Saturday, September 26, 2015

In Arlington's Veterans Park Checking Out The Incoming Vietnam War Memorial

No, that is not a selfie photo of my new hiking boots you are looking at here.

The boots you see here were not made for walking. These boots are being worn by the tall statue of an armed soldier who stands guard over the memorial in Veterans Park in Arlington.

I was in the neighborhood so I decided to take myself on a relaxing walk in one of the best parks in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

That sign you see between the soldier's legs is telling you that a Vietnam War Memorial is being built. Construction appeared to be well underway, as you can see below.


The soldier whose boots we were previously looking at is surrounded by those white pillars you see in the background.

The Vietnam War Memorial looks as if it will be quite large. No clue as to what it will look like.

In Dallas, in Fair Park, where the State Fair of Texas is currently underway, there is a Vietnam War Memorial of the same sort as the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C. A wall with the names of all the Texans killed in that unfortunate war. It is a bit shocking to see that wall with all those names, representing only a fraction of all those killed in that awful war.

The thing about Arlington's Veterans Park that makes it such a great park is the variety of attractions. There is a paved trail for walking, biking and blading. There is a disc golf course. A Wildscape Xeriscape deal with all natural landscaping of the low water needs, grows well in Texas type. The trails through the Wildscape are like a walk in a woods. There is also a more formal type garden adjacent to the Wildscape. The park has a couple covered picnic pavilions. There is a big playground for kids.

And then there is the undeveloped part of Veterans Park. A hilly, heavily wooded maze of trails that one can get  lost in the first couple visits. In the hilly, heavily wooded part of Veterans Park it does  not seem one is at the heart of a metro zone with over 6 million people in residence.


The big dead tree, atop a cliff, is in the aforementioned hilly, heavily wooded part of the park. At this location there used to be a rope hanging from a tree that is behind me. Thrill seekers would hold on to that rope and jump off the cliff for a long swing back and forth.

The rope still dangles, but years ago vandals lit a big fire under the rope, burning it into uselessness. I don't know why no one has  replaced the rope. Well, except for the fact it would be a scary operation, climbing up the host tree and going way out on a limb. I always wondered how that rope got there in the first place.

No regularly scheduled Saturday Tandy Hill hiking for me today, with no Town Talk visit. I am trying real hard to get out of my predictable rut. That and I have not been liking Town Talk all that much of late.

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