Kerrville Texas and Texas Hill Country 2010

We had read great things about the Guadalupe River RV Resort in Kerrville, Texas online so we were excited when we were able to stay there on our trek across Texas. After staying there we feel that this is our favorite campground and the Texas Hill Country is one of our favorite areas. We were in a river site that is backed in where our rear windows of the fifth wheel overlooked the river. There was a lot of land from the rear of our site to the river with walking trails and benches hanging from the trees. The layout reminded us of our old house that overlooked Silver Lake in Raymore, Missouri with a large lot between the house and lake. Maybe that is why we like this park so much. We spent a lot of time just walking the trails and sitting in the benches and reading. This was also our cat’s favorite park as there was about 20 deer that roamed throughout the park that caught there eye plus birds galore along with squirrels that ran up and down the tree right next to our fifth wheel. Bob kept trying to get a picture of one squirrel who would stare at JJ our cat upside down from the tree but alas that Kodak moment was not captured. We liked the place so much that we stayed more days than we planned.

We also did a lot of sightseeing while we were in Kerrville in addition to just sitting in the swings along the river or walking the trails when the weather was nice. Our first stop was the National Museum of the Pacific War in Fredericksburg, Texas. The main reason that we wanted to visit this museum was that there is a 6 foot scale model of the USS New Mexico which is the ship that Jo’s dad served on in WWII. Bob’s dad also served in the Pacific on the USS Wasp so this was a very special moment for both of us. The National Museum of the Pacific War was the result of the desire of the town of Fredericksburg to honor its native son Admiral Chester Nimitz after the end of WWII. To his credit Nimitz stated that not just him but everyone who fought in the Pacific should be honored so this museum is unique in that it honors Navy, Marines, Army, etc. not just one branch of the armed forces.

The tour starts out in the old Nimitz Family Hotel with a history of the Nimitz family and of Fredericksburg with its German influence. Exiting the hotel takes you to an outdoor area where plaques honoring ships, divisions, planes, men, etc. are on walls along a walkway. Bricks in the walkway are in honor of men who served in WWII. There is a Japanese Garden of Peace donated by the military leaders of Japan in honor of Admiral Nimitz. The inscription reads “The Garden of Peace is a gift to the people of the United States from the people of Japan with prayers for everlasting world peace through the goodwill of our two nations, symbolized by the friendship and respect that existed between Admiral Togo and Admiral Nimitz.”

Still outside on your way to the main gallery is the Plaza of the Presidents which is a tribute to the ten American Presidents (Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Carter, Ford, Reagan, and Bush) who served in the armed forces in WWII.

The main gallery of the National Museum of the Pacific War is named the George H. W. Bush gallery in honor of President’s Bush service in WWII where he was a US Navy pilot with 58 combat missions for which he received the Distinguished Flying Cross. Entering the gallery one of the first things you see is one of the five 2-man submarines that took part in the attack on Pearl Harbor. This sub is right across from the gift shop. Just a few steps beyond the gift shop is the main entrance which takes you on a journey from the build up to the war along a timeline to the end of the war detailing all of the armed forces involved in the conflict. We came away amazed at how much we were able to accomplish in the Pacific considering the destruction at Pearl Harbor and with the focus being not on the Pacific but on Europe, what was called the “Europe First” strategy. There were so many artifacts to look at, history to read and to listen to. Each station had recorded remembrances of veterans that were both chilling and sometimes funny at the same time. Also part of the complex is a book store with loads of great historical novels. With all there was to see we were very glad that the tickets were good for 48 hours because we saw all we could the first day and had to come back the second and finish. Even with that we did not get the chance to visit the Pacific Combat Zone, an outdoor exhibit area detailing the island hopping conflicts of the Pacific.

