Good Times on the Good Water Trail

This past weekend Thomas, Matt, and myself, went backpacking again for another great through hike on the Good Water Trail at Lake Georgetown. We parked two cars...one at Camp Tejas, and one at Cedar Breaks. We started the hike at Cedar Breaks and made our way back towards Tejas, which is 11 miles total. We powered out the first 6.7 miles stopping very little until we got to Camp Sawyer, which is where we stayed for the night.

To back up a little, the day started out a bit nippy with a couple of misty sprinkles here and there before getting on the trail, but it soon stopped. The forecast said rain was unlikely, but Matt had the genius foresight to bring his umbrella along anyway, which did come in quite handy! Thomas also loaned out a waterproof jacket to me that I was so glad to have along. By the time we made it to camp we could feel the weather changing, and almost as soon as our tents were all pitched the rain came. Not only was it raining, but it was cold too. We huddled under Matt's umbrella for a while and played some golf on Matt's phone. I'm sure any observer would have found that quite humorous. It's worth noting here that Matt is a gadget kind of guy. He has all sorts of neat little toys including a scope that allows one to see at night.

After standing around in the cold rain for an hour or so after sunset, we retired to our tents for the night. It was so early and I didn't want to go to bed, but there was little else to do. I succumbed to the inevitable and snuggled down into my sleeping bag. Sleep didn't come for a long time though and I was so thankful to have my new ipod along to chase boredom away. The next day the sun came out, which was very welcome indeed considering we had wet tents and stuff that needed to dry out before packing it all up.

Hiking out of Camp Sawyer was as beautiful as can be, but unfortunately I didn't get any pictures. I thought I had brand new batteries in my camera, but it died as soon as I turned it on. The extra batteries I had with me were supposed to be brand new too, but they wouldn't work either. Not being able to take pictures of the gorgeous scenery all around me was frustrating, but it soon became apparent that I'd have little time to stop and take shots anyway because Thomas was moving fast and I didn't want to get too far behind.

One other thing on the trip is worth mentioning. The cedar pollen. Anytime one of us would brush up against cedar, and it happened often, a thick cloud of smoky looking pollen would fly away in the breeze. I kept waiting for it to cause me terrible allergies but it didn't. I don't know if I got lucky, or was just good at holding my breath while walking through pollen clouds. ;)

The trip was great and it challenged me. I always hope for a little challenge while backpacking so I can gain experience and toughen up a bit. I've got bigger and more dangerous challenges ahead in my near future and must be ready.