Bridges on Two Wheels

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #413: Bridges

Those who read my posts regularly know how much I enjoy riding my bicycles. Whether on the gravel bike or the mountain bike, the breeze on my face and the scenery around me give me the impetus to ride often, even in the middle of a Texas summer. The breeze that biking generates is enough to make temperatures in the high 90s (mid-30s °C) bearable, at least for a couple of hours.

So, when Beth set this week’s Lens-Artists challenge, she wrote: “The challenge is for you to show us your favorite bridge images.” That poses a big conundrum for me, because every bridge I photograph is a favorite. Be sure to visit her post and admire the beautiful photos she shared to inspire your responses. As for me, I narrowed the field to bridges I meet while biking around my home area, with one exception: the header image. That one is from Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve in Austin, where biking is not allowed, and I gave it a painterly look.

A few words about that header. Wild Basin is a 227-acre (92 ha) preserve on the east side of Loop 360, established in 1974 by seven women from a local group called “Now or Never,” who fought to keep the canyon out of the developers’ hands. Today, Travis County and St. Edward’s University jointly run it, which serves as a gateway to the much larger Balcones Canyonlands Preserve and protects nesting habitat for the endangered golden-cheeked warbler. Its 2.5 miles (4 km) of trails are for feet only: no bikes, no dogs, and, for a photographer, no hurry. I love going there. After some rain, the creeks and waterfalls come alive.

This first bridge crosses over Highway 183 in East Austin. Strictly speaking, it is not part of the Southern Walnut Creek Hike and Bike Trail; it connects a parking lot to the trail on the other side of the highway. That lot sits near the middle of the route, making it the natural meeting point when I ride with friends from different parts of the city, so I have crossed this bridge many times. Its intricate lattice of galvanized steel arches never fails to captivate me, and on a sunny morning the play of light and shadow across the deck is a photograph waiting to happen. The trail itself is 7.3 miles (11.7 km) of 10-foot-wide (3 m) concrete running from Govalle Park to Johnny Morris Road and Daffan Lane, with five more bridges along the way. It is one of the longest paved trails in the city, and since the Austin to Manor Trail was completed in 2024, adding another 5.5 miles (8.9 km) through the Decker Tallgrass Prairie Preserve to Ben E. Fisher Park in Manor, a round trip comes to 26–28 miles (42–45 km). When I ride alone, I prefer to start at Govalle Park; the gradual ascent from there is a good warm-up for the steep hill around mile six (km 10), which I have learned to respect. Either way, it is plenty of adrenaline and a great heart workout for anyone.

The second bridge is a railroad trestle along the Brushy Creek Regional Trail, which stretches 10.9 miles (17.5 km) between Cedar Park and Round Rock. These tracks have a story worth knowing. In the 1880s, when the limestone quarried for the new Texas State Capitol proved deficient, builders turned to the pink granite of Granite Mountain, near Marble Falls, and extended the narrow-gauge Austin and Northwestern Railroad to the quarry in 1885 to haul it. More than 4,000 flatcars loaded with granite blocks rolled through here in 1886 and 1887. As sometimes happened on a bend in the tracks, cars would derail, and about three dozen blocks tumbled into the creek bed and were simply left where they fell, since the state was getting its stone for free. The boulder in the photo is one of them, and a few others are scattered along this stretch. The Capitol was completed in 1888, and the tracks are still in use today for freight. A state historical marker near the trestle tells the tale, and this section of the trail also offers great views of Brushy Creek and, in spring, a fine show of wildflowers.

