TALE OF 2 TOM'S~~~SHOES

Walking across Terlingua Creek

Silly me thinking that lost luggage and a flat tire within 15 minutes of renting our car at the San Antonio Airport would end our "situations" for this vacation. Flat was fixed, I was reunited with my bag and off we went to Big Bend Natl Park. The park is in the middle of nowhere on the Texas/Mexico border. I had judiciously packed knowing that anything that was not with us was not going to easily replaced.
What was missing? My hiking shoes!! They were left in our former 4 Runner that was sitting in front of a house in San Antonio.
So that left me with a pair of flip flops and 2 pairs of Tom's shoes to hike in, a lacy white pair or my well worn basic brown shoes.

Bank of the Rio Grande

No question the basic brown will have to be sacrificed. These shoes are not much different than the ones the Cherokee forefathers roamed the hills in a century ago. No problemo.

Top of Lost Mine Trail Chisos Mountains

I was amazed. They made it the 3+ miles up and down hills and through desert brush on the Catttail  Falls Trail, 2 miles on the rocky Santa Elena trail that follows the Rio Grande , 4 miles on the Lost Ore Trail, walking miles around  Terlingua and in the LBJ ranch. The only downside was no tread on the soles so I had to watch slippage in mud and loose gravel. No thorns poked through the recycled rubber bottoms and my toes did not pop through canvas.

It has now become my mission to thoroughly wear these Tom's until they are threadbare. Just maybe the hike from the rim of Crater Lake down to the lake on July 4 will do them in.


 LadyBird Johnson Wildflower Gardens Stonewall Tx