Austin Roadtrip 2019 (Part 1)

Thursday the kids and I had a busy day packing, visiting Heath for lunch, cleaning and going to see Spiderman. Once Heath got home we quickly hopped in the very loaded up van and headed South.

It didn’t take us long to get to Emporia and to park at a Brewery I’ve wanted to try for quite a while.

We got there just before happy hour ended but there was a wait for tables. We sent the kids on a walk to the pet store and Heath and I got a happy hour drink at the bar.

Our table was ready pretty quick and we had a nice dinner and a mostly uneventful drive down. Heath took the first shift and I drove us the 2nd section and into Austin. I stopped about an hour from Austin at a rest stop and got a couple hours sleep until the sun rose and then we drove the rest of the way to the V’s house. We joined them for some breakfast tacos and some catching up and planning. Then Heath and Tony got busy working and the kids and I got back in the car for another hour of driving to the campsite at Inks Lake State Park.

We were pretty hot and tired and geting hungry so we got busy unpacking and setting up before it got any hotter.

First we had to steak our claim to the site and chase off the squirrels

Centipedes

and mantis

Once the campsites were ready we were hot and ready to cool off. Luckily the lake was right across from us and a great spot to cool off.

Once we were well and cooled we had lunch

and then took naps. It was really too hot for naps and out little battery fans didn’t put a dent in the heat. Grant and I got a bit of sweaty sleep but I don’t think the girls slept any. We got back in the lake and our friends the Vs and Heath showed up and got settled in.

We played in the lake and had a few beers and did a great job of staying cool. As we got hungry we got a mostly premade dinner going.

Peanut got a fire going too.

After we had a good big dinner we cooked some smores,

and we could see the sunset across the lake.

We were pretty worn out and got to bed.  In the morning we had some breakfast and messed around our campsite in the morning.

then we had lunch

then we headed out to see more of the state park and have some adventures. We started at a hatchery that was pretty lame

Then we went to the Devil’s Waterhole and it was pretty intense. There were people all over the place and 3 levels of rocks to jump off.

We started our swim across right away. At first we all jumped from 2 (we are right behind it in the picture) and that was the spot most folks were jumping. Peanut went back and jumped from 1 and Bean went back and jumped from 2 and 3 several times.

VIDEO

We spent all afternoon at the waterhole, exploring around and swimming down a rocky creek that was really cool but not conductive to a phone or camera.

Once back at camp Pumpkin worked on a Jr ranger book

and Bean went for a little hike with me.

It was a cool rocky area area with good views of the lake and nature but just too hot to be out long.

The Vs cooked up a great dinner on the fire

and we made some dessert

The sun was doing pretty things so we got a few more pictures.

We hung out Saturday night later around the fire not too excited to get into the hot tents but there was a bit of a breeze and it felt cooler out. We slept really good but in the morning it started to rain. The Vs wisely got out quick before much rain fell but we slept in late and all our stuff was a wet mess. We tried to dry out for a bit but gave up and ended up packing most of our gear wet into the van. The girls finished their booklets and earned their buttons at the office.

On the way into Austin we stopped at the 2nd Brewery of the trip.

I had been wanting to go here because I thought the name and logo was cool and I was glad we made the trip.

No one was hungry when we walked in but shortly later every really wanted to try the trio of queso, salsa and guac. They also had games to borrow and we played Avengers Headbands and had a lot of fun. After our second flight I bought a Tshirt. We had worked up a good apatite but left and went to cross off something on our must do list.

Then we went to the Vs for more food.

They had bought a big turducken roll and we got it cooking and then jumped in the awesome pool out back.

Actually it was super nice outside so we setup all our wet camping gear to dry, then jumped in the pool and spent the majority of the afternoon and evening outside. Once the turducken was done Tony and I carved it up and had a feast.

Eventually we put the kids to bed and had a peaceful adult swim until bedtime. In the morning we slept in and then I snuck in a little run (my first since the Frisco to Vail trip) and then drove into Austin for a city day. 

We started at a super cool mini golf place from the 40s

It was hot out already but there was a lot of shade on the course and you could BYOB so that helped.

It was my lucky day as I got a hole in 1 on the first 2 holes.

After 18 holes we were getting a bit hungry and found a BBQ and brewery that was right up our alley.

They had beer specials that Heath and I took advantage of, let us park for free for the next 4 hours and Pumpkin was extra excited because her all time favorite at a BBQ place is the loaded baked potato and they had a good one,

that she dominated.

The van was all parked so we went back to it and changed into swimming suits then walked over to Barton Creek and rented a couple kayaks and a paddle board for an hour.

The water was super cold and felt great. The views were cool too.

We all took turns with the paddle board and different partners and then paddled back up and returned the boats. We went up the creek a little farther and played in the water.

There is a big pool in the creek but we hung out with all the people on the other side of the fence.

Then we went back and drove the van down the street and parked so the kids could cool off with some rolled ice cream and Heath and I could cool off with margaritas and salsa.

We didn’t eat dinner but made plans with the Vs and then met them at a great Mexican place on the way to their house. After a huge super tasty dinner Tony had us pull off the highway for an impromptu hike.

It was good for our stuffed stomachs and we were rewarded with a great view.

We liked it so much that once down we crossed the road and hiked up the other side too.

On our way home we went and loaded up on groceries for the rest of our trip. We got the kids in bed and hung out in the pool until bedtime again. In the morning the Moms woke up early for a workout class and I loaded up the van and got another great trail run and swim in. We woke the kids for cinnamon rolls, thanks and goodbyes and hit the road for Part 2.