Hill Country Travel Blog
Tubing the Hill Country
One of the most popular summer activities in the Hill Country is tubing, a scenic and buoyant tour of some of the prettiest vistas in the region. There’s almost an embarrassment of riches in the Hill Country when it comes to great rivers on which you can tube! The Blanco, Comal, Frio, Guadalupe, Llano, Medina, Nueces, Pedernales, and San Marcos Rivers all have stretches that are ideal for tubing. It’s a great way to beat the heat and connect with nature and your friends and family!
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A Hill Country “Brady Bunch” Connection
This is bound to be one of the most unusual topics we’ve touched upon here, but we were fascinated to discover an icon of American television history can be visited right here in the Hill Country!
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The Stars at Night are Big and Bright….
Almost everybody knows the song, and knows where to clap! Our big and beautiful Hill Country itself is deep in the heart of Texas, and it’s one of the best places in the country to stargaze and scan the skies for other celestial wonders. This article will walk you through the best places to search the heavens, whether with a telescope or the naked eye!
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Gone Fishin’, Hill Country Style
Fishing is a serious pastime in Texas, from the casual angler to the professional fisherman. The passion for fishing isn’t limited to the Lone Star State, but for the purposes of this article we’re going to focus on laws and regulations that apply to fishing in Texas. What we won’t be covering is what bait or flies to use, when’s the best time to fish, and the thousand other details that go into the perfect fishing expedition. We’ll leave those points to the experts!
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Mohair, the Angora Goat, and the Hill Country
Here’s a quick mental exercise for you: if we were to ask you to imagine a typical Texas ranch, what animal would come to mind first? Considering it’s Texas, we’d be willing to wager most people would picture a sprawling pasture populated with Texas Longhorns. After all, the hardy bovine has been a symbol of the Texas cattle drives since the 1860s; it’s the official mascot of the largest university in the state; and it was named the official large mammal of the Lone Star State in 1995. Hook ‘Em Horns and all that.
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Texas’ State Gem, the Blue Topaz
Generally speaking, when you mention the word “topaz” it summons in your mind’s eye a gemstone that’s golden in color, roughly the same hue as fresh honey. This is likely because the yellow topaz is the traditional birthstone for the month of November, and is one of the most common colors of the stone to be found. However, topaz occurs in nature in a variety of colors, and in this article we’re going to focus on the blue topaz. It plays an important role in the state of Texas, and is as beautiful as the Hill Country skies!
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Bluebonnets in the Hill Country
The Texas countryside is known for wildflowers, especially thanks to LBJ’s First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson. Her passion for colorful carpets of wildflowers drew attention to them, and inspired plantings to beautify roads throughout the state. She’d be proud to know Texas wildflowers will forever be part of her legacy!
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MASON, TEXAS: GEM OF THE HILL COUNTRY
Mason is a pretty town on the northern edge of the Texas Hill Country, serving as the seat of Mason County. It comes by its nickname, “The Gem of the Hill Country,” honestly: it’s the only place on earth you’ll find Texas topaz in nature. Though it comes in a variety of colors, it’s the water-blue version of Texas topaz that was named the state’s official gem in 1969. There’s also an official gem cut for Texas, known as the Lone Star cut; it’s the carving of a five-pointed star into the base of a gemstone. Unsurprisingly, the Texas topaz takes this cut very well!
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