Youth-LINC 2012 - Day Five

We have left the places we went better than we found them.

Youth-LINC 2012's theme is service learning, and consistent to our theme, the campers have planted gardens in the Sam Houston National Forest, weeded gardens at the Stephen F. Austin High School, and built signs celebrating a environmentally friendly, multi-school project. Friday, the camper left an impact at Stephen F. Austin State Park buy painting three signs for their park. Lisa Reznicek advised the campers on proper technique and thanked them for helping TPWD keep up with sign maintenance. Lisa also showed them the soon-to-open nature center at Stephen F. Austin State Park.

Youth-LINC 2012 painted 3 signs for TPWD.

Ivan Lara checking out the Rat Snake (behind glass) at the new Nature Center at Stephen F. Austin State Park.

We left Stephen F. Austin State Park early in the morning, on our way to the Austin area to discover the beauty of McKinney Falls State Park. Campers took a hike after pitching our tents over the limestone escarpment that covers the park. The waters of Onion Creek sliding over the rocks and leaping over the falls called the campers to go swim, and they answered at the Lower Falls. We spent most of the day there, absorbing the water and the sounds.

Franco Gonzales fishing at the Upper Falls...

... and everyone swimming at the Lower Falls at McKinney Falls State Park.

The rain-engorged Lower Falls. Nalleli and Blanca carefully stroll over the limestone escarpment.

Playful Nalleli posing with her butterfly compadre as she sits in the cool flow of Onion Creek at the Lower Falls.

After drying off, the campers were told of their great opportunity. Saturday, they are going to Outdoor Nation's Signature Summit at the University of Texas at Austin. Outdoor Nation is a non-profit focused on empowering young people to develop and sustain outdoor recreation among their own generation. Outdoor Nation believes that the future of outdoor recreation lies in young people like the Youth-LINC campers. They will spend 3-4 hours planning a project that will encourage more people to go outdoors. They will propose their project on Sunday along with a dozen other groups, and the best among them will be decided through a vote. The top 5 projects will win a some seed funding for their project.

Good luck at Outdoor Nation Austin Texas Youth-LINC 2012!!!