Entries for the 'Places to Go & Things to Do' Category
CENTER POINT - FULL OF HISTORY AND VACATION OPPORTUNITIES
November 14th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
Center Point is on the Guadalupe River eight miles southeast of Kerrville in southeastern Kerr County. Dr. Charles de Ganahl opened the first post office in Center Point (in his home) in November 1859. He called it Zanzenburg in honor of his ancestral home in Austria. The next postmaster renamed the growing community Center Point likely because the settlement was halfway between Kerrville and Comfort, as well as halfway between Fredericksburg and Bandera.
The Guadalupe River is dammed at Center Point providing a wonderful place for public swimming. It features a waterfall that flows even in drought.
Antiquers will find a fun place to stop on the main thoroughfare through the town of Center Point, FM 480, just across from the current post office location.
Continuing south on FM 480, you will pass the historic Center Point Cemetary where many Texas Rangers are buried. Continuing further on FM 480 is Verde Creek, one of the prettiest creeks in the Hill Country. It crosses FM 480 several times as you make your way to Camp Verde. It is a very pretty drive very much worth your time. The following is a picture off the back porch of the Cabin on Verde Creek, a vacation rental that we manage. For more information and/or to check on availability, Click Here.
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LADIES: Hunting Season is Now Open! HOW ABOUT A WEEKEND OF FUN FOR YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS!
November 4th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
Since hunting season is now officially open in Texas (as of November 1st), it’s time for all you “hunting widows” to take a weekend retreat to the Hill Country while your guys are OH SO very preoccupied with deer blinds, deer calls, deer smells, camo clothes, gun cleanings, etc. etc. (ad nauseum).
So … Call all your girlfriends and let’s schedule a “Girl’s Weekend” for you in the Hill Country!
We have four accomodations all in the Kerrville-Comfort-Center Point vicinity to choose from. Great Shopping, Wineries, Beautiful Scenery and LOTS OF FUN await you. Click Here to find out about our locations.
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Vintage Motorcycles in Luckenbach - October 24-25
October 24th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
If you like vintage motorcycles, Luckenbach is the place to be this Friday and Saturday.
Called, The Harvest Classic and organized by Central Texas Motorcycle Charities, this gathering of Classic and European motorcycles raises money for Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation.
To sign up please visit their website it is www.harvestclassic.org! There will be a $10 day pass on Saturday for people who are not registered. It opens at 10:00a.m.
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Article on Luckenbach, Texas - Corisicana Sun
October 5th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
Here’s an interesting article on Luckenbach, Texas:
Stringer: Luckenbach, Texas
By Dr. Tommy Stringer
In 1977, Waylon Jennings sang the praises of Luckenbach, Texas, where everybody is somebody. He extolled the virtues of small town rural life compared to hustle and bustle of materialistic urban society.
The community of Luckenbach, located in Gillespie County, was established in the 1840s by a group of German immigrant farmers that included Jacob and August Luckenbach. They had arrived in Texas in 1845, and located near Fredericksburg the following year. In 1852 the family became American citizens, and relocated 12 miles southeast of Fredericksburg to a location that became the townsite of their namesake community.
The Luckenbach family was active in civic and political affairs. Jacob served as county commissioner and school supervisor, and brother Wiliam was justice of the peace for many years. Sophie Engel, Jacob’s daughter-in-law,was named post mistress when the post office was established in 1854. In addition, she operated a store and saloon, and the town also boasted a cotton gin, a dance hall, and a blacksmith shop. The Lutherans and Methodists both constructed houses of worship, and there was a school for the town’s children. By 1904 the population totaled 492, but that number declined consistently through the early decades of the 20th century. From the 1920s through the 1950s the census reported a population of 20.
In 1971 the Luckenbach family sold the town to John Russell “Hondo” Crouch a former swimming champion and journalist from nearby Comfort, Texas. He installed one parking meter near the general store, and introduced a number of special festivals to promote his town. For example, there was the Mud Dobbers Day, a women’s-only chili cook-off, and the Luckenbach’ s Great World’s Fair.
Music was a central part of Luckenbach’s culture. Jerry Jeff Walker recorded his best selling album “Viva Terlingua” in Luckenbach, and the town was the site of Willie Nelson’s Fourth of July picnics from 1995 through 1999. The dance hall attracts professional and amateur musicians who enjoy the casual, laid back environment of the community. Texas Monthly named Luckenbachas one of the state’s top 25 treasures. The Texas Department of Transportation has virtually given up on trying to keep highway signs posted directing travelers to Luckenbach as souvenir hunters repeatedly steal them. But if you want to go to Luckenbach, Texas, and return to the basics of life where everybody is somebody, just head out on FM 1376 of Highway 290 near Fredericksburg.
