Check out Dale Weisman’s feature on rock hunting in the February issue. A lifelong rockhound, Dale logged hundreds of miles researching this piece, scouring rock-hunting ranches, rivers, roadcuts, and rock shops across the state. He offers the following suggestions for further reading: Gem Trails of Texas, by Brad Cross; The Rockhound’s Guide to Texas, by Melinda Crow; and Roadside Geology of Texas, by Darwin Spearing.

I concur with Dale on the wonders of Woodward Ranch. Two tips if you go: Ask Trey Woodward to show you the gemstone-studded mantel in his home, and pick up a hand lens (around $16) in his rock shop for spectacular crystalline close-ups.

Let us know about your cool rock and fossil finds. Happy hunting!

The crisp autumn mornings of late are reminding me of my summer trip to the Fort Davis area. Even in August, the daytime highs climbed only to the 80s, and nighttime lows fell into the 60s —energizing temps that inspired numerous hikes in Davis Mountains State Park, with the magical CCC-constructed Indian Lodge as our base. News to me (and especially enjoyed by my kid) was the mile-and-a-half trail that descends from the park’s scenic Skyline Drive to Fort Davis National Historic Site. Other trip highlights: star partying at McDonald Observatory (which we learned has a fun back-up plan for cloudy nights), rock-hunting at Woodward Ranch south of Alpine, and following the Rio Grande’s flow as we drove the majestic River Road. Keep a lookout for TH’s upcoming stories on the latter two in the February Big Bend special issue! 

Last Saturday, I went to Houston’s Bayou City Art Festival Downtown with my sister, Jean. I recently discovered that this festival had a former life as the Westheimer Art Festival, which I attended over 30 years ago. Jean had never been to either incarnation of this festival but remembered hearing tales of the Haight-Ashbury-esque ambiance of the Westheimer fest. I can attest that all traces of patchouli, tie-dye, and overall weirdness were pretty much absent at the Bayou City Art Fest. In its place, I found art at its finest in many forms—whimsical sculpture, exquisite jewelry from beads to jewels, purses carved from wood, paintings in various media, including scratchboard, a favorite technique I learned back in art school.

The food has come a long way from funnel cakes and turkey legs. I sampled a tasty ceviche at “Epicurean Adventure”— where chefs from some of the city’s top restaurants like (the aptly named) Artista serve up food tastings throughout the day.  I also had a chance to meet the very cordial chef David Cordua, who is also director of restaurant operations for Artista, Churrasco’s, Amazon Grill and Americas.

I learned from festival board members Nadia Troutenko and Bien Tran that the spring component of the Bayou City Art Festival, held at Memorial Park, has a much different feel, and different roster of artists than the more urban, street-fair vibe of the downtown fest. I may have to find out for myself next spring!

Our friends at Lubbock’s American Wind Power Center have sent an update to E. Dan Klepper’s windmills story in the September special issue. On October 17, the center plans to unveil a 5,500-square-foot mural created by artist La Gina Fairbetter, an instructor in the Department of Architectural Art at Texas Tech University. The two-year project illustrates American windmill history, from 1700s Dutch-style windmills to today’s massive wind turbines. All of the whirring wonders depicted are represented in the center’s collection. Another good reason to make the AWPC part of your next High Plains adventure!

I took advantage of Austin’s Free Museum Day to catch up on a few exhibits I’ve been meaning to see. One of them, Forgotten Gateway: Coming to America Through Galveston Island at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, documents early 20^th Century immigration through Galveston Island. Most of us are familiar with Ellis Island as a port of entry. However, lesser-known ports such as Galveston served as gateways for millions of immigrants; in Galveston, many were of southern and eastern European descent, including Italians, Greeks and Polish Jews.
Packed with artifacts and documents of the time, interactive dioramas, and videos, Forgotten Gateway illustrates the sacrifices and severe hardships these immigrants endured, including interrogation, detention, and quarantine in their quest for a better life. The exhibit runs through October 11. It has been designated a We the People project by the National Endowment for the Humanities, and will travel to other institutions, including Ellis Island Museum and Moody Gardens in Galveston (Opens Nov. 21).
One curious aside: One of the displays prefacing the Galveston saga of Forgotten Gateways features a Christmas ornament and figurines of the holiday scene created by the Timmermann sisters were on view (see Happy 100^th, Wanda Timmermann blog), with a brief description of the German family’s ill-fated journey through Texas in 1849.

