San Antonio History and Headwaters

We begin today with a visit to the Buckhorn Saloon & Museum purported to be the oldest bar in continuous operation in Texas since 1881.

Buckhorn Saloon and Museum

We entered the Buckhorn Museum through the turn-stiles next to the back-bar that is hand-crafted of marble and cherry wood.

The Buckhorn Saloon and Museum holds a large collection of wildlife taxidermy. The establishment says the collection contains over 520 different species. Although a misfortune for the animals on exhibit, some of which may be exotics or now near extinction, the visualization of it all was quite surreal. Unless you find this type of thing unsettling, I highly encourage you to pay a visit when in San Antonio.

The museum consists of room after room of mounted animals, animal skins, animal horns, mounted birds, snakes and rattles, etc… Afterwards you flow into the Marine life section of mounted fish and fishing lures, and then visit the…

Carnival of Curiosities

This is basically a sideshow from the times of the old west; or one of those odd places you roamed at a childhood carnival in the 50’s. Found inside is a Flea Circus and many other oddities, curiosities, and optical illusions.

At the end of the Carnival of Curiosities, we landed at an exhibit dedicated to the Winchester marksmanship champions ‘the Toepperweins.’ This famous couple toured throughout America until 1951 showcasing their marksman skills. I was most fascinated with some exhibition listings that included events like… ‘shooting backwards–bending over table’, and ‘extinguishing a parlor match held between thumb and forefinger’, and so on…

Old Western San Antonio

Next, we walked through a version of Old Western San Antonio, or that from a bygone era, complete with a re-creation of the Buckhorn Saloon and the San Antonio Express News office, among others.

Texas Rangers Museum

Heading down the back stairs found ourselves in the Texas Rangers Museum, which is dedicated to the life and times of Texas Rangers from about 1835 to present. This collection showcases the work, history and artifacts of the men that protected the sovereignty of Texas for more than a hundred years. Any history buffs are going to thoroughly enjoy these exhibits. On the way out we perused the extensive gift shop and picked up a few souvenirs for ourselves.

Completing our visit, we took a short walk to Travis Park, where we boarded the #10 Via Bus. This bus heads North of the downtown area. We got off the Via Bus at the stop directly in front of University of the Incarnate Word.

Bill Miller BBQ

Before continuing our site-seeing journey we crossed to the other side of Broadway Street and headed into the ever-famous Bill Miller BBQ restaurant for lunch; dining on a Chopped BBQ Sandwich and fries.

University of the Incarnate Word

After lunch we crossed back over Broadway Street and onto the properly of the University of the Incarnate Word, stopping at the Visitor’s Check-in Center first.

From here we proceeded to the back area of the property known as The Heritage Trails. From this point we followed the signs to Blue Hole, one of several springs comprising the headwaters of the San Antonio River.

Blue Hole

After crossing a small wooden bridge, the point where the headwaters meet, we proceeded on the short path, arriving at the Blue Hole spring in mere minutes. Here we observed the active spring and read about its historical roots.

Headwaters Sanctuary

Now we followed along the stream to the Headwaters Sanctuary at the University of the Incarnate Word, a mere 5 minutes’ walk. With a nice pamphlet made available at its entrance, we spent the next two hours hiking the well laid out trails. We saw the Little Blue Hole, a sister spring, the Olmos Dam Overlook, the Circle of Springs Garden (out of season) and, the great Oak Spur and Miller Spring during our journey.

With a full half day of nature under our belts, we headed back to the Via bus Broadway drop-off point just in front of the University of the Incarnate Word and made our way back to our riverwalk hotel.

Sancho’s

For our evening meal, we went to Sancho’s best known for its award-winning bar food listed as an authentic Mexican Cantina. The atmosphere painted a perfect ending to another great day out in San Antonio.

Day of the Dead Parade and Celebration

Arriving back at our Riverwalk Hotel, we set up on the North end of the Riverwalk to observe the Day of the Dead Parade & Celebration.

Just North of the Embassy Suites Riverwalk Hotel is the area where the parade boats turn around. This enabled us to catch site of each boat traveling in both directions.

Cruise Port: San Antonio, Texas

Tour Name: San Antonio History and Headwaters

Cruise Ship: None

Tour Guide: Self Guided