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Dr. Tommy Stringer is executive director of the Navarro College Foundation. His radio program airs at 6:55 a.m. weekdays KAND Radio.
For the original article, Click Here
To find out what’s currently going on in Luckenbach, Click Here
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Try A Little Vino in Comfort - Three Wineries To Visit
September 16th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
Be sure and check out our local vineyards while visiting Comfort. It provides for a great afternoon of fun and scenery. Be sure and give them a call (or check out their links) for their hours of operation.
723 Front Street
Comfort, TX
Phone (830) 995-3274
Directions: From I-10 Take Hwy 27 West into Comfort. The Winery is on Hwy 27 (a/k/a Front Street) on the left side just across from the Post Office.
1142 Sisterdale Road
Sisterdale, TX 78006
Phone (830) 324-6704
Fax (830) 324-6704
Directions: From I-10, Take Hwy 27 West into Comfort. Right after you cross the bridge, veer to the Right onto Hwy 87. Go 2 streets and take a Right onto FM 473. Take 473 about 9 miles until you come to a stop sign. Turn right heading through Sisterdale. The winery is about 1/2 mile on the right.
Singing Water Vineyards (LINK)
Real Estate Advertisement: Be sure and take note of our listing just 1/2 mile before you get to Singing Waters Vineyard! For more information, Click Here:
HORSE FRIENDLY HOME JUST OUTSIDE COMFORT, TEXAS | GREAT LOCATION NEAR WINERY AND HILL COUNTRY CAMP | $285,000
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ROCKIN-AND-A-ROLLIN’ IN THE HILL COUNTRY - Family Friendly Comedy & Music Each Weekend
September 5th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
Looking for something fun and different to do this weekend? The Rockbox Theatre in Downtown Fredericksburg provides live, family friendly entertainment each weekend with high energy music from the 50’s-80’s, G-rated comedy, costumes and choreography. They have four weekend shows: 8pm Friday, 4:30 Saturday, 8pm Saturday, and 1:30 Sunday. This is how it works:
- The cast stays the same but the shows change every weekend.
- Shows are approximately 2 hours in length with an intermission
- All seats are reserved.
- It’s always family-friendly entertainment.
- The cast has logged in over 1800+ shows together in eight years
TICKET INFORMATION:
- All reserved seating
- Call toll-free (866)349-6688
- Call locally (830)997-ROCK (7625)
- Ticket Office Opens Daily at 10am
- Ticket Office at Rockbox, 109 N Llano Street
- Prices
- Adult $28-40
- Youth (17 and under) $15
- Senior, Active Military Discounts
- Group rates for 25 or more
- Tickets are non-refundable, non-transferable, and there are no cancellations.
- Theater is handicap accessible.
Please be sure and confirm this information by going to the Rockbox Website Here,
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SOME PEOPLE REALLY DIG THE HILL COUNTRY!
September 4th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
Looking for something different to do in the Hill Country? How about an archaeological dig? Randy Brown has developed an archaelogical dig on his property just outside Comfort, Texas where many have found arrowheads and other archaeological artifacts. For more information, check out this article from the Kerrville Daily Times copied below:
Digging up the Hill Country
There are treasures waiting to be found just west of Comfort.
With money and a little work, people can dig for archeological finds on private property.
Randy’s Dig, a 13-acre track of land on Stoneleigh Road, has been around since 2002, and owner Randy Brown said during a typical week about 20 diggers visit his property. Eighteen people were out there on Sunday alone.
Folks from Nebraska, Missouri, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arizona, all over Texas and even Connecticut have made the trek in search of ancient tools.
“There’s something magical about finding artifacts that haven’t been touched in thousands of years,” Brown said. “While we have a lot of arrowheads out here, that’s not all there is. There are many different types of tools that have a story behind them.”
Brown, a former factory-trained Volkswagen and Audi mechanic from San Antonio, said he first saw the land more than two decades ago.
“When I was still in the auto repair business, I was always asking family and friends if they knew of any property for sale in the Hill Country,” he said. “I first saw this property in 1982 and knew then that it had potential.”
Brown purchased the property in 1996 and first dug up artifacts with friends before opening it to the public.
