Horseback Riding and a trip to Kerrville!

The next morning started with a little horseback riding. Now, you're not supposed to take pictures while riding...but I've never been very good at following directions, so I snuck in a few....

 Ron had a happy horse - see the smile? Bright eyes? Alert posture? Yes indeed, a happy horse.


 I got a grouchy-pants horse...she liked to nip the horse in front of us. She is actually frowning, head-down and downright angry at being asked to haul me around. That's a pout if I ever saw one....MAJOR Grouchy Pants.


 You can see the limestone outcrops on this contraband photo...they are amazing.


 The horse in front of me...trying not to get bit. Oh, and in front of her is Jackson, the world's biggest whiner. I really had hoped for a nice, peaceful, morning horse ride. Jackson didn't get that memo....


 Note how low the water was -- we hardly saw any water along the way. Note: We were riding along the margins of what was the Bandera river. It's amazing what drought can to do to the landscape.
It was about this point that the ride leader told me to put my camera away...so that's all for this report.

Next, we headed off to Kerrville. Here are some shots I took along the way:


 Buffalo - in Texas. Just like the old days, without the fence of course.


 Someone's running sheep. I LOVE the baby lambs!


 Water!! Yes, it was dammed in - beautiful to see.


 Texas Longhorn -- I will remind my Aggie readers that these are the Texas State Mammal....


And more of the scenic hill country. It was a gorgeous day.

Kerrville is named after James Kerr, a Major in the Texas Revolution, and friend of settler-founder Joshua Brown, who settled in the area to start a shingle-making camp. I don't know where all the shingles went, but it's a great community and I've spent a lot of time there over the years as it is home to first HEB in Texas - and shopping mecca for those living in Bandera and Medina. Hence, we got all our groceries at HEB and often stopped at Gibson's when visiting Me-Mom and Pop-pop.


Sonic has it's ever popular Happy Hour -- Root Beer and Orange Creamy Something-or-other coming up!

Gibsons! Yes, my kids loved this store. You can find ANYTHING from chicken wire to wired chickens to chicken feed. They have every pot, pan, tool, clothing item for summer or frost, tires, lawnmowers, barbecue grills or a cheapie birthday toy or anniversary card. Yes, the store even has it's own distinctive smell. You can't beat Gibsons!







We met some of Ron's awesome family at Mamacita's - Mexican food extraordinaire. I have NEVER seen a place that has been remodeled like this one. Once a quaint spot with stained glass windows, it now boasts a HUGE atrium (note the layered ceilings), hand-painted murals, large meeting rooms and several shops inside such as Starbucks and Dryers ice cream. A city within a restaurant - but the food is still wonderful and the company was even more so.

We took the return route that goes through Eagles Nest - the roads are VERY winding and the view at the top is extraordinary:




 See what I mean?


It was an AWESOME day - made some new friends, was happy to say good-bye to others (Jackson), and the company was outstanding. I do love the Texas Hill Country!

Skyline Ranch

My children's paternal Grandparents, Me-Mom and Pop-Pop McCollough lived in Medina on a ranch while my kiddos were growing up. Many, many weekends were spent roaming the acreage at Skyline Ranch. Sadly, they have passed away, but the Skyline, under new ownership, is still there. We decided to take a look - trespass, if you will. No one appeared to be around, so, we entered and drove around a bit.

It was sad to see how the worst drought in Texas' history has affected this and all landscapes in Texas. The mighty Medina river was barely flowing. The grand Bald Cypress tress that line it's banks have their roots showing, and are severely stressed. The mighty oak trees that adorn the Hill Country are in severe decline, or dead. I miss Me-Me and Pop-Pop, but am glad they did not have to witness what is appearing to be an irreversible death of much which they loved.

 The Medina River used to flow OVER this dam - my children used to swim in it. Now, it's nearly dry.

 One of the posts of the entrance to the Ranch  -- I remember when these were done, 30-something years ago.

 Some wild turkey  were in the area -

 The once stately Oak trees...

The roofline of their house - this was as close as I dared to go :)

There were some exotic animals being kept here. We also saw plenty of white tail and axis deer.

 More dying Oaks....

What is left of the lodge - many years ago it flooded. I'm not sure what is being done with the building....

And more dying/dead oaks. They were all over the Hill country.

 Some wild turkey in the area --- ya gotta look closely. There were about 4 hens and one Tom turkey. They were staying away...the next day was Thanksgiving :)

Lost Maples State Park

We decided to take a trek and go visit the famous Bigtooth Maple Trees at Lost Maples State Park.The bigtooth maple tree ranks as the park's marquee species. In late autumn most years, the stands of old-growth maples set the canyons ablaze in a riot of red, orange and gold foliage, drawing upwards of 50,000 leaf-peepers like us to the state natural area.The Sabinal River and its several tributaries have carved limestone canyons through the 2,200-acre park straddling Bandera and Real counties at the western fringes of the Edwards Plateau. There aren't a bunch of Big Tooth Maples in Texas... the western cousin of the eastern sugar maple retained a foothold in the Hill Country canyons after vast sheets of ice advanced southward across North America almost to present-day Texas, and then retreated. So, these guys got stuck here -- all by themselves.Because of the canyonlands' microclimate effect, the park contains numerous species of plants and animals of both eastern and western affinity, as well as rare species endemic to the Balcones Escarpment. Found here are the unusual Texas madrone tree, three kinds of buckeye, witch hazel (common in Mississippi), six different kinds of oaks, Texas mock orange and sycamore-leaf snowbell whose white clusters of flowers bloom in late September. We happened to come at the best time of year for fall leafing -- it was beautiful. PERFECT weather, perfect day!

Yes, I'm holding up that boulder....

This is MY tree :)

I swear the sky was the bluest I had ever seen - it was such a beautiful day~!

Two trees growing out of limestone....or did the soil erode away leaving the portion that the roots were retaining? There will be a test....

Flying L Ranch, Bandera Texas

I remember Flying L from the many weekends spent in the Hill Country when my kids were growing up. Nestled in Bandera, Texas, what I didn't know was that the place has been renovated. I was so excited when we saw the rooms - super spacious, fireplace, full kitchen, all the comforts of home. There is a dining room on the premises that serves breakfast and dinner and they had a H-U-G-E Thanksgiving feast. Horses, golf, water park in the summer, tons to do, lots of deer, turkey, birds...it was amazing and so much fun!

Ron tells me that the painting is from the movie The Magnificent Seven. Being raised in Long Island means I don't  know a bunch about those seven, but they sure looked magnificent in this composition --

That rocking chair is made from hand tooled leather. It was gorgeous...but not as comfy as a Lazy Boy :)

I'm already thinking that when the waterpark is open this summer, Audrey could very spend the night in one of those bunk beds :)

The first day after arriving we walked around the premises and explored the town of Bandera -- which, though it has grown, definitely has retained it's character and charm!

The residences above were built in 1946-1947 and were designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for the Colonel who owned Flying L. The Colonel loved to fly -- hence, the name of the ranch. If you look carefully, the design of these duplexes (where you can stay!) are made in the shape of an airplane. Pretty cool for a ranch, huh!

Now, the following illustrates just a bit of the local color in Bandera:

The Church's Chicken delivery car...makes ya want to get a bucket, doesn't it?

We shopped and then ate at the Famous Old Spanish Trail restaurant....

where they LOVE John Wayne and HUGE chicken fried steaks....(no, I didn't...)

It was fun. Stay tuned --more to come!