Driving to Texas - Day Four (Austin)

Welcome to Texas! The 16˚C temperature in Little Rock began to rise one degree for every hour we drove South-west, and by the time we arrived in Austin, it was a balmy 26˚C! We changed out of our sweaters in a restroom along the red muddy highway, and enjoyed the Texas drive in our first ‘Summer’ shirts of the year.

Purple wild flowers were blooming on either side of the road, and the trees were sitting in a shallow warm bath of water everywhere. After Dallas-Fortworth, the limestone cliffs and hills alert you to the Austin city limits along the Colorado river, and we welcomed the change in topography. We marveled at the sheer number of white pines crowding the streams between contemporary architectural subdivisions. There is a real artistic feel to Austin that you don’t get coming through the big money of Dallas. It has a geography which, like Arizona’s, stands out to be heard and be different.

The Meltons greeted us to pizza as soon as we found their house amidst the hidden valley of ‘Bee Caves’. Here was the place where the Texas people who visited us each Summer in Ontario actually came from. Now the other half of the puzzle was complete!