Exploring the Bastrop Area

We hadn't been to Bastrop in a couple of years, so we decided to head down there to explore the small town and see what we could find in the surrounding area.

We played Wolfdancer golf course on Saturday afternoon. Wow, what a great course and you can read the our review of Wolfdancer by clicking here. Wolfdancer offers the golfer some of everything: three distinct terrains (rolling prairies, wooded ridge lines, and river valley); spectacular views; lots of variety; and plenty of challenges - plus it is in excellent condition. Save your money and make sure you play this 18 holes of great golf. Before 1:00, forecaddies are required and they can help you with course management and strategy and also give you some good suggestions. One of the better suggestions was to make sure we stopped by Major Neighbors Grill at the club house for a cold beer - tell them your score and that's the price of your first beer! I haven't had a cold beer that cheap since 1976.

Saturday after golf we headed into Bastrop (about 15 miles from the Hyatt) to check out the restaurants and nightlife. There are several restaurants that were recommended in downtown Bastrop, all of which are within a few blocks of each other on Main Street. We decided on Genuine Oyster Bar & Grill, "The Pearl of Bastrop", because they were scheduled to have a good country band (which never showed up!) - the food was good, the beer was cold, and its a fun place to hang out. We just heard that Genuine Oyster Bar has closed and Cindy's Steakhouse has opened in it's place. Since we wanted music and heard good things about Cindy's Gone Hog Wild Icehouse and Hamburger Bar, we left and headed to Cindy's. What a fun place - covered patio with pool tables, great bar, big outdoor deck with a fire pit and outdoor stage (karaoke the night we were there, but they frequently have live bands), and a fun and lively crowd.

Sunday, we heading back to Bastrop for breakfast and exploring the town. Breakfast was good at Maxine's (awarded "Best all around home cooking in Bastrop") which is a funky little restaurant with walls covered in memorabilia dating back to the 30's. Food was good and during brunch and lunch on most days they have live music - on our visit it was a very good guitarist and singer - Gregory Lee Cox. It was nice to be serenaded during a good breakfast. We tried to walk off our breakfast by checking out some of the quaint shops on main street and funky little area at the corner of the bridge and then a walk along the river and across the preserved old bridge.

Bastrop’s historical roots run deep and the number of buildings listed in the National Register of Historic Places recently earned Bastrop the title “Most Historic Small Town in Texas.” With a rich harvest of classic Texas folklore and architecture, downtown Bastrop represents a unique blending of the old and new. Nestled on the banks of the Colorado River, the historic district is filled with a variety of shops and restaurants. The historic ambiance of downtown is complemented by nearby neighborhoods containing over 130 historical sites. Visit Bastrop to discover for yourself why they are known as the “Heart of the Colorado.”  Take a Photo Tour here!

Here is our list of fun things to see and do in Bastrop. There is more information and links on the Bastrop Outside Guide Page of Texas Outside's Discover Texas.

We have camped at Bastrop State Park a number of times over the years and it is a Texas Outside Favorite Park (read the review by clicking here) so we decided to head over to the Park to spend a couple hours walking some of the trails and reminiscing about some great camping trips with friends and family. The 10 different trails provide a fairly easy and scenic hike through the Park as they meander up and down hills and through the tall pines and oaks, If you have time, play a round of golf on the golf course at the park - Lost Pines. The front nine is a little boring but the back nine is fun. - we rated the course 5.5 stars.

 

Following a nice hike, it was time to head back to the Big D after a fun weekend.