Does A Tandy Hills BioBlitz Earth Day Weekend Come With No Prairie Fest?

I am more than a little tired. Have been up since before five. Have been having trouble sleeping.

But, enough about my litany of woe.

I needed to take care of something which could only be taken care of directly at the U.S. Post Office this morning.

I opted to use the Handley Post Office, which is the one I have been used to using for quite a few years.

But, it has been a couple years since I had the direct, in the Handley Post Office, experience.

Yikes!

Long line. One postal worker working slow. Real slow. She was working on one customer when I joined the line, eight people back. 37 minutes later the line finally moved. Eventually a second postal worker opened a second window. From that point the wait was not too much longer.

After finally getting my postal business taken care of, since I was in the neighborhood, I decided to drive to View Street, for a short jaunt on the Tandy Hills. I can't remember the last time I jaunted on the Tandy Hills, but it has been awhile.

Upon arrival I saw the sign you see above, advertising the upcoming Tandy Hills Natural Area BioBlitz on Earth Day, 6 a.m. Friday, April 22, til Saturday, April 23 at 6 p.m.

I have been asked by more than once by more than one person when this year's Prairie Fest was taking place. Additionally asking if I'd noticed any promoting of the 2016 Prairie Fest.

Well.

This Earth Day weekend is the usual time the Prairie Fest takes place.

I do not know what has become of the Prairie Fest. I've heard nothing. I suspect it has been replaced by this BioBlitz event.

I usually check out the Prairie Fest each year. I don't know if I will be checking out this BioBlitz deal. Pretty much ever time I've gotten blitzed the next morning I wake up with a splitting headache. I do not like waking up with a splitting headache....

Saturday's Tandy Hills 2015 Brush Bash Postponed Til Saturday February 7

Incoming email from Don Young, marked "This message is High Priority".

The High Priority message is....

- - - Due to a very strong chance of rain this Saturday, Brush Bash and the Recycling Event have been rescheduled for Saturday, February 7.

Please join us and see the amazing changes taking place at Tandy Hills.

In the beginning....

....wildfire and wildlife maintained the Tandy Hills prairie keeping it free of woody growth. The grasses and wildflowers flourished without the hand of woman or man. But those glory days are over, so...

One day a year, Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area with help from the City of Fort Worth Parks and Community Services Dept. hosts a Brush Bash to clear sections of the prairie of invasive and unwanted trees, brush and trash.

The brush has been cut and will be ready for volunteers to drag to waiting trucks for delivery to a composting facility. Your help REALLY makes a difference! Manly Men and Wild Women welcome.

WHO: Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area
WHAT: 7th annual Brush Bash
WHEN: Saturday, February 7, 2015  9 A.M. - Noon
WHERE: Tandy Hills Natural Area, 3400 View Street, Fort Worth, TX 76103
BRING: gloves, sturdy shoes, hat, water, lunch, tarps, rakes, small wagons, tools and...unwanted electronics. (see below)
CONTACT - RSVP: Don Young <donyoungglass@earthlink.net>

Coffee, tea & morning snacks provided.

The Tandy Hills Hoodoo Has Been Resurrected

For the first time in a week, and the first time in 2014, the Tandy Hills were my hiking location this first Saturday of the New Year, prior to my regularly scheduled weekly treasure hunting visit to Town Talk.

Supposedly, tomorrow, frigid air of the sub-freezing sort returns to North Texas. Today the outer world is currently heated to 64 degrees at my location.

The balmy temperature had me back in shorts and t-shirt with the speedy hiking creating an additional warming sensation.

Today I was very pleased to discover that the Tandy Hills Hoodoo has been resurrected in all its precarious, rocky, balancing glory.

Tandy Hills Hoodoo II appears to be a bigger formation than its original iteration.

We'll see how long Tandy Hills Hoodoo II lasts before falling victim to rogue Mormon boy scouts.

The conditions on the Tandy Hills are currently just about perfect, as in perfect weather, trails in good shape. Yet, I saw no other hikers today. Very perplexing.

I got my biggest supply of rabbit food yet, at Town Talk, today. Two cases of Fresh Express salad. A case of Spring Mix and a Baby Spinach case. I also got tomatoes, cauliflower and a case of apple cinnamon Power yogurt. And other stuff I am currently not remembering.

