Tag: Bastrop

Winding down the Old and Quietly Ushering in the New

On By DGThomaIn Family, News and Reviews, Travel, Writing2 Comments

My anniversary is the first week in January and instead of exchanging gifts, my husband and I often take a weekend trip.  We are usually in need of a bit of recuperation.  Although fun, holiday travel can take a toll.   Our hectic schedule begins with Thanksgiving and culminates with our anniversary weekend.

I love to travel but am always grateful to return home.  This year our holiday plans included multiple trips, and I wanted to avoid piling on more miles when planning our anniversary.

I debated planning a special meal instead of a weekend trip, but decided to search online for day trips.  A few familiar options popped up, but, there was one I had not heard of , the 9E Ranch.  Intrigued, I read the following blurb:

“On a 320-acre ranch, this rustic cabin resort lies 13.4 miles from both downtown Bastrop and Smithville.

The 4 antiques-filled cabins are individually decorated and come with full kitchens and country views. Some add sleeper lofts, claw-foot tubs, air-conditioning, decks or wood-burning stoves.

Paths and hiking trails crisscross the property. Breakfast muffins and coffee are complimentary.”

The description sounded perfect for a quiet restful weekend!  I checked the website for a vacancy and found The Eagles’ Nest Log Cabin was available.  I booked the cabin and on Friday afternoon, we headed for the 9E Ranch.

We arrived at the ranch half an hour after we left home.  The entrance was easy enough to find but I recommend using GPS.  It is well marked but in the dusk it wasn’t as obvious as I expected.  As we drove through the gate, we shook, rattled and rolled down the hard-packed dirt road.

9E

It was a typical ranch road as expected on a working ranch. When we pulled up to the cabin, a smile spread across my face.  The scene was idyllic.  Thankfully, we had packed light, bringing few bags.  The air was chilly and damp, so minimal luggage made unloading easy. DSC00388

Inside, I was instantly charmed.  The view was lovely.  The stately pine trees meandered across the grassy slope tossing pine needles in their wake.  Huddled at the bottom of the hill a small herd of longhorn cattle strolled.

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We stowed our bags and settled on the sofa as the evening dusk faded to cast delightful light show across the horizon.  Later, we sat at the little wooden table and ate a light meal.  Tuna and fruit on a bed of greens and a tray of cheese with crackers on the side made a light and tasty meal!  The rest of the evening we sat quietly reading, talking and just looking at  the skyline.

On Saturday we drove to Smithville to visit a few antique stores and enjoy a fun lunch at Pocket’s Grille.  At Pockets, the burger bar is the trunk of a 1961 Ford Galaxy.  I ordered fish tacos and it was a delicious choice.  Ron opted for a burger. We both cleaned our plates.  After lunch, we headed back to our cabin.  With the drizzle now a rain, we stayed inside the rest of the day.  We had planned to take long walks on the trails and view the animals that roam the ranch.

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Instead we stayed indoors, wrapped in a quilt while we played Trivial Pursuit and watched the night sky come to life.  We left the Eagles’ Nest cabin around noon on Sunday, refreshed and rested.  It was the perfect getaway and I can hardly wait to return.

Colorado River, Good Food and Laundromats

On By DGThomaIn Food, Humor/Light Hearted, Musings, News and Reviews, Writing3 Comments

I find myself becoming more conservative as I age.  That’s a fact.  I’m not frugal in all things, but if I can save a few dollars without much effort I usually take advantage.

So when we went to our local dry cleaners to drop off a couple of comforters, I balked at the 100 dollar price quote.  One comforter was labeled as dry clean only but the other was marked machine washable.  Knowing there was no way the bulky comforter would fit in my home washing machine, I left the dry clean comforter with the experts and set off to find a commercial laundromat to wash the other one.

The closest laundromat with machines large enough to handle a comforter was in Bastrop, TX about 20 miles from my home.  Bastrop is a small town in Central Texas with a downtown that has maintained many of its historic buildings.  The Colorado River flowing through town, just off Main Street makes it a lovely place to visit, even if you are looking for a laundromat.

