I visited the cowboy capital of the world – here's what it's like to be lassoed by real-life ranchers in the authentic Wild West

Importance Score: 45 / 100 🔵


Exploring the Cowboy Capital: A Texas Hill Country Adventure

“Anyone have good balance?” The query came from Cody, a cowboy standing beside his horse on a Texan ranch. In this exploration of Texas Hill Country, prepare to discover a region celebrated for its cowboy culture, wineries, and German heritage.

Before I knew it, I was being encouraged to climb into the saddle, slide back, and attempt to stand on the horse’s bare behind.

Evidently, I’m no natural cowgirl. The process of rising to an upright position proved to be a protracted and unnerving challenge, but eventually, I managed to achieve enough verticality to warrant a resounding “Yee-haw!”

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Texas, the second-largest state in the United States after Alaska, is located in the American southwest. Covering an area larger than Spain, exploring it fully in a week is impossible. Therefore, I focused on the “Texas Hill Country,” a gently rolling region near Austin celebrated for its wineries, German heritage, and cattle ranches.

Bandera, considered the cowboy capital of the world, lies at its heart. This is where I found myself standing on the rear of that horse.

Ranches and Rodeos: Experiencing Authentic Cowboy Culture

Fortunately, Rancho Cortez provides less risky activities, such as feeding longhorn cattle, a Texan breed renowned for horns that can span up to 8 feet from tip to tip.

For an authentic taste of the Wild West, the small town of Bandera (population 800) is hard to surpass. Cowboys still trot down its dusty main street, dismount, and swagger into a bar, spurs and all.

It’s surrounded by ranches, most of which sit on hundreds of acres of land, have pools and are great for spending a day or night. 

Ranch Experiences and Cowboy Encounters

  • Mayan Ranch provides hayrides that lead to a cowboy breakfast served in the woods, featuring scrambled eggs, spicy beans, and crispy bacon.
  • At Dixie Dude Ranch, you can be lassoed (kudos to cowboy Zac for catching me) before setting off on horseback, no prior experience necessary.

The one-hour trail ride traverses a dry, hilly landscape dotted with cacti, oak trees, and thorny bushes.

The scene is reminiscent of a Spaghetti Western, especially when the Stetson I was wearing blew off my head and was chased down by a galloping cowboy resembling a young John Wayne.

Cowboy boots are essential in these parts. At Bandera’s Western Trail vintage store, I snagged a square-toed, pre-owned brown pair for $50 (£38).

Nightlife and Two-Stepping

They proved perfect for a night at the 11th Street Cowboy Bar, renowned for its live country music, dance floor, and Wednesday steak nights.

For $10 (£8), they provide sides and salads; all you’ve got to do is barbecue your own meat on a communal grill.

After dinner, I saw cowboy Cody approaching, palm outstretched, eyes twinkling. “Let’s dance,” he said. Moments later, I was being whirled and twirled in a honkytonk two-step with a real-life wrangler – who would have imagined?

Beyond Cowboys: Discovering German Heritage and Texas Wine

While experiencing the cowboy culture is a must, there’s much more to Texas Hill Country. It’s a twelve-hour drive from Texas’s top to bottom, but no journey in the Hill Country takes longer than 90 minutes or so.

Locals are friendly and greet you with a ‘howdy’ or ‘how ya’ll doing?’ But there’s also another language. Germans settled here in the 1840s – some of their original stone houses still stand – and brought their native tongue with them. It morphed into a ‘Texas German’ dialect that’s spoken even now in certain towns.

The shops on Main Street in historic Fredericksburg have German names as well as ‘Wilkommen’ signs, including one outside a store selling cowboy boots that cost a whopping £380 new. Thank goodness I went second-hand.

By contrast Fredericksburg’s boutique Truelove Hotel is all-American, with a string of bijou clapboard cottages that have rocking chairs on their porches.

Breakfast’s freshly squeezed orange juice and a warm biscuit (similar to a scone) served in a wicker hamper.

Apparently you’ve not been to Texas if you haven’t climbed ‘Enchanted Rock’, a nearby solidified liquid magma batholith deemed sacred by Native Americans.

It’s a lung-busting twenty-minute slog to the top from where there are views of surrounding wineries. Early settlers brought grapes with them and Texas wine-making is now a burgeoning industry.

You can try some at Signor Vineyard: their Sauvignon Blanc is crisp and dry; the Alberino is refreshingly fruity and the red Tannat is a bold, full-bodied cowboy vino which packs an almighty punch.

Culinary Delights and Unexpected Encounters

Food’s good too and it’s not all rustic meats and beans. The 7-course tasting menu at Fredericksburg’s Cabernet Grill is fine dining at its best. The quail stuffed with candied jalapenos, seared lion’s mane mushroom and gourmet take on a pig in blanket (called a ‘Texas Twinkie’) are outstanding.

I’d been drawn to Texas Hill Country to experience the cowboys, but find myself enjoying so many other unexpected experiences.

Like feeding giraffes and stroking rhinos (their skin’s surprisingly soft) at Longneck Manor, a conservation preserve outside Fredericksburg.

Like dancing in the German town of New Braunfels’ Gruene Hall – a historic live music venue built in 1878 where Kris Kristofferson once played. No cowboys to two-step with this time.

Then there’s tubing, a Texan pastime which involves sitting in a giant rubber ring for a couple of hours and letting the current drift you down Comal River. Temperatures soar over 100 degrees in summer and it’s a great way to cool down.

Shopping and Souvenirs

Despite riding horses and all that dancing, however, it’s my credit card which gets the biggest workout. Leave space in your case because Texas has duty free shopping. The chic boutiques are in the town of Boerne; the premium designer outlets are in San Marcos.

And for beef jerky the convenience store Buc-ee’s is a must – it comes in umpteen flavours from cherry maple to Korean BBQ and Jalapeno Honey.

A Diverse Destination

One thing’s for sure, Texas Hill Country caters for all tastes. Whatever you do, wherever you go, you’re sure to have the ride of your life.


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