What I am remembering, right now, is the lunch gong just sounded and I am hungry....

A Post-Christmas Pre-New Year's Tandy HIlls Hike Pondering Generating Electricity From Tandy Falls

Today I felt the need for some extreme aerobicizing.

Fast hiking on the Tandy Hills is my nearest location where I can get myself some extreme aerobicizing, and so it was to the Tandy Hills I motored myself today for the first time since last Saturday's deluge.

I was last on the Tandy Hills several days after the Great North Texas Ice Storm of 2013. At that point in time the Tandy Highway was muddier than I like my hiking to be.

Today the Tandy Hills were even muddier than my previous visit. So I avoided the Tandy Highway, except for a short distance at the north end,  en route to the Tandy Escarpment from which Tandy Falls falls.

Today Tandy Falls was dropping a lot of water, as you can see photo documented above. Viewing all that hydro power had me wondering if there has ever been any consideration of adding a generator at this location. I suspect not.

I came upon two fellow hikers today, both with two dogs. Human sightings are quite rare on the Tandy Hills. Two sightings in one day are even rarer.

I feel a lot better after getting myself some endorphins.

Swimming in the hot tub just does not do it for me, aerobically-wise, like hill hiking does. I did have one real quick bout in the cool pool this morning when I got too hot in the hot tub. A real quick bout in the cool pool was quite stimulating, so much so that I did not need a second round of stimulation.

I enjoyed hiking the Tandy Hills so much today I think I may go for a repeat tomorrow, before my regularly scheduled Saturday visit to Town Talk, weather permitting...

A Person With Any Common Sense Would Not Be HOT Hill Hiking Today In Texas

This morning when I found Don Young's Prairie Notes #80 in my inbox I realized it has been weeks since I have been on the Tandy Hills.

So, with today scheduled to be HOT enough to have a good sauna steam bath I decided to drive to the summit of Mount Tandy and have myself a HOT walk.

As you can see, looking west, across the wagon train trail that leads towards the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth, the air does not appear to be all that smoggy, despite the air quality alerts.

It did not take me long walking to realize maybe I should pay heed to all the warnings I hear advising the elderly to stay inside during these troubling HOT times.

When I began to be blinded by the copious amount of moisture leaking from me I cut short the hiking, down to only 3 hills from the usual 5.

In addition to being HOT I had to contend with getting around the trail block you see in the picture below.

Just north of the currently dry Tandy Falls, where one takes a left to a shady trail up to the View Street Trail, a big tree has fallen across the trail.

I do not know what the policy is regarding windfalls in the Tandy Hills Natural Area. Is it like a national park, where the tree remains where it fell, unless it is blocking a highway or causing a hazard?

I am thinking for the duration of this 100 degree plus HOT time of the year, my mode of getting aerobic stimulation will be my morning swim, shady walks and bike riding, saving the Tandy Hills for the cooler time of the year.

This current plan is subject to change.

Taking A Break On A Tandy Hills Amphitheater Bench Before Hunting For A Trout Lily

Another weather perfect hiking day on the Tandy Hills on this last day of the 2nd month of 2013.

Today when I got to the newly installed benches that overlook the new cleared Tandy Hills Amphitheater I had myself a pleasant sit down for a bit.

I do not know if the Trout Lily Walkers will sit down on these new benches at some point during their walking this coming first Sunday of the 3rd month of 2013.

I got email yesterday about Sunday's Trout Lily Walk....

Tandy Hills Natural Area, aka., The Land that Time Forgot, is home to many rare and uncommon plant species. One of the most eagerly anticipated of them is the diminutive yet striking, Trout Lily (Erythronium albidum). Being one of the first wildflowers to bloom each year it is sometimes called, the harbinger of Spring.

Don Young Trout Lily Photo

The Vernal Equinox is March 20, but the harbinger of Spring has arrived at Tandy Hills. Their golden-throated white trumpets hang from curvy stems nestled inside mottled leaves that resemble speckled trout. They are scattered across the Tandy hills and hollers hiding in secret places.

