Hank – We had two choices for our route to Fredericksburg today. One was the Adventure Cycling Association route. The other was to follow US Hwy 290. We chose the latter for three reasons. It’s shorter, it has less climbing, and we would be fighting the wind all day. It worked out pretty good for us. We swung by the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historic Park and checked out LBJ’s birthplace and burial place. I remember LBJ as a child. But I was a child so I really didn’t pay close attention to him. Most of what I know about him I read later on.

We pressed on to Fredericksburg and passed quite a few wineries along the way. Kathy was feeling “called”. Just before we arrived in town we found the Texas Ranger Heritage Center. It’s more of an event place with some Texas Ranger history. I was surprised to learn the Ranger museum is in San Antonio. I’m bummed that I missed out on it.

We got into town and checked into our hotel. No camping tonight because a cold front is coming in, hence the cold north wind all danged day, and we wanted to stay warm before heading out for a cold ride all danged day tomorrow. After checking in I walked to the National Museum of the Pacific War. Kathy went to check out some wineries. The museum is awesome. It begins with the Admiral Chester Nimitz museum in the old hotel that was owned by his family. I had 55 minutes before closing time so I had to move quick, especially since they said it takes 3-6 hours to get through the National Museum of the Pacific War alone. I learned a bit about Nimitz before moving on. Obviosly he’s from Fredericksburg. He had no interest in being in the hotel business. An Army unit showed up to do some training and they impressed him. He applied for a West Point Nomination but all the slots were taken. But a slot in Annapolis was open. He didn’t know anything about the Navy but went for it. The rest is history.

The National Museum of the Pacific War is one of the best museums I’ve seen yet. It’s definitely worth a visit and you definitely want to take your time. It begins with history in the 1800s regarding Japan, China, Russian, Great Britain, and the U.S. and how that came into play before WWII. The war in the Pacific is covered in chronological order. It’s well laid out and very educational. I really wish I could have had more time in there.

After they closed I went back to the hotel to clean up. Then I met Kathy in town for dinner. We had dinner at a German restaurant. Since a bottle of wine was cheaper than two glasses I ordered a bottle. Dinner was okay but the wine was pretty good. After dinner we retired to our room and called it a night.

Kathy – Today had a nice mix of everything I dislike while riding: 1. Elevation – approximately 1,500 feet (probably more with the elevation inaccuracies in Google Maps for bikes).  We climbed pretty much all day. 2. Winds – 17-20 mph sustained winds, with gust up to 25 mph. 3. Traffic – on the main road with limited or no shoulder areas. It is not a relaxing ride when you constantly have to monitor your helmet mirror for upcoming traffic to ensure they are paying attention and not getting too close. 4. Cold – it was 63 but felt so much cooler due to the winds. I would vary from hot to cold while riding. So, after 33 miles and 4.5 hours of riding I was more than happy to be done.

Not only was it a hard ride today, but it was also super tough to pass by over 50 wineries along the way…and not stop at any of them! Life is truly rough out here people. 😁

During our ride we stopped by the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historic Park and the Texas Ranger Heritage Center. So I had enough riding and history lessons for the day. Once we arrived at the hotel Hank wanted to check out the museums in town. We decided to go our separate ways for a bit. After the tough ride, I cleaned up and got my tired body out of the hotel room to focus on a different type of education that included relaxation. I opted to learn more about the local wineries. Cheers! 🍷

I tried a few tastings at the Texas Vineyards and Beyond before finding a nice Cabernet that was soothing. I was just heading to the next winery when Hank texted me that he was ready to meet up for dinner. Aw, so many wineries and just not enough time. 😊 Really though, we had a nice dinner together. Hank decided to order a bottle of wine since it was the same price as two glasses. Let’s just say I love wine, but Hank drank the majority of that bottle. I wanted to check out a few more wine tasting rooms but we were now relaxed with full bellies so decided to walk back to the hotel and call it a night. Tough start to the day, nice ending.

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