A Hill Country Spring

April 1 ~ May 18, 2015


April Showers bring May Flowers. Isn't that how the saying goes? April showers continued into May. Along with the rain came a beautiful spring. We've never experienced spring here in the Hill Country and we were in for a treat!!

The end of March saw the leaves on the trees beginning to bud out, and bluebonnets poking there heads up through the ground. The bluebonnets are the state flower of Texas. And truly, there is no other blue quite like it.

By mid-April the trees were in full-bloom and bluebonnets were everywhere!

pecan grove. view out of our back window

isn't the grove beautiful?

bluebonnets

Coop enjoying the grass

Wildflowers were blooming all over the Hill Country; they were along the roadsides as well as in the median of the freeway. We decided to make a visit to Wildseed Farms in Fredericksburg.  They're known far and wide for their beautiful wildflowers...

a hint of the wildflowers to come...

bluebonnets

corn poppies

fields and fields of wildflowers

love this giraffe

i love water lilies

won't be long until it blooms

We had a lot of fun looking at all of the beautiful wildflowers.  Highly recommend you visit Wildseed Farms. Thanks Jack and Shirlene for the suggestion.

One of our other favorite day trips is to Bandera.  Bandera is known as the Cowboy Capital of the World. There is a nice park there that we like to go to...

no, Coops not peeing. just looks like it

Coop wanted to visit with these geese, however, we strongly suggested
that he abstain.  

We had heard about a "bat emergence" at the Old Tunnel State Park in Fredericksburg.  We, along with Ken and his sister Elaine, decided to check it out. A colony of Mexican free-tailed bats (three million bats) begin to arrive at Old Tunnel in March. Visitors are able to enjoy the emergence from May-October.

Ken and Elaine

Watching a colony of Mexican free-tail bats emerge from the tunnel is truly an awesome experience.
During the emergence, the bats spiral upwards in a counter-clockwise direction in order to gain altitude. The sound of their wings sound very much like a waterfall. There is also musty corn flour tortilla smell.

view from the upper viewing area. the middle right side of
picture shows the lower viewing area where we sat.

another view of the tunnel where the bats emerge

The emergence didn't begin until 8:45. It was too dark to take any non-flash photos (flash photography is not allowed as it will disturb the bats).  We had an awesome time, and it is something that we would love to do again next year.



The last item on our "must see" list prior to leaving the Hill Country was the Dance Hall located in Gruene (pronounced Green).

Gruene was settled in the 1840's by German Immigrants and is now a district within the city limits of New Braunfels. Much of Gruene is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The dance hall which opened in 1878, is the oldest dance hall, as well as the longest continuing operating dance hall, in Texas.

By design, not much has changed physically since the Hall was first built. The 6,000 square foot dance hall still has the original layout.

recognize the mural? it was the backdrop for the dance scene in the John
Travolta movie, "Michael"

The Hall has helped launch the careers of such artists as George Strait and Hal Ketchum, among others. The Dixie Chics, Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert, Ray Price, Poco, Leon Russell and the Eli Young Band are among the many artists that have performed here. Nolan Ryan held his 50th birthday celebration here.

view from dance area into the bar area

We had a great lunch at the Gristmill Restaurant. Great food and lots of it!! It's on the site of one of the old cotton mills...

on the side of the building

lots of room outside to sit and visit while waiting for a table. and yes, the
wait is well worth it

beautiful flowers on the grounds

While in Gruene, we walked around the General Store. The General Store was build around the same time as the Dance Hall...

the store is filled with everything imaginable...

love this soda fountain!

We had a great visit to Gruene, and we learned a few things while we were there as well!!



About a week prior to our leaving Johnson Creek, the cactus in front of the park office began to bloom...

almost ready...

beautiful, isn't it?

one of our neighbors cactus...

Spring is truly beautiful in the Hill Country! We're so glad that we were able to experience it! We're leaving Johnson Creek soon. Next stop...stay tuned!
Til next time,

Dawn, Ron and Cooper