It seems like it has been decades since I wrote about a trip. We have been making trips, but with all this stuff going on, we have slowed down our travels. Tracy works at home now. My business, I travel at least three counties every week.
A couple of weeks ago Tracy said, “I think I have had enough of staying at home. We need to make a day trip.” “where do you want to go, I ask.” She replied, “Surprise me.”
Business for me has been overwhelming. I have been working at least six days a week. Lately I have been doing 14-hour days.
Saturday, I woke up early. Made coffee and woke Tracy. Let’s go have breakfast at Dahlia’s in Liberty Hill I said. They have incredible breakfast. Like over the top.
With coffee in hand, the top down on the car, off we went. Tracy made a call to see how busy they were. Sadly, with this stuff going on they are not open for breakfast yet. Only dinners currently.
Did a quick turn around and headed west. We looked around Burnet and all we could find was The Highlander. I can tell you their smorgasbord is awesome for lunch and dinner. Breakfast, not so much. It is not bad, just not something we would go to. Quick bite and saw some friends.
Back in the car, top back down and westward we go. Our original thought was to go to Mason. As we were driving, we did some research to make sure there were places open.
We made it to Llano. Took a little tour around to show Tracy the recent work I had done. By this time we determined Mason was not the place to go. All the planned activities had been cancelled. And we were worried making that trip would be frustrating if most of the places of interest were closed. We decided to head north on 16 toward San Saba.
We arrived in San Saba and decided to visit a few establishments we went to previously.
First stop. San Saba Olive oil Company . We met Renee who is the new owner. The previous owner who we had a wonderful time before decided to retire. We had a great time chatting with her. She is a wealth of information about San Saba. If you ever get the chance to drive in the area, please stop there. She has gallons and gallons of infused oils and balsamic to taste. We ended up buying 12 bottles. Yum
Walked a block down the road and stopped in Harry’s Boots. Huge place with everything western. And upstairs is the place to go to buy a cowboy hat. Our trip there was for a purpose. Last time we found baby chaps and vests. But we did not buy them. We did this time!
Last weekend we did a video chat with the grand babies and watched them open and wear them. Yahoo was said many times!
When we were talking to Renee, she suggested a place called Bad Bob’s General Store in Bend. At first, I thought she was pulling my leg while she was describing the place. But we thought we would give it a try. We were hungry and she said they have great food.
We followed her directions to turn at the sign that said Bend. She said we could not miss it. Well we are driving along, top down, having a great conversation, in the middle of nowhere. Suddenly, we saw about 30 cars parked, and a huge amount of 4 wheelers. We pulled in.
First impression, yep a hole in the wall. The place seemed incredibly old and tired. To the right of the building there is a picnic area and a food trailer. We walked to the trailer and the sign said to place the food order inside. We looked around to see where inside was. A gentleman wearing a huge straw hat asked if we were lost. Restroom and lunch. He pointed to the construction outhouse and said to go into the main building to order lunch. He also said in an hour this place will get busy with the band playing.
We went inside and I would guess this building was built in the 30’s. General store is a good word. Fish bait, swimming suits, clothes, beer, hardware, and anything else you would find in an old general store. We ordered two types of hamburgers and fries. Took the sales slip to the food trailer and waited at the picnic tables. While waiting we had conversations with mother hen and her chicks. Yes Tracy fed them.
Went to the bar and ordered drinks. Hamburgers were ready. I can tell you these were one of the top 10 burgers I have had. Jalapeno cheeseburger on jalapeno bread. Just enough kick to say hello!
The owner stopped by and suggested we get another drink and head to the stage. He said we would enjoy the band. So we did.
Well three hours later listening to an awesome band, playing with the local dog, talking to people, it was time to force ourselves to head back home. We still had an hour and a half drive home.
I can tell you Google Maps was wrong on how to get home. We drove for about 10 miles and all of a sudden there is a fence with a home-made stop sign. When we stopped a lady walked up and we told her about Maps. She laughed and said the road is private property and they are renting out RV sites. She also said when we turned around to look for Big Jack. If we saw him tell him Happy Birthday. He is the owner of the ranch. We did not see him, but we saw this.
It was a good day Much needed with this lock down. Tracy felt much better after the day long drive in the sun. I must admit, I had fun also.