I’ve worked in the oil & gas industry in Downtown Houston for over 15 years. Like many others, every day I walk past buildings covered in lovely rocks, minerals, and fossils without a second thought. Though we may not have mountains in this part of the state, we have a stunning skyline, and I will […]
geology
Geology Basics: For the Casual Observer or Amateur Enthusiast
Twice a year my running partner and I, both of us geoscientists, teach geology for Texas Parks and Wildlife Becoming an Outdoors Woman program. I created the course in 2014 by condensing an entire semester of freshman level physical geology into a 3.5 hour workshop (~1 hour lecture, ~1 hour lab, and ~1 hour spent in the […]
A Return to Big Bend National Park: Lodge Edition
My husband’s favorite place to visit is Big Bend National Park in West Texas. Following a Jeep upgrade to the current year’s model (2018 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited JK Willys Wheeler), he wanted to christen it in the park. So earlier this month (January), we drove the 12 hours (yeah) from Houston to Big Bend for […]
Benvenuto Brunello Wine Seminar in Houston
As a Sangiovese (the primary grape in Chianti) lover, I consider Brunello di Montalcino best of the best in Italian wines. So I was thrilled to attend the Benvenuto Brunello 2017 wine seminar and guided tasting event hosted by Consorzio Vino Brunello di Montalcino and IEEM last week in Houston. For those unfamiliar, Brunello is […]
Becoming an Outdoors Woman Workshop: Spring 2016
I’ve now been teaching geology at Texas Parks & Wildlife Becoming an Outdoors Woman workshops for three years. Twice a year at each new (or sometimes revisited) location brings new experiences and I meet new people. The most recent workshop at Concan in April was no exception. Concan is probably my favorite location […]
Visiting Big Bend National Park (Part 4: Outside the Park)
Continued from Visiting Big Bend National Park (Part 3: Flora) In this part of my Big Bend National Park trip report, we drove west along River Road to Terlingua to have dinner at Starlight Theatre, crossed the Rio Grande River into Boquillas, Mexico for lunch, and stopped in Marathon north of the park for a look […]
Big Bend National Park (Part 3: Flora)
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Visiting Big Bend National Park (Part 2: Fauna)
This post contains affiliate links. If you click an affiliate link and make a purchase, Red Shoes. Red Wine. will earn a small commission for the referral at no cost to you. Read more about affiliates & disclaimers here. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed […]
Visiting Big Bend National Park (Part 1: Camping/Hiking/Driving)
In this part of my Big Bend National Park trip report is the obvious camping bit, which as I age include more and more creature comforts. We’re just one step away from an RV. I’ve also included the short hikes we took to some well known attractions, and all the scenic driving in between. Big Bend is […]
Visiting Big Bend National Park: Something for Everyone
Big Bend National Park is a 12 hour drive from Houston. Twelve. Hours. To make that drive worth it, I like to stay a little longer and try to fit in as much as possible. So it shouldn’t (should?) be surprising that during our 4-day trip to Big Bend last month we camped/glamped, cooked gourmet(ish) […]