Ted. Of course, Judy and I have heard of the famous San Antonio River Walk but we thought it was just a two-mile long canal with tourist boats plying the waters and touristy cafes lining the banks. That happens to be true of the original stretch of river, which was developed downtown in the 1930’s. Since that time, though, the city has wisely expanded the walk to create a trail that now follows the San Antonio River for 15 miles. For most of that length, it is a peaceful paved path, often on both sides of the river.
South of town, the River Walk strings together four missions to form the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. While the Alamo is certainly the most famous mission in this area, the 18th century Franciscan monks established a whole series of missions along the river.
We decided that the best way to explore this area was on two wheels so, after taking the bus to the Blue Star Arts Complex, we rented bicycles ($20 for a half day). Loading a picnic lunch and water into our baskets, we headed out on a 20 mile round trip adventure. It was a beautiful Friday afternoon and the trail was not crowded at all.
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| Crossing the San Antonio, which is not a big river |
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| Mission Concepción |
Why were the indigenous hunter/gathers in this region willing to provide the labor to build these impressive complexes? Apparently, several forces were at play. Diseases introduced by the Spaniards and attacks by the warlike Lipan Apaches led to an increased need for safety and reliable food supplies.
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| The walls of Mission San José encompass a large area |
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| Originally, the walls of the churches were brightly painted |
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| Mission San Juan |
In addition to the missions, we saw some wildlife and remnants of the irrigation canals (acequias) built during the mission days to supply the crops.
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| This acequia is still in use |
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| Courtyard of Mission Espada |
We finished up at the Blue Star Brewery; a perfect end for an interesting day – one of the best during our visit.
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| We knew we were nearly back in San Antonio when we spied the tower of the Americas |
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