Tuesday, April 17, 2012

A Walk Along The Trinity River With Lunch At The Woodshed Smokehouse

Occupying Woodshed Smokehouse For Lunch
Today I walked the Trinity Trail and met Madame X for lunch with Tim Love at the Woodshed Smokehouse.

The walk along the Trinity River was interesting.

But, first lunch was had at the Woodshed.

Skinny Madame X had the Skinny Chicken sandwich, while I had the Woodshed Burger.

I recently had a Double Double Burger at In-N-Out. I prefer the Double Double to the Woodshed Burger, though the Smoked Cheddar is a nice touch.

There were not as many people at the Woodshed for lunch today as there were the first time I was at the Woodshed, that being the Occupy Woodshed protest where we had libations and chips. Some overhead fans have been added to add some air circulation to the un air-conditioned Woodshed.

Woodshed Designer Outhouse & Shower
The entrepreneur behind the brilliant Woodshed concept, J.D. Granger, insisted there be no air-conditioning because he felt cool air would detract from the gritty atmosphere he was hoping to create.

I'm guessing the cool outhouse that is part of the Woodshed complex, along with the outdoor shower, is also part of the gritty atmosphere design of J.D. Granger.

I did not know what the parking situation was at the Woodshed and I knew it was easy to park at Trinity Park, with Trinity Park being a fairly short distance to the Woodshed.

Do Not Go Over Your Limit Of 5 Rainbow Trout
Why is most of Trinity Park's parking blocked? And the Trinity Trail blocked, heading east? This made parking a bit more difficult than I had anticipated.

The URBAN FISHING AREA sign you see in the picture has perplexed me previously. In most areas you are advised not to eat any fish you catch in the Trinity River.

However, this sign informs you that a Texas Fishing License and Trout Stamp are required to catch your limit of 5 Rainbow Trout per day.

A person standing near me as I read the sign muttered, "There ain't no trout in that damn river."

The Fort Worth Forbidden Zone
I don't know about that, but I sure saw a lot of turtles and what looked to be a big snake, plus multiple instances of big fish jumping out of the water making big splashes.

Just a short distance upriver from the URBAN FISHING AREA, maybe 500 feet, there is a very dire warning sign that made me wonder how it was that Rainbow Fish were available for catching a few feet downriver.

FORBIDDEN ZONE - NO TRESPASSING - CITY OF FORT WORTH - RAW WATER INTAKE

That really does sound dire. This is the only place on the planet where I recollect having found myself in a FORBIDDEN ZONE. Does this mean raw water is being sucked out of the dirty river at this location? Or is raw water flowing in to the river at this location? I prefer my FORBIDDEN ZONES to be very clear about the reason for the forbidding.

Fort Worth Bikers Crossing Trinity River
There are several dam bridges crossing across the Trinity River, some of which are part of the Trinity Trail. I don't quite understand the thinking behind the dam bridge crossing you see in the picture.

The 3 guys had to carry their mountain bikes across the dam bridge because the path across is a line of big rocks, with the river waterfalling between the rocks.

A short distance downriver there has been at least one instance of someone falling into the river at a similar crossing and drowning.

It seems sort of irresponsible, to me, to have a paved trail lead to a dam bridge that is topped with a line of big rocks that you have to traverse carrying your bike overhead.

2 comments:

  1. Perhaps the dam bridge was designed for purposes of cyclocross practice. Cyclocross racers routinely practice carrying their bikes over their shoulders over obstacles.

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  2. Why didn't they build a real and proper restroom instead of a wooden frame for porta potties.

    Those portable outhouses really stink in warm and hot weather.

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