Day One - Our trip back to the home territory!

On a spur of the moment, Toni and I decided to make a trip down to Richland Springs, San Saba, and Locker on a beautiful Saturday in January.  When we got to Hico, we just had to take a picture of the statue of Billy the Kid.  Story goes that Brushy Bill, who lived in the Hico area, was actually Billy the Kid.



Here is a picture of the plaque that explains it all.  Sort of comical, as far as we are concerned.

We were sort of slow getting started so it was lunch time when we got to San Saba, so we ate lunch at this place.  It used to be the Modern Way Grocery where my Mom nearly always bought groceries.

The following picture is the front of the county courthouse.  This is exactly where my Dad would park his pickup load of watermelons on a Saturday to sell to the public.  I had to help at times and didn't really enjoy it much but Daddy loved it!

                                                                          
                                                                               
We headed on to Richland Springs to begin our road trip.  We parked the Jeep and trailer in front of the high school, unloaded the Maverick and headed out through the country towards the Billy Gibbons Boy Scout Camp.  This is the school in Richland that Toni and I graduated from.  More pictures of the school later but here is one of the front.

We drove out through ranch country south of Richland Springs.  After about 15 miles, we got to the gate going into the Camp Billy Gibbons BSA but didn't go in.

On the way back from the scout camp, we took a picture of the house that the Dutch McGregor family lived in for years.  We went to school with Forrest and Mary Jo.

We then went back east, after getting back to the main road and drove through the Sloan Community.  Took a left onto the Cotton Belt Road and came by Jack and Sheila's ranch.  Took a quick picture of the house that Sheila's Dad and Mom lived in for a while.

We headed on south down the Cotton Belt road and stopped just before the Cotton Belt bridge for a break and took the following picture of the old bridge.  The county plans to replace the bridge soon and is looking for someone willing to have it donated to them.  We were tired of wearing our helmets and wanted to take them off.  While I was rearranging the storage box on the Maverick to make room for them, I laid my pistol on one of the rear tires and.....................naturally, I drove off and left it!  When we got back into town, I realized what I had done and had to go back and get it.

We drove on south and took a left at the Cotton Belt crossroads towards our old homeplace where Daddy and all three of us kids grew up.  When Toni and I owned it, we did a lot of work on the house.  We met the young family now living there and were invited in to look around.  Looked nice.

We then went back to Richland, loaded up and headed to San Saba for the night.