It helps to have a field guide. We are lucky to have the best of the breed in, Jim Varnum, who will lead a Trout Lily Walk this Sunday, March 3, at Tandy Hills. The tour starts at 1 pm. Jim will regale you with amazing facts about TL's and help ID other plants along the way. Don't miss this brief window of opportunity. 

I don't know if I'll be going on the Trout Lily Walk on Sunday. It starts a bit later than my usual walk time. I suspect going on the Trout Lily Walk is the best chance I will have to actually see, for the first time, the elusive Trout Lily.

Paw Prints With Incoming Spaceships On The Tandy Hills Bemoaning Power Failures

I'd not been on the Tandy Hills for well over a week, not since rain fell on the prairie.

I do not recollect doing hill hiking with a wind blowing with as high a velocity as what was buffeting me today, particularly on the summit of Mount Tandy, which is the location where the picture of the Tandy Hills' latest art installation was taken.

I am absolutely worthless at interpreting abstract art.

Having admitted that I am absolutely worthless at interpreting abstract art I think my take on this latest Tandy Hills art installation is it represents our meager earthbound defenses against incoming spaceships.

Even though that high velocity wind had some wind chilling factoring into the temperature I soon found myself overheating, which had me doffing all but one major piece of outer wear.

On the hike down Mount Tandy I saw countless paw prints embedded in what had been mud.

And then I came to new directional signposts, with a new trail symbol, that being a paw print which looked just like the paw prints I'd been seeing in the dried mud.

Was Olive the Prairie Dog and Official Mascot of the Tandy Hills the model for the new paw print signposts?

Today may be the last day for awhile where I get my aerobic stimulation on the Tandy Hills. Rain is predicted to precipitate later today and later on this week.

Changing the subject to something else.

I don't think I remembered to mention that last week, Thursday evening at 7:00 o'clock, to be precise, the power went out in my neighborhood. And stayed out for almost 2 hours. Losing power after dark is not pleasant. I have some strategically placed flashlights, which I use to find my Coleman lantern.

Speaking of my Coleman lantern. I bought it way back in 1994, to take along the first time I went houseboating on Lake Powell. That lantern went on the second Lake Powell houseboating trip in 1997 and has made the move to Texas. And in all those years this Coleman lantern has not had its mantel replaced. It has lasted for almost 20 years.

Now, what reminded me of last week's power outage? Well, I was enjoying lunch, watching TV, when the power went out again. This outage only lasted about 10 minutes.

I don't ever remember getting traumatized by the power going out at my house in Washington. All utilities were underground at that location. I'm sure at some point in time something must have caused the power to go out, but I am not remembering any instances of being traumatized by suddenly being totally in the dark.

The Long Shadow Of The Tandy Hills Thin Man And An Anonymous Crank

That is the Long Shadow of the Tandy Hills Thin Man waving at you this afternoon from atop the Tandy Escarpment above Dry Tandy Falls.

I was late today to get my daily dose of salubrious endorphins, due to a doctor's visit up north in the town of Hurst, this morning.

When I got to the top of Mount Tandy, this afternoon, I was blocked from my usual parking place by two ladies walking three dogs.

I took this upset in my regular parking routine as a bad omen.

However, nothing bad happened, so, once again, I saw a bad omen where none existed.

I sort of preferred the late afternoon hiking to the noonday, sun directly overhead, hiking. With the sun only an hour or two from disappearing for the day, the long shadows make for a mostly shady Tandy Hills.

I came upon another of those new Tandy Hills Signposts today. This one directed hikers to the Roadrunner and Sun Trails. If I am reading the Hieroglyphics correctly.

A couple days ago I mentioned my slight perplexation regarding the new Tandy Hills Signposts. This prompted someone named Anonymous to make an interesting comment...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Walking Over A Field Of Broken Glass On The Tandy Hills While Pondering Signposts & Sociopaths":

Directions to the Roadrunner & Sun Trails

I don't like the signposts. First, they are not wood, yet they are cast to resemble wood, a deception which always annoys me, and more so when I am out in what purports to be a 'natural' area. Second, the glyphs, as you point out, are indeed too cryptic. They soon will be forced to erect a huge plastic-that-looks-like-stone Rosetta Stone to help decipher all of the post glyphs. Can you imagine trying to give instructions? Go past the post with the sprig of something on it until you see the post with the raptor (or is it a roadrunner?) on it, and then turn right and roll down the hill until you see the post with the something about a sun on it.

