Day Trip

For all the natural beauty of the Texas Hill Country, some of the best attractions in the area are quite unnatural.
From an oasis of large-mouth bass to one of fine dining, from fields of miraculous wildflowers to some of the finest bed and breakfasts of the Lone Star State, it doesn’t get much better than the Highland Lakes in late spring and early summer.

Editor’s Note: The Texas Historic Commission highlights 12 Texas regions of interest in its Texas Heritage Trails program. The following is a look at the Texas Tropical Trail, the second part in a series about these trails. For more information on this region, visit www.texastropicaltrail.com.

Editor’s Note: The Texas Historic Commission outlines 12 Texas regions of interest in its Texas Heritage Trails program. The following is a look at the Texas Hill Country Trail, the first part of a series on these trails.

Serenity on tap. A historical treasure chest brimming with natural gems. A place where you can have your high art and your barbecue, too, washed down with a bottleneck of Ziegenbach. More than 19 counties and a crock pot of German, Mexican and cowboy culture comprise the Texas Hill Country, one of Lone Star’s best-kept secrets. The Texas Historic Commission wants Texans—and the rest of the world—to know about this mystique.

With the sound of polka music emanating from the upstairs dance hall, and the tantalizing smell of topinka wafting from the downstairs restaurant, a bygone era has been resurrected in Schulenburg, Texas, with the reopening of historic Sengelmann Hall.

Increasingly, Texans are becoming aware that they don’t have to go to distant locales to enjoy the traditional wine country tasting room experience.

For me the Texas Hill Country comes in two versions.

In a texas town with neither a Dairy Queen nor a stoplight, you might not expect to find authentic Italian food and wine.

In honor of our fabulous February issue, our magazine staff brainstormed inspired options for Cupid's list. We came up with terrific food, fantastic getaway options and, of course, jewelry!

Holiday lights put you in that festive mood. And Texas has so many varied displays, you could plan a daytrip every weekend between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Pick your favorite mode of transportation and there’s a holiday light tour for you. Take a walking tour through Austin’s month-long Zilker Park Holiday lighting display. Drive down the stretch of Highway 290 between Austin and Houston, where multiple ranch lighting displays east and west of Giddings. In San Antonio, you can stroll or cruise through The University of the Incarnate Word’s annual Light the Way display.

When the novelty of the new school year begins to wear off and hectic schedules start eating into family time, try “agricultural entertainment”—agri-tainment, for short. What’s that? The chance to enjoy wide, open spaces where the air is sweeter and time takes on a lazy tempo. It’s where you’re encouraged to stop and smell fresh-mown hay as hawks make lazy circles overhead.

If you've got a Saturday and a taste for wine, shopping and the great outdoors, hop on Interstate 35 and head north to a town settled comfortably between Dallas' big city mien and Fort Worth's laid-back country manner.