20150822_151920   Dining Room

We decided to eat lunch before we tackled our laundry project and found ourselves at Neighbors, a local restaurant overlooking the banks of the Colorado River.  It had been awhile since we visited this restaurant and I’d forgotten the pleasant atmosphere.  The Colorado River peeked through the trees as we enjoyed the cool air inside.  20150822_140232

We started off with Garlic Knots which are exactly like they sound, yummy yeast rolls twisted into knots with just the right amount of butter and garlic.  I would have taken a picture, but they disappeared too fast!

Neighbors is famous for its pizza, but we chose to forgo the usual and try something different.  We opted for The City Slicker Salad, a meatball sandwich and a meat calzone.  The salad came topped with apples, walnuts and goat cheese and was served with a lemon poppy seed dressing.  Delicious!  Ron tackled the calzone, stuffed with pepperoni, sausage and cheese.Rich had the meatball sandwich which speaks for itself.  It’s meatballs after all!  It was a wonderfully relaxing and delicious meal.

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After such a wonderful meal I wasn’t nearly so excited about the laundromat!  Putting it off a while longer, we ducked into Best Buy for a quick errand and then found ourselves at Baskin Robbins.  I mean there is always room for ice cream, right!  Honestly, I don’t often eat dessert, but Baskin Robbins can almost always tempt me.

Finally out of excuses, we pulled up in front of the laundromat.  It’s been years since I lived without a washer and dryer.  The few times I find myself at the laundromat I am always grateful that I don’t have to be there very often.  Digging for quarters, we shoved the comforter into the oversized machine and settled in for a half hour watching laundromat activity.  This laundromat has a television, arcade games and booths.  It’s quite interesting watching people come and go and feed the machines.  Finally the washer cycle completed and we moved the comforter to the dryer.  Thirty minutes later, the dryer was done, the comforter was folded and we were headed back home.

3.00 for the washer, 1.50 for the dryer  saved me 45.00 dollars.  Happy and contented, I dozed comfortably all the way home.

Nature, miles and friends

On By DGThomaIn Exercise, Family, Food, Friends, Writing4 Comments

While much of the country has been dealing with extreme weather,  in my area we’ve been more fortunate.  Austin, TX residents woke Saturday morning to a mild 64 degrees.  It was a perfect day for a long training run. If you have to run long, you may as well run for fun! Bastrop State Park is a short 15 miles from my home.  Running in nature while I train is a great distraction.2015-02-22 15.34.35 (1)

A fire devastated Bastrop State Park in September 2011 along with many other areas of Bastrop County.  The fire destroyed many of the ancient pine trees.  It affected 96 percent of the park.  The fire was a tragedy, but it has been wonderful watching the rebirth of the park, aided by many volunteer organizations and their members.

Dez, Ron, and myself arrived at the park with two expectations; to complete an 11 mile training run and to enjoy ourselves.  We put no constraints on time or speed.  Dez and I kept to the trails as much as possible while Ron opted for the park roads.

The trails range from sand, gravel, or packed dirt and is easier on your body than pounding on pavement.  The steep inclines and declines work muscles not used in street running and compel careful navigation to prevent falls.  The combination is a great workout.

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We quickly realized that it was going to be a silly, fun day when we started laughing at everything.  We stopped along the way to take pictures, to view the blackened, fallen trees and to enjoy the newly planted baby pines.

Throughout the morning, park guests greeted us and we shared waves and greetings in return.  At mile 6 we found a restroom, which had been recently renovated and was sparkling clean.  While we were stopped, we visited with Ranger Carpenter and learned a few facts about the park rehabilitation.

We stopped at mile 9.25 to enjoy a bit of solitude at a pond hidden among the trees.  I had spent the day in search of the elusive Houston Toad.  We were pretty sure we heard one in the distance while we were at the pond.

The Pond!

The park ranger we spoke with encouraged us to find a tree and claim it.  He suggested we take our picture with the tree and return annually to document the growth.  So we each picked one and began a tradition.

Our final mile tally of 11.5 miles was full of fun.  After surviving  our trek through nature, we ate lunch and stopped by Austin City Wide Garage Sale.  This weekend the sale was being held in Bastop, Texas.  After an hour and a half of wandering through the maze of exhibits we were a few dollars poorer and a few items richer, and our energies had been fully expended.

We ended our day with sweets from  the Sugar Shack in Bastrop.  We each had two scoops of ice cream and I brought home treats for later.  It was a lovely day and the best one I’ve had in a while.  A special thanks to my cohorts today for helping me make wonderful memories!