And of course as your sighting of the new sea of littered glass proves, the more posts and people you encourage into a natural area, the more the area begins to resemble the environment from which it is supposed to provide refuge.

Yours in crankiness.

Everyone knows I am a humongous fan of crankiness, especially well articulated crankiness.

I know the Tandy Hills Signposts are some kid's Eagle Scout project.  I am sure he means well.

Running With The Elusive Tandy Hills Roadrunners

In in the picture we are looking north on, I think, Lost Sunglasses Ridge, on one of the Tandy Hills, today around noon

At this location I quickly whipped out my camera, hoping to get a picture of the Roadrunner who was posing about 100 feet from me. But, by the time I got the camera on, aimed and zoomed, the Roadrunner had run away.

I think I may have alluded to the fact, previously, that Roadrunners tend to elude my attempts to successfully photograph the cute birds. Though, I have managed it a couple times.

Speaking of something being alluded to or eluded, just seconds ago someone with the interesting name of Anonymous had some words for me about alluding and eluding, and about my lack of a proper education....

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Almost Going Over A Cliff Again In Gateway Park Without Daylight Savings Time": 

Neither the appeal of soccer nor the appeal of disc golf has “alluded” you. What has escaped your grasp are both the meaning of the word “allude” and the correct word choice of “elude.” Did you go to school in Washington state? 

I did go to school in Washington state. A couple of my school years were spent in Special Education. That may explain why allusions elude me.

Now back to the Tandy Hills Roadrunner.

Today I had three Roadrunner encounters. The first was the one I've already mentioned. Then, when the trail I was on junctioned with the Tandy Highway, I saw another Roadrunner. I was very close to this one, but this bird also escaped before I could take a picture.

A short distance later, heading north on the Tandy Highway, I saw the above startling sight. A white truck. It is well known that I have a strong aversion to white trucks.

As I walked by the white truck the truck driver howdied me. I howdied him back. The white truck turned out to be some sort of dump truck with a trailer behind it with a bulldozer type device on the trailer.

Now, here is where my hike today got real surprising. I headed up Mount Tandy, heading back to my motorized vehicular transport, about to the junction with the trail that leads to the summit, near the disheveled Tandy Shrine, when I saw another Roadrunner.

That is 3 Roadrunners in one day on the Tandy Hills. I don't see how these 3 Roadrunners could all be the same runner, particularly the third encounter. I don't think the Roadrunner would have run around the big white truck.

Methinks the hills are becoming alive with the beep beeps of Roadrunners.

Methinking this is further reinforced  by something I read in this month's Tandy Hills Prairie Notes...

"A juvenile Roadrunner, possibly the offspring of our nesting pair, was recently spotted."

So, we have some Roadrunners breeding on the Tandy Hills who have already produced some offspring?

I wonder how large a Roadrunner family the Tandy Hills could support? Should we start sprinkling Roadrunner food on the Tandy Trails?

Hard Hats On The Fall Colorful Tandy Hills With Stevie Wonder In Town Talk

For my Saturday endorphin inducing aerobic stimulation I opted to do some hill hiking, venturing to the seldom visited, by me, northeast section of the Tandy Hills Natural Area.

That white object you see in the picture is a hard hat.    I do not know why a hard hat would be located in this isolated location. I did not look under the hard hat to see if there was a head inside.

With Fall well underway the leaves on the trees and bushes are beginning to put on their annual color show, as you can see in the picture with the hard hat.

In addition to the hard hat I was accosted by two humans today, along with their dog, Roxy. Roxy violated my personal space by putting her paws on me. The female half of the two humans tried to get control of the beast to little avail. Eventually Roxy ceased attacking me and we parted ways.

Above is another view of the Fall color coloring the Tandy Hills. This view is looking west from the trail junction halfway down Mount Tandy.

I had myself a nice long swim early this morning. Days with temperatures in the 80s have the pool not being cool. The Tandy Hills were also not cool today, with the temperature nearing 80, hot enough to require a minimalist approach to outerwear, but not hot enough to cause a very severe steambath effect.

