Day Trips & Beyond: October Events Roundup

Shoot me a Waco. You don’t have to be obsessed with your favorite soft drink to enjoy the Dr Pepper Museum in Waco. Be forewarned that you’ll be surrounded by lots of folks who take their soda pop seriously. The carbonated drink was formulated by pharmacist Charles Alderton in Morrison’s Old Corner Drug Store in 1885, a year before Coca-Cola. The origins of the name are unknown, but a popular story is that it was named after the father of a girl Morrison was sweet on. In the early days when fountain drinks were mixed by “soda jerks,” the soft drink was simply called a “Waco.”

The museum is housed in the original Dr Pepper bottling plant at the corner of Fifth Street and Mary Avenue in Waco. It takes some time to see the entire collection of over 300,000 artifacts that cover all aspects of soft drinks in general. If you haven’t visited recently, you might be surprised by how much the exhibits have been updated and expanded in the last few years. 

On the scary side of soda are the exclusive Paranormal Experiences at the Dr Pepper Museum on the first four Saturdays of October. During these two-hour tours, guests get to see a different side of the museum. For decades, paranormal investigators and museum staff have experienced activity throughout the 100-year-old building. Just in time for Halloween, the tour is so scary that there are age restrictions for participants. 

Oct. 3, 10, 17, 24, Waco, drpeppermuseum.com

From the Archives

“Day Trips” first appeared in The Austin Chronicle on April 12, 1991. Even before then I had begun amassing a collection of photographs from around Texas and beyond that now numbers in the thousands. Occasionally in the coming months I will highlight a photo that may or may not have previously been published. Hope you enjoy.

Years ago, a traveling salesman pinned his business card and a dollar bill to a booth wall at the Owl Bar and Cafe. It started the tradition of pinning a dollar bill with your name, where you were from, and a short note. When the bills pile up, the Owl donates the money to local charities. Every year the diner gives $1,500 to $2,000 to local children’s charities at Christmas. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

The Owl Burger is irregularly shaped and messy. A jumbled pile of lettuce, tomato, pickles, and an all-beef patty, it is oh, so tasty. It might not be the best green chile cheeseburger in the world, but it will do until you find the one that is. The Owl Bar and Cafe has been an important part of San Antonio, N.M., since 1945. Frank Chavez opened the bar in the back of his father-in-law’s grocery store after he returned home from World War II. Inside the bar was a 25-foot mahogany bar that had originally been in the mercantile business owned by the father of Conrad Hilton of hotel fame. Chavez added a grill to serve burgers made with the local Hatch chiles to atomic scientists working on the nuclear project at the nearby Trinity Site. The grocery store is gone, but the cafe is owned by the fourth generation of the family. A hodgepodge of donated stuffed owls are perched on shelves around the two dining rooms. The cafe is a mishmash of dusty souvenirs as interesting as the food is good. Most of the booths are festooned with dollar bills left by out-of-town diners marked with love notes to the famous green chile burgers. San Antonio is a dusty little town about halfway between Albuquerque and Hatch off I-25. The town is just outside of Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, the winter home of thousands of sandhill cranes, snow geese, ducks, and a myriad of other migratory birds.

Dec. 2-5, Festival of the Cranes, Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, friendsofbosquedelapache.org/festival

Travel Notes:    The Pedernales River at Reimers Ranch County Park. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

TC parks. In Western Travis County, Reimers Ranch has provided countless residents a chance to get outdoors. In the 1970s, Milton Reimers’ rugged plot of land on the Pedernales River was a not-so-secret swimming hole and campground. As development and old age encroached on the cattle, sheep, and Angora goat ranch that had been in the family since 1893, Milton sold his 700 acres to Travis County for a park in 2005. The park opened in 2015 and has since grown to over 2,400 acres. Travis County Parks Department and Travis County Parks Foundation are asking for the public’s input on the next phase of Reimers Ranch Park and the recently acquired RGK Ranch Park, a 1,500-acre portion of the Kozmetsky Ranch. The two groups will hold an open house on Wed., Oct. 7, from 5pm to 7:30pm at Lake Travis Middle School to explore ideas and the future for both parks. Interested parties can also take a survey letting their feelings be known.  

