A Walk Around Waco - Thurs., Sept. 27, 2018

The Chisholm Trail, a suspension bridge, sculptures, murals, the Dr Pepper Museum, and Baylor University were all parts of the 10k walk I did in Waco, Texas, today. Bob is in classes for two days in Temple, Texas, and I traveled north with him. 

We left San Antonio at 6:00 a.m. Just before Buda, I-35 came to a halt. We got off at the next off ramp and made it through the backup in about 20 minutes. There was a wreck blocking two of the three lanes on I-35.

Bob's classes started at 10:00 a.m. We arrived early, parked in the Hilton Garden Inn parking lot, and both took a nap. Bob slept about 15 minutes, and I slept 1-1/2 hours. 

When I woke up, I drove to Waco, Texas, ate lunch, and started my walk at the Hilton downtown. Right across the street from the Hilton are a number of sculptures depicting cowboys driving cattle on The Texas Chisholm Trail.

"Trail Boss & Longhorn,"
by Robert Summers, sculptor

"Vaquero & Longhorn,"
by Robert Summers, sculptor

A long trail of longhorns along the street.

From the park with the sculptures, the walk went downstairs to the Brazos River. I had great views of the Waco Suspension Bridge.

In 1866, The Waco Bridge Company was granted a 25-year charter to build a toll bridge here. The charter guaranteed that no other bridge or ferry could be built within five miles. Construction was finished in 1870. It was the first bridge across the Brazos River and, at that time, the longest (475 ft.) single-span suspension bridge in the world. Users of the bridge included wagons, cattle herds, and pedestrians. In 1889, the bridge was bought by McLennan County and made a free public thoroughfare. It is a Texas Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.

Waco Suspension Bridge over the Brazos River.

Waco Suspension Bridge

Wildlife viewing by the river:

Duck parade

Muscovy duck (established feral)

From the river, the walk made its way into downtown. I passed by St. Francis Church on the Brazos.

St. Francis Church on the Brazos

The beautiful interior of the church.

More of the church's interior.

A nice thank you for visiting the church.

I continued walking into downtown. A building as beautiful as some of the state capitols we've seen came into sight. It is the McLennan County Courthouse (their fourth). 

McLennan County Courthouse

McLennan County Courthouse

Entry to the courthouse.

The first courthouse, a two-story log building, was outgrown in five years. In 1856, a second courthouse was built out of brick. However, due to problems with the structure, including two fatalities due to faulty second-floor doors, a new structure was needed. By the mid-1870s, a new courthouse and jail were constructed. By 1900, it again became too small and a bigger courthouse was designed by James Riely Gordon. This courthouse was built during the peak of central Texas cotton wealth. It is a magnificent Renaissance Revival design crowned with statues of eagles as well as Themis, Justitia, and Liberty. Materials used in construction were steel, limestone, concrete, and marble, with Texas red granite in the rusticated base.

Downtown had unique-to-Waco design elements, such as:

Cute mural.

District maps on utility boxes.

An awesome gate.

All things Dr Pepper (at the museum).

First Baptist Church (gorgeous design!).

Waco's version of "The Thinker."

There was so much to see on this walk, I had to decide what to do, and how much time to spend doing it. For example, I love Dr Pepper and I dedicated an hour to the Dr Pepper Museum & Free Enterprise Institute which not only had all things Dr Pepper, but also had many popular soft drinks represented. (If you're wondering why I am not putting a period after the Dr. in Dr Pepper, it is because the board decided to drop the period. I know, it drives me crazy, too!)

Dr Pepper Museum photos:

1950s Chevrolet delivery truck.

Geoffrey Holder

Display of root beers.

Dr Pepper Snapple Group (DPSG) products.

Old advertising.

Free Enterprise Institute

Meyer Dumore Junior Bottle Washer

Beautiful old seltzer bottles, circa 1930s.

Definitely make time to visit this museum if you're in Waco. This is the home of the nation's oldest major soft drink. You will learn some surprising things. There is a 1950s soda fountain there. I had an amazing Dr Pepper float. The Liquid Laboratory has live shows throughout the day. I made it to the last show of the day at 1:30 p.m. An intern talked about the history of soda, different flavors that were in favor throughout history, and flavor experiments. How does cranberry-jalapeno soda sound? You could sample seltzer water, carbonated water, and one of their concoctions that sounded, shall we say, interesting.
The walk also took us past Magnolia Market. No, I did not see Chip and JoAnna Gaines. Instructions on the walk sheet said: "There is a bakery that usually has a long line that may block the area. The wait to get into the market itself is a different line and usually not very long if you'd like to stop in and look around." I decided not to do this today because my time was limited.

