SW Trip 2014 - Austin, Texas

McKinney Falls State Park - Austin, Texas

March 7 – 10

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This state park is located very close to the city on the southeastern side, yet feels like it’s out in the country. Upon arrial we were able to pick the site we wanted. It was very large and backed up to the woods and trails; perfect! This park is known for its limestone geology with the Onion Creek waterfalls flowing over rocky ledges. At this time the waterfalls were very small, as there is an ongoing drought in Texas.

The next morning, we decided to take a drive around Austin and go by Kurt’s childhood home and other nostalgic locations. We first drove northwest of the city to Lake Travis. The lake is also very low due to the drought. The water is very clear and blue, with some marinas. We drove around the lake to a small county park where we were able to get some nice pictures. Then we drove back into town to find Kurt’s former home. He lived there for a few years (8 – 12 yrs old) when his father was stationed at Bergstrom Air Force base. The old neighborhood looked much like it did when he lived there. While driving around the area, we found a local Mexican food restaurant and had a wonderful lunch! Then we drove downtown to visit the Texas State Capitol. I was amazed that Kurt would even consider the tour, but he did enjoy it. We also visited Zilker Park, where Kurt and his friends hung out. It’s a beautiful urban park with many activities, including a natural spring fed swimming pool. Later, back at the campground, we built a nice fire and enjoyed the rest of the evening.
The next day, we geared up for mountain biking and rode all 9 miles. About 6 miles had some technical sections of mountain biking. We enjoyed the exercise and the beautiful weather. After lunch, we got ready to head into town for some evening fun. The Broken Spoke is an authentic, historic Texan honky-tonk dancehall in Austin. It was a lot of fun; we even participated in the two-step dance instruction. However; Kurt was really not in the mood for dancing, so we enjoyed watching some serious dancers. The evening was a lot of fun as we experienced some real Texas culture.

Our last full day there was spent on a scenic drive in the country. This part of Texas is “Hill Country” and we drove west of Austin to the “Devil’s Backbone” scenic drive, which took a few hours. It was an amazing area of mostly ranches. The hills and valleys were beautiful, with limestone terraces. As part of the drive, we visited a barbeque place that we had seen on the Travel Channel and rated as the number 1 in the US. The Salt Lick barbeque is  located out in the country near the small town of Driftwood. Even as remote as it is, the place was very busy on a weekday. The food was wonderful and we stuffed ourselves. We will have to try other Texas barbeque to see if any of them are as good.

Back at camp, we began preparing for our departure the next morning. We will be heading to San Antonio, only a couple hours’ drive southwest.