The Hike: McKinney Falls

When life gives you an adventure partner and a tank full of gas, who are you to turn down a quick day trip? Some would journey off to the city, but not this pair. This past weekend, we decided to explore the outskirts of Austin. Just 1.5 hours (and several car rap battles later), we found ourselves at McKinney Falls State Park on a cold and windy Saturday. Some of you may have me pegged as a strictly indoors kind of gal, considering I do enjoy the "finer things" in life (lazy couch Netflix binge, anyone?). But I'd argue that I myself have many sides, and my soul was made to explore. We took a hundred or more photos on our day of retreat, but here are a few of my favourites. 

I avoided falling into the frigid water and kept to my rock island, but as you can see, Kev decided to journey farther. What you don't see in this photo is him slipping on the green algae and soaking himself through his jeans and boots. That's what happens when you ignore my advice and go jumping across the falls! I tried to refrain from giving the old I told you so.


Along the trail, we adopted a little leaf friend. I called it Leif Ericsson, for obvious reasons. Here is a little gem of a photo. You tell 'em to model, and ya boi delivered some real fierceness.

After hitting the trails at McKinney, we ventured into famous SoCo for some lunch. South Congress Street, not far from the pink marble capitol and the heart of Austin, features some iconic graffiti wall art and murals, street artists and dancers...not to mention the rows of food trucks and creative dining options and eccentric stores. If you're from the area, no doubt you've heard of Homeslice, an independent ATX original serving authentic NY style pizza in the hippest, insta-worthy atmosphere around. And let me tell you, the pizza is FIIINE. Like seriously so good. Heart-eye emoji good. So with full, satisfied stomachs, we explored SoCo. And, of course, we HAD to get a basic picture by Tesoro's Guadalupe wall featuring the eternal rockstar herself, Our Lady of Guadalupe.

After a little tour of SoCo, we hit the trails again, this time at River Place. Driving through the hills and fancy clifftop homes on the way, it felt like we were in a California dream. I fell in love with the neighborhood instantly. Let's just say we were slightly disappointed at not running into Sandra Bullock or Matthew McConaughey. What? It could've happened! The paths were easy and beautiful, and I couldn't have had a better trails companion. I could've sworn I had died and gone to Heaven amongst the trees and clear creeks.

All in all, 'twas a wonderful day. With all the craziness of school and the stress that comes with it, we just needed to get away for a day, and our little Saturday vacay hit the spot. I am so thankful for days like this where I can just forget about everything and just live in the present moment, away from worldly distractions and obligations. The trails abound with God's glory, and in them I find my peace. Thanks be to God for the escape of his Creation!