Texas Tidbits: The Call of the Wild (flowers)

Bluebonnet Carpet

One of the things I enjoyed when I set out on a fishing trip was the trip itself. Say what? Yeah. The trip itself. All over Texas this time of year wildflowers are either in bloom or are on the verge of blooming. Bluebonnets, Indian Paintbrushes and many other varieties of wildflowers. And the dogwood trees. I love the dogwood trees of East Texas. as a matter of fact, there several festivals held in East Texas during the dogwood blooming season. One of the best Dogwood Festivals is held in Woodville.  There are tons of events held each year at the Tyler County (Woodville) Dogwood Festival - parades, food, games and of course, the beauty queens. I attended a few of the Tyler Conty Dogwood Festivals and the really are a lot of fun and they'll kick of the 2011 version of The Dogwood Festival this weekend. See the link above for all the info.

I must say however, driving down the highway and seeing a field of acre upon acre of bluebonnets carpeting the ground is my favorite wildflower sight. Simply gorgeous. I found a website that takes us on a trip through the Bluebonnet Trail in Texas. It has three parts so it's a bit of a read, but it's very cool and is certainly worth your time. Here's an excerpt from the site, "It really doesn't matter much which roads you take because this year the wild flowers are likely to be thick practically everywhere.  Highways 1431, 29, 281, 71, 29, 2323 and 16 are the main thoroughfares and you can't but help to travel those; but it's best to branch out and explore.
       If you're looking for Bluebonnets, they're most plentiful in the northern part of the Hill Country.  If you're traveling from Fredericksburg to Llano take highway 16.   Beginning at Willow City the Bluebonnets don't confine themselves to the bar ditches, but spread out into the fields."

There are thousands of miles of prime wildflower sight seeing in Texas and Touring Texas has the scoop on many of them. Enjoy the virtual tour of the Bluebonnet Trail. Now get off your ass and take a drive this weekend! The spring time beauty of our state is waiting for you.