Sunday April 21
We left San Antonio about 11 am and headed to Bandera, the Capital of Cowboy country. We found a place called Rancho Cortez on the Internet. It's a dude ranch!! It was advertised as a place to ride horses and gives you that old wild wild west feel. It was an experience just getting there. The roads got narrow and rough the closer we got to the ranch. On the way we saw some horses and long horn cattle.
Once we arrived at the ranch it was a real rough road so Dennis went very slow, not sure the speedometer would even register he was going so slow. Got settled on our campsite. No cell phone service but could get wi-fi down near the mess hall.
Oh boy it was time to ride so we put our jeans, our cowboy and cowgirl boots. Went down to the corral and hopped on our horses. Yee haw!!!
After the ride, the owner of the property, Larry Cortez, let me get on a horse and put me in the ring so I could practice some more. He was so funny as he tried to teach me the proper way to ride. Dennis could not stop laughing, not at me but at Larry. A true cowboy teaching a city slicker for sure. My butt was getting sore already so I stopped and let Dennis take a turn. Dennis's older brother Doug had taught us the basic skills on riding so we both looked pretty good compared to the other guest.
Also, met Larry's daughter, KD. Senior in high school and is also a champion horse barrel racer. She had a dog named Lacy, a blue heeler, who liked to boss the other animals around.
Then there was Dixie. The cutest little puppy you ever wanted to meet.
Now its time to lasso. This took some practice for sure. The rope is stiff because it is wound backwards. We both finally were able to rope the plastic cow head but I think the real cows are safe.
We have a short video of Robin trying to lasso, we shall show it later.
Time for dinner, 6 pm sharp every day. We mosied on down to the dining room for some vittles. Not bad, turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, vegetables, salad and some good ole sweet tea.. Brownies for dessert, and all was tasty. The chef was a little cranky so the other guest and us named him "Old Cranky Pants". He was a good cook, but Chad, I think you could show him a thing or two for sure!!!!!!
After dinner we all hopped in the back of two old pickup trucks for a short ride over to feed the Texas Longhorns and one heifer. Boy, they were something to see!! Tyler, the resident cowboy, brought feed and spread it out on the ground for them to eat. So while they were busy eating, we were busy taking pictures. Definitely had to watch where you stepped, if you know what I mean.
Even got to sit on the big heifer. What a hoot!!
Got back in one piece and by then it was time for the campfire. Larry, the owner had a buddy come out about 8 pm with his guitar and played for 2 hours as we sat around the campfire. The guest were 5 ladies from Italy, a family of four from Canada( Patrick, Marie, Laurie and Thomas), Ed and Suzanne from Dallas, Nancy and Susan from New Hampshire, Larry, and the singer, I W, and his wife.
Sang some old country songs and roasted marshmallows for s'more's. Danced a little under the stars and the moon. Was a perfect night to end a perfect day.
Monday April 22, 2013
Well, howdy partner!! Up bright and early for our 8:00 breakfast. Dennis was happy with the food except for the big bowl of oatmeal. As you know, not his favorite. But he chowed down on a fried egg sandwich with ham. Then it time for our 9:00 ride. Saw a couple of road runners, but did not see Wile E Coyote!! Weather was a little cool and misty but not bad. Made it back without falling off the horse. Was a great ride. Was so good that Dennis decided to go on the 10:00 ride too!! Very laid back atmosphere.
After his ride we took a hike up the hill to try to get phone service. Dennis got hold of Chad for a bit. At the top there was a fitness area we checked out.
Then back down the trail just in time for lunch at 12:00. You sure don't go hungry around this place. Chicken & gravy, cauliflower, potato salad, regular salad and a yummy homemade apple cobbler for dessert. Before we knew it, it was ride time again - 1:00. Sun came out and had warmed up. Not a cloud in sight. Another good ride with no incident!!
About 3:00 Dennis took another ride (definitely getting our moneys worth). Was a small group so they went way up in the hills where it was quite rocky he said.
Then we relaxed a while with a glass of wine by Buttercup watching Tyler bring a big bale of hay to the horses. They were hungry from a long day of lugging us all around on the trail rides!!.
So guess what - it's dinner time again - 6:00. Tonight Chef Patrick made a great dinner - beef brisket, baked beans, potato salad, regular salad and a chocolate bread pudding with a whiskey butter sauce - was to die for!!! After dinner we all piled into the old pickups for our trip over to feed the longhorns again. We were just as amazed as the first time we saw them. Took a few more pictures but kept our distance!!
Then back to the ranch for our campfire and s'mores. That day we were joined by two Australian guys who had never had them before, so we showed them the ropes!! They were telling us their funny stories about their adventures in America. All the other folks were there too. We all just sat around sharing tales about our different trips. But about 10:00 we had some excitement!!!! One of the ranch hands had put a mare in the corral with the males!!! Not a good idea - guess she had had enough and came busting through the wire fence over by the barn not far from where we were by the campfire. We heard all this commotion and saw her go bolting by. We jumped up and several people went to catch the mare, and we went to check on the fence. About a 30 foot section of wire fence was on the ground. Got some flashlights and Dennis proceeded to start "shuring up" the fence. Of course, you know him, he was loving every minute of it. Had to improvise with things from around the ranch to prop what was left of the fence so all the other horses wouldn't get out. Even wheeled over a big trailer beside it to help keep them in for the night.
The others caught the mare and got her into a separate pen for the night. Guess this was our "western excitement" the brochure had mentioned!!! After it was all over we were exhausted and it was off to bed!! Goodnight and sleep tight!
Tuesday - April 23, 2013
Morning sure came early, but we didn't want to miss our 8:00 breakfast on our last day at the ranch.
Had scrambled eggs, hash browns & ham. Then on to our last 9:00 ride. Had a big group as a lot of us were leaving that morning. Went over to see the mare that had broken loose last night. She had cuts on her chest and legs, but wasn't too bad thank goodness. Our final ride was a good one, up in the hills with parts up and down rocky cliffs. But our horses were surefooted and made the way with no problems.
Got back, packed up, and said our goodbyes to everyone. What a great time!!!
Left there about 11:00. Made a stop in Bandera, TX - Cowboy Capital of the World. Ate lunch at the OST "Old Spanish Trail" restaurant. Had a lot of western charm with pictures of John Wayne and Roy Rogers all over the place. Even the bar had horse saddles to sit on instead of regular seats. Food was good!! "Doc" from San Antonio had told us about the place. Neat place!! Went through a few shops and then hit the road.
Stopped for the night just a little past Waco, TX. As you will remember, just near Waco is a town called West. This was where the fertilizer plant had that big explosion. Well it is still all over the news down here, so we got set up for the night, unhitched the car and rode over to West about 5 miles up the road. Boy, what a sad sight it was. Got to drive through the town and neighborhoods that had been affected. State Troopers were everywhere blocking the areas closest to the blast site. But we did get to see a lot of homes that had there windows and garage doors blown out. Most everybody's windows were boarded up and the houses had been marked with a big X or marked OK. The high school was a disaster - also got to see from a distance what we believed to be the blast site and that apartment building they showed on the news.
We ate dinner in town at Wild Bill's Outlaw Steakhouse and heard quite a few residents in there talking about what had happened. Also saw many out of town firemen helping out, ATF agents, disaster relief trucks offering showers and saw a line of people at one of church's which we think was a viewing for one of the first funerals they were going to have the next day. Our hearts just went out to all the people in this town after seeing what they had been through.
Wednesday April 24, 2013
Slept till 7:45 which is late for me. I'm sure Dennis loved it that I wasn't up at the crack of dawn. Must have been exhausted. Breakfast was "on the house" at this campground which was really nice!! Then it was on the road again towards Coppell, TX - just a couple miles north of Dallas. We are visiting here to see one of my best friends, Terri and her husband Kevin. Terri and I grew up together until her family moved to Florida when we were in the 10th grade. But we've kept up with each other ever since!!
While on the road, Kevin - my son, had just been in Austin for his buddies bachelor party and we passed right by the hotel he stayed at a couple days earlier. Just think, we could have crashed the party. I know Kevin would have loved that!!
We did make one stop on the way. One of the couples we had met at the ranch, Ed & Suzanne, own a bakery called the "The Lovin Oven" in Lancaster, TX - do we decided to take a quick detour and check it out. Cutest little place you've ever seen in the historic town square of Lancaster.
The owners left the ranch the same time we did, but went on down to San Antonio for a few days, so Dennis had one of the employees call him to let him know we were there. He told them to let us have whatever we wanted. That was a dangerous offer especially since they had these big chocolate chip cookies, and you know Dennis and chocolate!! So he got two cookies for his sample and I got a cannoli. We also bought a couple of others things too!! Yum Yum!
Then we got back on track towards "Big D"!!
Got to our campground, Sandy Lake RV Resort, about 3:30. Got set up and headed over to Terri & Kevin's home. Went to a great Tex Mex place called Anamia's in Coppell.
Had some margaritas and fajitas. Caught up with all that had been going on with Terri & Kevin. Was great to see them!! Terri and I used to spend the night with each other - eat pop tarts and make chocolate chip pancakes. Great memories!!! Was back at home by about 10:00. What a fun night!!
More Later................................
Robin & Dennis
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