Thursday, March 11, 2021
Fairfield, Texas to Sonora, Texas
Highlights: Branch Davidian Compound, Regency Bridge, the Heart of Texas, and the Presidio de San Saba
We couldn't pass through Waco without a detour to the Branch Davidian compound, site of the botched 1993 ATF/FBI siege on David Koresh and his followers that left over 80 people dead, including 25 children. I'm not saying Koresh was an angel, but he was known to have left the compound frequently and could have been arrested offsite without a massacre. Shameful.
Branch Davidian compound
The former compound is still home to a handful of Branch Davidians, and visitors are welcome to come onto the site and look around. The chapel has been rebuilt along with some memorials, and you can see foundations of the burned buildings and the remnants of a buried school bus and the bunker where many of the women and children died.
Memorials and Mount Carmel Chapel
Deadly bunker
Burned buried bus
The Regency Bridge, outside Mullin, Texas, is notable as “the last suspension bridge in Texas that's open to automobile traffic,” except that it wasn't. Ha! The bridge was closed in September 2020 due to structural damage, but it is expected to reopen at some point.
Regency Bridge
Last suspension bridge in TX open to traffic, currently closed
Colorado River
Next stop, the Heart of Texas, a small park off US 377 at the geographic center of the state. A little 18-step lookout tower gets you above the trees for a panoramic view of Texas as far as the eye can see.
Geographic center of Texas
Tiny tower...
...with a big view
The Presidio de San Saba was the most northern fort in Spanish Texas, built in 1761 to house soldiers sent to protect prospectors arriving from San Antonio and priests at a nearby mission who hoped to convert the local Indians. Ultimately, the mining was a failure, the Apaches were unconvertible, and by 1768 the presidio was abandoned. What's here now is a partial reconstruction lying within the Menard Municipal Golf Course.
Presidio de San Saba
The flag of New Spain still flies
Menard's “Historic Ditch" was dug in 1876 to access water from the San Saba River for irrigation. According to the historical marker, The Ditch is still in use today; however, we found it dry and full of weeds.
Dry waterwheel in the Historic Ditch
Street scene in Menard, Texas
We made one last stop outside Fort McKavett, a US Army post built in 1852 to protect settlers from Indian raids. The fort was closed by the time we arrived, but we paused for a couple of pictures. I think we'll get our fill of forts on this trip.
Another of the many Texas forts
Post commander's house
Lodging: Motel 6 in Sonora, Texas, a huge, clean room, with a king-sized bed for only 41 bucks. Deal!
We had a fantastic dinner at Sutton County Steak House, conveniently and surprisingly located in the Motel 6 parking lot. The sirloins were HUGE and perfectly cooked, with plenty left over for breakfast.
Driving distance: 335 miles
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