Texas Hill Country is roughly the size of Connecticut (think about that my east coast friends - a small region of Texas is the size of Connecticut) and sports rolling hills that never rise more than 1,900 feet. It was settled in the mid-1800s by mostly German immigrants. The most prominent feature of Hill Country are wildflowers, and I spent the morning at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin.
Side note: just outside of Austin is a town called Dripping Springs, Texas and its water tower proclaims it is the "Gateway to Hill Country".
I will start by saying that I really miss living near (enough) The Huntington. I continue to believe that one day I'll move somewhere with a lovely botanical garden that I love almost as much, but alas, the Wildflower Center is not it. I suspect that it is glorious during the prime wildflower bloom in the spring. So there will likely by a "revisited" post next year.
Beautiful rain gutter
These are called wine cups.
The gardens were lousy with butterflies and bees and other bugs.
And you know how much I love "inside looking out" pictures...
Indian Mallow
Purple Coneflowers
Mesmerizing
Mealy Blue Sage
Wild Poinsettia
Autumn Sage
I've no idea what these are, but they were scattered all over the ground. I couldn't figure out what tree they fell from.
Oh, and there is this sign posted at the trail head.
After the Wildflower Center I took the scenic route out to Fredericksburg the heart of Hill Country. I am constantly amazed by the places I go and how it seems so many of them have thriving wineries. There is totally a Texas Wine Trail, who knew?
Fredericksburg is a quaint little German town with a lot of shopping and such. Clearly, I did not shop, but I did eat at a German restaurant, The Auslander.
I got a semi-authentic German meal...
Y'all, this potato soup was so good!
That would be schnitzel (chicken), potato pancakes, spatzle, applesauce, and Bavarian brown bread. It was all super good.
For dessert I had apple strudel with vanilla bean ice cream.
After dinner I leisurely drove along the south westerly edge of Hill Country (although without stopping to take pictures) and then headed to San Antonio to meet T3. I look forward to driving Willow Loop (just outside of Fredericksburg and supposedly the best wildflower drive in America) next spring.
