Lockhart, Texas

While staying at Lockhart State Park we visited the city of Lockhart a few times.

The first visit was to the Lockhart Post Office, to pick up a General Delivery package:

Lockhart Post Office

This was actually the first time we’ve used General Delivery — that is where you just address a package to [Your Name], General Delivery, [City, State ZIP], then you can pick it up at the post office counter. A useful service when staying at somewhere like a state park that doesn’t accept packages for campers.

The Lockhart fire station:

Lockhart fire station

The Lockhart courthouse is a fascinating and distinctive building:

Lockhart courthouse

Lockhart claims to be the Bar-B-Que Capital of Texas:

The Bar-B-Que Capital of Texas

A castle-like museum:

Castle-like museum

There certainly are a lot of BBQ restaurants in town. The oldest is the Original Black’s Barbecue, operating since 1932; Texas’ oldest BBQ joint owned by the same family:

The Original Black's Barbecue

We got some BBQ to go; it was pretty good:

The Original Black's Barbecue

Another couple of pictures of the courthouse:

Lockhart courthouse

Downtown buildings:

Downtown

The museum again:

Museum

A hat shop:

Hat shop

Another BBQ is Terry Black’s BBQ; yes, from the same family as the original one, but they had a schism. After working at the family restaurant for a few years, they set off on their own in Austin, then recently opened this restaurant in Lockhart:

Terry Black's BBQ

Also very tasty:

Terry Black's BBQ

Finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention my first experience of a H-E-B grocery store; very popular in Texas, and we can see why; lots of good house brand stuff, we could find everything we wanted, and super-friendly people:

H-E-B groceries

Super-friendly people really describes Texas as a whole, actually.

2022 selfies

I thought it’d be fun to create an animated GIF of selfies and other pictures of Jenn and me from 2022. We’ve been to some interesting places!

2022 attractions, part 4

Concluding the summary of some of the attractions we visited in 2022.

This is part four of four, covering October through December, inclusive. Start with part one, or check out part two or part three, if you haven’t already.

We certainly have done a lot!

2022 attractions, part 3

Continuing from yesterday, a summary of some of the attractions we visited in 2022.

This is part three of four, covering July through September, inclusive. Start with part one, or check out part two, if you haven’t already.

July 2022

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park south rim, Colorado:

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park north rim:

Colorado National Monument:

Dinosaur National Monument, Utah and Colorado:

Tiffin rally sessions, Wyoming:

Tiffin rally; Tiffin models, Wyoming:

Great Salt Lake, Utah:

Utah Alpine Loop scenic drive and Bridal Veil Falls:

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon:

Crater Lake National Park, Oregon:

Newberry National Volcanic Monument, Oregon:

August 2022

Silver Falls State Park, Oregon:

Bike rides around Stub Stewart, Oregon:

Seaside and Astoria, Oregon:

Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, Oregon:

Trillium Lake, Oregon:

Marchesi Vineyards:

Mount Rainier National Park, Washington:

September 2022

North Cascades National Park, Washington:

Mount Baker day-trip, Washington:

Mount Saint Helens National Volcanic Monument, Washington:

Farragut Museum at the Brig, Idaho:

Beaver Bay Beach, Idaho:

Glacier National Park halfway, Montana:

Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park:

Golfing to the Sun and waterfalls in Glacier National Park, Montana:

Continue to the thrilling conclusion!

2022 attractions, part 2

Continuing from yesterday, a summary of some of the attractions we visited in 2022.

This is part two of four, covering April through June, inclusive. Check out part one, if you haven’t already.

April 2022

Titan Missile Museum, Arizona:

FMCA Tucson 2022 convention:

Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National Monuments in Arizona:

Jerome, Arizona:

Mariners Spring Training game in Peoria, Arizona:

Route 66 in Williams, Arizona:

Grand Canyon Railway and National Park:

Petrified Forest National Park:

Grand Canyon National Park at sunset:

Route 66 around Seligman, Arizona:

Walnut Canyon, Sunset Crater Volcano, and Wupatki National Monuments:

Lake Mead and Hoover Dam:

Las Vegas strip, Nevada:

Las Vegas Fremont Street Experience:

May 2022

Great Basin National Park in Nevada:

Zion National Park, Utah:

Red Canyon in Utah:

Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah:

Cedar Breaks National Monument in Utah:

Pipe Spring National Monument and Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park:

Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument including Singing Canyon:

Zion National Park again:

Bryce Canyon National Park at sunset:

Mossy Cave Trail hike, Bryce Canyon:

Kodachrome Basin State Park:

Capitol Reef National Park:

“Loop the Fold” drive around Capitol Reef National Park:

Hickman Bridge Trail hike in Capitol Reef:

Island in the Sky in Canyonlands National Park:

June 2022

Sunset in Arches National Park:

The Needles in Canyonlands National Park:

Sand Dune Arch, picnic, secret back road for Arches National Park:

Landscape Arch in Arches National Park:

The Windows in Arches National Park:

Dead Horse Point State Park:

Goblin Valley State Park:

Goulding’s Monument Valley Stagecoach Restaurant:

Monument Valley sunset tour:

Goosenecks State Park, Mexican Hat, Forrest Gump Point:

Monument Valley horseback ride:

Monument Valley drive:

Moki Dugway switchbacks:

Bears Ears and Natural Bridges National Monuments:

Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum, Utah:

Mesa Verde National Park quick visit, Colorado:

Four Corners Monument:

Hovenweep National Monument:

Mesa Verde National Park lookout, Far View, tower, palace:

Mesa Verde National Park Cliff Palace and Spruce Tree House:

Aztec Ruins National Monument:

Continue to part three.

