Dog Days

It's summer, and once again time for the big San Antonio dog shows. Earlier this year than last...June instead of July. That gets John's and my vote, for sure! So far we've had temperatures in the 90s, which is a lot better than the 100+ readings we had here last year. Of course, it helps that the AC in the Royals works very well. If you remember, last year the first thing John had to do was find a mechanic to fix the unit on J.R.  Fortunately, Travelers World RV Resort has lots of trees and an adjacent grassy area for walking dogs, so we're very comfortable. The dog show sponsors also run shuttles to and from the RV park to the convention center, so we can come and go without worrying about parking downtown.

We came down on Wednesday, but didn't bring the Tracker as we haven't yet installed the tow bar. The Falcon and the fifth wheel made the trip with no trouble, and we set up Nickie's crate at the San Antonio Convention Center when we arrived. After drinks and dinner with Carol Hardaway at Boudreaux's on the Riverwalk, Nickie and I had a slumber party with Carol and her Border Collie, Gabby, at the Riverwalk Marriott. John and Feathers took the dog show shuttle back to the RV, and returned on Thursday to watch our runs.

They shouldn't have hurried. Nickie and I NQd all three of our runs on Thursday. The first was a very tough series of three obstacles which Nickie had to take while I directed her from 15+ feet away. That's a "not enough practice on distance work" problem. The second was Nickie's determination to "go in whichever end of the tunnel I like, no matter what you tell me." Her problem. The third was clearly "handler error" when I took my eye off Nickie and she went behind me instead of taking the jump. Oh, well, we had fun, and enjoyed watching our friends. Nickie's pal, Gabby, took a first place in her first event, and was very proud, as was her mom. She did well on Friday, too, and is shown here with Carol displaying her two blue ribbons!

Feathers got a lot of attention, too. I don't think any dog at the show made more people smile. She is suffering from a still-undiagnosed problem which has caused both eyes to become dilated. As a result, she is very light-sensitive. We have addressed at least the discomfort part of the problem by letting her wear sunglasses. People at the dog show asked John if she was a movie star, and of course he said she was! Here Feathers shows off her "Hollywood" look.

Friday's agility trial got off to a fantastic start when Nickie got a blue ribbon and a qualifying run in her first class. It was downhill from there. She and I teamed up to make mistakes in the our next two runs, and finished the first two days 1 Q for 6 attempts. Fortunately, on Saturday we finally got our act together and she got a Double-Q. That is, she had qualifying runs in both her "Standard" and her "Jumpers with Weaves" courses. Here she is with her ribbons....two firsts and a third...and the most important thing (to Nickie and Feathers) the toys that dogs get when they take first place.

Between agility runs, we had plenty of time to visit the many vendors at the show, and to watch the conformation, rally and obedience classes. Here a couple of Salukis wait their turns in the conformation ring.

Not all the dogs in San Antonio were at the dog show, though.  While on a "potty break" across the street from the convention center, we saw this group out for a brisk stroll.  The handler's T-shirt said "I'm not a dog walker; I'm a pack leader!" 

Sunday was a "play day" for John and me. We had breakfast across the street at Taqueria Guadalajara (rated a "Best of San Antonio" by Texas Monthly). We then left the girls in their crate at the convention center and spent a couple of hours at The Institute of Texan Cultures. Built as the Texas Pavilion for the 1968 Hemisfair, it is now affiliated with the Smithsonian and remains open to showcase and celebrate Texas' diverse history and heritage. Our very knowledgeable guide, Ed Johnson (strangely enough, an archeologist from New York), shows off an old hearse which is said to be haunted.

　

We enjoyed our visit, but were ready to get back to Austin by the time Monday rolled around.  We look forward to next year's event, and hope to collect even more "Qs and Blues."

Making Tracks

Our most recent excursion, unlike the previous ones, did not involve the Millennium Falcon or the Royals. It was related, though. We left on Wednesday of last week via American Airlines bound for Lewisville, KY, to pick up our "caboose." That is, we went to acquire a 2004 four-wheel-drive Chevy Tracker, which we will tow behind our fifth wheel. If you followed our previous trips with the big truck, you know that thereare downsides to having only one vehicle to drive if it's the tractor part of a tractor-trailer! 

