The entrance sign with Packsaddle’s golfing cowboy logo and the sixth green at Packsaddle Country Club.

What we did:

He said:

We have been playing golf since high school, so it was natural for us to enjoy a day at Dave’s home course, Packsaddle Country Club in Kingswood. It was Thursday, the day the members play their weekly shamble. Dave arranged for us to be in the same group, so it was a pleasant afternoon. We didn’t fare too well as a team, but the company was most enjoyable. We weren’t paired with his regular buddies Bubba and Booger, but I did meet them! The weather had been a bit harsh – either no rain or too much rain, so the course conditions weren’t at their peak. It is a challenging track that doesn’t feel like it’d get boring to play. Also, it is walkable, which, for me, is a requirement for everyday golf. I really don’t like courses that are routed through sub-divisions where errant shots end up in someones back yard – or worse – living room!

The vineyards along the entrance to Lost Creek Vineyard.

Marla was off exploring Fredericksburg and returned in time to enjoy a beer and some camaraderie after the round before we went to dinner at a nearby winery. Dave hadn’t been to the restaurant, so he was inquiring as to what we might expect. Most of the guys gave a typical “its decent food” response, but the one that clinched the deal was a lady’s description of her impression that went something like “Oh my God, you’ll love it – there’s table cloths!” You see, this area is a bit remote and fine dining is not a big issue for most people who live around here! The Tree House Bistro at the Lost Creek Vineyard did not disappoint us. The menu included a nice variety of entrees and all of our meals were delicious. The wine list is not huge, but was extensive enough for our tastes. Since the vineyards are not very old, there are only two choices from the winery itself and, these are made from grapes that aren’t local! We tried their pinot noir and found it quite acceptable. Maybe next time they’ll have a local one for us to enjoy!

Fredericksburg, Texas

What we did: 

She said: 

Bill and Dave played golf, so I decided to venture out on my own and headed for Fredericksburg.  Fredericksburg was about an hours drive from the golf course.  It was settled by German farmers in 1846, and located west of Austin.  It’s considered to be one of the most attractive small towns of Texas, and I had no idea that it is a destination town.  Many of the stone houses have been restored by the residents, many of whom are German.  It is such a quaint town, with wonderful nooks and charming stores, many of which are very upscale.  A little restaurant is located at the end of this nook.   

A wonderful little candy store!!    

There were at least 3 wine tasting rooms that I saw.  I didn’t participate- honest!!  I did stroll along the main drag, but didn’t go into all of the shops.  I did have lunch at the Peach Tree Inn.    

It was a charming little restaurant and gift shop located off the main street on the west end.  The food was good-I had a salad- and the bread was wonderful.  They make their own.  The gift shop was up scale – jeans were priced at $160.00.  Didn’t buy much!!!!!

View from Dave's house

Where we stayed:

She said:

Lake Travis lies below Bill’s high school friend’s home in Briarcliff, Texas. The setting provides truly magnificent vistas!

Briarcliff is located about 30 miles NW of Austin, Texas.  Lana, Dave’s wife, had a meeting in Dallas so Bill, Dave and I hung out together for a couple of days.   This picture shows what a special place Lana and Dave have in Briar Cliff.  This next picture shows what a popular place it is!  

We were sitting on their front porch enjoying the wonderful view, when Dave threw some corn on his lawn.  It was fun to see some deer come up to the house, but I was shocked when about 20 deer showed up for the party. He’s had as many as 30.   They will sometimes come up on the porch!  

There were about 3 bucks. 

He said: 

What a great spot. Dave and I have kept in touch throughout the years, but this was the first oppotunity I’ve had to visit him since he moved to Texas over 10 years ago. The next time won’t take so long! Enjoying champagne and feeding the deer while catching up on grand kids and recent endeavors while taking in the scenery is about as wonderful as it gets. And maybe next time we’ll play some golf on Willie Nelson’s course! He lives just over a hill and his course can be played by residents. Its only 9 holes, but who knows, we might get to see Willie himself!

The Way Station

Where we ate:  

She said:  

The road from Lubbock to Austin was mostly a divided highway. It was a fine road but slow going. I also couldn’t help but notice the really strong odor of gas and oil. Yes–oil and gas rigs everywhere! The odor was so overwhelming at times that I held my breath. Now, to the dust storms I mentioned in the previous post, add the horrible smell, and again, I have to ask, “How do people live here??????”            

We tried to find a place to stop for lunch.  There wasn’t very much along the road we were on. Bathrooms too, were scarce and, unfortunately, not very nice!!  We stumbled upon this little place.  There were many cars in the driveway and we decided to take a chance.  We walked in the door——–and, wow, table cloths!!!!            

I had the best catfish sandwich I’ve ever had, and Bill had the “blue plate special”, a huge portion of comfort food.  It was very reasonable—so, if you’re ever in the area………………. (that’s Marla way in the corner!)  

