59 Natty Flats

     Our stay at the ranch has given us the opportunity to use it as a base to explore every direction and return home to rest relax and plan the next ride.   When we head out we might be heading to a historical site, something fun, a place to eat or just wandering.  It really doesn't matter as long as we are riding.
     On one of these little trips we went thru the small town of Itasca TX it stuck in our mind because Lake Itasca is the birthplace of the Mississippi river in our home state. 

     Itasca has approximately 1500 residents and as I was researching the population I found out they gave out over 31,000 tickets in an eight year period, "Speed Trap warning."   We noticed this abandoned? mini mansion next to the rail road tracks on the edge of town.  What is it's story?  We are always curious and fortunately have the time to check it out.  It seems to be very spacious with a drive thru court yard and perhaps separate residencies separated by the sheltered drive.  There were construction materials laying around and no sign of it being lived in.  Perhaps it is one of those multi generational residences.   Of course we drove back and across the tracks we seen a gentleman tending (perhaps gathering eggs.) by his chicken cages.  The cages happened to be next to the apartment building he lived in.  Maybe that's the way they supplement their income here?  Anyway he stopped tending his chickens long enough to answer a few questions from these passing strangers.   Evidently a man from Dallas was building it over an extended period of time, coming down on weekends and vacations to work on it.  It would be interesting to find out how and why he chose this location and if any interested parties approve. 
     Wednesday night in Stephenville is rodeo night at the Lone-star arena.  There are a lot of roping events and of course bull riding.  The bull riding always turns out to be a traumatic event for Ruthie as her caring and mothering side yearns to help the rider and clowns escape danger.  I try to keep a little distance and she ends up alternately striking and grabbing complete strangers while watching the event.  There also was an incident when she was apologizing to one of the fellas she had assaulted.  She found out one was from Bandera and the other from Stephenville and in all innocence she asked why both towns claim to be the cowboy capital of the world?   Way to go Ruthie, they used to be friends!  Here is my take on this controversy.   I think of Bandera as more of the old west with it's history in cattle drives and the beginning of the "West".   Stephenville as modern cowboys and rodeoing.   It is the home and birthplace of the Professional bull riding association and several national rodeo celebrities.  We moved to the other end of the arena as one of them said Bandera can't hold a candle to Stephenville.
  Lots of activity and things to watch.  It is no wonder a there are so many equine stars from Texas, tonight they had a special barrel race for the very young.  They all rode a horse however some were led by their parents. 

I told you it was big!

     On the seventh we headed North on 281 we hadn't ridden very far when we passed the largest rocking chair I had ever seen.  Of course we turned around ( no wonder we don't get very far.)  Turns out it was the Natty flat smoke house and Texas hill country furniture home of "star of Texas rockers"  We had one of their sandwiches and a bottle of pop. (Still use bottles here)   We toured the store and visited with the owner her  ancestors lived at Natty flats, an old community just down the road and hence the name.  Lots of interesting things including a $7000 carved walnut bathtub, you have to see it, beautiful.
     By the way this rocker is in the Guinness book of records.  

     At the northern end of today's ride we  arrived in Mineral Springs, as we were looking for a blacktop road heading West so we could make a loop and get back to our little home we noticed a huge building that seemed abandoned.   It was the fourteen story Baker hotel, originally build by the city to capitalize on the fame of their "mineral" water.  It was opened in 1929 with amenities unheard of at that time,  it had 450 rooms, two ballrooms a hydraulic system that supplied ice water to the rooms, lighting and fans controlled by the guests door locks.   It had many famous guests and was very popular.  It closed in 1963.  Now just a landmark, the stories it could tell. 
     At the NW point of our loop we hit the town of Thurber TX.  Their story is the states largest coal mining site for 30 years, they added a brick factory they literally became a boom town .   At one point it was the largest town between Fort Worth and El Paso, it was the first town in Texas to be totaly electrified, it was unionized and by the 1930's it was gone!  The discovery and use of oil was it's demise.
We ate at the Smoke stack restaurant housed in the last remaining Thurber brick  buildings.    It was full day and time to finish our loop and head home.