So, when we learned that the Tracker was available from a fellow Escapees RV Club member, we made arrangements to add it to our assortment of vehicles and (hopefully) make traveling with the fifth wheel less complicated. We were also excited about seeing a part of the country that neither of us has visited before, to check out things to see and do, and to locate RV parks for future use.

We arrived in Louisville and were met by the folks who were selling the Tracker. After lunch and a thorough examination of the vehicle, we decided to spend the night in Louisville and see some of the local color before undertaking the +/- 1,000-mile trip home. Luckily, we found space at the downtown Hampton Inn, just a couple of blocks from the entertainment district, shown here.

Being in the heart of Bourbon Country, we decided to sample some of the good stuff, and headed for the Maker's Mark Bourbon Bar. A couple of appetizers later, accompanied by a couple of Manhattans and a flight of Bourbons, we called it a night. We liked the Maker's, but were wowed by the Four Roses! You can see how much we liked it, and no wonder....it's 100 proof!

Thursday morning, we set off for a nice walk through the downtown area. Louisville is lovely, and probably the cleanest city we've ever visited. There wasn't a single beer can or cigarette butt to be seen. There was, however, plenty of art. The waterfront park features a magnificent sculpture of York, one of the members of the Lewis and Clark expedition.

Sculptures of horses, however, are more numerous. Austin has its decorated guitar sculptures; Louisville has its thoroughbreds. Two examples are sculptures depicting Derby Winner Real Quiet, and 1987 contender Alysheba.

We also toured Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby. We were told that last year's Derby winner Mine That Bird was in residence, as well as super filly Rachel Alexandra. We didn't see either of them, but we did watch this handsome guy getting a bath after his morning workout.

After leaving Louisville, we stopped for a tour of the Jim Beam Distillery, part of the Bourbon Trail that stretches from Louisville to Lexington and back. Unfortunately the Jim Beam facility was being renovated and actual tours were not available. We did sample a couple of their fine whiskeys, though, and will return another day to take the full tour.

Thursday night found us in Jackson, Tennessee, relaxing in another Hampton Inn. On the way out, we planned a visit to the Casey Jones Village, named in honor of the legendary railroad engineer who sacrificed himself to save his passengers. Our sightseeing Karma still wasn't working, though. The railroad museum was closed due to a power problem. We made a quick visit to the Country Store, with its supply of Elvis Presley memorabilia and old-fashioned candies, and were on our way.

Friday night we stopped in Little Rock, Arkansas. We would have visited the Clinton Museum, but John said that, since we are registered Republicans, our names were probably on the equivalent of the "No Fly" list there. We did, however, visit the Peabody Hotel, where we were just in time for a cocktail and the Parade of Ducks.   At precisely 5:00 p.m., surrounded by camera-toting fans, the ducks are escorted from the lobby fountain along their red carpet to the glass-fronted elevator, and from there to the Duck Palace on the second floor. Sometimes being a duck can be pretty nice!

Saturday morning we took a walk along the Arkansas river, and saw the famous "Little Rock" for which the city is named. It's located at the base of the pedestrian bridge over the river, and is shown in the photo below.  (And it really is a little rock.)

After our walk, we visited what is the probably the best farmer's market I have ever seen! Located along the waterfront, it features an amazing array of produce, flowers, and arts and crafts.

I could have spent the morning, but we had another 300+ miles to go. We bought a few vegetables to take home, and headed for Fort Worth.

We spent the night with Cousin Kathy Cash and her husband, Eric Vanderbeck and family dog Jack. Kathy, Eric and Jack are frequent visitors to the farm in Hamilton County, but we had not seen their Fort Worth home, nor the three chickens who always send a supply of eggs to farm weekends. Released from the "hen spa" for some foraging time in the yard, they made good use of their time to stock up on bugs, worms and whatever else chickens enjoy. Eric's special favorite is "Nekkid Neck," the Turken, sporting her (really) naked neck and small cap of black feathers.

