Boerne, Tx (Feb 2012)

A beautiful February day in Texas, 85 degrees and sunny!  What to do?  How about a trip to Boerne (pronounced Burnee)?  The Jeep needed to stretch its legs so we were off.  We headed out in the country to take the back country roads on Highway 46.  It was a lovely drive through Smithson Valley, Bergheim, Bulverde, past Guadalupe SP, Texas longhorns grazing in several different fields (ranch country you know).  We came into Boerne the back way along River Road.  The lovely park along the river was all torn up so instead of seeing people fishing and picnicking, we saw graders and torn up grass.  Ahhh!

As we made the turn into town, we were warmly welcomed.

We parked along Main street.  Things were busy along here but we had no trouble securing a good spot right in the thick of things.

We were right by the Olde Town plaza where there is more parking surrounded by small shops.  The town also provides spotless public restrooms here.

This Hardware and Lumber store has lots of unique gift items in addition to hardware type items in an old-fashioned setting.  DH was very happy to find some Gorilla Tape as the roll he found years ago is almost gone.  Gorilla Tape is like Duct Tape on steroids.

This is a town with German heritage so of course they have a Bier Garten (Beer Garden).

They even have a winery which I didn't remember seeing on previous visits.

This store had an outside area and an inside area to explore.

We found a kitchen store that advertises itself as the largest in the hill country but I think the one in Fredericksburg is bigger.  Still they had almost every cooking gadget you can image.

Calamity Jane's turned out to be a home furnishings store instead of a western store.

Need a little snack, the vine covered Candy Store on Main has it all.

Looks like a little renovation is going on here.  Hmmm, stone over wood over plaster.  I think this goes back a ways.

DH was taking a little break checking out the scenery while I snapped some photos of ......

...the renovations going on along the river.  It looks like they are adding a meandering walkway all along the river along with some new picnic tables.  I guess this will be another "Riverwalk" but completely different than the one in San Antonio.

We stopped at the Bear Moon Cafe for coffee and a snack.  They have a breakfast buffet and serve lunch inside or outside.  They also have great looking bakery items to go along with coffee, expresso, and various lattes.  There are also a couple of other coffee shops in town as well as a good selection of interesting cafes right along Main St.  Even more choices if you venture out to other parts of town.

There are lots of old buildings with historical information posted.  Texas is very good at providing historical information.

 Staffel Store

But Boerne also has a great sense of humor!  You have to read the whole sign.

There are lots of boutiques and antique shops to browse in.

The brine smell from this Pickle Shop let us know what they were selling before we got there.

Lots of little shops!

And if you get tired from all your browsing and shopping....

You can head up the stairs above these shops and rent a room in this unique bed and breakfast.

We had a great day in Boerne.  It is an interesting place to visit up in the Hill Country and only a short drive from San Antonio right off IH10.

So just remember.....

Thanks for coming along on my trip to Boerne, Texas.

Project Jeep

We got a really nice surprise last night.  We knew that our oldest son was coming to San Antonio because he had some business near here but we expected him about Friday.  Last night we were watching TV after dinner and he walked in the door.  The dachsies were highly embarrassed because they didn't hear him slip in which is really a rare occurrence.  Normally nothing and no one slips by them. Steve and Dave have a few projects planned while Steve is here.  First on the list was the jeep.  This nice looking little jeep has been a family member for quite a while.  We got it quite a few years ago and used it as the toad when we had a Class A.  It worked great and was fun to drive when we got to where we were going.  A few years ago, we sold the Class A and went to a trailer.  Our son already had a jeep but it wasn't as nice and he always like this one.  While he was in Turkey, he was finally able to talk his Dad into selling it to him so he sold his jeep.  This one made the trip to Tyndall AFB in Florida, his next duty station.  It stayed in Florida during his stint in Iraq and Afghanistan.  He liked taking the kids in it and they loved it.  But, he really missed having a motorcycle.  So, this summer he and his Dad made another deal and the jeep came back to Texas and the Harley Davidson went to Florida.  Although the jeep worked perfectly, there has always been one nagging little flaw.  A light went on and off indicating some sort of emission vacuum system leak which could be anywhere.  Both father and son searched and tried to find the problem but it was very elusive.  Computer codes were checked.  Various fixes were tried.  Yesterday, they resorted to removing the rear wheel and tracking lines clear through the whole jeep.    

They made it from back to front tracking the lines.

Dad had his head stuck down under the hood when all of a sudden I heard a little whooping noise.  He spotted a detached line way down under that he had never seen until they tracked the line through from the back.  They reached in and pulled it up.  The connection was completely dried out.  A quick trip to the parts store failed to provide the needed replacement but Dad had already figured out how to make his own replacement part.

Here they are putting things back together.

Now we just have to wait and see.  They thought it was fixed after some other work with the computer and adjustments down in Florida this summer.  The light stayed off for a 1000 miles and then reappeared.  But for now, this really appears to be the solving of the riddle.  The lights off and it will be a waiting game.  In the meantime, the jeep is back at home in Texas.