North by NW

Drove up north today on some county roads and ended up on Texas 16 northbound.  More hills and valleys, more curves and dips.  We ended up in Llano, a little ranching town on the Llano River.  Explored the historic downtown,  Visited a couple of antique shops.  Had lunch in a storefront cafe on Main Street.  Llano is about 15 miles from Enchanted Rock Natural area which we plan to visit at a future time when we take a picnic lunch and hiking boots with us.  The rock is an outcropping of granite that covers about a hundred square miles of that part of Texas.  I saw an advertisement for a well driller.

 

 "$ 12.50 / ft  Granite.
If dry, the second hole is free."

 A well could get expensive.




The county courthouse is classic.

Vroom

Luci received this 65 Corvette as a present on her 18th birthday.  Not a bad present, I think.  It is on loan from her but she does not want to spend the money to get it serviced and operational .  

Plumbing

I hate plumbing.  It always leaks.  No plumbing is done in a comfortable position.  (usually under something).  Although, after having had to call a plumber to repair a leak outside the house this fall, they are paid very well !
    Getting back to yesterday, the shower has been dripping, during usage.  Finally the hose connection split so a replacement was purchased at Sutherlands, a local home improvement store.  When I tightened the fittings, I over tightened the plastic of the valve area split so when you showered, it .........(that's right, it leaked! )
    Yesterday morning, I disassembled the unit and headed for town with everything in a plastic bag. Sutherlands did not have it.  They have faucets and handles, etc, but not plumbing stuff.  "Try a plumbing supply store" was my advice.  Following directions, I found the store.  " Oh this is for an RV.  We don't have anything for a RV.  You will have to go to a RV store."  So it was off to Kerrville.  After a pleasant 25 miles south on Hwy 16, we arrived in Kerrville, crossed under I-10 an found a RV dealer after a couple of miles.  Not only did they have the part, but we had the choice of white or "chrome".   Kerrville RV a nice store with friendly people.
    Then it was time to find a grocery store before heading home.  The found the Texas based
"H E B" store and filled several of our shopping bags with a week's supplies. HEB and a Walmart are, far as I can tell, Fredricksburg's grocery choices.  We prefer to avoid "Wallie World" when there is a local alternative available.  Oh, by the way, reassembled the shower unit last night.  I let it sit overnight to check for leaks and attached it this morning.  My wife is happy to have the mess gone.

   

Sunday Morning Jan 17, 2016

Cool morning, almost cold.  Out outside thermometer said 28.  The boys didn't seem to mind as much  as I did when we went for our morning jaunt.  Somewhere in the trees of our woods right here an owl was asking his questions.  We did not have any answers for him.  The warmth of the sun helped us feel better about being out and about.  I am appreciating the earlier sunrises.  If we could get a little warmer temps that would be even better.
   Scraped the windshield before we could drive the mile and a half to the ranch.  The deer were everywhere.  Last night we met some fellow volunteers at a joint 25 miles out in the boondocks.  Alamo Springs has one of the best burgers in Texas.  They are awesome.  Well worth almost getting lost to get there.  The burgers are not a secret because the place was busy.  Next time we may go on a weekday.  But we will definitely go again.  It is a place to take visiting friends.  Next time I will take a photo of the burger before we consume it.  I thought of the photo too late.

Hunting Car

One of the cars in LBJ 's collection is his hunting car.  It is a unique vehicle that was made to allow same hunting fun without too much walking.  There is a wet bar and gun rack in the back.  ( a good combination), a steel late under neath, and traction tires on the back for those muddy places.
   I wonder how much hunting was done from this vehicle.  I have seen a photo of LBJ driving this car so I will share it when I find it again.

We are doing tours.

Today we gave our first tours at the ranch.  We each gave three.  It went well.  There is so much to talk about and so little time (25 - 30 minutes) so your main concern is keeping it moving.  Every guide tells a different story and truthfully, my story is not ever the same.  It varies with the group's questions, comments and what I find interesting at the time.  I have certain points that I want to convey and the rest is off the top of my head.  Fun !

Views of West Texas

The Roadrunner that watches over Las Cruces.

Views out the windows along I-10 heading east.  Not flat land as I expected.