Late March 2021

We wrapped up our visit to Austin with a stay at McKinney Falls State Park. This site is just a stone’s throw from downtown Austin and is a perfect base for area day trips. The park is a gem, with lots of greenery, hiking trails leading to the river and little waterfalls, and well-spaced campsites in the woods.

The first day, we explored the park. On the next, we ferried our bikes to the edge of town and rode along the Ann and Roy Butler Trail at Lady Bird Lake. This is a popular trail for runners and bikers (going much faster than we were), but we enjoyed it at our own pace, taking in the city waterfront views.

We stopped at the Umlauf Sculpture Garden, which is tucked into a hillside along the way, and took a stroll through the outdoor displays.

We especially enjoy activities on the edges of cities. Taking the van downtown, dealing with unfamiliar traffic patterns, and finding safe parking on the street can be challenging. City parks with trails are a nice find for us.

On another day trip, we visited the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center. We may have been a tad early for the big show of spring wildflowers, but we did see bluebonnets!

The center is well-laid out, with good interpretive exhibits about the area’s geological history and the importance of preserving Texas native landscapes. We enjoyed our morning there.

Austin is a beer lover’s town, and it was appropriate that we topped off our stay with a repeat visit to the Austin Beer Garden Brewing Company. Great beer and pizza in an outdoor garden. What’s not to like?

From Austin, we started working our way west. We spent a few days at Arkansas Bend Park, which is a county park on Lake Travis.

This county park received a multi-million dollar upgrade a few years ago, in order to draw more tourists to the lake. There are currently just 18 campsites and they are huge.

The bath houses are sparkling clean and we enjoyed the lakeside trail for our after-dinner walks. They have a very imaginative kid’s play zone and an ADA woodland trail.

I have to say that their on-line reservation system is very convoluted, and I almost gave up. I’m glad I didn’t; the campsite experience was worth the extra effort.

We regrouped while here. We did some shopping for camping things at REI, Duluth Trading, Dick’s, and Cabela’s. I’ve worn out two pairs of sneakers while on this journey. I finally broke down and bought a pair of real hiking shoes better suited to the task. We also caught up on pantry re-supply, laundry, and campsite reservations before moving on.

Working our way west on Route 10, we spent a night at South Llano River State Park. We arrived late in the afternoon and had time for a hike along the river trail before dinner. This is a popular park with birders. Our site was next to a trail with a bird blind, so we saw lots of folks with binoculars, heading out to scout for warblers. While we fixed dinner, we watched a pair of armadillos hunt for their dinner, or maybe just an appetizer of tasty ants.

Near Sheffield, Texas, we spent a night at the Fort Lancaster Overlook, a boondocking pull-off spot perched high on a hill above the road. We arrived early afternoon, and were the second vehicle to park. By the end of the evening, there were half a dozen or more various-sized campers.

The view was stunning, but so was the wind! It rocked the van and howled through the night. I kept imagining that things we’d left outside the van were blowing away in the dark. But no worries. Morning light showed that we were still in one piece. Eager to move on, we packed up and hit the road, heading south toward Big Bend.