Well, here are my Austin recommendations. Hamilton pools is a really cool spot that is a part of the Travis County Parks and Rec department. Make a reservation to get in, and go early! We had the place to ourselves for at least 30 minutes to snag some sweet pictures. We chatted with the park employee, and basically the erosion process erodes out the softer rock underneath, leaving the harder substrate hanging over. Also called a “grotto.” Maybe that’s right. Maybe not. I’m too lazy to look that shit up.
Obligatory Selfie 
The water was 51 degrees
Other fun places we visited included the Green Belt, which is basically tons of green space encircling Austin. Cool trails, a river, just overall accessibility that a city needs. It was crowded, yes. But seeing so many people out appreciating nature was pretty awesome. As Cas calls it, lots of life.
We also visited Barton Springs, which is a totally concreted in spring that has public swimming. What is cool is that there’s a federally endangered salamander living there. Unfortunately, it was closed when we visited. But here’s a pic of the sweet educational kiosk.
During this trip, my buddy Felicia and her boyfriend Greg have been amazing to me. Inviting me into their home and basically being Austin tour guides. I am forever grateful for the super comfy bed and pit bull loving. Fi Fi (as I call her) has taken me to her favorite coffee shop, and some sweet bars downtown.
Fi Fi and me 
Maya
A fun story about how I met Fi Fi… She was in Americorps when I was a biologist for the Park Service down in SW Florida. She basically decided for me that we were going to be friends. She volunteered to help me with shorebird stuff, scrub jay surveys, everything and anything she could shove herself into. We ended up on a few burns together, and just clicked. It’s hard to not love someone who has the same passion for you AND who is willing to work. And not that stupid pencil pusher work, more like, I’m going to kick ass for 12 hours then go home and run 6 miles to prep for a marathon kind of work. Plus she’s fun as shit to be around. Anyway, Fi Fi, wanted to work with birds. So, she hooked up with an Audubon gig in Pensacola, FL, and I talked my dad into letting her stay at our house back home. After that, Fi Fi lived with me in Panama City in a super small apt along with my ex-girlfriend. Regardless of the space, she was so awesome to be around, it never mattered that there was an extra person staying there. The only flaw I ever saw was that she watched the bachelor….. And I’d come home late to a teary eyed Fi Fi crying because her favorite girl did not receive a rose.
Regardless, this trip to Austin has been amazing so far. Excited for tomorrow (visiting a few more parks), then I head North to another park, then down south to the border.
