Things to do / Travel Guide
In a place as big as Texas, there are many unusual and hard-to-access things to see. Of course, some of them today are big tourist draws in themselves. The attractions listed below are either easy to find inside major cities, or can be found on the routes between them.
Bat Viewing
If in Austin, not to be missed is a night sighting of Austin's bats, which come out from under the Congress Street Bridge. Numbering an estimated 1.5 million, this colony of Mexican free-tailed bats is one of Austin's biggest tourist draws. They are well liked by locals, as they contribute significantly to quality of life by consuming 10,000-30,000 pounds of insects nightly. The bats usually come out when the sun sets, and there is a bat hotline for you to call for information. When you go, you might want to bring an umbrella.
Enchanted Rock
One fun activity is a trip to Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, a state park outside Fredericksburg in the Hill Country. The rock itself is a giant pink granite dome, 640 acres in area, and rising up 425 feet. It takes from 15-45 minutes to climb it. The grade of difficulty is pretty low, so even children can enjoy it. From the top you will find commanding views of south-central Texas and if it is springtime and you are lucky, you can catch a sky full of eagles. It's also a great place to camp and the view of the sky at night is breathtaking.
Shiner
If you are traveling between San Antonio and Houston, and you like beer, stop in Czech-settled Shiner, Texas. This town of 2,300 inhabitants is completely centered around one thing: the Spoetzl Brewery. This where Shiner Bock beer is made and is the source of all the town's tourism. Shiner Bock is a world-class beer that is hard to find outside central Texas, but is worth sampling.
Menger Bar
The Menger Bar in San Antonio is a great place for Sunday brunch. Near the Alamo and the Riverwalk, the Menger Bar was the Sunday morning hangout of Teddy Roosevelt and his Roughriders, and nowadays serves a mean brunch. Sunday morning in Catholic San Antonio has a very different atmosphere than it has at other times during the day and week. You'll find the whole vibe quiet and peaceful. Of course, like many places in San Antonio, it has a reputation for being haunted.
Beer Can House
In the heart of Houston, on an otherwise normal residential street, stands a place always full of cars snapping photos. One day in 1968, eccentric John Milovisch got too tired of his job in upholstery. He also got sick of mowing his lawn. So, using rock, marble, steel, and concrete, but mostly beer cans, he began to make patios, fences, flowerbeds, and siding for his house. His engineering was sound, and the house is still there today. The house today is owned by a non-profit organization, but the neighbors are used to gawkers during the daytime hours. Just be respectful of the inhabitants and the residents of the neighborhood if you go there to take photos.
Hackberry, Texas
South of I-10 is FM 532, on which you will reach Hackberry, Texas. You won't find this town on any maps, though. Hackberry was a way-station for travelers from Galveston to the German-settled Hill Country, but it hasn't been inhabited in the past hundred years - not by humans, anyway. Still visible are the town's barns, mill, and general store, all built over 150 years ago.
For more options as to where to go “off the beaten path,” see the “Scenic Drives” section, where you will be enticed to travel to some not too hard-to-get-to places, such as pre-Republic Navasota and sung-about Luckenbach.
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