So because of the endless rains in September and October, and my imminent departure for Thailand in early November, the clock was ticking. At this point I had 245 counties visited, with seven remaining for a day trip, and the final two – Travis (Capital of Texas) and Hays (my home county) saved for last. Luckily for me, Saturday the 27th dawned beautifully and I was able to trundle out the last of the bikes that had not yet had a chance to participate in the adventure: the 2011 Royal Enfield. Between 1978 and 1983 I had ridden an almost identical bike that I had bought new in Bombay all over India, so I had really been looking forward to this particular segment – deja vu all over again, as Yogi once said.
I was also looking forward to this trip because it took me back in time to my boyhood. I was the first child in my family, and I was regularly packed off on weekends with my grandfather to visit his ranch in Washington County, between Burton and Carmine. We drove all over that part of Texas doing ranch-type errands, and when I got my driver’s license at 14 he allowed me to go out on my own in a radius that spanned from Brenham in the east to Giddings in the west.
So this trip had the best of two worlds – a hearkening back in time to when my Royal Enfield was my one-and-only bike love (and also my first brand-new bike), and also in time to my boyhood. I’m very comfortable in this part of Texas, and this was the itinerary for this 7-county trip:
First stop was Lockhart, seat of Caldwell County, named for Texas Ranger Matthew Caldwell who fought in the Texas Revolution and also fought in the Battle of Plum Creek, which took place in 1840 just a few miles from Lockhart. That was an epic battle between around a thousand Comanche led by Chief Buffalo Hump who was determined to exact revenge for the slaughter of Comanche chiefs and family members under white flag at the Council House Fight in San Antonio. Buffalo Hump had rounded up a huge entourage which then traveled, in very un-Comanche-like style, cross country, through Victoria and on to Linnville, a little Gulf Coast town which they pillaged and plundered, and drove the occupants literally into the sea, which was kind of the point of the whole exercise. After hitting Linnville, the Comanche, with piles of plunder and livestock, headed back to the Llano Estacado. They were intercepted at Plum Creek by Texas Rangers and a band of Anglo militia. While the Anglos claimed victory, the Comanche did get away with most of the plunder, and the number of casualties is still in dispute.
Looking at modern-day Lockhart you’d never imagine such a drama having occurred just on the outskirts of town. In 1999 the Texas legislature proclaimed Lockhart as the Barbecue Capital of Texas, though I expect that that claim is in dispute, not least by the nearby town of Luling, host of the famous City Market BBQ.
The crisp morning ride continued from Lockhart to Bastrop, seat of Bastrop County and the place where I bought the BMW motorcycle that was the workhorse for most of this 254 county adventure. Bastrop was the name of a Dutch settler who helped Stephen F. Austin get the land grants in Texas that led, ultimately to the end of Mexican and Native American hegemony.
Bastrop, located on the Colorado River, has had beaucoup movies filmed there, including part of Linklater’s award-winning Boyhood, also mentioned in a different segment of this trip.
Bastrop is where the Piney Woods begins, which helped it feature in the 2011 wildfires that raged through this area. As it happened, I was driving with my parents on I10 just south of the fires on the day that it happened, and we saw the horizon covered in smoke and flames. Unforgettable.
One facet of this trip I forgot to mention – the Enfield basically will not run faster than about 70 mph, and is most comfortable at 60-65. So I had to allocate more time than usual to get from one place to another, explaining the paucity of photos for some of these beautiful little burgs.
From Bastrop, east to Lee County, of which Giddings is the seat. Predictably, the county is named for Robert E. Lee, who needs no introduction, while Giddings comes from one of a number of settlers from Pennsylvania.
From Giddings, a beautiful sunny ride northeast through the rolling hills of Lee and Burleson Counties, the seat of the latter being Caldwell. Yes, it is named for the same Matthew Caldwell we met earlier on this trip in Caldwell County. Burleson is a famous Texas name, cropping up all over the place, and refers to Edward Burleson, a general and Vice-President of the Republic of Texas. He served under Sam Houston, though the two supposedly hated each other. When Santa Anna surrendered at the Battle of San Jacinto, his sword was presented to Edward Burleson. Burleson fought in just about every war and skirmish that took place between 1812 and the 1840’s.
Caldwell is the home of the Czech Heritage museum, this area having been a magnet for Czech immigrants (including my ancestors). Caldwell is one of the towns around here that is famous for the Czech pastry kolaches.
From Caldwell, continuing northeast to Bryan, seat of Brazos County and Siamese twin of College Station, the two jointly hosting Texas A&M University, from which my brothers and one son are graduates. Bryan was a very pleasant surprise to me – I had never been there before, but will return to meander around the charming little town – notwithstanding the city being a pioneer in the establishment of a “Gang Safety Zone” in the downtown area. I understand that to mean that they are trying to ensure safety FROM gangs, though who knows, perhaps it is a free-fire zone FOR gangs…
While the town is very attractive, the courthouse is pretty utilitarian…
From Bryan, I headed back westward toward the town of Cameron (of which I had never heard), seat of Milam County. This stretch and the following one to Georgetown were among the most pleasant of the entire 254 county adventure. It was all quiet back roads and glowing, rolling agricultural lands.
The county is named for Ben Milam, originally from Kentucky, but who became a Mexican, a Texian, but never a Texan because he was killed by a sniper at the siege of Bexar in San Antonio in 1835. He spent time, in his own words, “as a tenant of every prison between here (Goliad) and Mexico”.
Cameron itself is an expansive, shady town with a beautiful square and gazebo.
Reluctantly, noting the setting sun, I mounted back up and headed west, through more of the glorious afternoon-sunlit pasture and farmlands, toward Georgetown, seat of Williamson County, where my wife’s home is located.
Williamson county – named for another Texas Revolutionary participant – is known to have been occupied by humans for over 11,000 years. Part of Austin is in this county, and to the east it is the rich black loamy ag land that I had just driven through. Dell Computer is now also headquartered in Williamson County, which contributes to the air of prosperity there.
The outlaw Sam Bass was killed in a shootout in nearby Round Rock in 1878. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was filmed in Georgetown.
Georgetown, I guess because of Dell Computer, looks like a Californian paradise, replete with sidewalk bars and restaurants, with the gorgeous courthouse in the middle of it all. This was due to a restoration (very successfully done) that began in the 1970’s, and Georgetown was recently named as one of the best places in the US to buy a historic house.
And from Georgetown, last stop on this last trip, I headed back to Wimberley, having added 7 more counties, and covered 348 miles on the little Enfield.
And then there were two…
