First, to pack the bike. I’m a minimalist. Everything I needed fit into this one seat bag and tank bag.
My fishing gear was added to it. Fly rod in the tube, and fly fishing gear in the orange Fish Pond pack (I used only half of the backpack for this trip. It is a great pack if you are interested in fly fishing)
When I left Friday morning, it was very foggy. Trying to keep the visor clear was a hassle. By the time I got to Muldoon, Tx - things had cleared up and my ‘on bike’ camera caught this photo while I rolled into Muldoon looking for the next road on my route. I know some of you like trains, and this was a pretty one.
I took all back roads to get to Concan, Tx this time. 380 miles of back roads with very little traffic. There was a ROT rally(riders of Texas) in Austin during the same weekend, and consequently that left the roads in the hill country surprisingly empty. It was like having the place to myself practically.
However, closer to the lakes, there was vacationing/boating traffic to contend with. This happened just a couple of minutes in front of me. I never could make sense out of what happened. I just know there is only one vehicle and two trailers. I suppose he was hauling his 2 wave runners behind his “pull behind†camper and lost control at the bottom of this hill. When I passed by the wreck I saw the wave runners on opposite sides of the road - off the trailer and the camper on it’s side, but the hitch was pushed into the back of the SUV. I do not think anyone was hurt and I'm glad for that, but I’m also very glad I did not have to dodge wave runners on TX 183 that day!
After that - there was just a bunch of vast empty roads like this:
and
and
and
I passed down the road I was caught on last March in a hail/rain/storm/flood - My Ride Through Hell. I took photos this time so you could see the type of thing I was dealing with in the midst of the darkness of that ride.
This kind of thing - only there were no barrels put out yet to warn of a wash out when I was riding these roads in the storm. Low water crossings with swift water like the one in the second picture were also hazards at that time.
The place I stayed for this short trip was right on the Frio River - known for being a great river for ‘tubing’. Even so, there were not as many people on the river as there have been in the past. I did not intend to fish on the Frio River, but it was a nice place to sit outside and ‘people watch’ in the late evening after riding all day. Other than that, it was a little too crowded for me. The area was swarming with hormonal teens because of its close proximity to Garner State Park, which hosts a legendary dance each night in the summer.
at sunset
I was able to rid myself of the crowds during the day by finding places like this to go fly fishing. Complete solitude. Just me, my bike, and my fly rod on long stretches of empty roads and rivers flowing with cool, clear water. I fished a couple of spots and in another, the water was so clear and looked so inviting I just parked my bike and went for a swim.
One of the places where I stopped to go fishing, was the McDonald Crossing on the Nueces River just north of Camp Wood, Texas. I had been here in March during the flood, and talked with several people at this bridge, which had been washed out by the force of the flood. It has been rebuilt 3 times since then. A before and after picture for you:
March2007
June 2007
I intended to go further on this road to a good fishing spot I found last summer, but the road has yet to be cleared or repaved. Instead of simple dirt or gravel, the road is still mostly river rock and very difficult for me to try to handle the RR on it. So I stopped at this first crossing and I tucked my bike off to the side, set up my fly rod, and traded my riding gear for fishing gear.
At this point, let me just say - it is nearly impossible to set up a camera on a tiny tripod on a river bank and use the self-timer or a remote with only 10’ of range to try to get a shot of a fish on the line. …….. especially when you would rather fish than get photos for a message board! So, all you get is one photo of the first catch. It is a perch, I believe. I’ve heard them referred to as Sunfish and Bluegill as well. I just know you can catch these with just about every cast - but on this part of the river they are small. I caught these until I was tired of fishing in this area. Further up the river, there were larger perch/bluegill and Guadalupe Bass. But after this photo, I just put up the camera and enjoyed fishing. Sorry.
The only thing that could make me stop fishing on rivers like this is the coming dusk and the memory of a peanut butter shake at BJ’s Café and Sweet Shop back in Camp Wood. I knew I wanted to fish another part of the Nueces and to ride 2 of the 3 roads named “The Twisted Sistersâ€Â, so I quit fishing and in a race against the dropping sun, I headed back to Camp Wood where Joni and Buddy run the best Café in the area. I had not eaten anything except Zone Bars and water for two days before, so I was in need of some real calories!
BJ’s Café and Sweet Shop was named #5 in the State of Texas for the best breakfast, but I go there for the Peanut Butter Shake they make especially for me. I do not think it is even on their menu, so if you ever go to BJ’s and you like Peanut Butter, don’t be shy about asking them to make you a shake. Joni and Buddy (and all the locals) have a way of making all strangers feel like they belong and are welcomed. I even have my own protected parking spot out front! I sat and ate a hamburger and then I watched while Joni made my peanut butter shake (enough for two servings!). I visited with 4-5 Camp Wood locals while I was eating and heard so many stories (and lies) from them, my head was spinning with information and love of this little town. Camp Wood, TX is indeed the friendliest town I have ever visited.
Joni and Buddy - owners of BJ’s Café and Sweet Shop
Here’s my parking spot in front of the closed down Merritt Hotel. I sat and talked with Olan Merritt, the son of the original owners. He said I could park here anytime I wanted to keep my bike out of the rain or heat of the sun. I’ve yet to see a parking spot plaque with my name on it nailed up there though. He also told me he was 96 years old and I found out that wasn’t true. They enjoyed seeing how many ‘stories’ they could get past me.
After a couple of hours of food and stories with my friends in Camp Wood, I headed north for FM 335 and then east on Hwy 41 to get to FM 336 where I headed south back into Leakey, TX and then on Hwy 83 to FM 127 to my cabin in Concan. I’ve decided that FM 335 is my favorite road in the hill country. It runs along the Nueces River through Vance for a while with sweeping curves and slight rolling hills and then it heads into the mountains with tighter turns lined with cliffs and drop offs and a series of ‘roller coaster’ dips and climbs throughout.
There is always the constant threat of gravel, high water, blind areas, deer, and free ranging stock on roads in the hill country so like always, you have to be alert the whole time. The last couple of miles of FM 335 and the section of Highway 41 between 335 and 336 is a plateau and so it feels like you are riding on the top of the world. Wildflowers were still blooming, so I stopped and got a couple of shots that show the vastness of Texas along this plateau.
The ride home was uneventful and unwanted. Except….. ironically, the heat started getting uncomfortable in Comfort, Tx. I stopped in Comfort for gas and needed to check my tires after hitting multiple cattle guards on FM 336. While reaching for the valve stem, I got my first branding from an exhaust burn - about 2.5 inches long on my left arm. The only comfort came from the wind hitting it through my mesh jacket - even hot wind is better than the baking 103F sun.
Going home always ends up stretching out for me. I drag out the trip until the last bit of light is fading from the sky. I stopped in Fayetteville, TX for a rest stop before the last 80 miles. I had been riding for 8 hours in the heat, so the shade of this gazebo was a welcomed respite. I sat and drank some water, listened to some music and thought about a thousand things. Then it was back to responsibilities and “real life†waiting for me 80 miles away. Going back to responsibilities after a fun time away is hard, but planning the next trip makes it bearable.
More photos are HERE
Have fun.
they have black waterproof covers tho 
..Your new seat gooks great...anymore pics of the girls on the inner-tubes...(not for me..I thought others might like to see them).. 
While I'm on the subject, this is the one aspect of summer riding which, for me, removes all the pleasure and replaces it with abject misery. I suffer really badly in the heat and I wish there was at least a partial solution... other than leaving the bike in the garage 