After I finished my hill hiking I went to Town Talk. I got myself a lot of tomatoes today. Among other things.

Stevie Wonder, or a guy who looked a lot like Stevie Wonder, asked me for help in Town Talk. I'd bumped into his walking stick. He apologized to me, when it was I who was being a klutz.

Stevie Wonder then asked me if he could ask me something. Sure, said I.

It was only then I realized Stevie Wonder was slight of sight. He was using some sort of illuminated magnifying glass thing to look at products. He asked me if the chicken breasts were half price. It did not say so on the package, but did say so on a sign stuck to the freezer.

Stevie Wonder thanked me for helping him, and I continued on my way. Later I realized I should have asked him if he'd like me to help him  find stuff in Town Talk. Town Talk is not a brightly lit store. I have trouble reading the Town Talk labels sometimes.

I wonder how Stevie Wonder got to Town Talk? Obviously he did not drive himself there.

So, that has been my exciting Saturday, so far. I think I may go swimming again.

X Marks The Mysterious Spot On The Tandy Hills While I Discover Free McDonald's French Fries

An X or a Cross has appeared on the escarpment above the currently dry Tandy Falls.

Why would someone put an X or a Cross at this location?

I never get answers to the questions about the Mysteries of the Tandy Hills.

The bamboo tepee still stands. It seems like it has been years now that the bamboo tepee appeared near the center of the Tandy Hills. Who went to the bother of hauling all that bamboo such a distance? And why?

Then there is that rock crypt that appeared a couple months ago. The ice chest that was near the rock crypt soon disappeared, but the rock crypt still remains, undisturbed. What is buried under the rock crypt and how did someone manage to haul such a big chunk of rock such a distance, up and down hills?

It seems like there are other Mysteries of the Tandy Hills, but I'm not remembering them right now.

I just remembered another Mystery of the Tandy Hills.

It is a mystery to me why, on such a beautiful, perfectly temperatured day as today the Tandy Hills Natural Area is not swarming with locals having themselves a fine time hill hiking in the natural world.

Just as I was pondering that mystery today, thinking how odd it is I've seen no other humans on such a perfect day, two came into view, with the lady half of the pair greeting me with a very friendly Texas howdy. I told the pair what I'd just been thinking, with then them, a  pair of humans, suddenly appearing. The lady half of the pair verbalized agreeance regarding how odd it is that more people don't enjoy this slice of the natural world on such a beautiful day.

Speaking of mysteries of the eventually solved sort. This morning when I checked my mailbox prior to a very short dip in a very cool pool, I found a letter from Phoenix. After the very short dip in the very cool pool, upon opening the letter, I found what looked like a small version of the bag McDonald's French Fries come in. On the front of the bag it said "MONOPOLY. 1 IN 4 WINS. WAKE UP. PEEL OFF."

The upper right said "GO PEEL" with an arrow pointing me to the back side of the bag where I found a sticker waiting to be peeled. I peeled and found nothing under the peeling. I was very perplexed.

This Phoenix perplexation happened early this morning. After my salubrious endorphin inducing aerobic stimulation on the Tandy Hills I think my cerebral bloodflow had improved with increased oxygen improving my critical thinking and problem solving ability.

Because, a few minutes ago I thought to look in the bag and found a lot of little stickers with the words "Medium Fries" printed on them.

I am assuming if I hand one of these little stickers to an order taker at McDonald's I would then get a free bag of French Fries.

I have not been in a McDonald's since I was in Arizona last March. I regularly walk by McDonald's when I go to Walmart Supercenters, like this very morning, up in Hurst, when I went to Walmart across the street from ALDI, after I'd finished with ALDI.

Had I known about these little stickers that were hiding in this bag I might have had myself some French Fries this morning. Might have. But more likely not.

Kids On The Prairie With Science-Based Fall Field Trips At Tandy Hills Natural Area

Moments ago I got an email from Don Young marked urgent with a red exclamation point. Attached to the email was a PDF document, which is what you see on the left.

