The road to Waco

Refinery on I-20.

Tuesday, Feb 14… L-o-n-g drive today, but lots to take in. This is Texas: I-20 showed us refineries, numerous industrial operations, farmland, and the outskirts of Abilene before we turned south onto Hwy 6, which took us into Cisco (pop 3800) for a great lunch at Waverly’s Coffee & Gifts. This (young) mom ‘n pop venue offered Lazarus soup (guaranteed to raise you from the dead) as today’s special – yummy! Had we arrived earlier, the blueberry cobbler waffle would have been a serious temptation. Tables were tiny (maybe 2’ square), but the owners were delightful and we also had a nice chat w/ a local couple who envied our “year of no responsibility.” (NOTE: Despite its low profile these days, Cisco was quite the place from the late 1800s through the 1920s. In 1919, Conrad Hilton came to Cisco to buy a bank, but the bank cost too much so he purchased the Mobley Hotel instead. That was the beginning of the Hilton Hotel chain.)

Waverly's

Owners & Menu

Leaving Cisco, this 2-lane highway (speed limit 75) was lined with ranches on both sides and dotted w/ small and smaller towns every 10 or 20 miles. And there was water – lots and lots of small ponds. Lovely. Most of the fields were fallow, but we did see some stretches of dark green. Later, Greg did some checking and found that rotating cotton and peanut crops enriches the soil, so – maybe – we were looking at peanuts.

Contented black angus...

Angus packed way too tight & definitely discontented.

BlogThoughts… Pecans, pistachios, peanuts – a lot of nuts are grown in the south. In Alamogordo we visited the Pistachio Tree Ranch & Arena Blanca (White Sands) Winery, where I picked up Atomic Hot Chile Pistachio Brittle. Greg’s not a sugar junkie like me, so he was happy with a bag of red & green chile ‘stachios. (Of course, he also slipped in a bottle of Red Chile Wine!) We haven’t bought any pecans yet, but we’ve seen lots of orchards in New Mexico and Texas. Driving today we passed a Birdsong Peanut packaging plant and a (now defunct) peanut butter plant. Random observation: a scruffy looking dog devouring the insides of a deer at the side of the road.

Tonight we're camped at an Army Corps of Engineers
campground overlooking Lake Waco. Lovely spot
(in spite of low clouds and winter winds).