Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2018 i Texas Highways Magazine

ON THE WESTERN EDGE OF TEXAS, you’ll find the only place in the state that provides a bird’s-eye view of 7,000 square miles spanning three states and two countries. And though some people opt to hike to the top of 5,632-foot Ranger Peak in Franklin Mountains State Park, I prefer to ride in one of the bright orange cable cars of the Wyler Aerial Tramway. The trip starts with a drive up the side of the eastern face of the Franklin Mountains to the tramway’s base station—about 1,000 feet above El Paso—where visitors can see the machinery that stops, rotates, and reverses the cars on their cables. As a park ranger holds open the gondola door, the car sways slightly as each passenger steps inside. With a light swing, the…

TAKING A MUCH-NEEDED RESPITE FROM HIGH-way driving, I exit Interstate 10 in Schulenburg at US 77 and head south for several blocks in search of lunch. Here, at the corner of Kessler Avenue and College Street, a restored white farmhouse with the Garden Company Marketplace & Café logo emblazoned on its side attracts my attention. While I’m tempted to enter the café via the farmhouse’s charming front porch, four baskets of succulents atop the low stone wall rimming the plant nursery beckon me to stroll the grounds first. My eyes feast upon the nursery’s lush greenery. Trays of cacti and succulents—donkey’s tail, mother-in-law’s tongue, hen-andchicks— entice me with their fanciful names and plump leaves. I pause to admire a gaggle of whimsical, brightly painted metal garden sculptures—among them, a saguaro…

In early spring, Nacogdoches wears its azaleas like a princess wears her jewels: always and everywhere. It’s hard to find a corner of this small East Texas city not bedecked in plump, round blossoms of purple, pink, red, yellow, orange, and white. But when we talk about Nacogdoches being in full bloom right now, we’re not just talking about flowers. With restaurants, shops, and attractions springing forth, new seeds of cultural vitality are sprouting in the town’s flourishing beds of history. Nacogdoches lays claim to being the oldest town in Texas. The Caddo tribe lived in the area as long ago as 1250, evidenced by the excavation of bones and pottery from earthen mounds found along creeks near downtown. Franciscan priests established a mission here in 1776 to convert the…

“We have unique building stock here representing every period of Texas history, and even earlier, going back to the Republic of Mexico and even the Kingdom of Spain.” IT’S DUSK ON SOUTH EL PASO STREET, THE buzzing thoroughfare that connects downtown El Paso to the Juárez bridge, and a man in a top hat and black coat strides down the sidewalk. Behind him trails a group of about 15 people, many of whom are also outfitted in Victorian garb. The top-hatted fellow, who sports a fake black moustache, pauses in front of a white-arched façade, now home to the music venue Tricky Falls. He gestures toward the building and addresses the group: “This is the 1914 Alhambra Theatre that I designed in the style of a Moorish palace in Andalusia,”…

“Trying to tell a good story without using too many words, you know, that’s all songwriting is.” LUKAS NELSON COMES BY HIS SUCCESS HONESTLY; NEVER mind that his father happens to be one of Texas’ most beloved musicians. The son of Willie Nelson and Annie D’Angelo, Lukas grew up just outside of Austin in Spicewood before moving to Maui, Hawaii, at age 10. He picked up the guitar at age 11, and by 13 was joining his father on stage for performances. When it came time for college in 2007, Lukas moved to Los Angeles, where he met drummer Anthony LoGerfo at a Neil Young concert. The two bonded over surfing and rock ’n’ roll, leading to the formation of Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real. (The band’s name…

THE SKY’S A BRUISED BLACK AND A NORTH wind scatters leaves as I step inside the Kammok Gear Shop at the corner of E. 7th Street and Navasota in Austin. I’m a devoted hammock-camper, and I’m here to accessorize for the elements. My Kammok Roo hammock, with its attachable insect net, makes it possible to enjoy bug-free outdoor hammock snoozing in summer, but spring’s rainy months demand more protection. Gravity was sending him a message: It was time to build a better hammock. Glancing around the shop is like doing a face-plant in a rainbow: Hammocks of several sizes hang vertically against the wall in neon streams of electric orange, turquoise, gold, and purple. Against the back wall, I spot just what I need: a Koala underquilt to sling below…

CHEF SONYA COTÉ LIVES JUST MINUTES FROM HER two Austin restaurants, Hillside Farmacy and Eden East. But Coté’s latest restaurant venture comes with a far lengthier commute: After opening her farm-totable restaurant Sinclair last spring, she regularly makes the drive two hours north of Austin to the historic railroad town of Clifton. En route to Clifton, we marvel at the largely undiscovered small towns just outside our state’s biggest cities. “I don’t mind it at all really; I kind of like driving,” says Coté from behind the wheel. “It gives you a sense of freedom.” Today, I’m accompanying Coté on a trip to learn more about the town that has managed to steal her away from Austin parttime. An hour north of the capital city, we exit I-35 at Belton…