“It turned out to be a good real estate investment,” he said.
Most of the artifacts found at Randy’s Dig date back from about 8000 B.C. to 1000 A.D.
“I think the ancients lived here because it really was the perfect place,” Brown said. “There are two creeks running through here, and 80 percent of the perimeter is surrounded with running water.”
Despite the age of artifacts found there, don’t expect to get rich with your find.
“Most people who come out here are collectors and just collect to collect,” Brown said. “It’s not a money thing.”
He said most findings are worth anywhere from $5 to $200. Some pieces have sold for $1,000 to $1,500, but he said those are rare and exceptional.
Brown said he first became interested in archeology when he was a kid.
“I would have gotten an archeology degree, but when it was time for college I was getting ready to be drafted,” he said. “So I joined the Air Force.”
During his time in the military, however, he was able to see history around the world. Brown said he was stationed in England for some time where he was able to take in such sites as Stonehenge. His military travels also took him to Greece and Italy.
Brown said he also has done a lot of traveling around Mexico, visiting the Aztec and Mayan ruins.
“My interest in archaeology isn’t exclusive to Texas,” he said.
For any critics, Brown said that he isn’t disturbing anything that hasn’t already been disturbed. Professional archaeologist, including Dirt Brothers and the South Texas Archaeological Society, have studied his property and determined that there are no Paleolithic relics on the site.
There is one more dig site on Brown’s property that he will open up, but after that, he said, he is looking to turn the land into an RV park. Currently, he is looking for other landowners who would be interested in him running digs for them on their properties.
Go for a dig
Depending on how hands-on diggers want to be, there are a couple of options for looking for artifacts.
In a rather shallow digging site, about 24 inches deep, people can pick away at the edges of dirt and see what they can find. Brown charges $100 for a 15-square-foot area.
Because many times the artifacts will be lying horizontal, he said people must dig slowly to avoid damaging them. In what seems like a small area, Brown said scouring through the patch could take four to five hours.
For people looking for a little less work, Brown said he also can dump pre-dug dirt onto a screened sifting table for searching. He charges $25 for a tractor bucket load.
Brown said anyone looking to spend a few hours looking for artifacts needs only to bring themselves.
“I have all the tools, and I show them how to do it,” he said.
Although most of his customers seem to be professionals, Brown said that the dig would make a great experience for children. He said he also allows free camping on the site for diggers.
With Fall approaching and cooler temperatures on the way, Brown said it can be a good time to dig. Brown lives on the property and said he is open seven days a week, year round.
For more information, visit www.randysdig.com or call Brown at (210) 421-0105.
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Phil’s Firehouse in Comfort, Texas Reopening September 5, 2008
August 25th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
For anyone that appreciates live Texas Music, you’ll be happy to know that Phil’s Firehouse is reopening on weekends beginning the first weekend in September. Here’s the lineup for now (according to their website):
Buddy & I so enjoyed this outdoor venue several years ago … probably the Subdudes being our all time favorite. Also, other fond memories of Jimmy Lafave and Joe Ely. For more information on this venue and to go to their website, Click Here.
Rodney Joe Smith will be their first performer on Friday, September 5th. He is quite an interesting guy. Buddy and I got to know him pretty well 3-4 years back during one of our business ventures in Bandera, Texas. He is quite a “picker” and a good example of “not judging a book by its cover” (e.g., his views on life, politics, etc. will surprise you).
Hope to see you there!
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AUTHENTIC TEX-MEX IN THE HILL COUNTRY
May 12th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
1. LOS JARRITOS - COMFORT, TEXAS
1005 Hwy 87 S 830-995-4112
2. MAMACITA’S - KERRVILLE, FREDERICKSBURG
215 Junction Hwy, Kerrville 830-895-2441
503 E. Main Fredericksburg 830-997-9546
3. ACAPULCO MEXICAN RESTAURANT - KERRVILLE
1718 Sidney Baker 830-257-6222
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HILL COUNTRY DINERS WORTH A VISIT
May 12th, 2008 categories: Places to Go & Things to Do
1. SAVE INN RESTAURANT - KERRVILLE, TEXAS
1806 Sidney Baker 830-257-7484
2. CAVERNS INN RESTAURANT & MOTEL - BOERNE, TEXAS
Cascade Caverns & I-10 830-981-4840
3. FLAGSTOP CAFE & EXXON (FAIR OAKS RANCH, TEXAS)
1-10 AT FAIR OAKS PKWY 830-981-4413
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