Grand Week in the Texas Hill Country

Recently returned from a wonderful week in the beautiful Texas Hill Country.  Hiked around Blue Hole and Jacob’s Well–two very pretty spring-fed swimming holes but too cold to swim now–in Wimberley.

Hiked the gorgeous Westcave Preserve, a privately owned natural area in Round Mountain; the main feature is a collapsed limestone grotto that forms a canyon, with entrance to the cave in the bottom of the canyon.  The lush vegetation results in summer temps on the canyon floor being some 15 degrees cooler than on top–extremely refreshing for Texas!

Toured the awesome Canyon Lake Gorge–one mile long, hundreds of yards wide, and up to 50 feet or more deep–which was carved through limestone in 2002 when extensive flooding of the Guadalupe River led to a huge amount of water (67,000 cubic feet of water per second) going over the spillway from the Canyon Lake Reservoir.  The flooding exposed rock strata as old as 100 million years, with fossils and a set of dinosaur tracks.  Along the way, we saw a great blue heron, a roadrunner, wood ducks and a couple of fox.

We ziplined and rappelled at Cypress Valley and swam in the Pedernales River at Milton Reimer’s Ranch–now a Travis County park–where rock climbing, mountain bike trails,  an equestrian trail, and fishing are also available.

 

At the 1st Texas Olive Oil Company at Bella Vista Ranch, we learned all about hill country olive oil production and tasted several kinds–yummy!

Kayaked on Town Lake (Colorado River) in Austin, followed by a fabulous lunch at The Easy Tiger Bake Shop & Beer Garden.

Stayed at a terrific B&B in Dripping Springs, complete with an outdoor hot tub under the vibrant Texas stars.  Enjoyed two-steppin’ to Texas tunes at the Mercer Street Dance Hall, as well as Texas brews and live music at the Barber Shop Brewpub, also on Mercer Street.  Great eats were had at the Creek Road Cafe in Dripping Springs.

Made the obligatory stop at Salt Lick Barbeque in Driftwood for brisket, beer and live music under the shade trees.  Later, enjoyed tasting beers at the nearby Twisted X Brewery.

This super week was capped off by lunch on a deck overlooking Lake Austin with long-time friends.

 

Central Texas Travelogue

 

Just returned from a week driving through central Texas.  Live Texas music on very cool patios on Fredricksburg nights was simply wonderful.  Took my husband for his first climb to the top of Enchanted Rock–a massive granite hill–great view of the Hill Country from the top! Also took him for his first swim at Hamilton’s Pool, outside of Austin–still the best and prettiest swimming hole in Texas, and Texas has many!

Took in all new restaurants for us in Austin–Franklin’s Barbeque is totally awesome, if you can stand the wait– and Noble Pig (near Lake Travis) has terrific sandwiches made from the pork they smoke on-site.  The food at La Condesa and South Congress Cafe was delightful.  The historic Driskill Hotel’s Bar made for a lively spot for late night, after dinner drinks.  Stayed in a simply beautiful B&B in Gonzales; saw the actual cannon that fired “the shot heard around the world” (Texans, do you remember that from your 7th grade Texas History days?)–as well as lots of other items from the Texas Revolution. Had dinner with good, toe tappin’ local live music in Shiner–home to the famous Shiner Brewery, where beer has been independently brewed since 1909; fun night at Howard’s–a gas station and convenience store with Shiner on tap and a patio warmed by a fire; easy to find, it is the only building in town with an airplane on the roof.  Throughout the week, we had lots of other wonderful Texas craft beers.  All in all, it was a terrific week!

Fantastic Food in Forney

Tried Doe Belly’s Cajun & Creole Food (on Broad Street) for the first time today.  It’s a very casual place (converted Sonic) with fun music and great food.  The shrimp po boy held meaty shrimp with a wonderfully spiced batter, was dressed nicely, and the bread was better than most po boys are served on in these parts; the accompanying tarter sauce was terrific.  The perfectly battered fried catfish is fresh, hot and excellent.  French fries are seasoned well and delicious.  Specials are available on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Service is super friendly and efficient.