Spicer Creek Crossing is in Lake Bastrop South Shore Park, one of my favorite places for mountain biking and hiking. Spicer Creek is the very stream that the Lower Colorado River Authority dammed in 1964 to create the 906-acre (367 ha) lake, which doubles as the cooling pond for the power plant on its shore. The North-South Trailway links the South Shore to the North Shore section of the park, and depending on where I start, my round trip comes to about 9 miles (14.5 km). The trail has seven bridges, including one twin bridge, and closer to the North Shore, there is even a floating bridge. Some are more scenic than others, but for me the best part is riding beneath the majestic loblolly pines (Pinus taeda). This is the Lost Pines, the westernmost stand of loblollies in the United States, separated from the East Texas piney woods by about 100 miles (160 km) of post oak country. Pollen records show pines have grown here for more than 18,000 years, and they get by on about 30 percent less rain than their eastern cousins. Riding on a carpet of pine needles in Central Texas still feels a little like a magic trick.

In closing, I return to my old neighborhood. Near our former house, you’ll find the Copperfield Nature Trail, a strip of woods that follows Walnut Creek through the Copperfield neighborhood of northeast Austin. It is a great place to hike or bike, about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) out and back, with several scenic spots along the way and plenty of wildflowers in season. A group of neighbors, the Friends of Copperfield Nature Trails, helps keep it clean and open, which is part of why I still go back. This little wooden footbridge, half swallowed by spring greenery, is one reason I always carry a camera on the bike.

John’s Places Shaped by Water challenge was a tremendous success, and the photos you shared were gorgeous. I hope you will join this challenge, too. Please don’t forget to use the “lens-artists” tag in your posts so people can find your wonderful entries.

Next week, Ann-Christine will feature a new challenge. It will go live at noon EST in the USA. Tune in then to learn more. Please see this page for more information about the Lens-Artists Challenge and its history. If you don’t want to miss any future challenges, please consider subscribing to the team members’ websites. Here they are:

• Tina of Travels and Trifles.
• Patti of P.A. Moed.
• Ann-Christine of Leya.
• John of Journeys with Johnbo.
• Anne of Slow Shutter Speed.
• Sofia of Photographias.
• Egídio of Through Brazilian Eyes.
• Ritva of Ritva Sillanmäki Photography.
• Beth of Wandering Dawgs.

That is the story behind the shots. For more like this, enjoy these related stories: Brushy Creek Regional Trail, Copperfield Nature Trail, Lake Bastrop South Shore, Landscapes, Lens-Artists, Parks, Texas, and Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve. Until the next shoot, keep chasing the light and the wonders it reveals.

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• Posted for Terri’s Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: #Orange You Glad It’s Apricot?
• Posted for Pepper’s One Step at a Time #27.

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Sources:

• Wikipedia — Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Basin_Wilderness_Preserve
• St. Edward’s University — About Wild Basin — https://www.stedwards.edu/academics/centers-institutes-arts/wild-basin/about
• City of Austin Parks and Recreation — Southern Walnut Creek Trail — https://www.austintexas.gov/parks/locations/southern-walnut-creek-trail
• Wikipedia — Southern Walnut Creek Trail — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Walnut_Creek_Trail
• Wikipedia — Austin to Manor Trail — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austin_to_Manor_Trail
• TrailLink — Brushy Creek Regional Trail — https://www.traillink.com/trail/brushy-creek-regional-trail/
• Rod Haden — Historical Marker #14310, “Granite for the State Capitol,” Brushy Creek — https://www.rodhaden.com/home/2017/4/11/historical-marker-14310
• Wikipedia — Austin and Northwestern Railroad — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austin_and_Northwestern_Railroad
• LCRA Parks — Lake Bastrop South Shore Park — https://lcraparks.com/parks/lake-bastrop-south-shore-park
• Wikipedia — Lake Bastrop — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Bastrop
• The Texas Trailhead — LCRA Park: Lake Bastrop South Shore Park — https://thetexastrailhead.com/lcra-park-lake-bastrop-south-shore-park/
• Texas Parks and Wildlife — Bastrop State Park, Nature (the Lost Pines) — https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/bastrop/nature
• The Outbound — Hike Copperfield Nature Trail — https://www.theoutbound.com/texas/hiking/hike-copperfield-nature-trail
• Friends of Copperfield Nature Trails — https://copperfieldtrails.org/