{"id":62004,"date":"2026-10-06T05:26:25","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T05:26:25","guid":{"rendered":"urn:motra-oct3:LSB:4"},"modified":"2026-10-09T21:19:04","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T21:19:04","slug":"lsb-lsb-first-ed-june-2003-the-fredericksburg-area-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/?p=62004","title":{"rendered":"BackRoads – Fredricksburg Area"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Larry Gore<\/strong>
LoneStarBiker \u2014 First Edition
Printed pages: 30-33<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this section we are giving some general directions and letting you pick and choose. From Kerrville take Hwy 16 Northeast about 25 miles to Fredericksburg. The rest of our recommendations use Fredericksburg as the starting point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fredericksburg. Founded by German immigrants the character of the town is still heavily influenced by its roots. If you like German food this is the place to enjoy some of the best, including fresh baked breads and pastries. German is frequently spoken and many of the old traditions, such as Easter Fires, Kinderfest and Oktoberfest, are still kept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preservation of their historic past is an important goal, more than 300 homes and buildings in the area have been transformed into bed & breakfasts and guesthouses. There are plenty of rooms in the area so it is easy to find somewhere charming instead of staying in the plastic rooms of the motel chains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enjoy the charm of the main street with its wide selection of shops \u2014 from souvenirs to soup mix from antiques to artwork \u2014 there is something here for everyone. We have always found the residents to very friendly, helpful and glad we chose to visit. Fredericksburg was the birthplace of Admiral Nimitz, Commander of the Pacific Fleet during WWII and houses an extensive museum dedicated to the War in the Pacific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Willow City Loop<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Fredericksburg take Hwy 16 to Willow City (15 miles), at Willow City the "Loop" is easy to find.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hill Country riding is not complete until you've done the Willow City Loop. Although the actual loop is only about 21 miles, it is some of the best riding and best scenery you will find anywhere in Texas. Be sure to allow time to stop by \u201cHarry's On The Loop\u201d for ice, beer, BBQ and more\u201d. Owners Harry and Rosemary will make you feel right at home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enchanted Rock: Take Hwy 965 north from Fredericksburg for about 20 miles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the largest granite monoliths in the world, Enchanted Rock is right up there with Stone Mountain, Georgia and Ayers Rock in Australia. This dome of smooth granite rises abruptly from the land to the heighth of a 40-story building. The hike to the top is easy, although the park service sometimes limits the number of hikers per day. From the top you will enjoy the same view that the Indians saw when they used this as a lookout and for ceremonial purposes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

History: Tonkawa Indians believed ghost fires flickered at the top, and they heard weird creaking and groaning, which geologists now say resulted from the rock's heating by day and contracting in the cool night. A conquistador captured by the Tonkawa described how he escaped by losing himself in the rock area, giving rise to an Indian legend of a "pale man swallowed by a rock and reborn as one of their own."<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Old Tunnel Road: Go southeast from Fredericksburg on 290, a couple of miles out you will see a sign for Old Tunnel WMA. Turn right. This wildlife management area includes an old railroad tunnel that is now home to over 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats. Every evening around dusk, August is best, they emerge from the tunnel in a massive, dense, fluttering cloud. Viewing from the upper deck of the observation stand is free. Come early and get a good seat \u2014 this show draws a crowd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luckenbach: Take 290 Southwest from Fredericksburg, about 7 miles out you will see a sign for Luckenbach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

"Let's Go To Luckenbach Texas . . . " Founded in 1850 this tiny hamlet remained obscure until the entire town was bought in 1970 by Hill Country humorist, Hondo Crouch. An immensely popular country-western song by Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings made the name known virtually worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The town consists of about 10 acres. Its oldest building is the Post Office-General Store-Bar opened in 1849. Luckenbach is not just a Ghost Town \u2014 there is live music here 7 days a week. A short mile or so up Luckenbach Road is the Full Moon Inn. This enchanting Bed & Breakfast, written up elsewhere in this edition, is a peaceful and romantic weekend destination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BackRoads: In the rectangle formed by Kerrville, Fredericksburg, Boerne and Johnson City are many small backroads that make for fun riding, interesting sightseeing and opportunities to eat in small country restaurants. You can visit country stores that make you feel like you just stepped back in time to Walton's Mountain \u2014 you expect Ike Godsey to step out from behind the counter and say "Can I hep ya" John Boy?"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip: Beware of livestock on the roadways, and anywhere in the Hill Country be on the lookout for deer and other wildlife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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By Larry GoreLoneStarBiker \u2014 First EditionPrinted pages: 30-33 In this section we are giving some general directions and letting you pick and choose. From Kerrville take Hwy 16 Northeast about 25 miles to Fredericksburg. The rest of our recommendations use Fredericksburg as the starting point. Fredericksburg. Founded by German immigrants the character of the town … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":900707,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[149],"tags":[393,144],"class_list":["post-62004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-backroads","tag-b013","tag-lsb-first-edition"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=62004"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62004\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":900538,"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62004\/revisions\/900538"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/900707"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=62004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=62004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/motorcyclesontheroadagain.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=62004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}