Inks Lake is absolutely pristine. It is the cleanest park I have ever seen, and it's also really gorgeous. The terrain is red rocks cut with lines of quartz (quartz is just all over the place, pick up a rock - it's probably quartz or at least has some quartz in it), cedar and pine trees, along with oaks shedding their leaves. The leaves were quite handy for making our fire and keeping it hot enough to burn the logs.
The lake was gorgeous. The weather was almost perfect. We had some light rain Saturday morning, but none of it got into the tent and it was gone within a couple of hours. There wasn't even any mud or wet earth by early afternoon. Saturday night got down to about 34 degrees, but I was snuggled warm in my sleeping bag so that didn't really affect me. In the morning we just got the fire up and sat around it eating venison sausage with biscuits (food we'd brought and prepared on the fire) and coffee we bought from the on-site convenience store. Oh, that's right, they have an on-site convenience store that opens at 8 AM every day and sells pretty much everything a regular convenience store sells (save alcohol) and some additional camping supplies. They also rent out canoes and kayaks and the likes to hit the lake. We were thinking about doing that, but Saturday it was so windy that the lake was choppy and Sunday it was too cold.
We fished (didn't catch anything, but eh, we brought tons of food), hiked, camped, sat around the fire telling stories. The park doesn't allow the "public consumption of alcohol." I don't know if that means drink in your tent, or if it means don't drink at all, but we put our drinks in Dixie cups and didn't get intoxicated or obnoxious. I really wasn't at the park to party anyway (I was there to witness and be surrounded by the natural splendor that is South/Central Texas), although some in our group did stay up until 5:30 AM the first night. Jes and I were asleep by around 11:30 both nights and maybe had 1-2 drinks each in the evening.
The lake was gorgeous. The weather was almost perfect. We had some light rain Saturday morning, but none of it got into the tent and it was gone within a couple of hours. There wasn't even any mud or wet earth by early afternoon. Saturday night got down to about 34 degrees, but I was snuggled warm in my sleeping bag so that didn't really affect me. In the morning we just got the fire up and sat around it eating venison sausage with biscuits (food we'd brought and prepared on the fire) and coffee we bought from the on-site convenience store. Oh, that's right, they have an on-site convenience store that opens at 8 AM every day and sells pretty much everything a regular convenience store sells (save alcohol) and some additional camping supplies. They also rent out canoes and kayaks and the likes to hit the lake. We were thinking about doing that, but Saturday it was so windy that the lake was choppy and Sunday it was too cold.
In addition to being scenic and beautiful, this park was completely devoid of litter. I don't know how they do it, because humans are so disrespectful to nature, but I seriously didn't see any litter in the park. They also have full shower and restroom facilities that were cleaner than some hotel bathrooms that I've used. HoJo, I'm looking at you. Oh, and HOT water in the showers. There was even SOAP provided by the park to wash your hands with in the restroom. You know, just in case you forgot your own. So, this is a camp site that is breathtakingly beautiful, clean, tidy, has all the conveniences and amenities we have a hard time getting along without, and it's about 2.5 hours outside San Antonio. Not only that, but the camp site was $14/night and then $4/night per person. For five of us to camp, it was $68 to cover entry and site fees.
I want to go back to Inks Lake. It's my new favorite place.
We fished (didn't catch anything, but eh, we brought tons of food), hiked, camped, sat around the fire telling stories. The park doesn't allow the "public consumption of alcohol." I don't know if that means drink in your tent, or if it means don't drink at all, but we put our drinks in Dixie cups and didn't get intoxicated or obnoxious. I really wasn't at the park to party anyway (I was there to witness and be surrounded by the natural splendor that is South/Central Texas), although some in our group did stay up until 5:30 AM the first night. Jes and I were asleep by around 11:30 both nights and maybe had 1-2 drinks each in the evening.
There were moments where I'd look out over the lake, the sun dipping down to the water, giving it a satiny sheen, and I would just be literally taken up by the beauty of it all. I love my state, and I'm going to miss Texas when I'm abroad. I'm glad I got a chance to be out in nature and experience that one more time before my trip. I know that Japan has natural wonders all its own, but there is something unique about my part of the world, and I'm going to miss it.
These were taken by one of my fellow campers, Pam, and really capture the beauty of Inks Lake.
(The above images are © Pam Hunt, and are her intellectual property. Distribution or usage of the following pictures without permission is forbidden. You can view more of her photos from the trip by following this link.)