Drove a few blocks to Crumbzz for dessert.  It’s an upscale cafe in the small town of Forney and really quite hip!  We had three flavors of their awesome coffee cake.  The cinnamon and salted caramel were both so good; none of us was as fond of the chocolate & raspberry.  The service is always very friendly, and the owner always stops by to check out our satisfaction.

Check out both; you won’t be disappointed!

10 Fun Days in Southern Florida

Ft. Lauderdale is aptly named “Venice of America” – some of the town’s best streets are canals.  Two perfect ways to experience is to take a narrated boat trip or motorized narrated gondola, both of which depart from Himmarshee Village; while at Himmarshee Village, dine on the patio of Tarpon Bend Food & Tackle for a fresh fish sandwich or yellowfin tuna salad–yummy!  Next, walk the 4-mile waterside River Parkway to see all types of boats, from a $184 million/282 ft yacht to kayaks.  Be sure to also dine at the 70 year old Floridian Restaurant, popular because of its old fashioned ambiance and very friendly 24-hour service–we had pancakes and waffles, which were very good.  Walked a few blocks down Las Olas Blvd to view houses on canals, each with its own boat dock and flower-lined boardwalk.    Other notable dining options were Comida Colombiana, for awesome Colombian eats, and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza, both in the suburb of Plantation,  and Coconuts for seafood.  Nearby Treasure Trove, an open air bar, had a great vibe and terrific live music.

A nearby option for kayaking/canoeing is the Anne Kolb Nature Center (in Hollywood), which encompasses 1500 acres of mangroves, mudflats and tidal pools–you may have to occasionally duck massive webs of orb spiders!  For diving/snorkeling, take the Sea Experience at the Twin Ledges Reefs.  50 miles to the west is Everglades City, where we took an airboat ride through the Everglades.  Had a wonderful casual lunch of fresh seafood on the deck of the nearby City Cafe.

Drove south toward Miami and spent two days/one night at South Beach.  Originally an untamed barrier island, this area now has the largest concentration of art deco in the world; 1 square mile with 800 art deco and Mediterranean-style buildings.  The art deco is situated between 6th & 23rd Streets, from Ocean Drive to Lenox Avenue, with the best re-fit art deco hotels on Ocean Drive & Collins Avenue–considered “one of the hippest places on earth”!  Took fun and informative historic walking tour  with Miami Design Preservation League, which departed from the Miami Design Art Deco Welcome Center @ 1001 Ocean Drive (10th & Ocean).  Sat at a sidewalk cafe, facing the beach, for a lemonade and people watching–so entertaining!  Browsed the shops & restaurants along the 7-block pedestrian Lincoln Road, lined with 25 sidewalk cafes–we liked Montididos for Spanish sandwiches.  Visited Espaniola Way, a charming, Spanish-style street of eccentric boutiques–on weekends, the street changes from a daytime open air market to an evening artists’ showcase, featuring art work and live music; dined al fresco at Havana 1957.  Strolled the lovely beach at sunset and took cool photos of art deco buildings all lit up.  Other dining we enjoyed was Puerto Sagua @ 700 Collins for fresh snapper and fried yucca; an understated diner-style restaurant with a traditional menu, long favored by South Beach locals for an authentic interpretation of Cuban cuisine.  Later in the evening, enjoyed drinks on the patio of Lario’s on the Beach–owned by singer Gloria Estefan–while listening to excellent live music.

Spent a day in Little Havana, another section of Miami.  Organized walking tours are available every other Saturday (www.miamiculturaltours.com). Because we were not there on a Saturday, I organized our tour, consisting of:  Cuban Memorial Plaza – has rows of monuments, including revolutionary scribe Jose Marti, independence warrior Antonio Maceo Grajales, and the Virgin Mary, and old ceiba tree, sacred to the Santeria religion, with offerings like candy and cow’s tongue, as well as roosters and chickens that roam the neighborhood; Botanica Negra Francisca to see shelves of problem solving potions and coins left to San Lazaro, an uncanonized Cuban saint who is said to protect the poor and cure diseases; Los Pinarenos Fruiteria for fresh guarapo (sugarcane juice) and batidos (tropical shakes), frothy coco frio (coconut milk) or fresh oj; Maximo Gomez Park, where seniors spend hours playing dominoes & chess in the shade; Bay of Pigs Museum; Versailles for lunch of chicken & rice and fresh baked guava pastellitos–an institution; 3rd generation Cuba Tobacco Cigar Company to watch stogies being cut & rolled with a chavets (knife) and cortadora (cutter)–the Gloria Cubana is reputed to be the best cigar in the US; Azucar for ice cream in tropical flavors; Freedom Tower (Ellis Island of the South for assistance to Cuban refugees in the 60s/70s); and El Brazo Fuerte for terrific fresh bread and crisp Cuban crackers.

