Texas BBQ Tour - 2017

Began the Texas BBQ Tour 2017 today. The journey started out cruising the back roads, headed towards BBQ heaven...the Texas Hill Country. It is definitely spring in Texas - the young calves are staying close to their mothers, same with the newly born kids (baby goats for you city slickers). The chicken houses were in full bloom...and the scent carried for miles downwind. The famous wildflowers have already seen their better days, but the roadsides were still slightly colored. They will be scorched by the end of May, as we are already in the 90's.

My first BBQ stop was Louie Meullers in Taylor, TX. The exterior sold me, but the interior did not disappoint.

The place attracts folks from all over the United States and the world. One of which you may recognize...

Muellers consistently wins top BBQ awards...

But I failed to get a pic of my selection...ate it too fast!

I ended the day in Kerrville with 370 miles on the trip odometer. It was a good day, indeed. And it ended well too!

I guess I need to include a pic of the bike to qualify as a true ride report. Here is Dusty, aka The Insect Assassin. Another sign of Spring in Texas is the plethora of kamakazzee bugs, some the size of small birds! I only took a half dozen to the head...might be time for a slightly larger windshield.

Day 2 began a little late...had to take care of some business this morning. Since I overnighted in Kerrville, I thought I would give one of the local, lesser known, joints a chance to impress. Here is Dusty anxiously awaiting her turn in line...

Bill's BBQ is the name and they get decent ratings on TripAdvisor. I tried the three-meat platter - a 1/4 pound each of brisket, sausage, and ribs - along with some baked beans and tater salad. I'm no foodie or food critic, but would rate Bill's in the middle of the pack in terms of Texas BBQ.

The owner is doing his part to clear the roads of deer and other vermin. All four walls in the seating areas were lined with mounts and tons of pics of successful hunts.

With my belly full, we began a little cruise along TX-39, a tree-canopied road which criss-crosses along the banks of the spring-fed Guadalupe River. After a few miles, I could sense Dusty was getting a little sleepy from the full stomach and warm sunshine, so we stopped at one of the bridge crossings to take in the sights and rest.

On the other side of the bridge was a nice waterfall...

And the natural tree growth was kind enough to double the view. I have been known to wear swim trucks under my riding clothes and take a little dip on a hot summer day at this very spot. But not today...and you wouldn't want to see that pic anyway!

A little further down the road was an interesting set of fence post decorations on both sides of the road...

Here is a zoom-in shot...call it original Texas recycling. Or maybe the PC term is "re-purposed".

I rode TX-39 west to US-83, then south to Leakey (pronounced LAY-key) and stopped in at the Bent Rim Grill (also known as the Frio Canyon Motorcycle Stop) for a cold adult beverage. The place as a dog-run style seating area where you can catch a cool breeze on the hottest of days. They also have a wall of shame...

And a pretty dry sense of humor...

The primary reason motorcyclists come to this remote area of Texas is the Three Twisted Sisters, perhaps the best combination of motorcycle roads in the state. The Sisters include FM-335, FM-336, and FM-337 which offer a wide range of twisties, elevation changes, and scenic views. Several sections of the roads cut through the hills, giving us kids an opportunity to the throttle a couple of extra VROOM, VROOMs just to hear the echo back. These roads are packed on the weekends, but not so much during the week. 

Today was a very peaceful ride...probably rode 50 miles without seeing another vehicle. Being in that isolated of an environment certainly puts things in perspective. We are but one of God's little creatures roaming this Earth.

Hope you are enjoying the ride!

Day 3. 

I met a business associate/friend for lunch today in Boerne (pronounced BUR-nee). In keeping with the theme of the trip, I selected Klein's Smokehaus as the venue. Klein's speciality is smoked meats and processing game for the many hunters in the area. And they do a little Q on the side. Very good Q, I might add. The po'boy brisket sammich must have weighed a full pound and was delicious. The only seating available is on the sidewalk, so we ate al fresco. No pics, but it did happen.

I arrived in Boerne a little early, so I stopped in at Mission City Indian Motorcycle to check out the new Chieftan Limited and Chieftan Elite. I really liked the Elite. I'm the curious sort and rode several Indians a few weeks ago at a Demo Days event. Out friends at H-D have some serious competition, but I think there is room for both brands to do well.

After lunch, I tool the back roads to Lockhart, a little town SE of Austin. Lockhart is the county seat of Caldwell County and, more importantly, is the home to two of the best BBQ joints in Texas - Kruez Market and Black's. The early German settlers definitely made their mark on the Texas Hill Country and Central Texas, especially in the areas of architectural influence, quaint country churches, farming, and smoked meats. Here is a sample of the courthouse architecture.

