The rolling, juniper-covered hills around Fredericksburg Texas are punctuated with clear-flowing creeks and rivers. It is close to Enchanted Rock State Natural Area and Pedernales Falls State Park, which both offer camping, hiking, swimming and other activities.
Mountain and Road Biking near Fredericksburg
There are miles of single tracks for mountain bikes and a network of country roads for road riders, and both types of bicycles can be rented from local outfitters. Hill Country Bicycle Works will even select an appropriate bike, deliver and pick it up at your lodging, and provide maps for rides ranging from a few miles long up to more than 80.
Hill Country Hiking Trails
Hikers often head to nearby Enchanted Rock, a 640-acre granite dome designated as a National Natural Landmark and a National Register of Historic Places listee. The Summit Trail zig-zags to the top, rising 425 feet in six-tenths of a mile. The reward is a 360-degree panorama of classic Hill Country landscape under a wide-open Texas sky. A four-mile loop trail encircles Enchanted Rock and its smaller neighbors, Freshman Rock and Buzzards Roost, and the Echo Canyon trail traverses a boulder-strewn canyon between the rocks, past Moss Lake. There are two back country campgrounds as well, and Enchanted Rock has dozens of marked rock climbing routes. Maps showing their location and degree of difficulty are available from the park office.
Pedernales Falls State Park includes a number of trails. The Wolf Mountain Trail is a 7.4 mile loop through classic Hill Country terrain. The trail crosses Bee Creek and passes a primitive camping area. It also goes past Jones Spring and ruins of an hold homestead.
Fredericksburg Restaurants
The culinary scene in Fredericksburg includes several German restaurants; the area’s original settlers were German. Others reflect the Texas influence. Cotton Gin Restaurant occupies a timber and stone building surrounded by native landscaping and a waterfall and has a full bar. It serves ranch fare, seafood and wild game, accompanied by dozens of Texas wines. A few miles outside of town, Rose Hill Manor serves a five-course prix fixe dinner menu paired with Texas wines every Wednesday through Friday. The Tara-style mansion also welcomes overnight guests to rooms in the main house or separate cabins.
More than ten wineries lie within a quick drive of town, and in fact, the Hill Country claims to be second only to the Napa Valley as a winery touring destination. Becker Vineyards, Chisolm Trail Winery, Fredericksburg Winery, Torre di Pietra Vineyards and Pedernales Cellars are just a few of those near town that offer tours and tastings.
Staying Overnight in Fredericksburg
For overnight accommodations, Fredericksburg offers everything from the 1940s-style Peach Tree Inn and Suites to traditional traveler hotels (Best Western, Hampton Inn) and a plethora of bed and breakfasts. These are housed in old German homes, rustic cabins and cozy cottages. Seven reconstructed 1800s-era log cabins encircle The Cotton Gin Restaurant, each with a front porch, kitchen and large Jacuzzi tubs.
The Hangar Hotel occupies a quonset-hut style building at the Fredericksburg Airport, built to resemble a World War II military hangar, and furnished with period decor. Enjoy cocktails in the Officer's Lounge bar and breakfast and lunch at the Airport Diner, overlooking the runway.
Enjoy the area's wealth of outdoor activities without missing out on fine dining and comfortable accommodations, since Fredericksburg has it all.
Melissa Gaskill - An independent journalist for 16 years, Melissa Gaskill holds degrees in biology and journalism and writes about travel, nature, outdoor ...