He said:  

Actually, I thought the road between Lubbock and Austin was rather fast, and, at times quite scenic. The speed limit on the limited access, divided highway was 70mph, so we made good time. It was just a long way. And, as Marla pointed out, the smell didn’t help!       

Anyway, The Way Station, just outside Coleman, Texas, was a pleasant surprise. It looked like a converted, old farm building, but was actually constructed in the 70′s as a restaurant. It was the first spot, beyond fast food drive throughs, that had a bunch of cars in the lot.  And, as is usually the case, this was an accurate indicator that good food could be found inside.

The Woodrow House B&B

Where we stayed: 

She said: 

We arrived in Lubbock, Texas and had reservations at the Woodrow House Bed and Breakfast.  We stayed one night and the room was $85.00.  We were directly accross from Texas Tech.  I have to confess that my heart was sinking as we drove into town and went through a pretty crummy section of town.  The B&B was just past that section and I was very happy when we came upon the college area, and found our B&B.        

                                                                                                                                                                                                Our room was the “50′s” room. It was a little bit cluttered with all 50′s paraphernalia and knick knacks on every piece of furniture, which, made it hard to find a place to put our things. There even was an old sewing machine serving as a table! Dave, the owner, made a stained glass figure of Buddy Holly on the door to the deck. We were warned not to be frightened during the night when we saw his image in the door. Even with this warning, I still was startled! 

                                                                                                                                                                                                 The owners, Dave and Dawn, were very nice and very accommodating. They are both former Red Raiders who decided to stay in Lubbock after college. The Woodrow House was designed and built for them as a B&B so they could enjoy the atmosphere of college life the rest of their lives. Not a bad idea! Our breakfast in the morning was cozy. Instead of sitting in the dining room, Dawn had us sit at the island kitchen counter while she cooked – kind of like a “chef’s table”. Breakfast was yummy, down home eggs, pancakes, ham, toast and fruit. 

Where We Ate: 

He said: 

Dawn recommended Cafe J, which offers an interesting blend of French and Southwestern cuisines, for dinner. It was literally right next door. This was perfect since the short walk wouldn’t limit our effort to wash away the dust from our drive! Our meal was very good. I had a seared ahi tuna dish and Marla  had sea scallops.  The prices were in the 20′s, so not cheap, but it was enjoyable and worth it.

Northern New Mexico-The beautiful part of the drive.

What we did: 

She said: 

We embarked on a BIG road trip around the country, and were on the road for four weeks!  We began our trip by driving south on I-25, through Colorado and New Mexico,  and then ended our first day in Lubbock, Texas. The southern part of Colorado and the first part of New Mexico were really beautiful……. and then it really went downhill after that. We were on a two lane road for most of New Mexico and most of that was under construction. The towns that we passed through were literally ghost towns, and very depressing. This made finding a restaurant for lunch challenging – so much so that we opted for cheese and crackers and a take out sandwich from Arby’s!   

Kind of the boring part of the drive

Once we entered into Texas it was just flat and really boring. To top it off we had 30-40 mile per hour winds which kicked up the biggest dust storm imaginable. How do people live in this area?? 

He said: 

I always get a bit excited when starting a trip. But for this one I also had a bit of trepidation as we were planning on covering about 6,000 miles in a little over four weeks. Eleven of the days would be basically just driving – some as long as 12-14 hours. Needless to say, I was not looking forward to these days! At least the first few days would not present any traffic congestion since southern Colorado, New Mexico and western Texas are not highly populated areas. Dave, my high school friend who lives outside of Austin – our first resting point – warned of us speed traps in New Mexico. The divided highways seemed conducive to much higher speeds than the posted 55 or 65 mph, but we heeded his advise as starting off with a whopper ticket would not be a good way to begin this trek!

Port Angeles Ferry Terminal; image from flickr by anneh632

The main reason we were in Port Angeles was to take the Black Ball Ferry over to Victoria. We were not the first on, but we were situated in a way that we were the first off! That saved us almost 1/2 an hour!   

Port Angeles, Washington; The Downrigger; image from flickr by neekinator

Where we ate:

 She said:

We had dinner the first night at the Downrigger, and liked it so much that we had lunch there before we boarded the ferry for Victoria. I loved the clam chowder!   

He said:

I’m sure there are many other great eateries in Port Angeles, but it seems logical to me that eating on the water is a must. And such a must it was! We ate there THREE times – twice, as Marla indicated, and again on our return!   

Another unique occurrence for us was, on our return trip, we were again the first vehicle off the ferry! This was especially significant since we unwittingly took a case and a half of wine with us into Canada. That wasn’t the problem. Getting it back into the states could have put us on the hook for duties. So, being the first car through customs, we began cheerily talking about our honeymoon and experiences. The agent, wanting to get the chatty people on their way and avoid creating a delay for everyone, never asked us directly if we had anything that should be declared! So, technically, we made it back into the states without lying!

