So we took a trip the other day.
It was a pretty long trip, and we didn't stay very long, but it was quite rejuvenating and certainly a great respite from the Everyday Grind.
The look on my face wasn't on purpose. It may have been a subconscious reaction to the little boy's 4th time commenting on how long the drive was. :D
We went through a myriad of weathers/ road conditions getting to our destination.
There was cloudy, mega dusty, rainy and then super clear skies.
When we saw The Mountains looming ahead of us, we were just thrilled.
And then, winding up through the mountains, seeing the changes in the flora..
It was really cool to see all the different formations on the cliffsides and slopes - these photos do no justice at all, to their magnificence.
And then we were there - Indian Lodge at Davis Mountains State Park.
It had beautiful Pueblo Village-esque architecture, very very quaint and South Western-like.
While the hubs was talking to the lady at the reception, the little boy and myself were feeling quite touristy :)
We walked around and toured the buildings around the Lodge.
This one was a common sitting area with various games and magazines etc.
We finally got to our room...
which was the quaintest thing ever. The first thing the little boy did, of course, was to jump on the bed and declare how comfortable it was.
We had brought all kinds of leftovers, so we had a quick dinner, and ventured out to see what we could before it got dark.
The room was very cute. The bamboo/cane ceilings were fascinating, but unfortunately made creaky noises when the people upstairs were walking about. I found that out at like, 4 a.m. the next morning. I suppose they woke up early to get ready for a hike or something.
*sigh*
We decided to take a drive up the Scenic Trail and see what sort of sights we could catch before the sun went down.
It was indeed breathtaking.
And VERY windy.
We even drove over to where McDonald Observatory was, but obviously it was closed to the public at that hour. They DO have "Star Parties", but we were not there on the right night.
The next morning, we walked around again, taking in the sights,
and yes, you can tell by my hair that it is SUPER windy. PLUS, it is already warm in the mornings back in Abilene, but up here in all this elevation, it was nippy that morning.
The little boy suddenly acquired this need to climb and climb, and pose atop things. LOL :D
The sky was a brilliant blue, with hardly a cloud.
We drove up the Scenic Route again...and the bench that the little boy had sat on last night was now down on the ground from All That Wind.
And if you look carefully at the top middle of the photo, you can see the Indian Lodge where we spent the night, off in the distance.
In THIS case, we found like 3 or 4 :)
It was nice to have the sun shining brightly and still have the cool crisp mountain air.
I knew I was going to miss that when we got home.
On the way home, the hubs decided to look for a really special Rest Area that he remembered he had stopped at when he was traveling in these parts a long time ago.
It was good to see some elevation and different landforms after the neverending flatness of Abilene and its surrounding areas.
We caught a glimpse of the McDonald Observatory in the distance,
and stopped by for a short visit :)
We finally found the Very Special Rest Stop, and apparently it even has a name : Point of Rocks Picnic Area, Rest Stop.
I really like this photo of how the little boy is running, exploring, and the trees are casting a web of shadows on the ground and the rocks. :)
I hate having my photo taken, only because I have very little self esteem that way.
BUT, Once In A While, we have to get a selfie in to remind everyone that I actually DO exist, and so the little boy can have some photo memories that have Mom in them.
The little boy was fascinated by all the terrain and couldn't stop climbing, climbing, climbing!
And all the Rocky Balboa triumphant poses.. :)
After that, we drove in to Fort Davis, to see some of the sights, including...
The County Courthouse...
Historic Hotel Limpia,
and The Fort itself.
We tried to recreate a an old family photo that we had.
The people in the photo include the hubs' mom, aunt, grandfather, uncle as well as his mom's Uncle Claude and HIS family, way back in 1939.
The hubs later contacted the ranger there regarding the photo that he had, and they were very interested in it.
They hardly had any photographs from way back then, and it would be very valuable to them as guides for restoring the old buildings, which have had parts of them crumble away with time.
They had added an addition that was not in the original photo, and the porch part didn't look quite the same.
As we walked around the compound, Rocky struck again. :D
We trekked up to the Fort Hospital,
where things were likely pretty gruesome back in the day.
There was even a sign warning that there could be BATS in the building.
On our way home, the hubs stopped by a pool he had swum in as a child, which was actually one of the largest spring-fed pools.
And then, we were off home. The last interesting thing we encountered though, was a somewhat disassembled helicopter being towed off somewhere.
It was a lovely trip, really a breath of fresh air, literally. Here's to many more adventures to come.
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