Finishing up with the hill country and more

It has been quite a while since my last post and I have been busy. I have relocated to a place closer to San Antonio and have explored more in this area while also rechecking my previous spots for any additional signs of Big Foot. 

I know I have mentioned this before, but I think I should restate this again as I know that some have asked. I thought I had covered in my FAQs and in previous posts but I don't mind repeating myself again as I have a tendency towards being vague sometimes. I am hunting for an elusive prey which for the lack of a better name, we call Big Foot or Sasquatch. The difference in my exploration is that I am not searching for the woodland variety but rather the more wily creature that can be found only in coffee shops, cafes, breweries, distilleries, wineries, museums, etc. Unlike other typical cryptozoological creatures that I sometimes hunt, my Big Foot may not necessarily be wild looking. For example, the creature may not be fur covered which adds a level of complexity to the search. In fact, it is not determined what gender this more sophisticated Big Foot may be. Finding a seven foot tall fur covered creature in a brewery would be easy, but what if that was not how this branch of the family tree looks? To paraphrase a famous quite, I do this not because it is easy, but rather because it is hard. It is a challenge that I have taken on, truly a quest for the unknown and potentially unknowable. The monster hunting hounds have agreed to take on this challenge as they tired of the life of leisure that had lived and demanded more activity. In fact even now, Ozzy is deep in thought as he is curled up on the recliner in a blanket. I can tell he is ready to pounce at a moment's notice and chase down the creature. I may never find the creature I seek, but I shall not give up my hunt. 

I have continued to check out the local offerings including a few hikes. Unfortunately as it has been a month of activity, I have kind of lost track of where all I have been. I will try to piece this together but the life of a adventurer and explorer is quite exhausting so I may miss something. Basically look on a map of Texas and the area we have been exploring includes New Braunfels, Spring Branch, Dripping Springs, Marble Falls, Fredericksburg, Blanco, Stonewall, Boerne, and San Marcos. There are other places too but that should give you the vibe. I have enjoyed my stay here in the hill country and I will return next winter for a few months as there is much to do in the area and many opportunities to catch the creature. 

In sticking with the recent theme, I will do a photo dump and try to share what each one is. If I repeat a location, it is likely due to me being there multiple times. 

Alstadt Brewing. Just sitting on the patio and enjoying the day.

Finally got the ingredients to make a proper old fashioned (no soda or brandy in sight). I cheat on the orange peel and use orange bitters instead. Luxardo cherries are required.

Natural Bridge Cavern. Obviously more impressive in person.

Just another shot of the Natural Bridge Cavern. Well worth a visit and close to San Antonio. Do the river walk after ward like we did and just enjoy the fresh air.  

Lucy looking silly. I tried to get both of them to pose, but Ozzy was on the lookout for Big Foot and couldn't let his guard down. What a beast.

Last picture you will see of that truck. Just love the blue skies.

Guadalupe Brewing Company. Nice place, live music, just sat outside and relaxed.

Sitting outside at Five Stones Brewery. 

Enjoying a cold beverage at Five Stones. It was a lovely day and there was plenty of room to spread out. 

Texas Cannon Brewing. I like this place better than Real Ale.Both are in Blanco and both have good beer, but Texas Cannon has a bar to sit at which I feel is a requirement for a proper establishment. 

At Texas Cannon with S&S.

At Muck and Fuss. Beer was good, food was good. People were friendly, Really, no complaints.

Tusculum from Boerne, I had a to go beverage. B & L gave me a jacket for my beer so it can stay cold while I do not need to. What a thoughtful son. 

Another visit to Andalusia. If one can become a regular while on the road, S&S and I are regulars here. 

As I mentioned, that picture of the white truck was the last one I would post as I have upgraded my vehicle. I have decided to go to the bigger sized truck for a variety of reason, but mostly due to safety. I was at least 20% to 30% over the payload capacity of the old truck while being under the towing capacity. This meant I had sufficient power, but lacked control when confronted with winds or rough roads. Since I have many miles to go before I am through, I thought I should probably do something about this as there was just no further improvements possible on the old F150. I have been searching for quite a while as the used heavy duty truck market has been quite wild for the last few years. The new ones have all been spec'd with the high end bells and whistles that I neither need nor want. That left me in a dilemma. Thankfully I did a search on new (2022 model year) Ram 2500s and found several that would meet my needs without breaking the bank. Basically they were a few thousand more than the used ones with 50,000 miles. One I found in Wisconsin and they would deliver it up to 150 miles. Easy peasy. I would drive the old truck up to C's house in De Pere and get the new one delivered there. Unfortunately the weather failed to cooperate. I left in the middle of an ice storm in Texas. The roads were sub-optimal for sure. I got to Wisconsin in time for -10F weather (not the wind chill, just the raw temp). Really the best of both places in winter. The good news is I was able to see C&D, and B&L along with Amy's parents, D&S. I have missed the kids and everyone, but I have certainly not missed the weather. It was a pleasant 20 hour drive back to Texas so I was able to break in the new rig.

New truck. The camera angle makes it look big, Don't worry, it is big. That's about a 30 inch step up to get inside. I picked up some running boards that I will have to install. I already have installed the bed rug and the tonneau cover. 

C&D. D had reserve duty that weekend so it was a quick dinner out before his hair cut.

B&L and C out for dinner at Le Reve. It was awesome to see them and to be able to enjoy a nice meal together. I have not seen them since September. I have plans to address this next year.

I am in this area for less than one week and then I head towards the coast for a month. I am scouting areas that will work for future visits to Texas as I do like wintering down here. It has been mostly pleasant weather wise and there are plenty of places to hunt for the elusive Big Foot. Post Texas, I will be heading to Arizona for a RV rally and then back east and then north. I have reservations mostly covered through Labor Day and I have general plans for autumn. I am still trying to find a decent place in SE Wisconsin as my preferred location is not currently taking reservations. I will then be up in NE Wisconsin for C's graduation from St Norbert College. I hope to be able to see my friends and visit some old familiar haunts (thinking of you Runaway) while in town. When it is closer I will let people know, but I should be in SE Wisconsin the last week in April and the first week in May and then in NE Wisconsin the following week. I then will head off to Kentucky for the summer as I have a volunteer gig lined up near Mammoth Cave. 

The life of an adventurer and explorer is never dull. I am excited to move on and check out the area near Corpus Christi which is nationally ranked. As always, onto the next adventure.

Thor

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