Port Angeles, Washington; image from flickr by brewbooks

Our timing was such that, to get to Victoria, British Columbia, we needed to spend the night in Port Angeles before catching a ferry. Our hotel was at the top of these stairs with this incredible view.

Where we stayed:

She said:

Having finished our tour of Port Townsend, we hopped in the car and motored to Port Angeles where we stayed at the Port Angeles Inn. It was a little dated, but clean and the people were very nice.  We had a room with the view.  The Inn is located up on a bluff and the view was wonderful.  We had a continental breakfast the next day which was okay and included in the $150.00.  We decided to just explore the town which was quaint and had some nice little restaurants which we will feature in our next post.

He said:

Port Angeles was, for us, only an intermediate stopover so we really didn’t explore the area. It does seem to offer a lot of outdoor activity centered on area lakes, the Strait of Juan de Fuca which connects Puget Sound to the Pacific Ocean, and Olympic National Park, as well as two nearby casinos. 

Port Townsend, Washinton; image from flickr by clpo13

What we did:

She said:

We left Bandon Dunes and proceeded to Tacoma, Washington to play golf at Chambers Bay.  Bill will tell you more about that.  We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express, got up the next morning to rain.  Made a decision to abandon our plans to play golf and instead, head up to Port Angeles with a stop at Port Townsend.  Port Townsend is a quaint fishing village that was founded in 1850.  It was the leading city on Puget Sound, and grew prosperous on the hopes that there would be a transcontinental railroad.  When this didn’t happen, the city was in for a slow decline.  The original Victorian architecture still makes up the town with Gothic, turrets, pergolas, and gingerbread details.  There are some cute little shops and restaurants and an easy town to park and shop and walk.

Port Townsend Architecture; image from flick by nonsequriturlass

He said:

I was excited to play Chambers Bay as it was awarded a US Amateur and US Open after being open only slightly more than a year. But alas, we got some typical Seattle area weather – a steady drizzle. The policy at the course requires cancellation 72 hours in advance otherwise you’re on the hook for the greens fees. I’m not a mudder and Marla definitely isn’t, so, if anyone is interested, I have two rain checks that have no expiration and are fully transferable. Marla quickly came up with a Plan B – a visit to Port Townsend. We had lunch at the Fins Coastal Cuisine right on the water.  It was a nice little place in a special setting, and the food was very gourmet. Overall, the town seems a bit tired, but this might have been due to the midweek visit and dreary weather!

Bandon Dunes Golf Course; image from flickr by jneilson23

What we did:  

He said:  

 We left my brother’s in Grants Pass early enough for us to make our 11:30 tee time at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort on central Oregon’s Pacific coast. This is said to be links golf at its finest, matching the best Europe has to offer. Well, I’ve never been over there to play, but its hard to imagine it any better.  

Typical on course view; image from flickr by margaritanitz  

The natural mounding, penal bunkers located strategically everywhere, presence of only an occasional decorative tree, fast, firm fairways and greens hardened by constant winds seem to encompass everything I imagine one would encounter in Scotland – except the rain! It was in the high 60′s and sunny both days. We were only able to play Pacific Dunes and Bandon Dunes, but what we saw of the other two courses – Bandon Trails and Old McDonald – look to offer similarly rewarding golf. The other difference was that our friendly, knowledgable caddies didn’t have accents. The lodging is fantastic with everything from conventional rooms at the Inn and Lodge to cottages scattered throughout the property. There are enough restaurants that we only had breakfast in the same place. Menus cover light, casual sandwiches to elegant meals that can satisfy the most discriminating palate. Our golf games were shown to sadly deficient in the bump and run and putting from 30 to 40 yards, but that aside, it was a really, really pleasant experience. I will offer one warning. While its not possible to plan a trip without looking at the prices, be prepared to spend $1000 a day for golf, caddies, room and meals for two. Which takes me to my next suggestion. A guys trip would “only” be in the$500/day range if you don’t mind rooming with a buddy – and absorbing the matching expenses for your left behind spouse!  

More natural terrain; image from flickr by margaritanitz  

She said:  

I hadn’t played much golf in the last ten years, and was very intimidated with the idea of playing such a  prestigious and expensive golf course!  I also dreaded the idea of having caddies who would probably wonder what I was doing on their golf course.  Well I couldn’t have been more wrong.  My caddie actually gave me a private lesson and managed to help me shoot a 50 on the front nine!  He was so helpful and wonderful, and I actually looked forward to the next day of golf  with him as my caddie!  I really liked the resort, and  didn’t feel a need to leave for dinner or exploring the small towns nearby.