My inferior photographic skills are unable to adequately photograph something like a steep drop-off. Or a cliff.
On the right side of the picture, in the middle, you can clearly see the canyon-like drop-off. Or what some might characterize as a cliff.
That same cliff is directly below where my handlebars are located.
When I have seen this view, more than once, it has crossed my mind to wonder how many locals, as in lifelong natives of Fort Worth, have seen this view.
Only a short distance east of downtown Fort Worth you have the Trinity River in its natural state, likely looking just as it looked a couple hundred years ago, before incoming Texans began using a primitive version of eminent domain abuse to take the land from those who lived on it.
The above scene is on the eastern border of Gateway Park. At the western border, as the Trinity River starts its flow by Gateway Park, the massive levees come to their end, near the location of the final river flow obstructing structure. From that point east, for miles upon miles, for the most part, the Trinity River flows natural.
The part of the Trinity River which all of Fort Worth sees is the part which flows past downtown Fort Worth. This is not a natural river at that location. It is more of a massive ditch with the biggest dikes, I mean levees, I have ever seen, along with multiple river flow obstructions, which also act as river crossings for the Trinity Trail.
If the Trinity River Vision, I mean, Panther Island Boondoggle ever becomes anything anyone can see it will have turned the Trinity River into even more of an un-natural river, with a little fake lake, canals and a massive flood bypass channel, which, I assume, will be free of water when there is no flood available, which will likely render the bypass channel into what is known as an eyesore, perplexing Fort Worth's few tourists wondering what in the world that big cement ditch is for.
If you are a Fort Worth native who has never seen the Trinity River in its scenic natural state, that is a very easy shortcoming to rectify.
Simply drive yourself to the northern entry to Gateway Park, that being a turn south on to Streams & Valleys Road from East 1st Street. When you come to a junction do not take the option to the right, instead continue on past the, hopefully, open gate. In a short distance you will see that the road makes a big loop. Park along the loop, exit your vehicle and walk east, towards what looks like open space. Soon you will see that that open space is caused by the Trinity River flowing below a steep cliff.
If you walk to the edge of the cliff you will have walked over the mountain bike trail. Head north on the mountain bike trail and you will eventually come to the view you see above.
You may get confused by a lot of side trails due to this also being a disk golf course, but getting confused on the maze of trails is part of the fun.
Basically, as you walk north if you keep taking the trail option to the right eventually you will come to the hikers only trail that is right at the edge of the cliff. It is that on the edge, non-biking trail that my handlebars are aimed at above.
So, after having myself a mighty fine time on the Gateway Park mountain bike trail roller coaster ride, since I was in the neighborhood, I went to Town Talk.
Today I got myself a pair of watermelons, two for a buck. The watermelons were those seedless round personal size melons. Also got some Dutch cheese called Vlaskass. Plus a big container of cherry tomatoes, red peppers, basmati rice and eco-farmed brown sweet rice. Whatever that means.
You went to Town Talk and it's not Saturday? The earth is off its axis.
ReplyDeleteCatsPaw, thank you for noticing. It is being very discombobulating, but I am resolved to try and be less predictable, even if something like going to Town Talk on a Friday seems like a totally wild and crazy thing to do.
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