I have driven by Spoons many times on my visits to McKinney’s historic square, and, judging from the cutesy name and restored historic building, had the impression that it was ‘another quaint, antiques-filled café that serves soups and sandwiches. Boy, was I pleasantly wrong. For starters, Spoons serves breakfast—all day—and is the place for breakfast, as most restaurants in the square begin serving at lunch. You’ll find several varieties of waffles, pancakes, eggs (from basic to omelets), even oatmeal, and yogurt parfait. Cottage potatoes, deftly seasoned, and coated with cheddar and pepper jack cheese, seem to be Spoons’ specialty side dish, and can also be ordered as an entrée with apple-smoked bacon.
As for beverages, in addition to the usual coffee and orange juice, specialty juice-blends and caffeine-infused drinks are also available, courtesy of the recently opened Spoons Garage, a coffee house adjacent to the restaurant. The drinks have auto-themed names like Brake Job and Fuel Injection, which my daughter ordered (a cool and energetic blend of fresh-squeezed orange juice, chocolate syrup and coffee).
Can someone identify the mystery game-piece shown here?
The interior is a thoroughly modern contrast to the vintage-cute storefront, with counters lining the exposed brick walls to provide extra seating for tables in the center, an Italian-soda bar in the back with diner seating, a bakery case filled with luscious cakes and pies, and a small, open kitchen.
Two interesting things I noticed about my table: the rolled napkins contain a fork and a knife—no spoons! The other thing was an large board game card, which was used as a centerpiece. Can someone tell me in what game this was used?

Thomas Haberle wrote us recently to let us know that longtime TH friend Wanda Timmermann celebrates her 100th birthday August 25th.
Wanda, along with her six sisters, were the focus of two TH features covering their family holiday traditions in Geronimo, near Seguin. The Christmas gatherings (TH Dec. 1981) centered around events in 1849, when their great-grandparents took in 19 children whose parents died on their journey to Texas from Germany. Detailed displays in the family home, which was open to groups, were made by the Timmermanns and recreated scenarios of the period, and Wanda would read journals from the era. Displays could also be seen during Wurstfest in New Braunfels every November. In addition to TH, the festivities were featured in Life and Better Homes & Gardens. The Timmermanns were longstanding members of the community and also cooked Thanksgiving dinners at their church (which we covered in Nov. 1994).
Of the seven sisters, Wanda and her 97-year-old sister Meta survive. According to Mr. Haberle, Wanda spends her time caring for her sister and is writing a book about her heritage, which will soon be published. The TH staff sends heartfelt birthday wishes to Wanda on this momentous occasion.

In the photo: From Texas Highways, Dec. 1981: As she often does for Christmas visitors, Wanda Timmermann stands on the stairs to read reminiscences of Christmas 1849 while her sisters listen. Standing, from left, are Hulda, Willie Mae, and Melitta behind Tekla and Stella. Meta sits in front.

Sometimes a trip out-of-state helps me appreciate what information a tourist needs and wants.  I shouldn’t admit this, but on a recent visit to Chicago I discovered that I barely cracked open my usual requisite guidebook, and instead relied on the Internet and an I-Phone (my two “I’s”?) to show me the sights, book reservations and point me in the right direction.  Still, I firmly believe print has a place for the tourist, if only to whet the appetite to explore. That’s where I hope Texas Highways comes in handy each month, showing travelers out-of-the-way places as well as revisiting well-known areas in new ways.  And offering helpful tips along the way.

That said, I hope you find our recently redesigned and streamlined Essentials sections, maps and info boxes offer a handy guide to phone numbers and web sites at a glance. And let’s not forget our Web site, along with our Facebook and Twitter pages to help or remind you of what’s in store in our current issue, or find places we’ve covered in previous issues.  Let us know if we’ve made your journeys easier, or what more we can do to enhance your Texas travels.  E-mail us, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Be sure to check out the story on bat-watching by Nola McKey and Larry Ditto in the August issue of TH, coming this week to a newsstand near you. A side-note regarding the colony that roosts under Austin’s Ann Richards Congress Avenue Bridge: Though not nearly as spectacular as the bats’ mass exodus at sunset, another interesting sight for early risers is the creatures’ return to the bridge after their nighttime banquet on pesky insects. I often catch a glimpse of the furry fliers when I drive over Ladybird Lake at daybreak—one by one, they dart from the sky, back to their bridge abode.

Enjoyed a fabulous Friday evening last week at the kick-off of the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum’s annual Music Under the Star concert series. Now in its sixth season, the mid-summer series draws hundreds—blankets and camp chairs in tow—to the museum plaza (at MLK and Congress in Austin) for an evening of outdoor music and free food—all in the shadow of the plaza’s signature 10-ton bronze star. We prepared for the 100-plus temperatures by bringing plenty of water, but to our pleasant surprise, the plaza proved well shaded and bearable by late afternoon. (Exploring the fascinating museum—free admission during the event from 6 to 9 p.m.—provided respite, as well.) Our feast on Rudy’s barbecue, Sweet Leaf Tea, and Blue Bell Ice Cream was set to the sweet sounds of Austin Blues Society blues harp players and R&B icon Miss Lavelle White. (Fun note: The show started with a harmonica workshop and free harmonicas for the kids.) The musical lineup for future Fridays includes Toni Price, Tiburon (including salsa lessons), and Doyle Bramhall.