Man begins walk of Texas perimeter
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TRAVEL THE TEXAS BORDER
Rio Grande -------------------------889.0 miles
Coastline ---------------------------367.0 miles
Sabine River, Lake and Pass -----180.0 miles
Sabine River to Red River -------106.5 miles
Red River ------------------------- 480.0 miles
East Panhandle line --------------133.6 miles
North Panhandle line -------------167.0 miles
...- SHOW ALL »
TRAVEL THE TEXAS BORDER
Rio Grande -------------------------889.0 miles
Coastline ---------------------------367.0 miles
Sabine River, Lake and Pass -----180.0 miles
Sabine River to Red River -------106.5 miles
Red River ------------------------- 480.0 miles
East Panhandle line --------------133.6 miles
North Panhandle line -------------167.0 miles
West Panhandle line --------------310.2 miles
Along 32nd parallel ---------------209.0 miles
Total --------------------------------2,842.3 miles
Source: TexasAlmanac.com
PORT LAVACA - S. Matt Read squinted his eyes in reaction to the 100-degree Texas sun as he sat on a stoop near the Bayfront Peninsula on Saturday.
It's something he must get used to if he wants to hike the Texas perimeter in a year's timeframe.
The 32-year-old Corpus Christi native started the first leg of his hike on Aug. 28 in his hometown and plans to go counter-clockwise along the Texas border.
Read's interest in writing and hiking makes his mission tracing an invisible border personal.
But his interest is showing people from different areas that a painted portrait of a certain region makes it public.
"It's hard to say what will come of this," said the 1999 University of Texas at Austin graduate. "I hope it's something positive."
Read wants to meet different people and see different areas.
With his degree in English, Read hopes to write a book about his venture.
Already, 30 state newspapers have agreed to run his syndicated column chronicling his journey.
With a modest-sized backpack in tow, Read arrived in Port Lavaca on Friday and plans to head up to his next big stop: Galveston.
The backpack is light, holding only a blanket, a change of clothes, a map, snacks, an umbrella and a first aid kit. He also has a cell phone and enough money to see him through the first couple of stops on his trip.
Read decided to take Saturday off because of pain in his left foot, he said.
"I think I was just a little aggressive with my hiking," Read said, rubbing his beaten foot.
Armed with shorts, a T-shirt, flip-flops and brown straw hat, Read's tanned skin is protected little by the sun.
He has slept on the side of the road, as a camper in an RV park and he has even met a family in Port Lavaca that is allowing him to stay the night before he continues his trip.
Read has seen a pattern in the first nine days of his adventure, he said.
On average, he will begin his day at 6 a.m. and travel anywhere from 10 to 15 miles, he said.
The more miles he can do before the sun comes up, the easier the day will be, he said.
Before embarking on his daily tread, Read gulps down two or three liters of water.
He takes a break every two hours for anywhere between five minutes to an hour.
Read has already observed some interesting things along the way, he said.
"Because I'm on foot and because I look out of place, I've been stopped by law enforcement in some instances," he said.
During Read's visit to the Aransas Wildlife Refuge, he encountered an alligator that spanned the width of the path he was walking on.
Read simply took a picture, stepped back, and waited for the alligator to make its way through, he said.
He tries to hike with a destination in mind.
So far, Read has gone through Ingleside, Rockport, Fulton, Goose Island State Park, Austwell, Tivoli and Seadrift.
Read has also had his parents meet him at a couple of his stops so they could have a family lunch, he said.
"They're supportive of me, though they would prefer I chose a more traditional lifestyle," he said.
Read said he anticipates getting to Big Bend National Park.
Even then, he wants his trek across Texas to be spontaneous.
"If everything was perfectly planned out, I'd see no real reason to get excited about it or have no real motivation to do it."
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El Paso back to Corpus is going to be a dangerous trek. Wonder how long it will take for him to get to the panhandle area? Winter is coming & winter up there is a lot colder than it is down here. Maybe he should've started the other way around or earlier in the year. I'm looking forward to his columns.
September 7, 2009 at 12:13 p.m.I spoke with Matt several times. He is not doing his traveling walking in the flip-flops. This was one of his spots to visit and take a break. There was the Flip Flop Festival in Port Lavaca that day, you know... And, his family is only a cell phone away! We should add Matt to our prayers for a safe journey...
September 7, 2009 at 11:04 a.m."Read said he anticipates getting to Big Bend National Park."
If he started the trip in Corpus Christi and is walking counter clockwise and plans to make it to
September 7, 2009 at 9:09 a.m.Big Bend, he still has a LOT of Texas border to go. Does he plan to finishe the trip from the park down the Rio Grande to the Gulf and back to Corpus Christi?
How much does the Advocate pay for a syndicated column? I hope our adventurer applies enough sunscreen to ward off skin cancers. Light, loose fitting clothing is better protection. Ditto on the comments about him wearing suitable footware. It'll make his trip much more pleasant. When his sunburned legs and feet swell up like mine did one time to where people tried to hospitalize me from the state of shock maybe he'll learn. He's a UTA grad right? No sweat.
September 7, 2009 at 2:42 a.m.Betsy McCall,
We are running his syndicated column in our newspaper. It was in the print edition on Sunday, Sept. 6 2009
Thank you for reading.
September 6, 2009 at 7:51 p.m.I hope he logs every day of his trip and writes a book. I would have loved to have done this although I did have a lot of "adventures". I would buy his book in a heart beat, looking forward to it.
September 6, 2009 at 5:49 p.m.BetsyMcCall...I don't think it's insane at all. On the bookshelf behind me as I write this is a two volume set, "A Walk Across America" and "The Walk West" by Peter Jenkins who began his walk across the country in October of 1973. Along the way, he met some wonderful people, one of whom he married. She continued the walk with him and volume 2, "The Walk West" is co-authored by his wife, Barbara. I don't know if he got rich from the sales of his books, but it's a wonderful yarn and I hope Read writes about his experiences.
September 6, 2009 at 4:18 p.m.