West Texas - Part One

Our much anticipated trip to the Big Bend area is complete, and I'm anxious to share the great time we had there...  but, where to start?  We saw so much and had so many new experiences in West Texas, so we'll start at the beginning and work our way through.  Readers may need to skim - at the risk of being tedious, we don't want to leave anything out!  SO here we go...

Alpine, TX (and a little bit of Marfa)

We left home at 8am on a mid-October Wednesday morning, and after a few short stops (we were happy to find out that there were no extremely long stretches between gas stations and restrooms), we made it to our first little motel, The Highland Inn in Alpine around 4:30pm.  We were taking a chance on this place, but we'd read some okay reviews, and it turned out to be a decent room for $50.  As we'd heard, Sam (the proprieter) was really helpful in providing information about Alpine and some ideas about how to spend the evening.  We unloaded, and headed out to get our bearings... we'd be returning to Alpine in a few days, using it as our home base for the 2nd half of the trip, so we took this night to find our way around.

Our first stop was "The Railroad Blues".  I'm sure this is a hoppin' place at night, but at "happy hour" it's  a beer joint for the locals.  We enjoyed a beer and moved on.  We discovered that Alpine has several claims to fame:  Sul Ross State University with a small but pretty campus;  a semi-professional baseball team called the Alpine Cowboys whose home field is a place called Kokernot Field, a scaled down replica of Wrigley Field; and...well I could go on, but why not check out the back wall of an abandoned building we found that lists Alpine's highlights?... 

We loved this =-)

We finally landed at a great bar called the Saddle Club.  Marc ordered a local brew - "Terlingua Gold" from Big Bend Brewing Co.  I had an amazing concoction called a Blood Orange Margarita... The dash of Tabasco gave it a zing that I loved!  Turns out the bartenders there are known for their new inventions, and the menu is always changing.  Food was excellent, too.  We had an order of "Epic Fries" loaded with brisket, cheese, peppers and more.

Except for the bars, Alpine shut down fairly early, so we decided to head 20 minutes west to try our luck at seeing the famous Marfa Lights.  There is a viewing area just east of Marfa - very nice, but arriving at night we had some trouble deciding what to look for and in what direction.  Lots of "experts" (fellow tourists) gave opinions, and we decided we'd seen some lights in the distance that seemed to appear and disappear, so that made it interesting.  The real show, though, was the night sky.  I feel sure I've seen the Milky Way at some point in my youth, but I'm going to count this as my first real look.  It was the first of FIVE nights of amazing star-gazing that was a real highlight of being in this area of Texas - spectacular!

Fredericksburg Fun!

One of our favorite things about Texas is the difference in landscapes and cultures as we travel to various regions.  And one of our favorite regions is the hill country, right in the middle of our state!  Our trip last week to the Fredericksburg area for a family wedding was really fun! 

Bastrop Rental Cabin

Bastrop Park Overlook

Marc and I started out a day early, taking our time and enjoying some sites along the way.  We visited Bastrop State Park, a place in which we had camped when our family was young.  We knew it would look different… the 2011 fire tore through that part of the country taking most everything that would burn.  It lasted for weeks!  Now, 3 years later, the damage is obvious, but the park is coming back, and the parts that are open are lush and green.  We hope to stay in a cabin there soon.  We visited McKinney Falls State Park near Austin as well.– Mother Nature has dealt that area a bad hand, too, with the drought.  Not many people staying there, and some of the park is closed completely.

Upper McKinney Falls

We moved on to Buda, TX to enjoy dinner nearby and stay the night.  We had a GREAT Mexican meal in south Austin at Trudy’s  – really good margaritas!  

After a quick trip Thursday to a winery in Driftwood, we met up with more family the next day at The Salt Lick - simply the best bbq in the state!  Then on to Fredericksburg.

I was a little nervous because I had arranged for lodging for the whole family at a rental house, sight unseen.  We were hoping for the best, and we got it!  The house, called Enchanted Porch, is actually on a large ranch 9 miles north of Fredericksburg on the road to Enchanted Rock.  It sleeps 14, which was plenty of space, since we averaged about 8 people per night.  It turned out to be the perfect place for our family, aged 25 to 84.  Some highpoints include a large wrap-around porch, beautiful hill country views and sunsets, hiking trails, with wildlife and domesticated animals everywhere.  These included deer, songbirds, longhorns, llamas, and even peacocks in the distance.  We’ll never forget their call – sounds like a woman yelling for help. (glad they were in the distance!)  The inside of the house is beautiful pine, with a large kitchen, lots of restrooms, and furnished well.

 

 

Our family enjoyed trips to wineries & breweries, restaurants, main street shopping, Enchanted Rock, and our scenic drive to Boerne for the wedding.  The weather cleared on Friday night for that outdoor ceremony, and we all had a great time dancing and catching up with the bride and groom, Kristen & Zach, and the rest of the extended family. 

 






Visiting wineries is something we love to do on trips, especially near Fredericksburg, but we goofed on Friday when we decided to try all the new places popping up along 290.  Not a good idea.  Our advice now is to do the opposite!  The wineries we still enjoy most are those that have been around awhile, have knowledgeable staff, and beautiful scenery, patios, and tasting areas that have developed over the years.   Our favorite is BeckerVineyards, where we’re wine club members.  We were treated to a very nice tasting there, including an appetizer tray, and were escorted through the property for a tour.  They’ve built a new pavilion outside that they’re considering making a “members only” area.  Either way, it’s a nice addition right next to the lavender fields, which will be in bloom in the spring. (Sounds like a good excuse to go back!)

On Sunday, we all gathered at Bejas Grill for brunch – this place had great food, and also catered to the two dogs who were on our trip.  It's peach season, so on the way home we stopped to pick some up at a fruit stand, and everyone went their separate ways for the ride home. 

Thanks to Mom & Dad, Gary, Kimmy, Ryan, Kaitlyn, Eric, and two new friends, Claudia & Jimmy for a great mini-vacation, and congrats and God’s blessings to Kristen and Zach in their life together! 

Let's try this

Marc & I find ourselves on the road quite a lot these days.  Facebook's okay for posting pictures of our trips, but I'm hoping for a travel log that is a little more personal and fun.  Stay tuned... we're off to one of our favorite towns next week - Fredericksburg, TX!