Months earlier than the Nice North American Eclipse of 2024, which might observe a 124-mile-wide “path of totality” from Texas to Maine on April 8, my buddy Eric Birns discovered the proper place to expertise a number of minutes of darkness throughout the path: Ingram, Texas, the closest location to our dwelling in Ventura, California.
Not solely would Ingram be within the path of totality, it’s additionally situated within the coronary heart of Texas Hill Nation. Driving the renown Twisted Sisters – Ranch-to-Market Roads 335, 336, and 337 – has been on my moto bucket listing for years, so we hatched a plan.
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First, we’d borrow a few Grand American Touring bikes from Harley-Davidson. Second, we’d load them up and spend two lengthy days driving 1,400 miles from Ventura to San Antonio (motels throughout the path of totality have been costly and booked far prematurely). Third, we’d place ourselves in Ingram on the morning of Monday, April 8, permitting us loads of time to settle in earlier than the eclipse was predicted to start at 12:14 p.m. (totality would begin round 1:34 and final 4 minutes, 27 seconds). And fourth, after the eclipse, we’d spend the remainder of the week having fun with some scenic driving (“The Nice Huge Open,” our report about driving by way of the Huge Bend space of Texas, was revealed within the March subject).
Getting There | Texas Hill Nation Motorbike Journey
Should you should log back-to-back 700-mile days on main highways, Harley’s Street Glide and Road Glide are good decisions. They’re comfy, supply good wind safety, ship beneficiant torque from their throbbing V-Twins, maintain loads of gear (boosted with non-obligatory Tour Paks), and have top-notch infotainment techniques.
Many motorcyclists hate interstates, however they’ll’t be beat for effectivity. We spent a lot of the first day crossing the deserts of California and Arizona on Interstate 10. For just a little selection, east of Phoenix we hopped on U.S. Route 60, winding our method by way of Satan’s Canyon within the Superstition Mountains and passing by way of the mining cities of Superior and Globe.
We crossed into New Mexico at sundown and crashed onerous in an affordable motel in Lordsburg. After waking up darkish and early to search out frost on our seats, we placed on our warmest layers and wind-blocking rainsuits to struggle the 10-degree wind chill as we continued east on I-10. We have been chilly and numb when the solar lastly started to rise above the horizon in entrance of us, blindingly brilliant however not but heat. After two hours of freezing our tails off, we thawed out in a Cracker Barrel whereas filling our bellies with sizzling espresso and a gravy-slathered breakfast.
The remainder of the day was an uneventful “eastbound and down” cruise to San Antonio, the place we checked right into a Motel 6 and walked to the closest bar for a celebratory beer.
Elusive Eclipse | Texas Hill Nation Motorbike Journey
On Monday morning, we rode an hour north on I-10, passing a number of brightly lit DOT indicators that warned “NO STOPPING ON HIGHWAY TO VIEW ECLIPSE.” Quickly after exiting at Kerrville, we began seeing do-it-yourself indicators posted in yards and driveways providing parking areas for $20 and up. We adopted Primary Road by way of city to neighboring Ingram. There was an eclipse pageant close to the highschool, however parking price $60.
We pulled right into a small purchasing plaza known as The Dam Heart, so named as a result of it’s throughout the road from Ingram Dam, a low, large concrete barrier on the Guadalupe River. We paid $10 every to park, which gave us entry to a rest room at Domino’s Pizza and meals on the Que-Zeen BBQ trailer. Alas, the PowerHour Church and Dam Tattoo have been closed, so redemption and indelible souvenirs must wait.
Because the eclipse approached, the car parking zone stuffed and a crowd gathered atop Ingram Dam. There was a celebration ambiance, with households grilling, children enjoying, and youngsters driving innertubes down the dam’s brief spillway.
Cloudy circumstances meant that we bought solely peekaboo views of the solar utilizing disposable eclipse glasses like what you put on for a 3D film. Because the partial eclipse progressed, the sky grew progressively darker, as if a storm was brewing.
When the eclipse turned whole – when the moon blocked out the solar’s direct mild and solely its corona was seen across the moon’s perimeter – it was as if the Spirit within the Sky instantly turned down a dimmer swap. It wasn’t completely darkish, extra like a spooky twilight, however darkish sufficient for streetlights to come back on.
The clouds robbed us of an unobstructed view of the eclipse, nevertheless it was a surreal expertise nonetheless. Birds stopped chirping, and the sky took on an odd look, what one web site described as a “360-degree sundown.”