Yancy Creek in the newly opened Post Oak Ridge State Park outside of Lampasas Credit: TPWD

New trails. Imagine hiking over rolling hills only lightly touched by modern times. With only approximately 5% of the Texas land open to public usage, finding a bit of wilderness can be a challenge. In 2025, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department began acquiring the land that would eventually become the 3,000-acre Post Oak Ridge State Park. Although the park is still in the early stages of development, it opened to limited day use in September. The park is a little over 15 miles west of Lampasas near Colorado Bend State Park, home of Gorman Falls.  Patrons will receive a gate code in their reservation confirmation email to access the property. After entering the gate, there is a 2.5-mile gravel road leading to a parking area with a restroom. From there, visitors can move into the picnic area surrounded by post oaks before heading out on 3.5 miles of rolling Hill Country trails with several scenic overlooks. Trail maps can be found online on the park web page or in person at the trailhead. There is no access to drinking water on-site, and there is limited cell coverage. The park is currently open from 8am to 4pm Monday through Thursday, and from 8am to 8pm Friday through Sunday.

The old country store in Luckenbach next to the dance hall. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

Historic two-steppin’. Boot-scooting seems a lot more fun in a historic dance hall and Texas has a number of them. Many have roots that go back a century or more but are struggling financially with aging buildings. That’s where Texas Dance Hall Preservation Inc. comes in. This year the only statewide organization dedicated to protecting the historic dance halls selected five historic halls across the state for matching grants totaling $46,163 to support critical repairs and preservation. 

This year’s Preservation Grant recipients are:

La Bahia Turn Verein Hall (Burton, Washington County) – $10,000 Award

El Maton National Hall (El Maton, Matagorda County) – $9,150 Award

Luckenbach Dance Hall (Luckenbach, Gillespie County) – $7,013 Award

SPJST Lodge 92 / National Hall (Fort Worth, Tarrant County) – $10,000 Award

SPJST Lodge 25 (Ennis, Ellis County) – $10,000 Award

Founded in 2007, TDHP is a nonprofit organization dedicated to saving historic dance halls across the state through advocacy, education, and financial support. The 2025 and 2026 grant rounds distributed $96,163 to 11 halls. This ongoing commitment builds on the organization’s historic relief efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic, when TDHP stepped in with $265,000 in emergency assistance to 32 shuttered halls across Texas, keeping facilities intact while event revenues were completely halted.

Get on the bus, Gus. Take a one-day guided tour to three historic dance halls with Texas Dance Hall Preservation on Nov. 14. The day trip begins in South Austin and heads to Gruenau Hall near Yorktown. The hall originated in 1900 but was replaced in 2007 after a fire. Then it’s off to Nordheim Shooting Club, a textbook example of a German-Texan social club chartered in 1901 on the Coastal Plains. The final stop is at Lendenau Rifle Club outside of Cuero, which is celebrating its 125th anniversary with barbecue and an early evening dance, before heading home. Tickets are $130 and benefit historic dance hall preservation. 

It’ll be a little slower to get from the JFK Causeway to Port Aransas on TX-361 as transportation officials figure out how to make the drive safer. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

Speed kills. The road to the beach shouldn’t be one of the most dangerous highways in the state, but State Highway 361 between Padre Island and Port Aransas has been the site of several deadly crashes this summer. As a result, TxDOT has lowered the speed limit on approximately 16 miles of the two-lane road across Mustang Island from 60 to 50 mph. The change comes after two fatal wrecks claimed the lives of three people within four days of each other in August. Add to that a passenger in a Jeep and two cyclists who were killed along the road this summer. According to the Port Aransas South Jetty, TxDOT has said it won’t widen what locals call “The Island Road,” to four lanes until 2030 at the earliest. In the meantime, law enforcement has stepped up patrols on the highway and they’re looking at other alternatives to slow everybody down. 

Beach fee increase. Going to the beach next year is going to be a little more expensive. Beginning Jan. 1, 2027, the cost for a calendar-year parking pass will go from $12 to $20. The fee increase will cover beaches in Corpus Christi, Port Aransas, and Nueces County. By comparison, Galveston charges $50 for an annual beach permit, and Cameron County charges $100 for a permit to South Padre Island beaches. In Port A, no permit is required between the South Jetty and Horace Caldwell Pier, or between mile markers 52 and 58.

The historic La Villita in San Antonio will be quiet this April as the annual Night in Old San Antonio festival decides how to proceed in the coming years. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

No night. One of San Antonio’s longest running festivals has announced it would not return in April 2027. After 78 years, Night in Old San Antonio will go on hiatus for the foreseeable future. Sponsored by the San Antonio Conservation Society, the annual festival celebrated the ethnic groups that built the city with food and music in La Villita. 

