes it’s worth it to watch the sunset, stay up late to watch the stars, then get up early to watch the sunrise. Read more →

CEDAR HILL STATE PARK

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Cedar1634

I grew up north of Dallas and we’d go on family camping trips all over the state, but we always traveled outside of the metroplex.  I guess that’s why I was surprised to learn that Cedar Hill State Park was only about an hour from where I went to elementary school.

I had to be in Dallas for work on Saturday, so I drove up a day early to enjoy the park.

I packed my camping gear and borrowed a kayak to paddle Joe Pool Lake, then drove north.  When I got to the park, I was even more surprised to find out about a little gem called Penn Farm.

Cedar1735 Read more →

HWY 71

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IMG_5208

For most of my adventures, I spend at least a couple hours researching where I might go and what I might do when I get there.  There’s always some flexibility in my plan – these are adventures after all – but I usually have a list for each place.

Recently a friend asked me, “how was your trip?”  Because of my busy schedule, I hadn’t planned as much as I normally do, so I answered, “it was good, but I think I need to plan more next time.”  He responded, “or less.”

Huh.  He had a point.

So this time, I set out on the road with no plan.

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SCHULENBURG

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church9421

Okay, I’ll admit it.  Up until now, I’ve put a lot of thought in to where I travel for this project, but this time it snuck up on me.  It was Sunday night and I realized I had nothing to post this week and no travel plans.  Plus, the weather forecast predicted sleet and snow.  Where was I supposed to go?

I needed some place that had indoor activities and that wasn’t too far away, just in case driving conditions got bad.  Obviously I couldn’t camp.

Monday morning I woke up and started researching.  I looked up the painted churches of Texas.  Schulenburg?  That’ll work! Read more →

PALMETTO STATE PARK

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Palmetto1969

Every June I make a stop at Palmetto State Park during the Texas Water Safari, an annual canoe & kayak race.  I stay for the evening, watching teams come in and out of the race check point via the San Marcos River, but I’ve never really gotten to see what the park has to offer.

It turns out there’s quite a bit more to this place than paddling.  (*gasp!*  Safari folk, I’m not betraying you, I promise.)

Let’s start with a few clips from my video diary.  (Keep reading for more photos.)  Unfortunately, the trip started with rain.

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GOLIAD

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AL1_1775

It’s 2014 and I’m back to adventuring!

Santa brought me a new tent and some camping gear for Christmas, and I couldn’t wait to try them out.  As soon as the temperature rose above 65 degrees, I hit the road to Goliad State Park.

The town of Goliad is important in Texas history.  It was a key location during the Texas fight for independence.

The Mission Nuestra Señora del Espíritu Santo de Zúñiga and the Presidio La Bahia, which protected the mission, were sites of bloody skirmishes, and they still stand today in and near the state park. Read more →