At first we were not sure if we wanted to visit the LBJ Historic Site east of Fredericksburg since LBJ is not one of our favorite Presidents but we are sure glad that we did. The site is actually a State Park and consists of a living history farm which was our first stop after the Visitor Center and the LBJ Ranch. The Visitor Center is not to be missed as it contains memorabilia from President Johnson's presidency and interactive displays about the Land and People that shaped a president. The living history farm consisted of buildings from the 1800’s, farm animals, and people costumed for the era. They were fixing lunch using everything grown on this farm to ribs, bread, and vegetables and boy it sure smelled good. We had just eaten or we may have fought them for it.

The highlight of this stop though was the Ranch. Leaving the living history farm and driving to the Ranch you drive by the original gate to the Ranch that is now closed which took you on a road that drove over the dam that is on the Pedernales River. LBJ delighted in taking guests to the Ranch in his car and driving on water and watching their expressions. Among the sites on the Ranch are the one-room Junction School first attended by the four-year-old Lyndon B. Johnson in 1912, reconstructed birthplace and nearby Johnson family cemetery where the former President is buried, and the Johnson home which became the Texas White House, the first private residence that actually functioned as a White House while the President was there. Earlier President’s went on vacation like Truman to Key West but the residence there did not have the level of equipment and security so it could function as a White House. We saw the Secret Service building that was added which will someday be an exhibit.

While we were waiting for our house tour we saw the cars that LBJ had and boy did he like cars. Upon entering the house we were a little shocked as to how plain it was, nothing like you would expect. We were not allowed to take pictures inside the house. Although this is a State Park the National Park Service is in charge of restoring the house so this was a work in progress. For one thing they cannot find the pink carpet that was in the study which Lady Bird hated and had removed after LBJ’s death. The kitchen was much smaller than we expected for a house of this size. There was a nice photo collection of all the generations of Johnson on the wall in the kitchen. We did not know that Lady Bird lived in this house until her death in 2007 so the restoration is really just beginning. We want to go back when the Secret Service building is completed, along with an aircraft hanger that was made into a movie theatre during LBJ’s presidency, and to see if they ever find that dreaded pink carpet.

Although we were only in Kerrville for a little shy of two weeks we were able to work in some good eating. There is a little hole in the wall place near the park fittingly called the “Hole in the Wall” that serves sandwiches. The philly steak sandwich and the ½ pound burgers are good and the fries are freshly cut at this location. In fact they make their own buns which are real good. We ate many times at the since it was so good and a convenient location. The highlights of our eating though had to be the Lakehouse in Kerrville which is situated right on the Guadalupe River and der Lindenbaum in Fredericksburg. At the Lakehouse we got the baked catfish, which was some of the best baked catfish we have ever had, and the fried catfish which was mighty tasty. At der Lindenbaum we got some of the best Jaeger Schnitzel we have ever had. We tried the Hunter House Café in nearby Ingram for breakfast and we just cannot recommend it. So far on our travels we have struck out breakfast wise if we try some of the local places. They just cannot beat Cracker Barrel which was luckily in this town and we ate there several times. We also ate at Mamacita’s which was highly recommended but although it was OK it just was not as good as advertised.

We love the Texas Hill Country and the Guadalupe River RV Resort so much we are already talking about our next visit even though we still have the vast majority of the country to see. We will just have to visit here on our way to places yet unseen. We have a lengthy list of things to do next time, some of which are repeats of this visit:

* spring great time to visit for bluebonnets in bloom

* 'Canyon of the Eagles' with nature walking trails

* revisit LBJ National Historic Park

* revisit National Museum of the Pacific War and the combat zone this time

* Pioneer Museum complex

* Enchanted Rocks State Park

* Willow City Loop

* Pedernales State Park

* “Let’s go to Luckenbach Texas”

* eat at Cooper’s BBQ in Llano, Buffalo Nickel Bar and Grill, Big Earl’s, Francisco’s, Billy Genes, The Rails-A Cafe at the Depot

Photos from this trip have been added to flickr.com.

Till next time,

Bob & Jo

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