Here chicken-sisters, the Silver Laced Wyandotte, and "palomino" Araucana entertained us with chicken conversation as they scrounged around for bugs.

On Saturday, we had breakfast with Michal's brother, Allan and wife Jefflyn Jones, Kathy and Eric, and Michal's mother, Evelyn Jones, who was there for a short visit. We also had a chance to visit Cousin Karen and the homes of Nieces Anna and Erin and their families.  We took Evelyn back to Hamilton on our way home. Only one small hitch...when we got to the farm to check things before returning to Austin, we found that Bos, our sweet and gentle Bonsmara bull, had decided to go visiting next door and had demolished about 50 feet of fence. John and I spent Sunday afternoon making repairs so we could return him to his home pasture....and hope he stays put!

The Tracker performed well on the trip home, and we look forward to hooking it up and heading out for a longer trip this fall.

Fredericksburg

After two nights at Pedernales Falls State Park, we hooked up and moved to the Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park in Fredericksburg. The park is 300+ acres (including the golf course) about four miles outside of town. Our site backs up to the airport, so we have built-in entertainment. Fortunately the planes are far enough away that the noise is not a problem. In addition, the park has plenty of paved roads for bike riding, plus a very nice nature trail and bird blind. We've been able to stretch our legs several times a day, and the dog girls have enjoyed going for their morning run alongside our bicycles.

Fredericksburg has plenty to see and do. We chose to revisit The Nimitz Museum and National Museum of the Pacific War now that it has been expanded and remodeled. It's a fantastic museum, extremely well-done wth plenty of video and audio footage from WWII. It provides a chronological account of the war, beginning with the background of events that contributed to the war.


We especially enjoyed the oral history audios which are part of almost every exhibit. Since both my dad and John's served in World War II (his in the Pacific Theater), it's especially meaningful to us. We spent four hours there on Sunday and another three on Monday, and we still haven't seen everything. We highly recommend it to anyone visiting the area. In addition to the exhibits inside, the museum complex the grounds are surrounded by memorial walls with plaques like these honoring individuals, ships or military units that served in the Pacific during WWII.  It also honors the ten US Presidents who served in the military during that conflict.

Another highlight of our trip was a visit to the LBJ State and National Historical Parks. (I can't believe we have lived in Austin all these years and have never visited them.) The parks are well-maintained, and feature an amazing look into the first "White House" outside of Washington, DC. Lady Bird Johnson used the ranch house up until her death, but it has now been opened to visitors. A tour of the home provided a glimpse into how the Johnson family lived on their lovely ranch.

The 600-acre section of the ranch, which includes the family home, was given to the parks service by President Johnson. John was especially interested in the ranch tour, which included a visit with one of the stockmen who cares for the herd of registered Hereford cattle, some of which are shown here.

He explained that the herd is being managed to represent the smaller, more compact herefords that were popular in the 1960s when the Johnsons were actively operating the ranch, rather than the larger animals more characteristic today.


We also visited the Sauer-Beckman Living History Farm, which is part of LBJ State Park. The farm is being operated as it would have been in the late 1800s, up until about 1918. They raise their own vegetables and slaughter and process their own meat. Vegetables are canned, and meat is either smoked or preserved lard as it would have been at that time. Photos of the house and barn follow.

After visiting the LBJ complex, we stopped to visit Eyfells & Eyfells Studios and Galleries. The studios and galleries contain the work of Johann and his wife, the late Kristen Eyfells, who died in 2002. The former consists of large metal sculptures, often in the shape of cubes, pyramids or large iron spirals. Kristen Eyfells' body of work includes large portrait-sized paintings, including her "Famous Faces" series. Mr. Eyfells taught Fine Art at the University of Central Florida for 30 years, then moved to Central Texas in 2003. The relocation of his and Ms. Eyfells' work required 12 flat bed 18 wheeler trucks.

Mr. Eyfells is a delightful host and welcomes visitors to his studios and galleries.  After our initial visit, I returned to spend a couple of hours with him and was able to photograph him at work, and with a self-portrait done by Ms. Eyfells.  Look for more examples of his work when I return to spend more time at his studio.

We have returned to Austin, and hope to come back to Fredericksburg in the near future.

