rel="nofollow" href="http://www.sistercreekvineyards.com">www.sistercreekvineyards.com; 830/324-6704), is set in a converted century-old cotton gin on the main—actually the only—street in Sisterdale. The winery creates traditional French wines using traditional French techniques, but the attitude is Texas friendly.
Where to Stay & Eat in Boerne
Peggy’s on the Green, 128 W. Blanco (www.peggysonthegreen.com; 830/249-9954), created by Mark Bohanan, chef/owner of Bohanan’s steakhouse in San Antonio (p. 58), offers upscale Southern cooking—think chicken-fried quail—along with steak and seafood; entrees run from moderate to expensive. It’s open for lunch and dinner Tuesday to Saturday, brunch and dinner on Sunday. Peggy’s is the dining room for Ye Kendall Inn (www.yekendallinn.com; 830/249-2138), a Territorial-style boutique hotel fronting the main plaza. Opened as a stagecoach lodge in 1859, it now offers a variety of rooms, suites, and cabins in the moderate to expensive price range.
The more casual and less expensive Bear Moon Bakery, 401 S. Main St. (www.bearmoonbakery.com; 830/816-2327), is ideal for a hearty breakfast or light lunch. Organic ingredients and locally grown produce are used for the inventive soups, salads, sandwiches, and baked goods. You can watch ducks frolic in Cibolo Creek’s old mill pond when you dine at Dodging Duck Brewhaus, 402 River Rd. (www.dodgingduck.com; 830/248-3825). Sit out on the covered deck and enjoy lunch or dinner from an eclectic brewpub menu—everything from Cajun stuffed mushrooms to antelope burgers—as well as suds brewed on the premises. Prices are moderate.
Bandera
25 miles W of Boerne; 54 miles NW of San Antonio
Bandera is a slice of life out of the Old West, a town that could easily serve as a John Ford film set. Established as a lumber camp in 1853, the self-styled (and trademarked) Cowboy Capital of the World still has the feel of the frontier. Not only are many of its historic buildings intact, rodeos are still held here on a regular basis (major rodeos are on Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend, but there are also frequent smaller rodeos in between). There’s a nod to contemporary attitudes—gun safety is discussed at the simulated shootouts that take place behind the visitor center, for example—but a lot of hunters live in the area, as evidenced by the taxidermist shops you’ll spot. In short, Bandera is not a Western theme park, but a real town.
Genuine hospitality and friendliness to visitors are part of the local ethos. For information about local events, outfitters, and activities, stop in at the Bandera County Convention and Visitors Bureau, 126 Hwy. 16 S. (www.banderacowboycapital.com; 800/364-3833 or 830/796-3045), open Monday through Friday 9am to 5pm, Saturday 11am to 2pm.
Exploring Bandera
Interested in delving into the town’s roots? Pick up a self-guided tour brochure of historic sites at the visitor center or head for the small Western Trails Heritage Park in the main square, across from the county courthouse. Historic markers commemorate the vast Texas cattle drives that once pounded through this area, which was on the Great Western Cattle Trail, immortalized in the book and movie Lonesome Dove.
Immigrant families from Poland settled Bandera in the 1850s; the church they built, the beautifully restored St. Stanislaus, 311 E. 7th St. (www.ststanislausbandera.com; 830/460-4712), is the country’s second oldest Polish parish. The small Frontier Times Museum, 510 13th St. (www.frontiertimesmuseum.org; 830/796-3864), opened its doors in 1933, an era when many museums were mainly showcases for curiosities. This one stays true to its original mandate—you’ll find a taxidermied two-faced goat and a medieval birthing chair among the exhibits—but it also offers a fascinating overview of the area’s history. The much newer (opened 2016) Bandera Natural History Museum, 267 Old San Antonio Hwy. (www.banderanhm.org; 830/328-5090), features displays of dinosaurs and ice age animals made by the same company that created the dinos for Jurassic Park. The educational exhibits include real full-body mounts of animals that the museum’s founder hunted, placed in replicas of their natural habitats.
BANDERA SHOPPING
If you stroll along Main Street, you’ll find a variety of crafters working in the careful, deliberate style of the past. The Leather Bank of Bandera, 318 Main St. ( 830-328-5080), is the outlet for distinctive Collins of Texas handbags (www.collinsoftexas.com), with styles ranging from vintage and bejeweled to contemporary. Thelma and Louize, 204 Main St. (www.themaandlouizebandera; 830/328-5060), carries a lot of brands beloved by contemporary cowgirls, including boho-chic Ivy Jane clothing and chunky J Forks jewelry. Housed in a 1908 building, the stocked-to-the-gills Bandera General Store, 306 Main St. (www.banderageneralstore.com, 830/796-8176), sells everything from boots to salsa. It has the only bookstore in town, as well as a fully functional 1950s ice-cream fountain serving malts, milk shakes, and banana splits. Western Trail Antiques & Marketplace, 200 Main St. (www.westerntrailantiques.com; 830/796-3838), brings together contemporary local crafts as well as things retro, from vintage boots to farm collectibles.
Off the Main Street drag, you can buy beautiful customized belt buckles, spurs, and jewelry at Hy O Silver, 1107 12th St. (www.hyosilver.com; 830/796-7961). Suzoo’s Wool Works, 584 Hwy. 16 S. (www.suzoos.com; 949/400-4225), is a magnet for knitters and quilters, who come for supplies and sign on for classes.
sports & Outdoor activities
You don’t have to go farther than Bandera Park (www.cityofbandera.org/2161/Park; 830/796-3765), a 77-acre green space within city limits, to enjoy nature, whether you want to stroll along the River Bend Native Plant Trail or picnic by the Medina River. Or you can canter through the Hill Country State Natural Area, 10 miles southwest of
rel="nofollow" href="http://www.sistercreekvineyards.com">www.sistercreekvineyards.com; 