Decisions, decisions. What should I ear for dinner? How 'bout more BBQ? I chose:

Black's is family owned and has been in continuous operation for 84 years, so they must be doing something right. And after sampling the brisket and garlic sausage, I hereby proclaim Black's as my favorite BBQ of the tour!

The walls are plastered with game mounts, press clipping, awards, and pictures of their community involvement over the years, such as sponsoring Little League Baseball teams...the sort of things that generate 84 years and multiple generations of loyal customers. THIS is what makes America great.

All good things must come to an end and so it is with my Texas BBQ Tour 2017. With a full belly, I pointed Dusty towards East Texas and began the long journey home. I stopped at Buc-ee's (perhaps the world's largest gas station) and couldn't resist capturing Disty's trophy shot. She definitely lived up to her Insect Assassin moniker. I arrived home safe and sound at 10:30p...with the belly still full.

Oh, and that bottle of Four Roses is gone now too. Thanks for keeping me company on the adventure!

EPILOGUE:

Now that my digestive tract has processed all of the beef and pork consumed, my brain can finally start thinking about what made this trip special. 

The weather was perfect and the 941.9 miles of roads outstanding. The food was obviously great and the hotel accommodations (Best Western Sunday House in Kerrville) were adequate. It was my second long distance solo ride. Better than my first, but I still much prefer to have my bride of nearly 37 years along (she was doing her annual vacation with her sisters).

I didn't post about the people I met along the way, but they are what really made the trip special.

Like the guy from Denton, TX riding a BMW adventure bike. The thing was a little beaten-up looking and had stickers from all over the world where he had ridden. Like his multiple trips to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska (yes, multiple). And from Texas down to the southern-most tip of Latin America. And from China across Russia into Eastern Europe. And all around New Zealand and South Africa. he was not a wealthy man, just determined with a great sense of adventure. He'd never been out of Texas until 2002.

Or the fun couple from Angleton, TX on the GoldWing who are relatively new to motorcycling (started in 2015). The own a small logistics company and work too much, but play hard too. With retirement on the horizon, they find motorcycling together a great way to put their life into perspective.

Or John, a recently retired pastor from San Antonio who lost his wife to cancer a year ago. He doesn't hesitate to jump on his 2008 Ultra Classic and ride to Arizona or Las vegas to visit (or help) friends. At 63, he'd full of life and healthy. He's still mad at God for taking his wife, but understands tehre is a higher power at work and is finally ready to share life with someone again...but she has to ride!

And there were countless others who shared a brief word or lustful glance at Dusty.

I made a conscious effort to slow down on this ride. Not speed, but pace. To take pics...to really see the trip, not just push through it. I also made it a point to talk to people, whether it was at a rest stop, while eating, or sitting around the pool at the end of the day, or just holding a door open for someone and striking up a light conversation. And out of respect for growing the riding community, to complete the ride report. It didn't happen if you don't write the ride report.

This is THE place!

Day 3
We awoke to partly cloudy skies on Wednesday, so we steered west through Ingram, Hunt, and points yonder on TX-39. The first 20 miles out of Kerrville are nothing short of awesome - rolling hills and gentle curves as we follow the creeks through the valley with a tree canopy overhead to soften the morning sunshine. It's a little cool, so we resist the urge to stop and dip the toes in the spring-fed creeks, we'll save that for the return trip.

Yesterday was good, but this is it, I thought. We've found "THE place" for Thunder Road. Hell, "THE place" is all around this part of the Hill Country! Wow, look at that 6-point buck in the woods! You get the drift, we were already into sensory overload and hadn't eaten lunch yet. Once we pass the FM-187 turn-off, we leveled off to a classic scene from an old cowboy movie. "Home, Home on the Range" begins to go through my head...I'd be able to actually hear it on the XM radio had I bought the Ultra yesterday.

Yet another thunderstorm was brewing about 50 miles out and headed our way. With nothing but longhorns and an occasional ranch hand's truck in sight, I twisted the throttle back to race the storm to US-83, then TX-41 where we would turn back east for our return loop. We beat the storm, but it was gaining in intensity. Coming south on FM-1340, we began to descend through the canyons, passing the summer camps, and we came upon...well, what looked to be Stonehenge! The site attracts a fair amount of visitors each day, but we opted to keep cruising to stay ahead of the rain.

We spent the afternoon looking at property in and around Bandera, ending up in the 11th Street Saloon for a beer briefing. We’d seen some good site options, but need to look further. "Can I get another beer, please?" I ask as I'm looking around the bar whose walls are lined with bras of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Rodney Carrington's Titties and Beer song immediately comes to mind. Maybe these cowboys are on to something...