The Silos at Magnolia Market

Magnolia Market

The walk then went back down to the Brazos River for a short distance to the Texas Ranger Museum. This museum is also on my bucket list. Bob and I will come back to check this out another time. There are some nice sculptures in front of the museum

Major George B. Erath -
Father of Waco, Champion of Texas

"Texas Ranger," by Don Hunt, sculptor

Another museum on the route that Bob would probably enjoy was the Texas Sports Hall of Fame.

Next destination: Baylor University. The walk went through a good portion of the school. The walk directions need to be updated, though. It said to continue to a Giant Chess Board, look at the board and then continue. However, the Giant Chess Board is no longer there. Here are some pictures of Baylor University.

Waco Creek

Turtles.

Sailboat on Waco Creek.

View of campus from University Parks Drive.

Mayborn Museum Complex

The Mayborn Museum Complex features a natural science and cultural history museum focusing on Central Texas with walk-in dioramas including one on the Waco Mammoth Site, and exploration stations for geology, paleontology, archaeology, and natural history.

I walked around the Mayborn Museum and headed across the Brazos River on a new pedestrian bridge to beautiful McLane Stadium. 

Sheila and Walter Umphrey Bridge to McLane Stadium

Looks like a game may be coming up...lots of
tents set up around the stadium

Heisman Trophy winner
Robert Griffin III

Quote from Robert Griffin III.

Paddleboarders on the Brazos River.

McLane Stadium, Baylor University.

The walk finished along the Brazos River. 

Finally, some shade!

Waco Suspension Bridge

More of the cattle drive sculpture.

I was hot, tired, hungry, sweaty, and ready to be done with this walk. Don't get me wrong, this is a wonderful Volksmarch, but I started walking too late on a hot, muggy day. Next time I do this walk, I'll make it a point to start at 7:00 a.m., not noon.

Bob's class was supposed to let out at 5:00 p.m. I still had a little time left and one more place in Waco I wanted to visit: Waco Mammoth National Monument. It was five miles from where I was downtown. I zipped over there. When I got there, I found out my Senior National Park Pass was only good for parking and the Visitor Center. If I wanted to see the mammoth dig site, it would be $5 for a tour. Okay, I did want to see it, so I forked over five bucks. The next tour left in ten minutes.

A 250-year-old live oak.

The dig site.

The mammoths at this location are not woolly mammoths, they are Columbian mammoths. What's very interesting is that the team here unearthed a nursery pit filled with female and baby mammoths. A total of 24 mammoths have been found so far and they expect to find more. Studying the mammoths, it looks like they may have been gathering at a watering hole when a flash flood trapped them in deep mud. The pit is inside an air-conditioned building which helps protect the fragile bones, keeps poachers out, and makes for a good work environment for the archeologists.

The wall painting is not as big as an actual
Columbian mammoth.

Columbian mammoths are the biggest.

The inside of the building and the pit.

I had to leave before the Park Ranger stopped talking so I could pick up Bob after his class. 

With Bob in the car, we went back to check into our hotel in Waco, and then we went out to dinner at Buzzard Billy's, overlooking the Brazos River.

Bob outside Buzzard Billy's.

Buzzard Billy's has indoor and outdoor seating.

Beautifully lit bridges next to the restaurant.

After dinner, we walked over to McLane Stadium (about a mile round-trip).

It looks pretty at night.

Robert Griffin III

Sheila and Walter Umphrey Bridge

Then it was time to go back to the motel and lights out. 

Ingram, Texas: An Old Town with Art - Sept. 22, 2018

After weeks of rain, and more pouring rain when I left the house this morning, I was skeptical about walking today. It was pitch black when I drove to meet Susan at her house. We had checked the forecast for Ingram, Texas, 1-1/2 hours away, and decided to head there for the walk sponsored by the Kerrville  Trailblazers.

The hardest part of the day was the drive over to Susan and Darren's house. Standing water was on the freeways, and I had to avoid the way that I normally drive to their house because that road floods. Once I got there, we parked my car in the garage and we took their van for the road trip.

As we progressed on our drive, the sky got lighter, and the rain stopped. By the time we got to Ingram, it was 62 degrees, cloudy, no rain, and a chilly wind. I did not have a coat with me but decided by the time we walked I would warm up. Susan had a nice jeans jacket so she was toasty at the beginning, but took it off within 1/2 hour.

