For our one year anniversary (which was Monday), we indubitably had to plan a trip. Contending places included Savannah, Mexico, the Hill Country, San Francisco and Marfa, amongst others. For a plethora of reasons, we chose Marfa, which entailed an eight hour low-key, relaxing road trip to some interesting West Texas towns. Jeff did a college advertising campaign on Marfa, and I did one on the nearby UT McDonald Observatory; so needless to say, a trip that direction had been on our radar for quite some time. Throughout the weekend we visited Marfa, Alpine and Fort Davis, and then drove our way through the outskirts of Big Bend and along the border of Mexico.
Even though we bounced from place to place all weekend, our first official stop was Fort Davis.
We hadn’t really planned to drive straight through Thursday night, but the roads were clear and speed limits were high. We actually tried to call it quits in Pecos, 75 miles away from Fort Davis, but every room in the town was booked (shocking, huh?), so we fled on to Fort Davis. At two in the morning, we frantically lucked out finding an open office and open room at the Fort Davis Inn.
Not too bad for a surprise last minute grab, especially considering that all other Fort Davis accommodations were booked full with Donkey Daze visitors.
Of course while we were in Fort Davis, we had to visit the actual fort.
We toured through the museum, peeked in all the buildings, and even hiked to a scenic overlook.
That wasn't our only scenic stop, though. That same day we also drove the 75-mile scenic loop through the Davis Mountains.
And on that loop we passed by McDonald Observatory.
As mentioned, I did an ad campaign on the observatory while attending the University of Texas, and I have been more than eager to visit ever since.
We returned to the observatory later that weekend for an evening star party, where we viewed constellations through clear evening skies and powerful telescopes. We're talking millions of stars, shooting stars, a vivid picture of the Milky Way, and so much more. (Unfortunately, no pictures)
Back to the scenic loop, en route past McDonald Observatory, we detoured to Valentine, TX, home to the official Marfa Prada art installation.
Yup, you got it, a fake Prada store planted smack in the middle of nowhere. Elegantly filled with purses and shoes, it’s one of the most random, interesting things I’ve ever seen. If there was anything I was dying to check off my bucket list this trip, it was to visit this infamous attraction.
Post-scenic loop, the only other Fort Davis sight where we spent time was downtown. We had lunch, shared a milk shake, souvenir shopped and left our mark in an art gallery.
We also sipped wine in rockers on the porch of Hotel Limpia, on the most gorgeous night ever, while listening to live music.
With picturesque mountains in the background and perfect weather, I could have spent the rest of my weekend in that rocking chair...
.... but there was so much more to see and do. Up next, Alpine.
Even though we bounced from place to place all weekend, our first official stop was Fort Davis.
Not too bad for a surprise last minute grab, especially considering that all other Fort Davis accommodations were booked full with Donkey Daze visitors.
Of course while we were in Fort Davis, we had to visit the actual fort.
We toured through the museum, peeked in all the buildings, and even hiked to a scenic overlook.
That wasn't our only scenic stop, though. That same day we also drove the 75-mile scenic loop through the Davis Mountains.
Back to the scenic loop, en route past McDonald Observatory, we detoured to Valentine, TX, home to the official Marfa Prada art installation.
Post-scenic loop, the only other Fort Davis sight where we spent time was downtown. We had lunch, shared a milk shake, souvenir shopped and left our mark in an art gallery.
With picturesque mountains in the background and perfect weather, I could have spent the rest of my weekend in that rocking chair...
.... but there was so much more to see and do. Up next, Alpine.
Loved reading this! Can't wait to see the rest. Looks super fun.
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