Pedernales Falls State Park

Since returning to Austin in early March, we have tried unsuccessfully several times to "take flight" again and see the wildflowers in the Texas Hill Country. One thing or another prevented our departure, one of the most recent being a faulty switch that prevented Millennium Falcon from going into reverse gear. Undeterred, while waiting for repairs we made a quick trip to Johnson City to visit Jimmy and Danine Jacks and see the flowers in Blanco and Burnet Counties. Here are a few shots from that trip,

plus a couple taken at our farm in Hamilton County.

On Monday of this week we picked up The Falcon at the Volvo repair facility outside Waco and raced back to Austin with plans to pick up The Royals and head west. However, our Car Karma still wasn't good. Outside of Austin The Falcon blew a coolant hose and had to pull over until another could be installed. My Tahoe, in the meantime was in the shop for an alignment and balancing. Maybe solving three problems was the charm. All work was done and we took off on Tuesday and hope to be out for a couple of weeks.

We are camped in Pedernales Falls State Park, where the weather is wonderful and we have a lovely campsite (#15 if you're planning a visit. It is very private and is surrounded by clumps of Texas Persimmon, Live Oak and Ash Juniper ("Cedar" to all you Texans).

The park is only an hour or so west of Austin and about 15 miles from Johnson City. The scenery is classic Texas Hill Country, with the added benefit of several miles of riverfront on the lovely Pedernales River. Wildflowers are in bloom, and good rains over the winter are providing plenty of water. On Wednesday we explored the falls, with the dogs enjoying the opportunity to cool off at the river's edge, or chill out in camp.

Thursday provided more chances to hike and enjoy the fields of wildflowers in the park. That evening, we had company. Jimmy Joe and Danine Jacks came for dinner, and we celebrated JJ's 67th birthday. It was a wonderful chance to continue old friendships.

Choke Canyon State Park

Millennium Falcon and the Royals made the trip north from Mission with no problem, passing a number of roadside fruit stands like this one. The bags of grapefruit and sweet onions were worth the stop.

We find the ride in the truck smoother with a heavier fifth wheel in tow. We do, however, need to add another air bag to our hitch to provide a little more cushioning over the bumps.

We traveled from Retama to Three Rivers yesterday, and are camped about 12 miles west in Choke Canyon State Park. This is a lovely park with only 39 RV sites (all with shelters and very spacious) so even when it's full you don't feel crowded. Choke Canyon Lake is a 26,000-surface-acre reservoir which is fed by the Frio River. Fishing here is supposed to be very good, but right now the lake is covered with whitecaps from the strong west wind. Earlier we saw several small boats struggling against the wind to return to camp.

The birding here is good, though. On the way in, and again as we left we saw flocks of 15-20 wild turkeys. We stopped for this handsome fellow, who was showing off for the ladies in the middle of the road.

We also understand that several of the "fabulous forty" (birds found nowhere in the U.S. other than Texas) frequent this park, but so far we haven't seen any of them and may not until the spring migration begins. We have, however, seen a number of Caracara, also called "Mexican Eagles," like this one perched in a tree. They're also often seen along the highway competing for road kill with the vultures and redtail hawks.

The South Texas Brush Country has a wild, inhospitable beauty all its own. We saw some of it in Bensen-Rio Grande Valley State Park...huge, gnarly mesquite trees, yelow-flowered huisache and lots of prickly underbrush. The mesquites haven't leafed out yet. As Texans know, folklore says that they never bud until after the last frost (and they're a pretty good predictor from our experience). Once the landscape changes from gray to green, it will be a lovely spot to visit, and should have great birding as well. In addition to birds more common to us, like several species of doves and the noisy grackles, we saw Kiskadee Flycatchers and a Long-billed Thrasher. Unfortunately, I didn't have the camera with me at the time.

The brush country continues up to and beyond Choke Canyon SP. The photos of the park are followed by some of the surrounding thickets. They appear impenetrable, but if you stoop down to javelina and coyote level, you'll see a network of trails though the brush.

We returned to Austin today, and tomorrow I'll go to Hamilton to spend some time with Mother.