Visit www.westcave.org/westcave-guidebook/ for review copies, photos, and author bios.

Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center

www.westcave.org

Book Release Commemorates Preserve’s 40th Anniversary

Discovering Westcave

The Natural & Human History of a Hill Country Nature Preserve

(Texas A&M University Press)

AUSTIN (October 5, 2016) – At a time when urban sprawl is engulfing the native landscape, a natural gem in the heart of the Texas Hill Country remains. Forty years ago, Westcave Preserve in southwest Travis County was in danger of being loved to death by trespassers who came to picnic, swim and explore at Westcave’s fern-covered grotto, ancient rock shelter, and spectacular forty-foot waterfall. Fortunately, the property was purchased by a concerned John Covert Watson who established the nonprofit Westcave Preserve Corporation in 1976. He hired John Ahrns to set in place the recovery of this astonishing place by clearing the area of trash, establishing a small parking lot and a single trail, and allowing only guided tours. Lee Walker joined the Westcave Preserve board in 1980 and further ensured the Preserve’s future by serving for 27 years as Westcave’s board chair as well as its primary benefactor.

This month, Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center is marking its 40-year history with the release of a book Discovering Westcave: The Natural & Human History of a Hill Country Nature Preserve by Chris Caran and Elaine Davenport. Discovering Westcave takes readers on a walk through the beautiful preserve unveiling the evolutionary past of its natural features and acknowledging the many people who have been part of Westcave’s long history. The book aims not only to share the natural and human history of this refuge, but also to inspire a continued respect and appreciation for the natural world.

On November 5, Westcave will host a book signing as part of its annual Fall Festival. The signing will feature Discovering Westcave and other books in the Kathie and Ed Cox Jr. Books on Conservation Leadership series, sponsored by the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment.

WESTCAVE FALL FEST DETAILS:

Time: Saturday, November 5, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Location: Westcave Preserve, 24814 Hamilton Pool Road, Round Mountain, TX

More details on the Fall Fest: [email protected], 830-825-3442

More details on the book: [email protected], 512-276-2257

Discovering Westcave authors will also sign books at the Texas Book Festival on Sunday November 6th at the Texas A&M University Press booth.