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Happy Thanksgiving!
Are you ready for the Holidays!
Have a fantastic  Turkey Day.
Don't let this cooler weather stop you from getting outside - it's a great time to go camping, hiking, hunting, fishing, golfing, and exploring Texas. Enjoy.  |
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What's  Up Doc!
We are heading to Maui and Kauai for Thanksgiving, so make sure you come back in December and read all about some fun things to see and do when you visit Hawaii. The article will be in a new section called Golfing Vacations and another section which we still need a title for. The new section will be about fun activity filled vacations outside of Texas - send me a title for this section and if I use it, I'll send you a Texas Outside Koozie! For now, check out Golfing Vacations if you're interested in a good time golfing, hiking, biking, and exploring Palm Springs. We will also be adding some golfing vacations in Texas.
We have added a lot of new pages and sections to Texas Outside since the last newsletter, some of which include:
- if you like to fish, check our our list of fishing cabins and fishing guides
- for boaters we just created a Texas Marinas page and over the next month will be adding some of our favorites to the list - send me a list of your favorites and why you like them (good slips, great camping or cabins, fantastic restaurant, outstanding place to party, etc.) and you will be the proud new owner of a Texas Outside Koozie
- attention weekend warriors - check out the Weekend Adventures to help you plan a fun filled weekend trip
- heading to the lake, then check out a growing list of lake resorts and rentals - you too can get a Koozie if you'll let me know about your favorite lake resorts and rentals
- save some money - we are always adding new coupons for fun things to do, so check out the coupon page
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Camping & RV Parks
 We have added a lot of new reviews on campgrounds and RV parks since the last newsletter - you will find them on the our Top 20 Favorite Texas Parks or the Campground Reviews Page.
If you're going camping and looking for a great place, then use the Campground Locator Dropdown, select a region of Texas, zoom in, move the map around if need be, and then click on a State Park or RV park icon to learn more. If you're having any difficulty with this, ask your kids for help
If you're interested in exploring the north Houston area, we found a fantastic new RV Park in Spring - Rayford Crossing RV Resort. It has some great RV sites, a few cabins if you don't want to camp, it's very clean, has nice amenities, and is close to lots to see and do. Read more about this outstanding park........ Please send us your list of favorite campgrounds and parks. |
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Golfing in Texas
It seems like we have incorporated at least one round of golf into every weekend for the last few months, which means there is a lot of new information on the Golf Course Reviews Page. And a number of new courses were added to the Texas Outside Favorites, some of which include: Ram Rock at Horseshoe Bay (Lake LBJ), Barton Creek's Fazio Foothills (Austin), Crown Colony (Lufkin), Shadow Glen (Manor, near Austin), Rayburn Country Resort (Lake Sam Rayburn), Links at Waterchase (Ft. Worth), and Harbor Lakes (Granbury). Add these courses to your list of must plays.
Take a weekend and enjoy some of these courses. This is a great time of the year to take advantage of the Stay & Play packages and save some money. If you are looking for a fantastic golf weekend, then check out Tanglewood Resort on Lake Texoma. They have an excellent stay and play package with a variety of different accommodations, good restaurant, and an outstanding golf course. Plus there are 3 other courses nearby if you  have some extra time and want to play a different course - Chickasaw Pointe in Oklahoma, Buncombe, and Northern Challenge in Sherman are all very fun, reasonably priced, and challenging.
To learn more about some great places to spend a weekend golfing, read the Stay & Play Reviews. You'll find a new review on Crown Colony Country Club's Stay and Play package - a great deal and the opportunity to play a course that is consistently ranking by a number of sources as the best course in Texas. We will add a review of Rayburn Country Resort and a couple more next month.
And no, after playing all this golf, I haven't gotten any better except at swearing! But we're still enjoying it - sometimes! . |
 Boatin' & Fishin' During the summer we added a few new lake reviews and Lake Texoma jumped to the top of our Top 10 Favorite Lakes beating out Lake Austin - sorry about that Austinites. Also added to the Top 10 list was Lake of the Pines and Lake Whitney. We will be adding one of the most unique lakes in Texas, Caddo Lake, and beautiful Sam Rayburn next month - the excitement and anticipation is building and I'll bet you just can't wait to read the review. It is really kind of sad when the #1 rated lake on the Top 10 Lakes only scores an 8.9 out of 10 - where is the perfect 10 in Texas?
