My family and I set out to do something fun this Saturday and so we settled on going to “Wit’s End Ranch” together. My wife and son had been before and loved it but I had never been. I called them up to see if they were open this Saturday but they now only do private parties.
The lady at Wit’s End Ranch was very nice and referred us to try East Texas Gator and Wildlife Farm. I had never heard of this place before. This sounded very exciting and something my 2 year old son would love so we did it.
We were nothing short of extremely impressed with this place! It has all the East Texas Charm you could expect. Besides watching an alligator wilderness guy feed live several hundred pound alligators you can also pet and see baby alligators and snakes, jump in the bouncy house, rock around in a beached boat, swing on a rope swing, and pet pot bellied pigs, goats, and chicks in the petting zoo.
They also have a restaurant that has a special offer to allow you free admission with the purchase of certain dinner menu meals. The East Texas Gator Farm is located in Grand Saline Texas and is very close to Canton Texas. We drove here from Tyler/Lindale area and found it to be a very nice scenic drive through Lindale and Van Texas.
You will see a sign next to the road to turn on to continue on to to East Texas Gator Farm. This is not a hard place to find and I now consider it one of the East Texas areas best attractions. Some of the adult alligators are over 700 lbs.
These gators are not necessarily tame friendly beasts as we saw evidence of missing fingers from one of the employees here. All the employees seem to truly love their jobs and the alligator tamer/feeder initiated allowing my son to pet some snakes and baby alligators.
This is one of those natural attractions in East Texas that is just real and beautiful and a place you rarely find among the many cookie cutter venues. Of course every attraction has it’s time and place even if it’s the typical amusement but this simply isn’t the norm and definitely worth bringing the whole fam.
After writing my last first piece on the approach of fall and with it the football season, I actually spent part of my weekend taking in a six- man football scrimmage. Had I known ahead of time that I would be attending the event, I would have probably waited to write a single article. All things being equal however, I thought this would warrant mention.
First off let me say that for all my nostalgia and anticipation of autumn it’s not here, not yet anyway! The preseason scrimmage took place on the Grace Community School (GCS) football field and it was hot! With the sun reflecting off the bleachers it was also very bright, which only served to add to a certain amount of discomfort. I should add by the way that it is not my intention to cast dispersions on GCS for hosting the event, they have been extremely gracious in making their facilities available for the Six- Man games, but when it’s hot it’s hot, hospitality aside. The game was what’s referred to as a three way scrimmage. I’ve been around high school sports for a number of years now, and I’ve never actually watched a football game with three teams participating before. Basically the offences and defenses would rotate in and out of the game like players in a volleyball match. Each school had an opportunity to engage each of the others on both sides of the ball. It also gave the coaches a chance to get an idea of what the other teams are doing and how their prospective teams are progressing against potential rivals. The Schools who participated in the event were King’s Academy Christian School in Tyler and out of town rivals, Leverett’s Chapel, and Fruitvale. Because the game was unofficial and off the record no scores were kept, and stats were just for the coaches’ use, but all three teams had the opportunity to trade a few hits and prepare for the coming season by facing some outside competition. Despite the heat, the players did well, and spectators seemed to have a good time meeting with folks they’ve probably not seen over the summer months.
To learn more about six- man football including field differences and rule changes, look for the article entitled Six- Man football Returns to Tyler, or Football is Back in 2010 located elsewhere on this site. For more on Tyler area private schools, look for Private Schools in Tyler TX, also on www.tylertxdirectory.com.
America is being overrun by a plague, a plague of boredom. But not to fear because Tyler TX Hobby Town USA has the cure and that cure is a hobby for every man woman and child in America. If there is one thing people need it is to relax and hobbies are typically an efficient way to do this. However the countless and varied interests of people are challenging to contain in one store.
Traditional hobbies such as model building and tiny rocket launching and retrieving have gone by the wayside in this new technological era. Hobby Town USA has provided a significant margin of the more traditional hobbies such as remote controlled cars, planes and helicopters. Including a wide catalogue of kid’s toys spanning from educational and traditional to the more obscure. But if one has abandoned the classic hobby choices in search of a newer edgier past time than look no further than Hobby Town USA.
Hobby Town USA puts an emphasis on their selection of fuel powered vehicles. Proudly displayed on the glass counter tops are a large number of remote controlled automobiles, each one with unique specifications and appearance, miniature body kit and rims destined to appeal to a hobby-less shopper.
The attentive staff will help you decide on the right model for you, as well as volunteer information regarding their other options in order to ensure you make an educated decision regarding the style, functions and cost of your new hobby. Hobby Town USA has remote control airplanes ranging from only thirty five dollars to as much as three hundred dollars, with brands that include Parkzone’s 51D Mustang for only 99.99, as well as Great Planes signature Mark Chapman CAP 580.
But they are readily equipped to supply today’s hobby haver with professional quality tools and paints for finely detailed work, ensuring your craftsmanship does not suffer needlessly at the mercy of the inferior tools offered by less quality Hobby supply stores. Hobby Town USA is likely to have the things you would not find at Hobby Lobby at a slightly higher price but worth every penny for a superior quality of implement and hobby.