In that PDF document we learn that the "Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area (FOTHNA) are pleased to announce the first ever Fall edition of Kids on the Prairie, a program that will bring two-hundred FWISD students to one of the few remaining examples of native prairie in north Texas. Master Naturalists will lead the 4th grade classes from our Fall Scholarship Schools, Meadowbrook and Eastern Hills Elementary, in a day of field investigations in science, math, creative writing, art and ecology."

Where:
Tandy Hills Natural Area
3400 View Street
Fort Worth, TX 76103

When:
Tuesday, October 23 @ 10 a.m.
(Meadowbrook)
Wednesday, October 24, @ 10 a.m.
(Eastern Hills)

For More Information

A Disturbing New Tandy Hills Mystery With An Ice Chest & Possible Burial Site

I had myself a disturbing time getting my endorphin inducing aerobic stimulation today on the Tandy Hills.

It started when I stepped out of my vehicular transport on to a mesquite thorn which pierced the sole of the hiking shoe on my right foot and then pierced the aforementioned right foot, very slightly.

I do not believe any blood was spilled.

Even though the temperature was in the relatively chilly 80s the humidity was making it feel HOT today. That and my possible blood loss had me feeling a bit faint at times as I did the hill climbing.

And then I came upon the thing you see in the above picture. Someone had hauled an ice chest cooler type device deep into the hills of Tandy and left it there at the side of the trail.

Why? I asked myself.

I did not want to look inside the ice chest, so I didn't.

Then, as I looked around at the surrounding area, up the hill, about 15 feet to the left of the view of the ice chest, I saw what you see below.

It seemed disturbingly clear to me that someone had carried something to this spot, in the ice chest, and buried it under that giant slab of rock.

Where did this giant slab of rock come from and how did it get there?

I was not curious enough to left the slab to see if I could see what is under it. That and I thought, with me already feeling faint-hearted, that I might faint on the spot if something disturbing was under the slab.

I'm probably going to be asked where on the Tandy Hills this burial sarcophagus is located. I'll try and describe where this is.

I assume anyone familiar with the Tandy Hills knows where the bamboo tepee is located.

From the bamboo tepee exit the trail that heads east. Take the first right, heading south, up the hill. About halfway up the hill you'll come to the scenes above.

Hiking The Dry Trails Of The Tandy Hills While Being Alert About The Air Quality

Even though up to 4 inches of rain fell in some locations in the D/FW zone on Saturday, I decided, since my computer based temperature monitoring device was telling me that it was only 79 degrees in the outer world at my location at a half hour before noon, that I'd risk running into rampaging creeks and getting stuck in mud by returning for some salubrious endorphin inducing aerobic stimulation via hiking up and down a few of the Tandy Hills.

Well.

The trails were pretty much bone dry, with just some slight hints that a little rain may have hit the prairie in recent days. No water was running in Tandy Creek. Tandy Falls remains bone dry.

As you can see, via the look west at the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth, the air appears to be smog-free, scrubbed by the recent storms.

However, despite appearing to be clear air, the National Weather Service, or whoever it is who determines such things, has determined that we need to have an AIR QUALITY ALERT.

Maybe this AIR QUALITY ALERT has something to do with the toxins being sprayed throughout the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, attempting to kill West Nile Virus bearing mosquitoes before they make more people sick. Or dead.

Back Taking A Tandy Hills Steam Bath With My Sister From Arizona

In the picture you are on top of Mount Tandy, looking west across the wagon train trail that leads towards the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth.

Yesterday I mentioned that I thought I might not be able to get vertical this morning after the unexpectedly severe pounding that the River Legacy Park Mountain Bike Trail administered to my delicate self on Friday.

Well, I suffered no aftereffects from yesterday's pounding. I think I had my longest swim of the swimming season this first Saturday morning of August.

Today I returned to the Tandy Hills today for the first time in awhile. A good cooling breeze was busy blowing, which made the HOT hill hiking pleasant. I'd forgotten how good one can feel after a good Tandy Hills steam bath.

My sister from Arizona was along for the hiking today. We had some relatively annoying subjects to discuss, some of which left me relatively annoyed.

Changing the subject from the Tandy Hills, and being relatively annoyed, to the park on the other side of the I-30 freeway.

