HAMILTON POOL PRESERVE // AUSTIN TEXAS

When hanging in Austin Texas we recommend you drive outside the city and take a short hike down to Hamilton Pool Preserve.  The preserve's pool and grotto were formed when the dome of an underground river collapsed due to massive erosion thousands of years ago.  We met up with fellow RVer's that were camping in the area.  It's really cool finding other young people on the road living full time in their RV's.  Here's a glimpse into our day of exploring.... 

WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND CALLING BEFORE YOU GO!  They often close the trails if it's been raining....... 

What To Know Before You Go:  (From the park website) 

1. Calling the Public Information Line will let you know the current status of the preserve, whether we're allowing swimming and hiking.  Remember the preserve somtimes closes due to recent rain and hazardous trail conditions.  The phone number is 512-264-2740.  It is updated daily at 8:30 am, or when rain changes our status during the day.
2. Reservations are required to visit on dates starting May 1 and ending September 30.  You make reservations online by clicking on the link shown above on this web site.  You will pay for reservations with a credit card, and pay an additional entrance fee in cash when you arrive at Hamilton Pool Preserve.  
3. Entrance Fees paid when you arrive at the preserve are $15 per vehicle, or $5 per vehicle if vehicle has a senior citizen (62 years) or a disabled vet (60%).
4. We accept cash and most checks at the preserve.  We DO NOT accept credit and debit cards at the preserve.
5. Pets are prohibited. No exceptions, not even if the pet is on a leash or kept in your vehicle. Please do not bring them.
6. No Lifeguard is on duty.  Swim at your own risk, when swimming is allowed.
7. Reservation periods run from 9 am - 1 pm and 2 pm - 6 pm.  Recreational activities end at 12:30 pm and 5:30 pm.  No entry is allowed after 12:30 pm or 5:30 pm.  All visitors must exit the preserve by 1:00 pm or 6:00 pm. 
8. Bring drinking water.  Drinking water and concessions are not available.
9. The hike to the pool is a quarter of a mile long.  The trail is beautiful, but it is also steep and rocky, with uneven steps.
10. Glass bottles and the public display of alcohol consumption are prohibited.

SIMPLIFY YOUR LIFE

From Trinity:  If you asked me 2 years ago if I could live in a tiny space with minimal things I would quickly say " Hell No! I LOVE my stuff too much!" 

" Imagine a life of less... a life of passion unencumbered by the trappings of the chaotic world around you.. imagine an intentional life.  It's not a perfect life, it's not always an easy life... but its a simple and happy one. "  -The Minimalist Imagine a life where you know where every single item is in your home.  Imagine your house being clean all of the time.  Wow, that seemed like a DREAM life to me, seriously who lives that way!?  The concept of minimalism felt so distant and unachievable.  I would say "that's just not me".  I was busy working 7 days a week, busy filling the house with things that I thought would make me happy.. and yes, it did.. but it wasn't the deep happiness I was looking for.  

FAST FORWARD >> I'm currently writing you from our 280 square foot home on wheels overlooking a lake and living the life we've carved out and created for ourselves.  We just watched the documentary MINIMALISM on Netflix, it's a documentary about the important things in life.  I instantly want everyone to watch it and understand why we are living the life we are and to be able to relate.  I've realized this past year that a simple life is it, and stuff is not the answer for me.  

Kermit made an excellent point.. he said " Live life like a dog!" They don't need much of anything except shelter, food and love"... this was very profound to me as I quickly started thinking about "but I NEED this.. and I NEED that...  I had to ask myself " Do you really need 4 curling irons, do you really need 5 pair of brown boots.. and so on."  

So, we did it.  We traded our stuff for experiences to create a life that makes us feel rich on minimal money.  We have come to realize the value of time vs. money.  We don't want to live to work, if we keep our expenses low we can keep our experiences high.  Was it easy making the transition out of a 4 bedroom house full of anything we wanted down to 280 feet?  NO WAY!  Was it worth it?  HELL YES!!   

NOW, DO SOMETHING GREAT AND GO WATCH "MINIMALISM" ON NETFLIX NOW!  

"Love people and use things, because the opposite never works"  - The Minimalist  

STAY SAFE IN YOUR RV!

Did you know that most RV locks can be opened with the same key!?  Yikes!  Before we hit the road into the unknown we switched out our main door lock and all of our cargo bin doors.  Kermit created a video for you..... hehehe! 

Today marks 9 weeks living full time on the road and about 14 weeks living in RV.  We just launched our new YouTube channel, PLEASE SUBSCRIBE and stay tuned for many more videos about life on the road, how-to videos, and random wacky stuff...  Thank you always for checking us out! Comment below and let us know you stopped by :)  

CHECK OUT OUR CHANNEL HERE >  CLICK HERE

LINK FOR LOCK WE INSTALLED, WE'RE LOVING THE KEYLESS ENTRY!!! NO MORE CARRYING KEYS EVEN WHEN YOU WANT TO GO FOR A QUICK WALK AROUND THE CAMPGROUND, YAY! 

WE'RE STINKY & STEPHENRILEY IS CONFUSED!

We're sweaty, stinky and StephenRiley is confused!

 From Trinity:  This week has been a bit crazy. We're hauling out the final possessions to the camper (which is currently parked in our yard) and about to go on a cleaning frenzy before we permanently hand over the keys and drive away from our 6 acre farm and 4 bedroom farmhouse to live in 280 square feet.  With all the chaos our precious pup StephenRiley is not quite sure what's happening. I'm in the middle of wedding season (a photographer) and Kermit starts a new job and switches to 3rd shift on Monday and throw in an emergency root canal... but hey!... what better timing, right!?  Let's just do all this CRAZY STUFF at once!  :)    We whittled down all of our possessions to just one truck load of things that we're keeping in storage.  After this weekend we'll be parked about 10 minutes from our current location until I'm done with my wedding season in a few weeks... then we're on the road!  Full time RVer's !!   " But wait, you're too young for that!" you're probably asking yourself...   Actually, no. There's no rule that says you have to wait until you're retired to live in an RV.  We want to do it NOW while we can still walk around and we're healthy.  To be  honest, I'm not going to know what it's like sitting in a folding chair on a Saturday afternoon drinking a cup of coffee (or beer... or orange crush!... < insert saliva because now I'm drooling >  Ya see... we work super hard and are always " on the go"  When we married,  Kermit worked out of town alot climbing cell phone towers and I work 7 days a week typically.  My busiest days as a photographer are Saturdays and Sundays and then editing and running a business the other 5 days and shoots in-between.  So, we never really took a "family vacation" in the past few years or relaxed on a weekend.  We hustled. We saved. We were "goal diggers" and now we're going to cash in all those Saturdays and Sundays in for a little bit.   Now you're probably saying to yourself " How can they afford that!? " ....We can! :) ..... and it's not because we're rich! haha Our new "house" cost less than what my car cost so that means no big mortgage or rent payment, no more 250 gallon tank to fill up with heating oil in the winter, and so on.  We're actually going to be spending a lot less living this lifestyle!  Yay!  When you live simple you don't need as much money to "survive".  

We've been so focused on fixing up the camper,  prepping to leave the house and working that we haven't noticed that our TV, couch and bed are gone and I guess that's a good thing, we haven't gone into shock yet, hahah.  We have no idea what this lifestyle is going to be like, how long we'll be able to do it or where we're going... but we DO know how we're getting there and our spirit of determination and adventure is about to be bubbling over.  We thank you for following along on this journey with us and checking out what we're up to.   

The pavilion Kermit built from the woods for our annual Christmas photography shoots. 

I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from Thoreau >  " Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.  Live the life you've imagined."