Ingram is a small town of about 1,900 people, but it has a history that is highlighted by The Murals, 15 large panels painted on the side of the lumber yard. Photos on this in a bit.

First, we walked around a small city park. Then we headed along the main highway which took us past businesses and The Murals.

Part of "The Murals."

A great-looking "Givens Metalcrafts" gate.

Old Ingram Social Club

We continued down the highway and then turned into Old Ingram Loop Shopping District. I was no longer cold. We passed antique shops and boutiques. 

"Perfect Surroundings" shop.

Need a gorilla?

Cowboy sculpture on the bed of an old pick-up.

Southwestern Elegance shop.

Being that this is Texas, movement of cattle is a big part of its early history. The Great Western Trail passed through Ingram and cattle were moved to northern markets along this route. 

While reading up on The Great Western Trail, I learned that in the early 21st century the Great Western Cattle Trail Association decided to preserve the route of the trail by placing cement markers every six miles along the route. We found one of those markers in Old Town Ingram!

Cement trail marker.

We also found a Wells Fargo Express and Stage Coach stop.

Wells Fargo Express and Stage Coach Stop.

Fancy door/gate to a garden.

Old building facade with a new building behind it.

Blue Moon Antiques.

Riverside RV Park.

From the Old Town Loop, we got on the main highway again to cross Johnson Creek, and then we turned off the highway at Hill Country Arts Foundation. If you have never been to Ingram before, you will be surprised by what's here.

Beautiful Johnson Creek

Wait, what's this? Stonehenge?

Yes, you can see it looks like Stonehenge; however, it's Stonehenge II. At the Hill Country Arts Foundation (HCAF), you will find many things. For example, Stonehenge II, replicas of Easter Island Moai heads, art workshops, a gallery, and a theater with year-round productions.

Susan Medlin with Moai head.

Artsy Art Gallery sculpture

You'll even find a tutorial on Harvester Ants (good) vs. Fire Ants (bad). Read up. 

Click on photo to enlarge for reading.

An informational sign on site gives this history:

"In 1989, Kerr County native Doug Hill finished work on the back patio on his Hunt, Texas property and was left with one extra limestone slab. As a joke, he offered it to his good friend and neighbor Al Sheppard, who then...stood the slab upright in the middle of his pasture. Sheppard and Hill liked the look of the monolith and built an arch around it. The 13-foot arch reminded them of Stonehenge in England. Soon a vision formed and Sheppard contracted Hill to build their very own Stonehenge II.

"The original Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England was erected around 2,500 B.C. and is believed to have functional [sic] as an important site for religious or astrological ceremonies.

"Sheppard and Hill's project took about nine months to complete. Hill fabricated the stones from steel, metal lathe [sic], and plaster and anchored each with cement. Stonehenge II is 90% as wide and 60% as tall as the original. Later, after visiting Easter Island off the coast of Chile, Sheppard was inspired to add two 13-foot tall Moai head statues to the collection.

"Al Sheppard passed away in 1994 and his property stayed within the family. In 2010, the Sheppard Family donated Stonehenge II and the Moai to the HCAF in memory of Al, a long-time supporter of the organization. After funds were raised, the structures were moved to the current home on this campus in 2012."

Below is more information about HCAF:

Another photo of Stonehenge II

Me with the other Moai head.

We continued along the Guadalupe River to our first checkpoint with the Kerrville Trailblazers Volkssport Club. They had water, Tootsie Rolls, and cut-up oranges. Thank you so much!

Next, we saw the dam on the Guadalupe River. At this point, we crossed the highway and headed back toward town.

Dam on the Guadalupe River.

Johnson Creek

Young Cypress trees in Johnson Creek.

This must be a wine store. (Call me Captain Obvious.)

Now this is an ATV!

More Volksmarchers starting out. 

On the way into town, we passed close to The Murals. They're very well done. They were painted in 2008 by Westphal and depict the town's history.

Abundant game.

1921

1909 - motorized vehicles

1889 - the arrival of the train

1860 - Longhorn cattle drives to Kansas

1857 - Many gristmills along the river.

Wells Fargo Stage Coach

Mural of the old Ingram.

Recent rains made wildflowers bloom again.

5k Volksmarchers headed back to the start.

The rest of the 10k walk meandered through neighborhoods. After we finished walking, we headed to Culver's for lunch. Thank you again to all the Kerrville Trailblazers who put on a great walk today!