Views of the Neighborhood – The greenbelt and Bluebonnets

~ John W. Howell

Today we are visiting one of my favorite places, The Hamilton Greenbelt in Lakeway. It has been several weeks since the ice storm, and the greenbelt is again open. It was closed because of the danger of falling limbs and trees across the trails. We are catered by Bouldin Creek Cafe of Austin. (We are going healthy today, so eat up.) Our entertainment  is Richard Harris.

Menu

Big Azz Salads – Citrus vinaigrette (V), ginger miso (V), garlic tahini (V) or parmesan peppercorn, add red curry chickpea salad scoop|

Sandwiches

Choice of black pepper kettle chips, sesame slaw, potato salad, or chips & salsa |

There’s the bus. Let’s go.

Since we have been here before, here is a reminder map.

There are markers in case we get lost or hurt. So you, youngsters, keep an eye on the ancient ones.

Warning sign and broken tree.

Piles of cut-up limbs waiting to be picked up and mulched.

More evidence of damage.

Some lovely red salvia.

You have to look hard, but there is some white salvia to the rear of the red.

Air ferns always fascinate me.

Some bluebonnets under a cloudy sky.

There is one of the markers. If we were paying attention and fell but couldn’t get up, we could tell the emergency crew that we had just passed marker 205. Makes it easy to find us.

Another patch of bluebonnets.

If the sun were to come out, these bluebonnets would shine.

 

Here is a close-up of a bluebonnet bloom. Notice the white and purple accents.

Lilly pads and sun.

The spillway

 

And finally, a photo of bluebonnets in the sun.

I hope you enjoyed out tour. Time to relax and have some food while we listen to Richard Harris.

79 thoughts on “Views of the Neighborhood – The greenbelt and Bluebonnets”

  4. Here’s a fun fact about the bluebonnets. In your closeup, those white and purple accents are called ‘banners.’ When the flowers are new, the banners are bright white, to attract pollinators. As the plant ages, they turn reddish, signaling that the best, freshest pollen will be found elsewhere, helping the bees to collect the ‘good stuff’ more efficiently.

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  8. The state flower of Texas is really beautiful, John. The damage from the ice storm will eventually be repaired, I hope. It’s good that residents can get out and view the wonder of the Greenbelt now. Those location markers are a good idea.

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  9. Beautiful photos, John. It’s sad to see the damage, but it’s clear that Mother Nature will take this in stride and move along with the new season.

    I’m going to have the South Austin Stir Fry and maybe a Grilled Cheese sandwich. Although the Quinoa Bowl with the massaged kale and the Tofu Broccoli Salad were close seconds. I hope you have a great week.

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  10. That grilled cheese sandwich is very enticing, John, and thanks for taking us on a walk in the park. I’d love to grow some bluebells! I’d forgotten that Richard Harris had such a great voice – he starred in Camelot on Broadway if I remember correctly.

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  11. Nice stuff but I need benches. I’m exhausted from the walk. Loved the Bluebonnets. Beautiful flower. I am now off to lunch. I think the grilled cheese too.
    Thanks for the tour !!

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  12. The bluebonnets are beautiful! How lovely to have them spread around your neighborhood. We’ve yet to see the evidence of Spring, though yesterday we reached 50 degrees. Soon we’ll have flowers. 😊

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  13. Great music choice, John. I’ll have the pasta. I was planning to pick some bluebonnets but some ‘ancient’ look like he face -planted in the midst of them so I moved on. He had a camera and was taking notes. Say, that wouldn’t…nah, never mind. Still, a beautiful park.

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  16. What a wonderful shade of blue. I’m pretty sure they don’t/won’t grow here in Africa. I enjoyed the pics and the menu made me drool! Thanks for a nice outing.

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  17. I love the bluebonnets, of course, but your photos of the lily pads and the spillway are fantastic! I can almost hear the water falling. Looks as if Spring is taking its sweet time there, too.

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  18. Fabulous selection of good eats! So hard to make a choice.
    Bluebonnets are beautiful and I agree with Debbie: those lily pads are lovely.
    I never did understand the title of that song!
    Happy Sunday, John.

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  19. Mmm, I’m for the grilled cheese or the stir fry. Yum!
    I can see why you love the Greenbelt. What a beautiful place to spend an afternoon. And those rescue markers are an ingenious idea!

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  21. I could order anything on that menu and love it! I’m glad there are markers as I could easily get lost in a place like this. Looks like such a lovely place to wander. Thanks for MacArthur park. Always love it!

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  22. Thanks for the lovely bluebonnet fix. Your greenbelt is a lovely place. I can imagine it would make a great place to walk. Rescue markers are a practical idea for anyone. The tofu broccoli salad is my choice! Cheers for the coming week.

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  23. I love the bluebonnets. They’re blooming in our area as well, but nothing like the hill country. Our soil is too acidic.

    I’ll take the Fajitas Ricas, please. I know some people don’t care for the song MacArthur Park, but I always liked it. (Just don’t leave the cake out in the rain.)

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  31. I can see why it’s one of your favorite places. The ice storm seems like it didn’t leave too much damage behind. I would love to see a field of bluebonnets.

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