Thursday January 4, 2018-Inks Lake state park

This post will be the last one from Inks Lake for this year. I will show you some of the deer blinds but only the ones that I take hunters to. I will also show you some projects that are going on at the state park.

The main entrance sign. 

This is the truck that I have used for several years to take hunters out in.

Longhorn Caverns is another state park that is managed under the control of the Inks Lake staff. It is also on Park Road 4 and a short distance away.

The public areas along Park Road 4 are known as the Hoover Valley.

I will begin showing you the blinds in numerical order. This is #10, a regular, single blind. 

A view from in front of the blind. Look closely and you will see the deer feeder.

Blind #14 is an ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) certified blind. It is designed for two people, the hunter and his/her assistant. There is a bard surface area, suitable to supporting and allowing a wheelchair to navigate. Also notice the ramp, and inside you will find a carpeted floor and a shooting able with a padded rifle rest. All of the ADA blinds are similarly equipped.

A view out into the pasture where the feeder is. It's about 80 yards to the feeder. 

#15 is another single blind. These are about half as wide as the ADA blinds.

This is a pond that is almost dry this year. For the last couple of years we haven't been able to use this blind because of high water in this blind. 

This is #16 and one of my favorite blinds. Many deer have been taken here and this year one of the largest deer was harvested here.

A close up view of the feeder.

When I walked up this morning to take these photos, I saw a group of three deer, a 6 point buck and two doe that ran off together. Then this pretty little doe, who was alone and stopped to check me out, ran from the area right in front of the deer blind. A split second after taking the photo shot, she too ran away.

On the way back to the park, I am always awed by the sight of the Falkenstein Castle. I can only guess at the breathtaking views from the upper stories from the castle.

The LCRA (Lower Colorado River Authority) has begun to drain Inks Lake for maintenance. The park will use it to repair the docks and boat landing while the water level is low.

I don't know if the entire lake will be drained but suspect that there will be small holes that will hold water. The lake is only about 800 acres but seems much larger. We were told that the fish in the lake will be able to go into other bodies of water along with the water.

No boat launching for awhile!

I always thought the water was deeper in front of the pier.

This is a group of LCRA employees that are searching for fresh-water mussels. The are aaaaall the way across the lake, but no one is safe from the zoom lens.

I certainly thought it was deeper here!

A view of the store from across

Construction crews are working on a new bathroom on the north end of the park. They haven't been too active this week, but I guess they want some time off between Christmas and New Year.

This is about the only ice remaining after all the cold weather. This is the back side of our trailer and is mostly in shade. I left a small Y-valve partially open to prevent freezing in my hose and this was the result. I hope that we've had the last of extreme cold weather for this year. I am ready for warm weather.

So long.