Giddy Up! Cattle Drives Bring Back the Old West

Think cattle drives are a thing of the past?  Not so in Matagorda County.  The spirit of the Old West lives on with the Huebner family who has been driving their herd between their ranch in Bay City to the Matagorda Peninsula for 101 years.

“The mother cows spend the winter on the peninsula and then we bring them all back with their calves in the spring,” said Kristi (Huebner) Meyer, fifth-generation cattle rancher. “We move about 500 mother cows to the peninsula but keep the yearling calves here in Bay City until springtime, allowing them to eat winter grasses we planted on about 4,000 acres.”  They made their most recent trip on December 16, 2010.



“A lot of the winter Texan snowbirds or tourists in the area are mesmerized by them, and amazed at the fact that we still use cattle drives to move our herd from one property to another,” Meyer said. “For me, this is just such a way of living – the cattle drives happened every year of my life.”

If you'd like to watch the Spring drive, contact the folks at LCRA's Matagorda Bay Nature Park for information at 1-800-776-5272, Ext. 4740 or via E-mail matagordabay@lcra.org.  If you love the outdoors, you may be interested in the calendar of outdoor programs offered at Matagorda Bay Nature Park and McKinney Roughs Nature Park near Bastrop.

To read the full cattle drive story on LCRA's website, follow this link.

Video by LCRA Matagorda Bay Nature Park staff member Rhonda Westbrook.

Fall Is a Wonderful Time for the Beach

Even though we typically think of going to the beach as a summertime activity, the Fall is a great time to visit the beach - especially in Texas.  Think about it.  It's not that far-fetched.  Here are just a few reasons why:

• It's Texas.  The weather is still warm until well into October.
• It's less crowded.
• Prices are usually lower in the off-season.

I've got you thinking about a long weekend, haven't I?  Good!  The Colorado River Trail's got you covered.

Our southernmost county - Matagorda County - is a wonderful destination for a beach getaway.  There's great fishing year-round and all kinds of water sports.  Matagorda County is on the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail, and is the best place to watch birds in North America.  There are plenty of lodging options too.  From hotels and motels, to quaint bed and breakfasts, to RV sites - there are lots to choose from!

You can even take a beachcombing tour to learn about the shells commonly found on the beaches of Matagorda County.  The folks at Matagorda Bay Nature Park are offering an "Adventures in Beachcombing" guided walk on October 23rd (and again on November 13th) for only $8 per person.  Take a relaxing stroll on the beach with an interpretive guide and learn about the wonders of Matagorda.

For more information on guided tours at Matagorda Bay Nature Park, check out their calendar of community programs.  And for more information on things to see and do in Matagorda County, the friendly folks at the Matagorda County Convention and Visitors Bureau are there to help.

Photo courtesy of accent on eclectic.