Welcome to Bandera Texas, the Cowboy capital of the world. No really, this is the real deal. Rodeo is a way of life here. This cute little town with covered board
walks stretching in front of stores like the Gunslinger and General Store.
Thursday night is the steak fry where the locals bring their
own meat to grill and can buy tap beer and set-ups and jaw with the
neighbors. The Long Horn Saloon
sometimes has live music but always has some two-step and roping going on.
Down the road a stretch is the best darn guest ranch in this
whole united states. Take a right on Hay
Holler road and enter the Rancho Cortez.
Staffed by people who love what they do and who they do it for. For good reason, Larry Cortez is one good
cowboy; strong and wise; kind and gentle.
We had a great room with a view of the barn from our own private
porch. Looking in the other direction,
you can see the dining hall, the outdoor pool and the hot tub; up the hill is
the indoor pool, extensive workout area and hiking trails.
The ranch has so many horses and even some Texas long horns. I cannot wait to get
into the ranch way of life.
Bud Fitzpatrick
The dining hall is named after a very special person to Cowboy
Larry. Bud Fitzpatrick was born in
1914 in St. Paul, Minnesota-- imagine that! As a young boy he was plagued with pneumonia
and the doctor said that if they didn't move him to a warmer climate he could
die. The family packed into the Model T and headed south, straight south to
Texas. The walls are filled with
photos of this special Cowboy and his awards. In his long rodeo career, he helped the area gain
notoriety in the Rodeo world. His son,
Kevin, is a professional trick roper, also winning many competitions and awards.
A Greenhorn Wrangler’s
First Day
Real cowboys, I am told, take care of
their land; they see that their livestock are safe and well feed and they
always take their hat off for a lady.
We checked in at 1:00, by 2:00 we were riding, by 3:00 we
were chasing down a calf that had gotten away, by 4:00 we were taking the
saddles off our horses and putting the horses out in the pasture , by 5:00 we
were feeding the long horns, by 6:00 we were having dinner in the mess hall, by
7:00 we were around the campfire listening to cowboy stories, by 8:00 the
youngins had left for the Long Horn Saloon and by 8:33 we were dead tired and
fast asleep. Yee-ha, what a first day.
On our second day, we woke early, eager for more ranch activity. After breakfast we went on a long ride into
the high country and saw some amazing
vistas. On our return we were treated to personal riding lessons by non-other than Mr. Larry
himself. I want to be a wrangler when I grow up. The clouds cleared away and exposed the
bluest sky I have ever seen. We just had
to go for another trail ride.
We have been treated more like family than
paying guests. Alex and Brad took care of
the horses after a big day of riding. The cook was busy fixing the third meal
of the day. I, well, I took a nap.
Adventuresome Swiss
Cowgirls
We have shared the ranch with the other guests, three girls
from Switzerland who stayed in the cabin next to ours. Ramona,
Tamara and Ajna are so cute, it was fun to share our experiences with them.
It was hard to believe that they were just 21
and here in the United States for a 6 month holiday. They explained that it is not unusual for
young Swiss to explore the world. Some
like them travel to the United States. Many
Americans have not spent 6 weeks touring the US collectively throughout their whole
lives. They had 22 more days then this
trip that they were on would be over.
They shared with us some of the fun and exciting places they had been. We are now Facebook friends so we can stay connected. New friends forever.
Y'all Come Back Now, Y'hear?
We are bittersweet on our go-home day; feeling better for our experience but sad to leave. Our hosts
all lined up to give us hugs and wish us well on our journey. I know we will see each other again.
For anyone wanting a guest ranch experience, this is the place to go. Adults, kids, experienced or novice, the only thing that you need is a smile. The guests and the animals are both very well cared for.
Did you know that a new
study published in the Public Library of Science One (PLoS One) says that one
non-alcoholic beer with dinner may help you fall asleep faster? You
can learn so much on the internet, right?
I will try tomorrow and report on this crazy subject’s success.
