State 39:
Welcome to the next post in my series highlighting states we have visited throughout the years. I hope you will enjoy coming along for the ride!
I will be featuring the states alphabetically. The next state in my series is
Texas
Texas became the 28th state on December 29, 1845. The Capital is Austin.
Texas is the second largest state by area and unless you’ve driven through Texas it is hard to comprehend the size. Our Texas adventures have taken us through the Texas Panhandle, mesquite and cactus covered plains, the green rolling hills of the Texas Hill Country, and the beautiful Texas Gulf Coast. Along the way we camped by beautiful lakes, near the Gulf Coast, in the second largest canyon in the United States, and a quite a few places in between. As we drove around the back roads we saw canyons and creeks, dance halls and wineries, historic sites and ranches, quaint small towns and old homesteads, toured museums, made a few hikes, attended a fiddle fest and chuck wagon races, met wonderful Texans, and saw more wildflowers than I ever imagined.
The lighthouse trail at Palo Duro Canyon, Enchanted Rock, and the Devil’s Waterhole Trail at Inks Lake were some of our favorite hikes.
The official Texas Longhorn herd is divided between a few state parks. At Copper Breaks State Park and Palo Duro Canyon State Park we saw them up close.
We planned a spring trip to Texas so we could see the bluebonnets in bloom. Texas is the only place on earth where some of the bluebonnet varieties bloom naturally. There were also many other wildflowers along the way.
We found some wonderful places to camp. We especially enjoyed camping at many Texas State Parks.
Rain and fog couldn’t keep us from enjoying the three state parks and Padre Island National Seashore along the Texas Gulf Coast.
There are many varieties of birds along the Texas Gulf Coast.
Texas Horned Lizards, Cottontail Rabbits, mule deer, white tailed deer, prairie dogs, and wild turkeys are some of the wildlife I was able to capture.
Being serenaded, attending a fiddle fest, listening to music in a dance hall, touring the Buddy Holly museum, going to Luckenback, and seeing signs about Willie Nelson reminded us of how important music is to the Lone Star State.
For us, no trip to Texas would be complete without sampling some of their fantastic steaks and barbecue, especially the brisket.
In Paris, Texas we stopped to see the Eiffel Tower with a red cowboy hat and attended chuck wagon races.
There were interesting things to see all around the state.
One of the best things about visiting Texas is meeting native Texans. Without fail, every Texan we met was proud of their state and eager to share their favorite places to visit or where to find the best brisket. One woman I met had so many good suggestions about places to go I had to get a notebook out of the truck to take notes!
To read previous posts about the states featured in this series just click on the state name: Alabama    Alaska     Arizona     Arkansas     California     Colorado    Florida     Georgia     Hawaii       Idaho Illinois     Indiana     Iowa    Kansas    Kentucky    Louisiana    Maine    Maryland    Massachusetts    Michigan    Minnesota   Mississippi    Missouri    Montana    Nebraska    Nevada     New Hampshire    New Mexico     New York    North Carolina   North Dakota     Ohio    Oklahoma    Oregon    Pennsylvania   South Carolina    South Dakota    Tennessee
Wandering Dawgs 
You must be logged in to post a comment.