2022 attractions, part 1

One of the main reasons for traveling the United States in a motorhome is to explore the many wonders around the country. This is a summary of some of the attractions we visited in 2022. Again, you can see the ones from 2021 in last year’s summary post.

We’ve seen so much, I split this post into four parts, one for each quarter of the year. This is the first part, for January through March, inclusive.

As with the previous summaries, I’ll include a link to the corresponding blog post, and a sample picture. Click or tap the link or picture to see more.

You can see all of the attraction-related blog posts via the exploring category, with the earliest posts at the top, or the latest posts at the top.

January 2022

Xscapers Bash in Lake Havasu City, Arizona:

London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, Arizona:

Palm Canyon in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge, Yuma, Arizona:

Hike in Coachella Valley Preserve, California:

February 2022

Downtown Palm Springs, California:

Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, California:

Salton Sea, California:

A hike in Joshua Tree National Park:

Disney day 1; Disneyland:

Disney day 2; Disney California Adventure:

Disney day 3; Disneyland:

Disney day 4; Disney California Adventure:

Disney day 5; Disneyland:

Medieval Times in Los Angeles:

Warner Bros Studio Tour:

March 2022

El Capitan State Beach:

Channel Islands National Park and wildlife cruise:

Cabazon Dinosaurs:

Saguaro National Park near Tucson, Arizona:

Rooster Cogburn Ostrich Ranch:

Check out part two!

San Antonio River Walk

We explored the main downtown part of the San Antonio River Walk.

But first, lunch at Margaritaville near the river:

Margaritaville

A statue of Saint Anthony:

Statue

The river, with a glimpse of the Tower of the Americas:

River and tower

The river walk:

River walk

Buildings

Fountain

River

Duck

River boat

We had a second lunch at a riverside Mexican restaurant:

Jenn

They took some photos of us, gave this one free, and offered to sell others, but they weren’t great pics:

Boat

We decided to take a river boat tour, which was an interesting and entertaining experience:

Boat

Boat captain

Theater

Statue

River

Building

River

Building

River

Waterfall

Bridge

River

A theater, with seating on one side and the stage across the river:

Theater

River

Waterfall

Sculpture

River

Rivercenter

A nice downtown area.

The Alamo

We visited The Alamo while in San Antonio. It is a site of great significance in the history of Texas. It started as a mission in 1718, and is best known for the 1836 Battle of the Alamo.

Here’s a GIF of a series of relief maps, showing how it grew and changed over the years:

Relief maps GIF

The courtyard in front of the Alamo church:

The Alamo

Statues:

Statue

The Alamo:

The Alamo

We took a guided tour, which was great to learn lots about the history:

Tour guide

We each had a device with an earpiece, so the guide could more easily talk to us:

Tour device

Drawing of the mission:

Drawing of the mission

A statue of a guy who lived in that house, and who defended the Alamo:

Statue

Monument:

Monument

James Butler Bonham and James Bowie:

Monument

Burke Trammel and David Crockett:

Monument

A cannon:

Cannon

Heading inside the The Alamo church:

The Alamo

The church is just one part of the mission:

Model

The Alamo

As part of a guided tour, we got to go into a room that isn’t open to the general public:

The Alamo

Army markings:

The Alamo

Exit:

Exit

Gift shop:

Gift shop

Back of The Alamo:

Back of The Alamo

Courtyard:

Courtyard

Cannons:

Cannons

Exhibits:

Exhibits

Decorations:

Decoratoins

Reenactor:

Reenactor

Gift shop:

Gift shop

Statues:

Statue

Model:

Model

Long barracks:

Long house barracks

A last look at The Alamo:

The Alamo

San Antonio Zoo Lights

We visited San Antonio Zoo for their holiday lights.

We arrived before dark, so there were still some animals awake:

Animals

A carousel:

Carousel

Animals

Aussie Snacks

Animals

We had some dinner:

Dinner

Then wandered around some more:

Animals

Some holiday lights coming on as the sun set:

Holiday lights

Animals

Artwork

Animals

Holiday lights

Animals

Holiday lights

A band:

Band

Holiday lights

Artwork:

Art

Holiday lights

Zoo sign

It was a fairly small zoo, not particularly impressive. Notable for opening the first cageless exhibits in the US. Though it looks like much of it hasn’t been updated recently.

San Antonio Missions National Historical Park

We explored the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park.

We rode our bikes between the four missions, starting at Mission Concepcion in the north. Here’s the approximate route on an interactive map (we diverted from this a little; see the actual route in the video at the end):

Mission Concepcion:

Mission Concepcion