I love the Texas Hill Country, and my goal was to tour some parts of it I have never been to before.   I wanted to ride on unimproved roads were possible, and avoid high traffic highways whenever I could. I get enough traffic on my daily cycling commute at home in Austin.

After work on Wednesday March 13th, I rode into downtown Austin and took Amtrak to San Antonio. The next morning,   I set out from Helotes, a small town the west of San Antonio, and climbed towards Bandera. My first night I camped at Hill Country State Natural Area. The next day, I rode to the Frio River, passing through Utopia on the way. My third day took along the very steep and scenic FM 337 between Leakey and Camp Wood.  

One of the parts of the trip I looked forward to most was the fourth day. My route included 35 miles of unimproved road and the most spectacular Hill Country views I have ever seen. I ended up at Kickapoo Cavern State Park that night. The next day, the park was officially closed, but, since I had arrived under my own power, I was given special treatment. After a private tour of the cavern, I was allowed to stay an extra night, even though the park was officially closed during the week.

From Kickapoo Cavern, I cycled north over the Edwards Plateau through Rocksprings and on to Junction. I camped one night at South Llano River State Park, and after taking a rest day, I camped in Junction at Schreiner Park.   My ride the next day was the longest of the trip at 66 miles. This included a 5 mile long climb near Segovia and more hills than I can remember on the way to Fredericksburg. I camped out at the Lady Bird Johnson City Park between a golf course and a runway.

It was cold and rainy when I rode out of Fredericksburg and headed east to Johnson City. The fog and drizzle gave the ride a lot of character. Just beyond Johnson City is one of my favorite Hill Country destinations of all, Pedernales Falls State Park.

The third cold front of the trip blew in early the next morning, but no matter, I was only 7 miles from Flat Creek Ranch. My girlfriend was doing a trail race there, and my plan was to meet up with her and end my trip there.   I arrived on Sunday, March 23^rd with ten minutes to spare before the start of her race.

The Texas Hill Country is beautiful. I can be deadly hot in the summer and surprisingly cold in the winter. There is a lot to see and do besides cycling.   If you go, plan on some rest days so you can go toobing, sightseeing, or even hunting for fossils. There also plenty of geocaches to find along the way, many at historical markers. These added a lot of interest to my trip. My average daily distance was only about 45 miles, but there were almost no flat stretches along the entire route. Some of those miles counted twice! Part of my route was along the Southern Tier. Anyone interested in knowing more about specific roads or other details can contact me.