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Driving Southwest Texas: On the Road in Big Bend Country
West of Austin lies Big Bend Country. A region of rich history that still resembles the old frontier, Southwest Texas epitomizes the mystique and allure of this grand state. From the sweeping desert vistas to the canyons of Big Bend National Park, the geography itself is nothing short of incredible. Whether it's discovering historic Fort Davis, sharing in Annie Riggs's legacy or watching the Marfa Lights, a treasure awaits every traveler in this land. Join historian and travel writer Byron Browne as he and his wife, Angie, explore the sights and stories of this unique and charming piece of the Lone Star State
162 pages, Hardcover
First published March 11, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 18, 2021
"Driving is often considered to be a uniquely American invention. The car and all the individual freedom that it offers is as American as a can of Coke. Many travel stories have, at their core, an automobile that is as integral to the plot as any experience or adventure. Kerouac had his Hudson and Cadillac and Steinbeck his “Rocinante.” In both accounts, the vehicles were as necessary to the flow of the narrative as any conversation or observation. If the car stops, so does the story.”
Old-fashioned travel journalism! This book was wonderful! It reminded me so much of the travel books I devoured when I was young--all about the road. It is a relief to not have too much emotional or personal context... just to focus on the wide world. Recently read the Bells of Tokyo and Water, Wood and Wild Things--both of those books avoid memoir to keep in the journalistic mode making for really great travel writing!
BB and his wife would roll into town and immediately start talking to people, spend days reading in archives, interview locals and experts... “We spent two days at the archives, thumbing through the photographs. Ms. Garza and the chief librarian, Ms. Bell, pulled box after box for us. There were forms to fill out in order to be able to handle the pictures. No one was about to hand over these priceless original stills without some sort of identification, some sort of responsible stamp. Ms. Garza was as patient as a saint as she showed me how to complete the forms. Your name here, your address and phone number there. What is your purpose with these? Who are you with? What is their number? Address? Is this a private article? A research paper? A book? Well, who’s the publisher? What’s your deadline?”
I thought he was especially excellent on the observatory. Dark skies and of course Marfa... what is there left to say about Marfa? Well, Browne manages to make it fresh. Great book!!
Notes:
“Marathon was, in the 1870s, a “station stop” for the steam engines. The story is that a certain Captain Albion Shepard, a member of the railroad’s survey party, mentioned out loud that the landscape reminded him of the terrain of Marathon, Greece. In a way, I can see his point. The immediate area is somewhat flat and dry while just inside the horizon there are mountains and hills, and all are covered with strange green foliage. The only component missing from the Texas version is the sea that is very near the eastern side of the Grecian town and into which the Athenian army drove the Persians after defeating them in 490 BC.”
Gage Hotel: Built in 1927 by the famous El Paso firm of Trost and Trost, Alfred Gage commissioned the building as both a hotel and a headquarters, of sorts, for his 500,000-acre ranch. Like Moses seeing the Promised Land but never stepping foot onto it, Alfred Gage died the year after the hotel’s completion, in 1928. Nevertheless, the hotel has remained a staple of the area’s attractions for almost a century.”
Old-fashioned travel journalism! This book was wonderful! It reminded me so much of the travel books I devoured when I was young--all about the road. It is a relief to not have too much emotional or personal context... just to focus on the wide world. Recently read the Bells of Tokyo and Water, Wood and Wild Things--both of those books avoid memoir to keep in the journalistic mode making for really great travel writing!
BB and his wife would roll into town and immediately start talking to people, spend days reading in archives, interview locals and experts... “We spent two days at the archives, thumbing through the photographs. Ms. Garza and the chief librarian, Ms. Bell, pulled box after box for us. There were forms to fill out in order to be able to handle the pictures. No one was about to hand over these priceless original stills without some sort of identification, some sort of responsible stamp. Ms. Garza was as patient as a saint as she showed me how to complete the forms. Your name here, your address and phone number there. What is your purpose with these? Who are you with? What is their number? Address? Is this a private article? A research paper? A book? Well, who’s the publisher? What’s your deadline?”
I thought he was especially excellent on the observatory. Dark skies and of course Marfa... what is there left to say about Marfa? Well, Browne manages to make it fresh. Great book!!
Notes:
“Marathon was, in the 1870s, a “station stop” for the steam engines. The story is that a certain Captain Albion Shepard, a member of the railroad’s survey party, mentioned out loud that the landscape reminded him of the terrain of Marathon, Greece. In a way, I can see his point. The immediate area is somewhat flat and dry while just inside the horizon there are mountains and hills, and all are covered with strange green foliage. The only component missing from the Texas version is the sea that is very near the eastern side of the Grecian town and into which the Athenian army drove the Persians after defeating them in 490 BC.”
Gage Hotel: Built in 1927 by the famous El Paso firm of Trost and Trost, Alfred Gage commissioned the building as both a hotel and a headquarters, of sorts, for his 500,000-acre ranch. Like Moses seeing the Promised Land but never stepping foot onto it, Alfred Gage died the year after the hotel’s completion, in 1928. Nevertheless, the hotel has remained a staple of the area’s attractions for almost a century.”
May 21, 2022
I love all things Big Bend and I hate to be a crank, but this book badly needed a professional editor. Mr. Browne knows what is good and interesting, but has a tough time relating it to the rest of us: the narrative veers back and forth between pretentious and pedestrian. Some of the facts about the Big Bend area were fun to read and I appreciate the research, but this truly magical region of the country deserves more.
Check out "Texas Mountains" by Joe Nick Patoski. It's not a road trip book (the incredible photography of Laurence Parent fills the oversized pages and will make your jaw drop), but as a writer and storyteller, Patoski is the man you need to reveal the spirit of Big Bend.
Check out "Texas Mountains" by Joe Nick Patoski. It's not a road trip book (the incredible photography of Laurence Parent fills the oversized pages and will make your jaw drop), but as a writer and storyteller, Patoski is the man you need to reveal the spirit of Big Bend.
March 16, 2018
Wonderful story about Big Bend
Personal and moving description of traveling to Big Bend and the surrounding area, it’s unique features, and the magical desert.
Personal and moving description of traveling to Big Bend and the surrounding area, it’s unique features, and the magical desert.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews