Sat/Sun 8-9 March - Shopping/packing/dinner at Chilis

Sat/Sun 8-9 March - Shopping/packing/dinner at Chilis
On Saturday Derek went to the clubhouse for a 2 hour jam session with a couple of guys from the resort (Dave x 2). He said he was a bit rusty, but it was great for him to get some practice in.  We then went and did some shopping and got water filter installed (ours cracked in the freeze) Most of the day for Tiina's gang was spent packing and preparing to leave. They also managed to get the, as yet un-named Armadillo shipped.We all went out for a final drink and meal. First we went to the Oasis ... but the view was not good due to mist and rain. The menu wasn't as varied as we would like so we moved on to Chili's in Lakeway and had a great meal. (note.. they have excellent Margaritas.)
On Sunday Tiina's gang headed to the Austin Rodeo and to see a concert with Willie Nelson. While they were gone we caught up on five loads of laundry and basic cleaning. When they got back we all sat round our campfire (propane, but fun) with a drink or two  and we heard all abut the tales of the rodeo and Willie. They had some final packing to do, so it was an early night for us. I totally forgot to take any photos ... a bad habit I am getting into!!!!

Thurs-Fri March 6-7 2014 - Admin / Austin Bones and Bats

Thurs-Fri March 6-7 2014 - Admin / Austin Bones and Bats

Admin day for us while Tiina, Mychael and Breila went to San Antonio. They had a great day. We managed to plan our way back to Ontario…mileage and camps and timing. Target to arrive in Niagara Falls on April 9th traveling weather permitting. Other admin stuff and blog caught up and we are ready to go.

Fri Mar 7^th  Downtown Austin

No Comment

Kind of sad to see

Very kind of sad

Not how we want to see them.. roll on May Safari

Lazy morning then out to visit The Corner Store i North Austin…. a rarity of retail. In fact we have categorically NEVER seen anything quite like it. Taxidermy-ed animals, lions, giraffe, bison, fox, snakes... in fact hundreds and hundreds of breeds and a massive collection of animal skulls and bones. Breila bought an armadillo (a real one stuffed!!!) and she also bought some earrings made from the rattle end of a rattle snake and they really do rattle!!

Thousand of Antlers for sale

These are well preserved, but still .......!!!

The 'Corner Store" .."skulls anyone??"

We carefully put the armadillo in the back of the truck and set off to downtown Austin, all chirping merrily about what to name the armadillo... which we voted unanimously was a female. We went straight to Capital Cruises bat tour on the Ladybird Lake. We were early so enjoyed a drink in the Hyatt patio on the banks of the river. After boarding the 'bat mo-boat" we cruised around until dusk and were given a bit of a tour of the Austin skyline. We then saw the bats emerge from under the Congress St bridge. Not a huge display as its too cold and the females have not yet had their babes.. but impressive nevertheless. There are an estimated 750,000 pregnant bats under the bridge and when they all give birth in a month or so and the babies mature enough to venture out, then 1.5 million bats emerging would be quite a sight. There are no males in the colony... they are in Mexico sipping tequila... go figure.  

We (and Tiina) then walked up Congress St. (Mychael and Breila took a pedi-cab). We had a fine dinner at Manuel's and then walked over to Sixth St where the road was blocked off for the duration of an annual film/music festival called South by South West or SXSW. The street was full of party goers and the scene was in full swing. The whole street teemed with bars, and it seemed every bar had a live band. We wandered around and soaked it all up for a couple of hours, fascinated by the crowd, the music and the atmosphere.. electrifying to say the least.

Neat carriage on Congress St

Graffiti ... forgot the story!!

Janice's Batty husband

Mychael about to take off

Crowd in 6th St for SXSW

Cat video in window (it was a 2 story cat)

Bar on 6th St... Photo taken from outside

Wed Mar 5 - LBJ Ranch / Fredericksburg / Salt Lick BBQ

Wed Mar 5 - LBJ Ranch / Fredericksburg / Salt Lick BBQ

Great day sightseeing. Five of us left late morning and we stopped for a photo-op at a bridge over the Padernales to, once again, show in photo form the extent of the drought conditions here in this part of Texas. Docks are now on land instead of water and litter the banks of the water-starved river.

After the photo-op we headed straight for the LBJ Ranch in Stonewall, Tx. Breila and Mychael wanted to see Longhorn cattle, so we did a drive around until we spotted some. They were across a field, but we stopped for a few photos before continuing the drive around the ranch. Derek and I will be coming back to spend more time here in the next week or so, and will describe it in more detail then. We bought the CD driving guide which helped us appreciate the history and feel for the ranch. What a place to have called home.  

LBJ And individual ID # carved into horns!!!

Longhorns at LBJ Ranch

Peek a boo--- 2 week old Hereford and Mom!

Weights on Bull's horn to train them to grow  down

3 Musketeers at Beckers Winery

Leaving LBJ Ranch we headed directly into Fredericksburg, a small town somewhat like a Texan version of Niagara-on-the-lake but instead of artsy stores, there are cowboy hat stores, hot sauce stores and Texan style gift shops. A sign that has a map of Texas, a gun, and the words "we don't call 911"... and they mean it!!! LOL!! Don't mess with Texans!!!  I must mention here that most Texans we meet are extremely patriotic, extremely friendly and just great people. We had lunch in Fredericksburg and then walked around town. Derek and I picked up some spices and Tiina, Michael and Breila picked up a few souvenirs before we headed out of town, stopping at the pecan store (new crop) and then on to the Becker Winery for a tasting .. note to self ... great spot for a packed picnic lunch and glass of wine!  Slow drive to the Salt Lick BBQ in Driftwood for dinner. This place is unique. It is a truly original Texas BBQ. It is out in the middle of nowhere and is a huge BBQ restaurant/picnic area etc etc ... The specialties are smoked beef and pork ribs, sausage, chicken and brisket.. and they serve massive portions. According to the guy manning the huge round 6foot diameter BBQ grill (with oak burning fire underneath), they go through about 3000lbs of brisket alone on a Saturday night and at least 1000lbs on a week-night. You can bring your own drinks (BYOB) and we took in a cooler with beer and wine to enjoy with our meal. This place is hard to describe. While the food is copious, do not expect gourmet, just plain, good BBQ food and lots of it. We each took enough home for another meal tomorrow! Over stuffed, we headed back to the RV park for a night cap and chat before heading for an early night.

Fueled by a fire of Oak wood

Two Pork ribs - Mychaels 3rd helping

Meat lovers paradise- Salt Lick BBQ

 -

Beef Rib dinner ... YUM!!!

One of several dining areas. 'Texas Atmospheric!'

Sun Mar 2-Tues Mar 4- Austin and Mardi-Gras

Sun Mar 2-Tues Mar 4- Austin and Mardi-Gras
On Sunday we stayed at the RV park as it was pouring with rain. Mychael and Breila decided that they would like to go to a shooting range... because they could. Here in Texas you can rent an AK47 or a hand gun or a rifle for as long as you like with live ammo and shoot away in an indoor range. No background checks... no age limits etc. Tiina took them there and they had a great time, although it can get a little expensive after you rent the guns, the shooting lane and buy the ammunition. (somewhere close to $100 for two people for an hour). Derek and I stayed at the 'condo' and cooked up a couple of large shepherd's pies for everyone and they came over for supper when they got back from shooting. Derek and Mychael jammed a bit on the guitar and we had a lovely visit with them. It is so nice to have friends here to stay. Just wish the weather would cooperate, but it looks like it will be colder than usual for the next few days. 
 

The gang at Stubb's BBQ

A bar, and a bar, and a bar, and a bar, and a bar!

On Monday, we all took off in the truck to investigate the city of Austin. Breila and Mychael like 'weird' things so they went to a 'weird things' museum and then we all went to some eclectic stores in the downtown area and in the South Congress area. We had wanted see the bats fly out from the congress bridge at dusk (you can see this phenomenon on you-tube), but it is too cold for them to come out, so we will have to come back another day later this week to see them. Lunch was at Stubbs BBQ downtown It is a famous BBQ, and was good, but not as good as others we have been to. After some shopping and searching for a 'taxi-dermied' Armadillo, that Briela wants to acquire (we did find one but it was a bit pricey, so we left it in the store), we had a quick drink before heading back to the RV park. Derek and I watched '12 years a slave' and thought it was excellent. (should have won more awards at the Oscars!!!)

Changeable weather - so I'll wear shorts and sheepskin jacket!! 

Armadillos don't come cheap... but they are kind cute!!

Allen's Boots where they sell.... uhhh...!!!!

BIG cacti and old truck!

Tuesday Freezing overnight, no mains water available, but our on-board tank is full. Our friends went out for the afternoon to some caverns on the road toward San Antonio.  It was a day for Derek and Janice to catch up on admin and then join in the Mardi-Gras Parade. We rode on the large wagon, which also held a small live band. Others rode golfcarts, walked the route with their dogs, or rode their bikes.. of course all decorated in Mardi-Gras colours of Yellow, Purple and Green. We toured the RV park  jamming to the music and throwing beads out to all and sundry along the way... including a few dogs, much to their surprise and delight. The parade was followed by drinks, snacks and music in the pavilion. We stayed for a while and then headed back to the RV to do some computer research and emails etc. 

Handle on the condo!! - Staying in today!!!

Table cloth froze solid! (on the patio)

YeeHaa!! Mardi Gras!!!

Mardi-Gras Cakes

Sat Mar 1 Visitors arrive and Olympics

Sat Mar 1  Visitors arrive and Olympics

Silver Medal in the Making

The back wheels are multi-directional - tough!

AND THE GOLD GOES TO...!!!

Posing with the Gold Medal

"Okay Left, NO right, NOOO left, oh S--T"

Our visitors (Tiina, Mychael and Breila) arrived on Saturday just after noon and they were very tired after a long day traveling. A beautiful day here in Texas, sunny and warm. It happened to be the day for the Hacienda RV park Olympics and Lasagna dinner, so while our friends rested and took a quick trip to a local store, Derek and Janice entered the Olympics ... 4 events .. golf cart (with the driver blindfold), pin the tail on the 'cat', a weird little bike course and beanbag toss). Now you may think that the golf cart thing sounds scary.... it is!!! The driver has to maneuver the golf-cart through a bunch of orange cones, receiving verbal instructions from the passenger. It was hilarious to watch... people screaming at each other ... "Left!!!  I said LEFT!!!!" etc. One couple drove right into a bunch of (empty) chairs and into a tree.. one husband jumped out of the cart waving his arms in defeat leaving his confused blindfolded wife in the drivers seat heading for a field. Derek and I did very well both times (we took turns at driving and just missed the medals)... HOWEVER... it was a Canadian sweep in the 'Pin the Tail on the donkey' (which was actually 'stick a star on the cat's nose'). Derek and Janice stole the podium winning gold and silver medals respectively. What a proud moment!! Derek was ace at the little bike thingy, but Janice couldn't do that one (arm too fragile)... and we were pretty rubbish in the beanbag toss. After the games were officially closed and the flame extinguished, we enjoyed a fabulous homemade lasagna dinner... each serving was enough for 3 people, but we were hungry after the exertion of Olympic stick-the-star-on-the-cat's-nose. Much music and dancing after the medal ceremony. All in all,  a fun day. Tiina popped by during the music, but they were all heading for an early night after their long day.  

Mon Feb 24 - Friday Feb 28 - Hanging out/golf/prep for visitors

Mon Feb 24 - Fri Feb 28 - Hanging out/golf/prep for visitors

Lakeway Marina... see the original water line!!

One of the things that I am told is, when writing a blog, it is better to say nothing than blog about the mundane happenings that inevitably form part of life 'on the road'. So I will try to avoid details of laundry and such except in dire circumstances... the Brisket we cooked in the crock-pot on the previous night turned out to be delicious, though somewhat salty... we puzzled about how that could be... when we never add salt to any cooking... until we took a trip back to Costco later in the week to discover it was actually 'corned beef brisket'... brined !!! Note  to self and others... beware of brisket that is brined... delicious but SO salty. 

Going going Gone!!!! ALMOST!!

Monday we headed out to explore Lakeway and the Marina. We were really shocked to see just how low Lake Travis is (not really a lake.. just a dammed area of the Colorado River.) It is 51 feet below its normal. A woman at the marina said that the last time it was at 'normal' was in 2009. 

Used to be a prime lakefront property!!!

The photos here are an attempt to demonstrate how desperate the situation is here. The Marina and Bar we went to last year in Hudson Bend (Carlos and Charlies) has recently closed for good... such a shame.

Not much marine traffic these days

The following day Derek was lucky enough to get another golf game in. He was thrilled with his game... he felt he played one of his best games ever. Today was 'Happy birthday' to Janice's brother, who she was able to talk to by phone... good to catch up with family. Janice was also invited lunch with about 20 other women from the resort.. went to The Black Walnut... nice cafe-style restaurant.. great salads and everyone had a great time. Wednesday it was back to physiotherapy at Texas orthopedics... my range of motion has improved, but still lots of pain and no ability to put any pressure on the hand or wrist. But baby steps are good! We also did another quick trip to Costco for supplies for visitors etc.  Thursday was clean-up and laundry... not a good blog topic, except we rented a carpet cleaner from 'Wallymart'... and after our carpet was soaked through we realized that it was leaking from the bottom as Derek was cleaning.. so we have a soaked carpet, but quite a clean one... it'll be nice when we can walk on it again!!!!! LOL.  Friday we finished our cleaning and went out and got supplies for the cabin we have rented for visitors. We got the key in the late afternoon and got stuff into the fridge etc. The cabin is nice, but much smaller than we expected in the main area, a result of having a queen bedroom at each end... Still it has everything anyone will need and I think it will be comfortable.

Imagine when it was at 'normal levels'... so sad...!!  They really need water here!