Day 6 – Tuesday – Davis Mountains / Big Bend National Park Tour.

After studying the map and pondering that closed road the night before, I made the decision to capture as much of my original plan as possible even if this meant visiting both ends of the closed road and clocking up some serious mileage. I calculated that if I didn’t hang about I could probably get back here before sundown. Wrong! I was up with the lark and on the bike by 6.30 and, after saying farewell to my companions of the previous night who were already on the move next door, set off. It was rather cold and crisp but in a nice and fresh way. I made it down to Presidio, back up to Marfa and over to Alpine in time for and early brunch at Alexander’s Grill and Cantina, some 180 miles.
Approaching Marfa for the second time I was ambushed by the state troopers for speeding but was let off when she found out I was a tourist.
Brunch was a home style burger affair and quite good, the restaurant was full by the time I left with most of the clientele being bookish types from Sul Ross University which is located in Alpine.




118 from Alpine to Study Butte on the Eastern edge of Big Bend National Park was delightful and scenic, the sun was out and it was very warm. The other end of the road closure was past Terlingua but I only went as far as there. Terlingua is an old mining town and, I read someplace, home of an annual Chili festival or ‘Cook Off’ as the Americans say. I also read someplace that out there in the desert are buried many of the JFK conspirators. It was well over 90f when I was there and seemed a desolate sort of place and too close to the Mexican border and all its violence and drug trafficking for comfortable living I felt.

Big Bend National Park is a fine place. Essentially desert and a great deal of its boundary encompasses the border with Mexico. People and Drug smuggling is rife in the park with over 500 miles of ‘Unofficial’ tracks used by the smugglers and border patrolmen are armed to the teeth here. I read that several officers had simply disappeared in the park during the previous 2 years. I saw none of it but just looking around could believe it, fortunately I was out of the park before nightfall. I rode from one end to the other and from top to bottom, it is a very impressive place and your $11 dollars get you unlimited access to the park for a week. Good value I thought.

I saw the first of many deer on the road just before sundown, a whole group of them stood in the road by a bridge. I endured 3 separate incidents of deer running directly across my path on my way back to Fort Davis but anticipating this I rode very cautiously. I arrived back at Indian Lodge in the pitch black just over 12 hours after I left with 11 hours in the saddle and 556 miles on the clock. What a day, an epic biking day and immensely satisfying. Dinner was frugal as the restaurant was closed by the time I got back, just a bag of nachos and a pot of spicy bean dip washed down with a lot of Tequila watching the TV sat in bed, but I was happy.

Day 7 – Wednesday – Fort Davis to Junction.

I was up and about reasonably early and went for a stroll around the lodge before packing up and heading off towards I10 via the Mc Donald Observatory. Absolutely nothing to do with the burger chain the array of telescopes is perched on Mt Locke, which at 6,800ft is the highest point in Texas affording fantastic views of the area. I did not see one solitary person whilst I was there but on the way down and a little further to the north I spotted a strange object in the sky. It was stationary even though there was a fair wind blowing. I got as close as I could, which still some distance away from it and took a photo or two but they do not help in identifying it.
















The run up to I10 was very pretty and the sun was shining. Joining I10 was a significant point in the trip because it meant I was now heading east and back towards Houston and the end of the trip was now in sight.The long blast down to Junction was uneventful with the exception of being tailed by a State Trooper for almost 70 miles. I think he was waiting for me to transgress the speed limited but fortunately the bike was equipped with cruise control and I kept it at precisely 1mph below the speed limit of 80.

I wasn’t expecting much from Junction and I wasn’t disappointed. It’s a two horse hick town frequented in the main by hunters and people passing through. The reason I chose it for a stopover was twofold. Firstly it was a very convenient start point for my two-day tour of the holy grail of Texas bike roads ‘The three sisters’ and secondly I liked the look of a hotel called ‘The Legends Inn’. The Legends is run by Joe Parker and his family. Joe, a WW2 veteran keeps a tight ship and I have never seen so many don’t do this and don’t do that notices in one hotel room ever. For all that it’s a unique place and in common with so many hotels of this type in the US you can park right outside the room. My neighbours were a sight to behold being real redneck hunters but pleasant and friendly all the same. The hotel is very popular and always full. There were several signs for Texas Pit BBQ on the way in and when suitably refreshed I went in search of one and found a cracker. Really nice simple food, extremely tasty and dirt-cheap.

Day 8 – Thursday – Junction to Kerrville – 3 Sisters tour day 1

From what I had read of the 3 sisters Texas Ranch Roads 335,336 & 337 these roads promised much and as far as I am concerned, they delivered. As twisties go we have much more exciting roads here in Switzerland but these roads offered fast corners, sudden drops and immense fun without the feeling of disaster waiting should you make the slightest error and when set against the backdrop of lovely autumnal west Texas scenery in brilliant and warm sunshine it was no wonder that every oncoming motorcyclist had a grin on his face from ear to ear as I probably did.All along 335 came a steady stream of exotic sports cars, Porches, Ferraris etc. It was quite obvious they were on the same road for the same reason and it was not until I came across a café and shop as I dropped into Leakey called the Frio Canyon Motorcycle Stop where a lot of the cars were parked up that I discovered it was a 3 day rally run by the San Antonio Exotic Car Club. The Frio Canyon Bike Stop is quite new, less than 18 months old, which is probably why I knew nothing about it until I stumbled upon it.

http://www.friocanyonmotorcyclestop.biz/

Kerrville, when I rolled into it later that afternoon was much bigger than I thought and boasted a massive Wal-mart which was handy as I had taken so many pictures and so much film I was in desperate need of a new SD card.The Best Western I had booked here was just fine and I was allocated another massive room. On the way down to the Wal-Mart I had spotted a good Steakhouse called the Cowboy and decided to eat there that night. I wasn’t sorry; I had a superb meal there and retired that evening very full and satisfied.

Day 9 – Friday – Kerrville to Fredericksburg – 3 Sisters tour day 2

The sun was up and shinning before I was. Breakfast was a strange arrangement here. Apparently the hotel owner had struck a deal with the Mexican Restaurant next door to offer his patrons a Mexican breakfast with a voucher with which you paid your bill. What is a Mexican breakfast? Well as far as I could tell exactly the same as an American one!
Another trip target was on today’s route at Vanderpool.


http://www.lonestarmotorcyclemuseum.com/







The Lone Star Motorcycle Museum. When I found it I went sailing past and had to swing the bike round, but what a place! Essentially, one mans private collection is housed in a purpose built barn with a café inside called The Ace café after the famous one in London. In fact, most of the bikes in the collection are British and what a collection, some real gems including a Vincent Black Knight that I have only ever seen in books before.




It was here that I met a couple from Austin, Frank and Sharon Mayer. Frank it turned out had spent most of his life in California and was a motorcycle enthusiast and knows all the bike roads there inside and out. He agreed to supply me with all his knowledge on the California bike routes when I put together next years trip.The owner of the Museum Alan Johncock is an Australian and quite a lot of the bikes come from there. Alan is justly proud of his collection and they are extremely well presented.

Up near the road to Fredericksburg is the famous Garven Store. Set on windswept hill they reputedly sell the best Jerky in Texas but when I went in the place looked decidedly unhygienic so I left after a quick look round and hoped that I hadnt contacted a terrible disease just by stepping into the place. Outside, enjoying a water break, I saw more than a few people go in who looked as if they were no strangers to BBQ'd squirrel!





Fredericksburg is a famous town in Texas and is heavily influenced by the Germans who settled the place in the 1800s and is very tourist orientated. When I arrived at the very pleasant Best Western it was already quite windy and when I set off in the dark to find the Hill Top Café it was blowing a gale. But I pressed on and it was very difficult riding up there with the winds getting stronger to the point where I considered turning back. I was very glad to get back in one piece and the 36-mile round trip felt like 136 due to the strong gusts.

Day 10 – Saturday – Fredericksburg to Houston

Although the sun was out it was still howling a gale when I left F’burg. The route I chose for the liesurely ride back to Houston was designed to avoid San Antonio and this transpired to be a good plan as it meant I avoided the constant 25-30mph crosswinds on I10 East until I had to endure them. New Braunfels looked an interesting town. Those winds were terrible but at least the sun was out and I made it without incident back to Mancuso HD in Huston with plenty of time to spare.Half an hours Taxi ride to the airport, a painless check in and a few self congratulatory beers in the bar saw me right for the flight back to London where once again I had 3 seats to myself and slept solidly for all but the first half hour and the last hour of the flight. I even slept the whole way on the connecting flight to Zurich. Result!

Reflections

In motorcycle touring terms, Texas offers something for everyone. From the coast to the desert to the hill country there is real variety and when it’s packaged with the nice weather it’s a real treat. I think I squeezed a bit of everything out of this trip and I can honestly say I would be more than happy to do the whole thing over again but with so much more motorcycling to be had in the US it could be many more years before I get back to Texas. But get back I will for sure as Texas is way up there in the rankings as one of my most favourite destinations in the US. It is the 'Lone Star State' standing proud and apart and as a bit of a maverik myself I always feel at home there.