Yesterday Don Young's August Prairie Notes arrived in my emailbox. I was enjoying reading the Prairie Notes when I came to Part 5) Death at Gateway Park. I was surprised when I got to the second paragraph of Part 5, to see what the first paragraph was leading up to.

I'll copy and paste Part 5 below in its entirety.....

5) Death at Gateway Park

Before Interstate-30 was created in 1957, the Tandy Hills expanded north all the way to the winding Trinity River and the heavily wooded riparian habitat that is now dotted with natural gas wells and adjacent to Gateway Park. Despite the busy highway and park facilities, a variety of wildlife still roams the area searching for food, water and shelter. Sometimes they come into contact with a brutal and dangerous predator known as, Homo Sapiens.

The blogger, Durango, recently reported finding a Nine-banded Armadillo shot to death at Gateway, apparently for the hell of it. This beautiful and mostly harmless animal is also the Official Texas State Small Animal. It angers me to see any member of our wildlife community, already stressed out by habitat destruction and fragmentation, slaughtered for sport. If you've got the stomach for it, Durango's blog report is here:

I Returned To Gateway Park Today & Mountain Biked To A Fort Worth Murder Scene

The latest Prairie Notes always eventually show up at this location, where you can read the entire Prairie Notes #68.

Changing the subject from Prairie Notes back to my sister in Arizona. My sister's eldest, he being my 3rd eldest nephew, is arriving in the D/FW zone on August 16. He will be here until August 20. He is in the D/FW zone in preparation for his best friend's wedding in September. Which means my nephew will be making a trip to Texas two months in a row.

Lewisville is where my nephew's best friend is located. I can not remember the last time I've been in Lewisville. My route, from here, to there, would take me through the under construction Grapevine Funnel remake, being remade into being, I think it is called, the D/FW Connector.

The D/FW Metroplex is not quite as easy to zip around in as is the Phoenix Metroplex. Which makes sense because the Phoenix area road system seems to be much more efficient than the D/FW area road system, which is sort of understandable, with the D/FW zone cramming 634 people into each square mile, while Phoenix is only cramming 252.9 people into each square mile.

These statistics may be a bit skewed due to the way metropolitan areas are measured. Something to do with the entire county a city sits in is counted in the metro area's size. Arizona has huge counties. Texas has small counties. Only two counties, Pinal and Maricopa, make up the Phoenix metro area, while 13 counties, Collin, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Ellis, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Palo Pinto, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant and Wise county, make up the D/FW metro area.

The Phoenix metro area of those 2 counties is 16,573 square miles, much of it uninhabited.

The D/FW metro area of those 13 counties is 9,286 square miles, most of it inhabited and ill served by mass transit.

It will be a very daunting task for me to find my nephew in this densely populated part of the planet.

Hiking The Not So HOT Tandy Hills Thinking About How To Spend My Google Settlement Check

This morning I was in a rare good mood, with that already good mood heightened when I checked the mailbox to find a check from the Hanson v. Google Settlement Administrator.

I did not even know I was part of a class action suit against Google.

I have not yet figured out what to do with my whopping 11 cents settlement.

Did it not cost more than 11 cents to mail this to me? Such a screwy world we live in.

It was a somewhat chilly 83 degrees when I took my good mood to the Tandy Hills today. The humidity of 62% and a wind blowing over 10 mph had the temperature feeling like a not so chilly 91.

But, I did not overheat, too much, in the steam bath today. So, I had myself my first actually good hill hiking experience in days.

Is that not an usual looking Tandy Hills wildflower in the picture? It looks like an ice cream cone gone berserk. There were a lot of these blowing in the wind. I had to use my camera-free hand to steady the flower so that it could calmly pose for a picture. It took 12 tries.

Hot Hiking In The Tandy Hills Natural Steam Bath

Smoggy View Of Downtown Fort Worth

That is the smoggy stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth you are looking at, past a wildflower blowing in the wind.

Some clouds were blocking some of the incoming sun rays in the noon time frame, a wind was blowing. the temperature was in the low 80s.

I figured I could do myself some Tandy Hills hill hiking today without overheating like being in a natural steam bath.

I figured wrong.

In summers previous I'd do Tandy Hill hiking when the temperature was above 100 without having steam bath issues.

I am being very perplexed as to the reason why I am overheating.