All too shortly, the totality ended, like somebody flipping on the lights at a celebration. Everybody was bummed it was over, and after the lengthy lead up, the comedown was onerous and quick. As of us packed up and headed dwelling, we equipped and hit the street.
Twisted Sisters | Texas Hill Nation Motorbike Journey
We rode west on State Route 39, a rolling journey amongst shade bushes alongside the Guadalupe River after which its South Fork. The farther we rode, the extra rural the realm turned, household properties giving method to sprawling ranches. After 25 miles, we turned south on Ranch-to-Market (RM) 187, a gently curving street that goes previous the Misplaced Maples State Pure Space, which presents tenting, climbing, and fishing.
On the Misplaced Maples Nation Retailer in Vanderpool, we turned west on RM 337, our introduction to one of many well-known Twisted Sisters. RM 337, which stretches throughout Bandera and Actual counties, is the longest of the three sisters at 56 miles, from Medina within the east to Camp Wooden within the west.
The Hill Nation will get its identify from lumpy terrain product of limestone and granite. A lot of the topography consists of uncovered rock, slender clefts, and options akin to springs, caves, and sinkholes the place water has eroded soluble rock. Many of the land is privately owned, and it’s the Ranch-to-Market roads carved into the craggy panorama that make the realm such a preferred vacation spot for motorcyclists.
Driving west on RM 337, Eric and I rumbled up and over a ridgeline and wound by way of a number of tight, slender canyons, crossing into Actual County, often called the “Swiss Alps of Texas.” With unforgiving rock partitions on one aspect and guard rails on the opposite, riders must be on prime of their recreation.
See all of Rider‘s Texas touring tales right here.
We quickly descended into the Frio River valley, the place the land flattens out. We pulled into Leakey, a small city of 315 residents that’s the county seat. Motorcyclists are welcomed with open arms in Leakey, which has gasoline, meals, and lodging. Simply west of city on RM 337 is the Frio Canyon Motorbike Cease and Bent Rim Grill, a gathering place that claims to be the “Official Headquarters for the Three Twisted Sisters” and sells all kinds of Twisted Sisters merchandise.
We topped off our tanks in Leakey and rode north on U.S. Route 83 a brief method earlier than veering left on RM 336. Simply previous a self-storage place is The Hog Pen on 336 BBQ, one other motorcycle-friendly spot. We continued north alongside the West Frio River, and shortly the street ascended and adopted a number of slender ridgelines. a topographical map of this space (or extra doubtless, Terrain view on Google Maps), the land has a wrinkled look, just like the folds and contours of the human mind. Weaving into and out of these crevasses and crannies is RM 336, making it supreme for motorcyclists who love curves.
After about 12 miles, RM 336 flattens out on a broad plateau and the curves open up, giving riders a reprieve. Just a few miles later, the street ends at State Route 41. We turned west and cruised for 14 largely straight miles to the northern terminus of RM 335, the third Twisted Sister.
See all of Rider‘s South touring tales.
We have been prepared for extra curves, and shortly sufficient we dropped into the mind terrain like we’d loved on RM 336. The tight bends don’t final, although, as RM 335 quickly begins to observe the step by step curving course of Hackberry Creek. There have been nonetheless loads of ups and downs to maintain us entertained, and we loved having the street to ourselves whereas admiring the rugged surroundings on a bluebird spring day.
After almost 30 miles, RM 335 ends on the city of Barksdale. We rode a number of miles south to Camp Wooden after which turned east on RM 337, which we rode for its total size to Medina. On its western finish, RM 337 is characterised by large, sleek curves and a curler coaster of hillcrests.
See all of Rider‘s touring tales right here.
East of Leakey, we repeated a part of RM 337 in reverse, again to the Misplaced Maples Nation Retailer. From there, we rode south on RM 187 for a mile after which continued east for the ultimate leg of RM 337, a quick and enjoyable romp by way of huge sweepers and over a number of rocky ridges to Medina. After turning south on State Route 16, we quickly arrived in Bandera, a cool little city often called the “Cowboy Capital of the World.”
Driving the Twisted Sisters route in a clockwise method, from Medina to Camp Wooden, as much as State Route 41, and again right down to Leakey, is about 140 miles and may be performed in a number of hours. However that simply scratches the floor of what’s on faucet in Texas Hill Nation, which covers 31,000 sq. miles in 18 counties.
