Robert E. Lee advised his friend Richard King to build his permanent home at the highest point on the surrounding prairie, a little rise on the banks of Santa Gertrudis Creek. The first building was a tiny adobe jacal built of mud and sticks. The one-story house that replaced it
Richard King and his wife, Henrietta, founded the King Ranch. Their daughter Alice and her husband, Robert Kleberg—shown with their children in the turn-of-the-century photograph at the right—founded the family that sustained it. When Henrietta King died in 1925, the ranch’s 1.2 million acres were divided among her heirs.
A tour through the ranch’s four divisions, an eminent 825,000-acre domain.
Whether you want to ride a horse, bomb down a mountain-bike trail, hike up a hill, relax in a hot springs, scale the face of a giant granite boulder, or just sit on your tailgate and look at a pretty sunset, there’s a lot to do on and around the
Whatever I do in them, Texas mountains have a way of clearing my mind.
Breathtaking scenery, tons of runs, and pillowy, powdery white stuff: If you need a lift this winter, New Mexico skiing won’t leave you cold.
Our guide to finding Texas wildflowers that stand out in their fields.
Besides books and my own mistakes, I’ve learned almost everything I know about wildflowers from volunteering at the National Wildflower Research Center, Lady Bird Johnson’s visionary gift to Texas. Perhaps my inexperience was evident on my application, because the volunteer coordinator wisely placed me where I couldn’t do much harm,
1Find Yourself Texas has a range of soils and climates. To know what to plant, you have to know where you are among its ten vegetational regions.2Flower Plot Pick a sunny, well-drained site for your meadow. When choosing which flowers to plant, think about bloom times, size, and color.3Go
With a little planning and these gardening tips, growing your own wildflower meadow will become second nature.
During the infamous drought of 1996, roadside wildflowers frizzled and fried. But at the National Wildflower Research Center, just southwest of Austin, blossoms, shrubs, trees, and grasses were sleek and sassy. Why? Because 1995’s rains watered 1996’s flowers, thanks to the largest rooftop rainwater-collection system in North America. One of
The rap on Corpus Christi is that there’s no there there—but a case can be made that it’s a great weekend destination.
If you’re heading to New Orleans and you’ve got five days to spare, don’t fly or drive. Take a trip fit for a king—aboard the Delta Queen .
She’s the girl who wears cowboy boots under her poufy white taffeta dress every weekend as she rides in some other town’s parade.
Location: Hill CountryWhat You’ll Need: Road map, spittoonTexas runneth over with wineries; more than 160 are scattered from the Panhandle to the Piney Woods. But for a doable weekend that blends good wine and well-run tasting rooms with wonderful scenery, side trips, varied shopping, and restaurants both
There are plenty of unpleasant reasons to take a staycation this summer, from the collapse of your 401(k) to the global outbreak of swine flu, but there are plenty of pleasant ones too. For the thirteen weekends between the first day of summer (June 21) and the first day of
A drive that’s unforgettable to the end.
Contributing photographer Wyatt McSpadden on traveling across Texas to capture Mexican food on film.
The best beaches in Texas for—among other summertime pursuits—shelling, strolling, birding, fishing, treasure hunting, turtle herding, solitude, and surfing, dude.
Writer-at-large Suzy Banks, executive editor S.C. Gwynne, senior editor Michael Hall, and new-media director Charlie Llewellin talk about hitting the road for this month’s cover story.
South from Amarillo to Tulia, east to Turkey, west to Silverton, and north, through Palo Duro Canyon, to Amarillo.
West from Dripping Springs to Johnson City, south to Blanco, southeast to Fischer, east to Wimberley, and north to Dripping Springs.
South from Alpine to Study Butte, west to Presidio, north to Marfa, and east to Alpine.
Where to eat, what to do, where to shop: a great weekend in Houston.
Beat the crowds; do some Spade work.
No good food? Don’t bet on it.
Where to stay. Where to play. Where to eat. Where to shop. What to see. From Abram to Yoakum, a special report on our favorite down-home destinations.
Play-by-play coverage of high school baseball in Alpine, polka and Pan-American music in El Campo: More than a dozen reasons not to touch that dial.
Simple wooden crosses in Terlingua, carefully delineated stonework in Jefferson: Five great graveyards that run the gamut.
A masterpiece of courthouse architecture in Waxahachie, a handsome jail of native stone in Marfa: Significant structures line the streets of five terrific town centers.
Old country and western in Mingus, zippy zydeco in Bridge City: The shows always go on at these ten tuneful spots.
Big, breezy porches in Port Aransas, the only heated pool for miles in Marathon: You’ll get more than just a bed and breakfast at these ten appealing places to stay.
Elegant antebellum furniture in Jefferson, Latin American folk art in Smithville: Where the buys are in two dozen communities.
Bronzes by Remington and Russell in Orange, Quanah Parker’s trail bonnet in Canyon: Ten spaces that excel at the art of exhibition.
Hot hurdling in Giddings, super six-man football in Gordon: Ten towns that got game.
Abram Cemeteries Albany Museums Alpine Restaurants, Sports, Radio, Music Clubs Archer City Hotels Athens Folks Bandera Museums, Music Clubs, Radio, Folks Bay City Radio Big Spring Hotels Blanco Shops Blessing Hotels Boerne
Most recipes for game birds amount to long, slow overkill. Only quick, hot cooking ensures that red-meat birds retain their rich flavor.
It’s music to your ears.
Los Angeles How the West is fun.
These five weekend getaways will make you want to do just that.
The Big Easy isn’t hard for families.
Our exhaustive, exhausting, strictly scientific (and lamentably fattening) survey of the finest home cooking around, from Maxine’s on Main, in Bastrop, to El Paraiso, in Zapata.
Was I giddy from the altitude or just happy to be strolling the sidewalks of El Paso?
Where to eat, shop, and stay at the Pearl complex in San Antonio.
With three days in Dallas’s historic Oak Cliff, my mantra was “Shop, eat, repeat.”
Patrolling the placid waters, historic B&Bs, and treasure-filled antiques shops of Jefferson.
The best way to visit Houston is one neighborhood at a time. Let’s start with Montrose.
From horseback riding to grilling my own ribeye, three days in Bandera brought out my inner Dale Evans.
Fort Davis.
Without having to travel too far.