Could it be that I am weighing more than last summer and the summer before that? But, I thought that weight gain was all muscle.

Hiking The Tandy Hills With My Sister Before Picking California Peaches

When I left air-conditioned comfort today my favorite sister, who lives in Arizona, rode with me to the Tandy Hills and then proceeded to talk to me the entire time I did my hill hiking, with me forgetting to take a photo opportunity time out.

So, instead of a photo of the Tandy Hills of my own, I swiped one that appeared today on the Tandy Hills Natural Area's Facebook page.

I seem to be swiping pictures of late.

Today my oldest sister, who is currently lost somewhere in the wilds of Alaska, complained, quite vociferously, about me swiping from Rosie the Rat Dog's Alaska! blog, saying, "I have to check your blog to learn what pics you are pinching from Rosie."

I think I am feeling umbrage regarding this assertion that I am doing pic pinching from Rosie.

There was a steady wind blowing across the prairie today, but not strong enough to counteract the steambath effect.

To cool down, after getting too HOT, I went to Town Talk to stand in the cooler and pick California peaches.

I have picked oranges in a California orchard, but I've never picked California peaches til today.

I think I may go ride my bike at River Legacy Park this early evening.

Between swimming for an hour this morning and HOT hill hiking I don't feel like I have gotten enough exercise today.

The First Day Of Summer Sharing The Natural Tandy Hills With Diesel Trucks

Today, with it being the June 20 Summer Solstice, there will be more hours of sunshine, today, than there were yesterday and that there will be tomorrow.

After today we are on the slippery slope sliding towards winter.

In the meantime it is 91 degrees, at my location, with the Heat Index making the temperature really feel like 97.

It was a bit cooler than these not so cool temperatures when I went to the Tandy Hills today.

A couple days ago I was slightly startled by a big turtle basking in the waters below dry Tandy Falls.

Today I was slightly startled by a big white truck that caught my eyes and ears as I crossed the escarpment on top of dry Tandy Falls.

The big white truck had its diesel engine running and its headlights on. No human in sight. When I passed behind the truck I saw the lid was off the sewer access, with a cable running into the big hole in the ground. I looked in the big hole in the ground thinking I might see a human. Instead I saw water rushing by, about 10 feet below the surface.

I continued walking. I crossed the second creek crossing and saw a human ahead of me. When the human saw me he turned around, or so it seemed at the time. This was a bit unsettling. Then I saw the human was turning around to get in an even bigger white truck.

Crossing the nearly washed out Tandy Creek crossings seems as if it must be a bit adventurous in those big white trucks.

I really don't like smelling diesel or sharing the trails with big trucks when I am doing my hiking in a Natural Area. This somehow makes the experience seem less natural.

Other than smelling diesel fumes, this has been a quite fine first day of summer. I expect many more to follow.

Olive The Prairie Dog Officially Anointed Official Mascot Of The Tandy Hills Natural Area

Olive the Prairie Dog
Official Mascot of the Tandy Hills

Today, in Don Young's Prairie Notes #66: Sea of Gold we learned  it is now official that Olive the Prairie Dog is the Official Mascot of the Tandy Hills.

Last month Olive the Prairie Dog had a lot of people being very concerned about Olive suddenly, mysteriously, disappearing.

And then suddenly a lot of people were very happy upon learning of the news of Olive's safe return.

In this month's Prairie Notes Don Young had this to say about Olive and her disappearance and return...

Debora and I were amazed by the overwhelming response to the disappearance and return of Olive the Prairie Dog. The hills are literally her front yard. As a pup, she took to them quite naturally, navigating the tall grass by leaping and floating like Michael Jordan to get her bearings. She knows the creeks and valleys like the back of her paw. She's known by every Rabbit and Roadrunner and loved by every Kid on the Prairie. So...

By all the power vested in me, I hereby anoint Olive the Prairie Dog, the Official Mascot of Tandy Hills Natural Area.

It's about time.

I went to the Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area website to see if the latest Prairie Notes were posted yet, so that I could link to them, to find they were not, but I did find a page about Olive the Prairie Dog where I saw my name mentioned in a way that made me feel good.

I like feeling good. It happens so seldom.