Planning the Picnic
I wake early this morning to cook for our weekly picnic adventure, this one at Lockhart State Park, forty miles down the road—farm roads and back roads all the way. It surprised me when I sat down to make reservations just a few days ago to discover that so many parks within an hour’s driving distance were full. I was grateful to Lockhart for having room for us. And because Lockhart is the barbeque capital of Texas—my original plan was to purchase an entire meal to-go from Black’s BBQ. Then I decided purchasing an entire meal was no fun, but smokey brisket and sausage were a must.
So, at 7 am, I’m baking cookies, Brown Sugar Meringue Bars, the recipe hidden in the depths of my high school home economics cookbook. I love them still! While the cookies bake, I assemble my favorite yeast bread and let it rise. Whole potatoes are on the stove, covered with water, and bubbling away for a potato salad from another old recipe created by the infamous James Beard. Deviled eggs being too messy to transport, I settle on deconstructed deviled eggs—the idea taken from a quarter-century-old recipe published in the now-defunct Gourmet magazine. I add grapes and pickles to my menu. At 10 am, the picnic basket is packed, snuggled in the trunk of the car. We back out of the driveway and make our way to this week’s adventure.
Country Roads
The day is beautiful. The air is cool. The top on our convertible is down, sunglasses are in place, and my faded orange Life’s Good baseball cap keeps my hair from flying. We drive down country roads that make my heart sing with joy.
Arriving in Lockhart an hour later, I sit in the car while Michael enters our favorite barbeque joint and stands in the social distancing line—everyone masked, even in this tiny town. He returns with more meat than we can eat in one sitting, and the barbeque smells so heavenly all I want to do is tear open the bag and stuff the tender, delicious brisket in my mouth. But I wait.
Lockhart State Park
Checking into the park, we drive past the picnic area and make our way to the campsites, that today are open to non-campers. We choose one of the sheltered tables with a view of the golf course in front of us and an expansive green lawn behind us. There is a family of three in the middle of the green playing croquet.
“That’s a brilliant idea,” I say, “do you do this often?”
Apparently, it is true confession time. The mother tells me they have owned the croquet set for twenty years, and this is the first time they have ever used it.
As I sit here and nibble and demolish my plate of food, I tell Michael, “This is nice—picnics for two, exploring new parks every week.”
It is something I wouldn’t have thought of before. Everyone adapts and changes to meet this new world created by a global pandemic. How often would you find me at a different state park every week having a picnic? Unfortunately, the answer is less than seldom. My past picnic days were at Hill Country wineries with groups of friends and neighbors.
Exploring
When we have eaten all our tummies can hold, which is not everything I packed or purchased, we repack and continue our exploration of the park. Our first stop is the camping site beyond the one where we enjoyed our noon repast.
There is a creek that edges this part of the campground, so we leave the car and explore on foot, making our way down Mother Nature’s natural staircase created by a tangle of roots. I wish I had my walking stick to steady my descent; however, I make it to the water’s edge without a mishap.
I find a smooth stone near the creek where I can sit and be and absorb my surroundings for a while, wondering out loud where the trail across the way leads. An unstable, slippery log bridges the gap between here and there—I remain seated.
A woman and her six-year-old son traipse down the trail, giving me the answer. Taking a needed break from the city, they are from San Antonio and exploring many of the State Parks on their own. They have never been to this park before either. The kid is having a good time. Not daunted by the log that spans the creek, he jumps on—and slips off. Being a kid, he continues his trek through the water, splashing as he goes.
Lockhart State Park stands today because of the Civilian Conservation Corps, founded by Franklin D. Roosevelt, which was established to relieve unemployment during the Great Depression. It provided national conservation work for young unmarried men. They built parks, planted trees, built flood barriers, and maintained forest roads and trails. So today, when the US suffers from the effects of another national disaster, we have these men and FDR to thank for our rural reprieve.
Park Amenities
Lockhart State Park consists of 234 acres of forests, streams, and trails. There are eleven trails, all less than a mile long, and rated from easy to challenging. Within the park, there is also a nine-hole golf course, a recreation hall, places to fish, and a swimming pool. The pool ordinarily opens on Memorial Day Weekend for the summer months.
As we leave the green oasis, we pass by a group of kids playing adjacent to the picnic area. Pets are allowed if kept on a leash, and the green-fee golf course rents golf carts and pull carts. The public restroom located in the camping area is clean and spacious and provides showers. Lockhart State Park is a small oasis that has something for everyone; it is a charming escape.
Find the recipes for this picnic at the following link: https://www.charlottestexashillcountry.com/lockhart-state-park-picnic-menu-recipes
For more information on Lockhart State Park click on the following link:
https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/lockhart
Lockhart Barbeque Restaurants
Blacks Barbeque
215 North Main St, Lockhart, Texas 78644, Phone: 512-398-2712
Chisholm Trail BBQ
1323 South Colorado Hwy, 183 South, Lockhart, TX 78644, Phone: 512-398-6027
Kreuz Market
619 North Colorado Street, Lockhart, Texas 78644 Phone: 512-398-2361
Smitty’s Market
208 South Commerce, Lockhart, Texas 78644, Phone: 512-398-9344
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