Texas Hill Country (1,380 miles)

Every now and then a break from cycling is much needed.   We spent eleven straight days on the back roads pushing the pedals over hills, against the wind, and in freezing weather.  On our coldest day, "Icicle Cycle" was the headline of the Beaumont Enterprise.  The following story could have easily been about us because our feet and toes certainly felt like icicles that day.  Fortunately the weather has improved immensely (sunscreen daily); however, the hills seem to be growing.  There was lots of talk about the Texas Hill Country, but no exact determination of where it begins and ends.  Outside of Elaine's Restaurant in Coldspring, a local told us that we were "fixin' to get into Hill Country".  With this level of precision we moved forward and within two days we were fixin' to find the least hilly route.  We soon discovered that the Texas Hill Country could not be avoided.  However we learned from John Hall, a local legend in the Austin cycling community, that riding the hills can be enjoyable.  In the parking lot of a Subway 50 miles east of Austin, he showed us the scenic route to Austin in his weathered maps.  John has been cycling the area for years and now runs the warehouse at Bicycle Sport Shop (Austin's largest bike shop).  John's route took us through Buesher and Bastrop State Parks in hilly yet very scenic surroundings.

We climbed into Austin this past Tuesday and a break was in order.  The "weird" city of Texas and home of the University of Texas was an ideal setting for a mid-week weekend.  Luckily our hosts Jaimis, Tarin, and Wallace were happy to show us around the city and it's attractions.  We owe them much thanks for maximizing our time in Austin.  We also owe a big thank you to Gordon at Castle Hill Cycles.  On short notice Gordon tuned and trued our bicycles, while teaching us a good deal about bike maintenance.  He laughed when we asked about the hills to come, but eventually provided us with the best route going west.  We wish Gordon the best of luck in his pursuit to become an Austin city fireman, yet hope he still has time to help confused cyclists.

Yesterday we left Austin after an extended breakfast at the original Whole Foods.  Austin is a very biker friendly city (home of Lance Armstrong) and many people wanted to talk to us having seen our loaded bikes.  A kind girl even gave us a box of Kind Bars, a staple in the road diet.  Eventually we rode the opposite way (away from the nightlife action) on 6th street and over the pedestrian bridge to Barton Springs.  In short time the urban areas of Austin faded and the Texas countryside opened to us. The two days in Austin provided optimal time to recharge and to prepare for the next stage of our trip.  Today we leave Johnson City in the direction of Del Rio.  Back in that Subway parking lot before Austin, John Hall reminded us that every uphill has a downhill.  As we get deeper into the never ending Texas Hill Country we will surely remember to enjoy those downhills!