One of the surest and most welcome signs that summer is winding down is the reappearance of football. Last night preseason football began with the Hall of Fame game. The Cowboys and the Bengals faced off in what essentially amounted to a scrimmage game on Sunday Night Football. Even though the preseason schedule doesn’t mean much if anything, it was good to see Dallas take the night in a 16- 7 competition. And as a side note I have to hope that all T.O.’s games end in the same fashion. But these early games serve purely as a tide- me- over. The only really important stat in them is the injury report afterward. But it’s good to see helmets being dusted off and fields being chalked in anticipation of the coming season.
The NFL and the NCAA are not the only ones preparing for the coming fall. Local High Schools, both public and private are preparing for the quickly approaching fall. Football has certainly become a more inclusive sport in recent years, in terms of the opportunities available. When I was growing up in private school, the only sport we really wanted to play was football! But due to the many expenses surrounding the sport, small schools found it necessary to substitute more inexpensive less “dangerous” sports into their athletic programs. As private and parochial schools have grown however, so has the demand for the one fall sport that really matters in East Texas. Nearly every school in Tyler with more than one hundred students has at least a six- man football team, and many have full squads.
Football and sports in general, is an important component for schools both large and small. We all remember the lessons we were taught in our perspective sports; perseverance, team work, dealing with success, dealing with failure, the lessons go on and on. As Lord Wellington once said, “The Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton.” But Football and all Sports do more for schools than just help to educate the students, (as if that weren’t enough). Athletic programs are the public faces of the schools they represent. They keep the school’s name in the paper and on the evening news. But perhaps more importantly, the event of a Friday night football game, or a Saturday afternoon tailgating party helps to create a sense of community and culture within a school, for families, students and staff.
Autumn is a wonderful time of year, leaves change, the weather cools, and Football is everywhere! I for one, plan of relishing every moment of the coming season!
Bergfeld Park has been the home of many shows, banquets, and events in East Texas. Some of them are very odd, like the animals in the park were they only sold ice cream treats for your dog and not for your kids, but some of them are a great idea, like the movie in the park. A few times a year a huge projector screen is set up in the middle of the park and a family friendly film is played. This event is opened for anyone in Tyler TX or even visitors. They always play movies that are appropriate for small children, if it be an old Don Knotts film or a somewhat new release.
Many times people bring free drink and snacks for everyone watching the movies. I was surprised how many people came out to this Tyler TX event. We had so much fun even though the seat were not that comfortable and it was pretty hot outside (it does help that it is not in during the day). This is a great event for your family met other families and the best part is that it is free. You can see signs on the corner of Broadway and the park of the newest shows and times, they also advertise for other up coming events.
Football is Back in 2010
August 9th, 2010One of the surest and most welcome signs that summer is winding down is the reappearance of football. Last night preseason football began with the Hall of Fame game. The Cowboys and the Bengals faced off in what essentially amounted to a scrimmage game on Sunday Night Football. Even though the preseason schedule doesn’t mean much if anything, it was good to see Dallas take the night in a 16- 7 competition. And as a side note I have to hope that all T.O.’s games end in the same fashion. But these early games serve purely as a tide- me- over. The only really important stat in them is the injury report afterward. But it’s good to see helmets being dusted off and fields being chalked in anticipation of the coming season.
The NFL and the NCAA are not the only ones preparing for the coming fall. Local High Schools, both public and private are preparing for the quickly approaching fall. Football has certainly become a more inclusive sport in recent years, in terms of the opportunities available. When I was growing up in private school, the only sport we really wanted to play was football! But due to the many expenses surrounding the sport, small schools found it necessary to substitute more inexpensive less “dangerous” sports into their athletic programs. As private and parochial schools have grown however, so has the demand for the one fall sport that really matters in East Texas. Nearly every school in Tyler with more than one hundred students has at least a six- man football team, and many have full squads.
Football and sports in general, is an important component for schools both large and small. We all remember the lessons we were taught in our perspective sports; perseverance, team work, dealing with success, dealing with failure, the lessons go on and on. As Lord Wellington once said, “The Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton.” But Football and all Sports do more for schools than just help to educate the students, (as if that weren’t enough). Athletic programs are the public faces of the schools they represent. They keep the school’s name in the paper and on the evening news. But perhaps more importantly, the event of a Friday night football game, or a Saturday afternoon tailgating party helps to create a sense of community and culture within a school, for families, students and staff.
Autumn is a wonderful time of year, leaves change, the weather cools, and Football is everywhere! I for one, plan of relishing every moment of the coming season!
Tags: Battle Of Waterloo, Dallas Cowboys Football, Dallas Cowboys Football commentary, Dangerous Sports, Dealing With Success, Early Games, East Texas, Eton, Fall Football, Fall Sport, Football, Hall Of Fame, Hall Of Fame Game, Injury Report, Local High Schools, Lord Wellington, Man Football, Night Football, Preseason Schedule, Private And Parochial Schools, S Games, Scrimmage Game, Welcome Signs
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