Last Miami meal was on the deck of Garcia’s Seafood Grille & Fish Market, overlooking the Miami River–famed for awesome conch chowder, dolphin dip on saltines, and key lime pie.

Left Miami for 150 mile drive through the Keys (Upper Keys = Key Largo to Layton; Middle Keys = prettiest, dominated by Marathon & the 7-Mile Bridge; Lower Keys = green and quiet until you reach Key West).  Dined at Fish House, where our meal was recently in local waters, in Key Largo.  Anne’s Beach in Lower Matecumbe Key, is one of the better beaches, although the Keys are not known for especially nice beaches.  John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park was the first undersea park in the US and has canoeing, kayaking, snorkeling and glass bottom boats.  Big Pine Key has a swimming beach with lovely sand at Bahia Honda.  In early morning and late afternoon, watch out for key deer.  A 3-hour kayaking tour is offered at Big Pine Kayak Adventures.  You can ferry from Indian Key to Lignumvitae Key to hike Florida’s last virgin tropical forest.  Islamorada is the sport fishing capital of the world; at Robby’s, buy a $3 bucket of bait and feed 200 lb tarpons.  Ended up in Key West for two days/one night.

Key West, founded in 1822, was the first Spanish settlement in The Keys.  Nice walk through Old Town, the historic quarter, with conch houses–termite resistant hardwoods with gables and wide porches, often trimmed in gingerbread; best examples are at Carolina and Eaton Streets.  Duval Street is the main concourse, 1 mile from Gulf to Atlantic, lined with tourist shops, restaurants and bars.  On Solaris Hill, elders gossip in Cuban Spanish, while Bahama Village has West Indian accents.  The famed Ernest Hemmingway home is on Whitehead,and his favorite hangouts were Sloppy Joe’s & Captain Tony’s.  We visited Mel Fischer’s Museum to learn about the greatest haul ever by US salvage hunters, worth 1/2 a billion dollars.  Daily sunset celebration, on pier north of Mallory Square, is very hectic; Fort Zachary Taylor Historical Park has clear deep water and is a perfect, peaceful spot for watching the sun go down.  Enjoyed Santiago’s Tapas and the Tower Bar at Turtle Kraals for a Key West Sunset Ale–unfortunately, not available in my hometown!

Took seaplane 70 miles west to Dry Tortuga National Park, 19th century Fort Jefferson–completely surrounded by gorgeous aqua water and only accessible by seaplane or boat.

Made the return drive to Ft. Lauderdale.  Such a fun time with lots of outdoor activities!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Awesome Barbeque

 

Dallas has lots of barbeque joints–Cattleack is one of the best.  Located in a very unlikely spot, in the middle of an office park, just off Midway.  Among the offerings are very good brisket and sausage–choices vary from week to week but my fav is jalapeno–cooked the way I like it, where the skin pops when you bite into it.  There are weekly specials; this week, they smoked a pig, and the smoked ham made a terrific sandwich!  Tasty slaw–vinegary with a touch of sweetness–complements the meat well.  Both sauces are good.  Open 10:30 – 2:00, or until they run out of meat, on Thursdays and Fridays only.  The line forms quickly but also moves quickly.  Perk is a free beer while you wait in line!  The other drinks served are good choices, among them Dublin Dr. Pepper and Mexican Coke.  Inside and outside seating, both at picnic tables.  Extremely friendly owners/staff.  Don’t forget the delicious coke cake for dessert!