We went to Paris this weekend — Paris, TX — that is!
We got up at 3:00 Saturday morning and drove about 5 hours to get to Clymer Meadow, a Nature Conservancy Preserve. That’s where this picture was taken — Purple Coneflowers, Indian Plantain, Big Bluestem, Prairie Bishop, Rough Leaved Silphium, the list goes on and on! There were about 50 people at the start of the field trip, great turnout. Then the trip continued at Parkhill Prairie, a county park that has a prairie remnant and a restoration that TNC is managing. Then those “who were left standing” went on to Cow Leech Prairie, an awesome bottomlands Gamma Grass/sedge prairie — I’d never seen anything like it before in my life!
After TNC field trip was over we drove about an hour to see Smiley-Woodfin Prairie, the largest remaining bit of Tallgrass Prairie left in Texas (2100 acres) and Tridens Prairie, which is right across the road — what a great day!
We crashed in Paris, TX for the night and then Sunday morning it was off to meet Johnny Johnson, a super great guy who’s been emailing Jason about getting some plants ID’d on his land that he’s restoring to prairie. We checked out his place — can’t believe how much the prairie has come back after only two years! Then he drove us around to some private properties that he suspected might be prairie — boy was he right! Then we had to stop and checkout one last place before heading back to Austin — Gambill’s Goose Preserve. Great place where you could still see mima mounds!
What a weekend!!!
Sounds like you had a great weekend but bet you are tired!! Did you see any interesting birds?
My coneflower is only about 8″ tall. It needs some SUNSHINE.
Yep, really tired! Need a vacation, ha ha!
Birds included Meadowlarks, Dickcissles, Bluebirds, Scissortails, LBBs (Little Brown Birds), Red Shouldered Hawk, Egrets — and I’m not a birder, either! Also saw lots of Monarchs, Painted Ladies, Varigated Fritillaries, Hairstreaks, Sulphurs, wish we were back there!
Daddy, we’ll trade you some sunshine for some rain now!! But we need the sun back by the weekend for the next prairie trip!
I know this blog post is almost 7 years old, but I just stumbled across it. Have you read Matt White’s “Prairie Time”? Another good book is “Where the Sky Began: Land of the Tallgrass Prairie” by John Madson. Both are must reads for prairie enthusiasts.
Hi Jameson,
Thanks for your comment on my blog about “Prairie Time” and “Where the Sky Began” — both are great books that I have enjoyed.
I’ve been lucky enough to hang out with Matt White on a prairie, too!
Have you heard of the Native Prairies Association of Texas? A really good group with so much prairie knowledge:
http://texasprairie.org/