New Braunfels: The tubing part of Texas

There are a couple of things you need to know about Texas. First of all, it's big. And secondly, the land changes depending on which direction you drive.

One of the areas, Texans will tell you about is the Hill Country. They'll tell about the hunting, the fishing, and the beauty. But most of all, they will tell you that you HAVE to go tubing on the Guadalupe River.

I know you're saying: "It's the end of October. Nobody goes to Guadalupe in October."

Guess what. You're right.

But I didn't know that, and neither did my friend who came with me -- of course, she moved here from Memphis, so she is just as naïve as I am.

The good news is we had the entire river to ourselves, so there was nobody there to witness our embarrassing moments like when we slipped on the rocks in the rapids while trying to push our raft out.

However, here's some stuff you may not know. The river in October is not freezing. In fact, the guy at Rockin' R River Rafts said it's the exact same temperature that it is in the summer, which is 65 degrees. The Comal River is also the same temperature --a balmy 72.

The river also does not close down. While the peak season (and the best time to go) is between Memorial Day and Labor Day, many of the rafting rental places are open all year long. What does change is the temperature outside...and the water level.

So how was it?

Gorgeous and peaceful, just like everyone said. But nobody told us there would be so many turtles. Man...there were turtles sunning themselves everywhere. And not just a couple...I'm telling you there were so many, it was like being at a turtle convention.

But while the turtles were busy relaxing, we were doing the complete opposite. We were working.

This might have been because the water was at least a foot lower than during the peak period, so we had to paddle. There were also four or five parts where there were mini rapids, and three of the times we got stuck. Really stuck.

I admit, I haven't exactly mastered using an oar, but my poor paddling had nothing to do with our situation. It all had to do with the rocks and how our rubber raft was caught on top of them. We actually had to get out of the boat and push ourselves off. So, yes, I can personally tell you that the water was not freezing, because I was in it -- a lot.

It took us about two hours to leisurely make our way down the river, and when we reached the docking area, we didn't want the fun to end.

So I'll be back. But next time I go, I'm going tubing -- and I'm going between May and September just like the locals.