In the Boating & Lakes section you'll now find a new list of fishing cabins and fishing guides and each of the lake reviews has some good content on fishing. We have also added some new places to our Lake Rentals Page and some new boat rental locations. So what are you waiting for, you now have an easy way to find a lake rental, fishing cabin, and fishing guide so pack the gear and go catch some dinner or a trophy. Send us a picture and we might just post it in one of the lake reviews or fishing guide pages - you could be famous! Before you go, save some money by using the fishing coupons for The Guideman and Holding the Line fishing guide services.
Don't forget, tell us about your favorite marina (or just about anything fun to do in Texas) and we'll send you a free Texas Outside Koozie - what a deal! |
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Other Outdoor Activities
We've been so busy golfing, boating, camping, and listening to music, we haven't had a lot  of time to do some of our other favorite outdoor activities.
We did enjoy some biking:
- on the Zelker Park trail along Barton Creek (plus a very refreshing dip in the creek and in the Barton Springs pool)
- the loop around Town Lake in Austin is always fun - we take a side trip to 6th street and end up at Aussies to enjoy some good food, cold beer, and volleyball;
- the trail at Lake Bryan (Bryan College Station) is fun
- and we finally rode the Katy Trail in Dallas and enjoyed it (it's flat, easy, paved and a little short but a pleasant ride) and then we cut our own trail downtown for lunch on the deck of Gators, visited the aquarium and The Old Red Museum, and had a drink at the Reunion Tower and American Airlines center as we watched one of the football games
 A new Kayaking and Canoeing Page was recently added and we have a whole stack of new content which will be used to enhance and expand the content.
We hiked a couple miles on one of the many trails at Canyon of the Eagles on Lake Buchanan - a great place to spend a weekend, click here to read the review. A trail we really enjoyed was Chalk Ridge Falls at the dam on Stillhouse Hollow Lake plus Dana Peak Park on Stillhouse also has fantastic and challenging hike/bike/equestrian trails. A couple more trails have been added to the Hiking/Biking/Equestrian Trails Page. |
Outdoor Weddings
Are you or any of your friends planning an outdoor wedding? If so then you need to visit the Texas Outside Wedding Section. Here you will find the best outdoor wedding venues in Texas and all the vendors that you need to help make your wedding fun and memorable. And congratulations on the upcoming event! . | |
Texas Music
 September and October were busy with four fantastic music events - Larry Joe Taylor's Rhymes and Vines, Tommy Alverson's Family Gathering, Big State Festival, and Ziegfest. Each had an excellent lineup of some of the best Texas singer songwriters, Texas superstars (Lyle Lovett and Willie Nelson), and even a couple Nashville bands were allowed the privilege of participating. All of the events were outstanding and something you need to add to next years calendar! The bad news is I think I now have hearing damage and instead of ringing in the ears, I hear drums, fiddles, and guitars which makes it nice for sleeping but hard to carry on an intelligent conversation when you all of a sudden start singing to one of your favorite  tunes! You can read the reviews of these festivals by clicking here - Ziegfest will be added to the list next month.
Bad News - Rusty Wier, a Texas legend and fantastic person, has cancer and he needs your love, help, and support. Love and War in Plano is doing a Lifetime Achievements Award and Benefit for Rusty on November 23rd 6pm ($15 donation) with Ronny Spears, Tommy Alverson, Larry Joe Taylor, Randy Hopper, Eleven Hundred Springs, Ed Burleson, Darryl Lee Rush, Mark David Manders and more. The money will obviously go to a good cause and great guy. Keep you eye open for benefits in your area to help Rusty. Click here to make a donation.
We love you Rusty and thanks for years of great music and good times! |
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As always, we welcome your feedback, comments, list of favorites, and just about anything else that you can think of to send us (including beer or money!).
Thanks for supporting Texas Outside - let us know what we can do to make it a better, easier, and more informative site.
Sincerely,
Mike
Texas Outside
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