Day 4
We headed south on our new favorite road, TX-16, for breakfast in Medina. On a whim, we stopped at The Rusty Rooster, a tiny cafe located in what used to be "the" gas station in this tiny, quarter mile long town. OMG!! Get Ride Texas or Texas Highways on the phone, the food was awesome and the proprietor was very friendly! Note to self, we'll be back tomorrow...and this time, ask his name!

Today was reserved for the Three Twisted Sisters. RR-337 is a dream road - starting with gentle rolling turns, then heading up the mountain pass (OK, a Texas mountain pass) and along the ridge for 36 glorious miles. The road is in great condition, but not too many places to pull over and enjoy the views or water the flowers. As you come down from the final ridge, you cross a (normally) flowing Frio River and into Leakey. A word to the wise, if you don’t pronounce it “LAY-key”, they’ll figure you’re a tourist and charge you double at the counter.

We make a pit stop and run into Ralph and Doris, a retired couple from the valley (South Texas). Ralph wants to buy a motorcycle, but Doris seems to think he's too short and fat to hold it up...and she's not about to get on the back of one of those things! Does she really think that was his intent? Sometimes loud pipes have a purpose.

We continue on RR-337 towards Camp Wood and about 10 miles out, come-up on two bikers ahead of us...and a herd of Axis deer in-between. LOTS of deer - probably 12-15 of them of all sizes! The problem was, they were scrambling along the left shoulder of the road, where they kept bouncing off of a game fence and back towards the road. Not wanting to become roadkill ourselves, we slowed to allow them to disperse and cross over to jump the low fence on the right shoulder. Note to self, I responded admirably, but could have reacted even better if I had that new Ultra with ABS brakes.

While refueling in Camp Wood, we met the town jester. He was about 75 years-old and pulled up on his little 50cc scooter that he uses to go down to the senior center for a hot lunch with the ladies. He was born in Camp Wood but saw the world in the military.

The gentleman gave us a quick historical tour, pointing out the old hardware store that Charles Lindbergh crashed into back in 1924. They ordered a new wing for his plane and once installed, he crashed again on take-off after he hit an overhead wire. Apparently, the third time was charm and he never returned. For those more macabre, the chopped-up bodies of the famous atheist Madelyn Murray O’Hair and her son were found in a barrel in the gravel pit down the road in 2001.

He was also full of jokes, but the best was his closing line about why he likes to ride his scooter while wearing baggy shorts, “I like the feeling of the wind on my wiener.” Perhaps no truer words have ever been spoken by a seasoned biker.

RR-335 is often referred to as Roller Coaster Road. Once you get into the hills, the road criss-crosses and follows a ridge overlooking the Sabinal River. It is an excellent scenic tour for the passenger, a little less so for the rider given the curves and constant terrain change, but a must-ride road for anyone on an iron horse.

After a boring, but short eastward run across TX-41, we turned back south on RR-336. I can’t really top the descriptions about the other Sisters, but RR-336 brings in a new challenge…cattle guards. You see, this road cuts through several large free-range ranches, where there are no fences along the roads. So when you’re moving from one tract to the next, you cross through a cattle guard.

Where there are cattle guards, there are...well, cattle. Now, cattle aren't inclined to jump into traffic like deer might, but they also don't clear the road just because you happen along into their world. That's safety lesson of the day #1. Safety lesson #2 is for you foreigners who ain’t ridden' across a cattle guard before. Here are three words of advice – slow and straight – especially if the roads are wet! The road gets really interesting as you descend from the plateau, with lots of switchbacks and terrain changes to keep the thrill factor high.

By the time we got back into Leakey, we needed a pit stop and a cold brew. Both were ready and waiting at the Frio Canyon Motorcycle Stop.

We spent the remainder of the day cruising through the Frio River Canyon and Utopia, then headed back to Kerrville for some much needed showers. Probably could have handled another 100 miles had we been on the Ultra.

© 2009 TRHG Holdings LLC

Destination: Texas Hill Country

Every April, I open up the map and start looking for an interesting destination for a 'Bring in the Spring' motorcycle getaway. This year, the Texas Hill Country is the destination of choice and it looks like May 25-30 is the perfect time to make the trip.

We've been to the Hill Country many times, but usually spend most of it in the Highland Lakes area and Marble Falls because it's such an easy ride down from the DFW area. This year, we're going to ride the pinnacle of motorcycle roads in Texas...the Three Twisted Sisters, also known as the Twisted Sisters, The Sisters, or, in Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) lingo, FM-335, FM-336, and FM-337.

We'll make Kerrville our base camp, figuring any road worth taking is within a day's journey. Will also need to spend a little time in Bandera, I understand there is a watering hole or two worth visiting in the Cowboy Capital of the World.

Each weekend, thousands of bikers converge on the Hill Country, so I expect we'll see some old friends and make a few new ones too. Time to get the bike cleaned and road-ready.


© 2009 TRHG Holdings LLC