by Lin Stone
When bad rains came to Port Arthur, Texas Jane and HF packed the family up and headed for Jasper Texas. “It’s far enough away from the Gulf Coast to be safe from flooding, and the people there are friendly enough you think you’re still at home.”
Jasper has a lot more going for it than high ground safety. Real close by you will find the Big Thicket National Preserve where Velvet spotted an extremely rare Ivory Billed Woodpecker. Other woodpeckers you are much more likely to spot there are the Red Cockaded, Pileated, Downy, Hairy and Red headed Woodpeckers. No wonder this region is called the Biological Crossroads of the south and west.
Traveling through the Big Thicket it is easy to believe a thousand Indians could be running through the forest and invisible. As you get closer to Jasper there are opportunities to spot the Brown Creeper and Anhinga. In the Sam Rayburn Reservoir there are concentrations of loons, grebes, white pelicans, gulls and terns.
Besides Big Thicket there’s Lake Sam Rayburn, Angelina National Forest, Sabine National Forest. On top of that you can explore the Trail Between the Lakes. The Angelina National Forest is home for Red Shouldered Hawks, Barred Owls, Hermit Thrush, Northern Parula, Swainston’s Warblers, White-eyed Vireo, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, and Great Crested Flycatcher as well as many other species.
Taking Highway 190 twelve miles out of Jasper towards Woodville there is a lake by the name of BA Steinhagan Lake. Right beside it is the Martin Dies, Jr. State Park. It is billed as the perfect place for family fun. Indeed, there is something for everyone in the family, including opportunities to go fishing, swimming, canoeing, boating, biking and hiking. There’s no need to lug all that equipment with you either. You can rent bikes, boats and canoes right on the scene. Horseshoes and volleyball equipment is available too.
For the birding enthusiast there are Heron and Egret rookeries – you can listen for Yellow-throated Warblers and watch for the darting Indigo Buntings to flash across your view. “In the spring time wild azaleas and dogwoods burst into bloom and the blooming magnolias are followed in the fall by the colorful leaves of blackgum, oak and beech trees.” For reservations call 1 800 792 1112 www.tpwd.state.tx.us has even more information.
There are hundreds of friendly people to find in Jasper. When we came through heading for Beaumont Texas we found the staff at the Chateau Inn to be very friendly. Their rates were bargains too. For one night in a king-sized room with a king-sized bed we paid $44 plus tax. The bed was extremely comfortable.
A “Continental Breakfast” was thrown in free of charge, but it was nothing to write home about. The only choices I saw were take it or leave it. There were only two kinds of cereal to choose from, a fruit punch, some lemonade, then coffee and milk. That was it. We ate a bowl of cereal and went on down to WhataBurger to top off our fuel tanks. However, the rest of the Chateau Inn deal was top rate. Outside it was over 100 degrees in the shade, but inside we had to keep turning the air conditioning down to keep from freezing.
We had taken advantage of the non-smoking, handicap room. We were delighted to get into the shower without risking the usual fall as we clambered over the bathtub infiltration course offered by other motels. There was a pull down seat for my initial scrub down. Even though some water splashed outside the curtains it ran right back in off the tiled floor. There is also a hair dryer built into the wall right where you want to use it.
There isn’t enough light to read a long novel by in the bedroom, but otherwise the furniture in the room is arranged to prevent claustrophobia. The thoughts behind the microwave oven and refrigerator were appreciated. For those who watch television instead of reading there is a 25” screen hooked up to Expanded Cable with HBO, Showtime, and CineMax.
The outside portion of the motel was sparkling clean and there was a large square swimming pool to take your mind off your troubles. There are electrical outlets for boat, truck, bus, and RV Parking. Why, there’s even a Guest Laundry Service. There is a restaurant by the jaw-cracking name of NOVROZSKY’S right next door on the premises, but it doesn’t open until ten or eleven in the morning. www.novrozskys.com will give you more information.
The Chateau Inn is found on Highway 190 and West Gibson. The phone number is 409 384 2511
The Jasper Chamber of Commerce phone number is 409 384 2762
Before you go anywhere, give your insurance a checkup at your favorite company's own web site. You'll find a train load of bargains in any kind of insurance policy you need.
The end.
Lin Stone is an author, writer and photographer living in Mena Arkansas among the gentle mountains known as Ouachita. He writes about adventures for Share Your State. In his spare time Lin writes copy for insurance roundup. You can have immediate, and free, reading of many more pieces when you send your little surfer scooting to Lin's home page at http://www.talewins.com/StoneSoup.htm where he keeps stirring up more good things for the soul.
My favorite campsite * Robbers Cave * Indian Creek * Jasper Texas * Cold Water Canoeing * Getting Paid for your writing * Travel at Leisure. *
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