The Texas Panhandle covers a high, sloping mesa, an extension of the North American High Plains also known as El Llano Estacado or the Staked Plains. The natural vegetation is primarily shortgrass prairie, which includes sideoats grama and big bluestem grasses, firewheel, American basketflower, and fragrant sumac along with mesquite, cott onwood, western soapberry, and hackberry trees. Spring wildflowers show up throughout Palo Duro Canyon State Park, according to Interpreter Jeff Davis. “What you see will depend on where you are,” he adds, including sand lilies and tansy asters in the higher areas; and fleabane daisies, firewheel, American basketflower, paper-flower, blackfoot daisy, sand sage, yucca, and prickly pear in the canyons. Trails offer great bloom-spotting, particularly lower trails such as the mile-long Paseo del Rio, which follows a fork of…

The Charles Bright Visitor Center, 200 E. Main St., offers tourist information and historical exhibits. It’s also the starting point for three Azalea Trails. Call 888-564-7351; visitnacogdoches.org. Other notable sites include: Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden is at 1835 N. University Drive Call 936-468-1832 for group tours; sfagardens.sfasu.edu. The Fredonia Hotel is at 200 N. Fredonia St. Call 936-564-1234; thefredonia.com. The Liberty Bell is at 422 E. Main St. Call 936-622-6425; libertybellbar.com. Front Porch Distillery is at 7905 US Hwy 59 S. Call 936-564-3999; frontporchdistillery.com. Sterne-Hoya House Museum and Library, 211 S. Lanana St. opens Tue-Sat 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Free. Call 936-560-5426; ci.nacog doches.tx.us/696/Sterne-Hoya- House-Museum-and-Library. Millard’s Crossing Historical Village, 6020 North St., opens Mon-Sat 9 a.m.-4 p.m. and Sun 1-4 p.m. Admission costs $10 for adult guided tours, $5 for…

GOT SOMETHING TO SAY? I’m a born-and-raised Amarillo native. I had a great upbringing, albeit simple and basic. Though a city slicker, I was surrounded by the cowboy and ranching heritage. I’m glad for the life I had there. LEE ANN POINDEXTER, COLUMBIA, MISSOURI Rodeo Pioneer I especially enjoyed the article “Hoofbeats of History” in the February issue. I was, however, a litt le disappointed when reading the portion about Myrtis Dightman Sr. and the Prairie View Trail Ride organization. Not only was Mr. Dightman Sr. the cofounder of the ride, but the article failed to mention Mr. Dightman’s success as a professional bull rider. He was the first black cowboy to compete at the National Finals Rodeo, and he won the Calgary Stampede Rodeo in 1971. The annual Labor…

THE WORLD’S LARGEST BOWIE KNIFE STANDS on the main road to Bowie from US 287’s high-speed bypass. Dedicated in April 2016, the knife has helped keep the quiet Montague County town from being a blur for travelers in North Texas. The hamlet even earned a Guinness World Record certificate for the replica. Visitors from as far away as Europe and South America have trekked to see the blade. “When the Knife finally went up, they said, ‘Oh, my gosh, how did you do that?’” says Van Baize, a retired bank executive who helped spearhead the project. Some locals were skeptical about the venture, he notes, but visitors from as far away as Europe and South America have trekked to see the blade, which was constructed with private funds at the…

My friend Ryan Ford, a Rockport kayak-fishing guide, suggested I join the Texas Hammock Hangers Facebook group when I first expressed an interest in hammock-camping several years ago. The group not only dispenses helpful tips online but also in person at its quarterly group “hangs,” as well as smaller (and sometimes spontaneous) gatherings throughout the year. The 2017 Fall Hang at Fairfield Lake State Park had nearly 170 participants, who filled nearly every available campsite. The 2018 Spring Hang is tentatively planned for Goose Island State Park in Rockport, contingent on whether or not the park will be open, as it sustained severe damage during Hurricane Harvey. “These people have a special place in my heart,” says Kris Simmons, Fairfield Lake State Park office manager, when I arrive for the…

UNLIKE ITS COASTAL COUSINS, THE CITY OF Pasadena to the immediate southeast of Houston is not usually considered a getaway destination. Thanks to its association with the 1980 film Urban Cowboy, Pasadena tends to conjure images of industrial refineries and roughnecks cutting loose on honky-tonk weekends, testing their mettle on a mechanical bull. But in a Pasadena neighborhood just a few blocks inside Beltway 8, a surprising destination defies such expectations: a compound known as the Silver Sycamore. This charming enclave of restored older houses, newly constructed buildings, and tiny cottages includes a café, a bed-and-breakfast, and an entire re-created Western town complete with an inn, saloon, chapel, and jail— all situated on nearly six landscaped acres dotted with gazebos, pergolas, and a pond. Enjoy country cooking like chicken and…

THE BIG, EXPENSIVE FESTIVALS TOUTING ELECTRONIC dance music, Radiohead, and Jay-Z get most of the media attention, but a number of more intimate Texas festivals have thrived without the hype. These may not be trendy, but they’re definitely cool and worth your consideration as the spring and summer concert seasons approach. Following the spirit of the Kerrville Folk Festival, which established its “listener fest” mentality in 1972, these are blissful gatherings where the music and the scene are intertwined. You go there to see and hear, not to be seen. Jumbotrons are not necessary because fans can usually get close to the stage. And unlike the Austin City Limits Music Festival in October, which upwards of 75,000 people a day attend, smartphones are not an integral part of the experience.…