Other October Events: BIG BEND  The historic crossing on the Pecos River. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

Horsehead Crossing Celebration on the Pecos River

You must be a real Texas history buff to know about the once prominent river crossing in West Texas where cattle drives muddied the shallow waters. Join reenactors, Comanche dancers, and historians as they remember the remote location. 

Oct. 9-10, Girvin, www.pecoscountyhistoricalcommission.org/horsehead-crossing-celebration

GULF COAST

Sandcastle Days

This free, family-friendly festival features sand sculptures, live music, local art, food vendors, and beach activities for all ages.

 Oct. 1-4, South Padre Island, www.sandcastledays.com

Fall Kite Day

The skies above the beach at Mile Marker 13 will fill with kites of all shapes and sizes during the day and glowing kites in the evening. 

Oct. 10, Port Aransas, www.portaransas.org/event/fly-it-port-a’s-fall-kite-fest/5834

Greek Festival

Get a taste of Greek culture with an array of food, wine, beer, and crafts. 

Oct. 10-11, Galveston, www.galvestongreekfestival.com

Texas Jazz Festival

The longest continuously running free jazz festival in the world enters its 65th year with three days of music, vendors, and global eats, all with a local flair. 

Oct. 17-19, Corpus Christi, texasjazz-festival.org

HILL COUNTRY

Oktoberfest Fredericksburg

German traditions of music, games, food, and drink are celebrated in homage to the Bavarian sense of gemütlichkeit. 

Oct. 2-4, Fredericksburg, www.oktoberfestinfbg.com

AustOberfest 2026

Austin Saengerrunde invites everyone down to Scholz Garten for a day of music, sausage, bowling, and fun.

Oct. 3, Austin, saengerrunde.org/events/austoberfest

Book Festival

Showcasing all things regional and literary with university presses and writers leagues in attendance at the Patrick Heath Public Library.

Oct. 3, Boerne, www.boernebookfest.com

Sacred Springs Powwow

An unforgettable weekend of vibrant Native dance, music, and cultural exhibitions honoring the Coahuiltecan people and other Indigenous groups at the Meadows Center.

Oct. 3-4, San Marcos, www.sspowwow.com

Friends of the New Braunfels Public Library Book Sale

A sale of used books, CDs, DVDs, and collectible items that is so big it has to be held in the Civic Center. 

Oct. 8-10, New Braunfels, www.facebook.com/nbplfol

Enjoy music in Gruene Hall Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

Gruene Music and Wine Fest

Enjoy a curated collection of wine and beer tastings, plus live music.

Oct. 8-11, Gruene, gruenemusicandwinefest.org

Oktoberfest

Celebrate German heritage with music, pumpkin painting, food, and a beer garden. 

Oct. 10, Austin, www.germantexans.org/oktoberfest

Dripping Springs Songwriters Festival

See how music is made on seven stages, featuring 70 shows and 40+ songwriters performing in an “in the round” Nashville-style song-swap format. All shows downtown are free.

Oct. 16-18, Dripping Springs, www.destinationdrippingsprings.com/p/events/dripping-springs-songwriters-festival

Market at Sheepwalk Ranch

Browse fresh farm goods, handcrafted items, artisan products, and unique goods.

Oct. 17, Bandera, www.thesheepwalkranch.com

Texas Wine Jam

Meet the winemakers, enjoy live music while shopping directly from participating wineries.

Oct. 17, Johnson City, www.txwinejam.com

The wine flows at the Fredericksburg Food & Wine Festival. Credit: FFWF

Fredericksburg Food & Wine Festival

Enjoy the best the Hill Country has to offer from local, regional, and state talents. 

Oct. 22-25, Fredericksburg, fbgfoodandwine.com

Quiet Valley Ranch Homecoming

This is not a traditional music festival. There will not be a formal programming schedule. Instead, they’re inviting “Kerrvivors” to return to the Ranch, settle in for the weekend, gather around campfires, and let the experience happen organically.

Oct. 23-25, Kerrville, www.kerrvillefolkfestival.org/homecoming

Llano River Pumpkin Float

Bring your carved pumpkin with a candle and set it free in the river at Badu Park. 

Oct. 24, Llano, https://visitllanocounty.com/events/llano-river-pumpkin-float

Texas Clay Festival

In its 34th year, potters and sculptors from around the state display and sell their works. 

Oct. 24-25, Gruene, www.texasclayfestival.com

PANHANDLE PLAINS Reenactors return to the days of the old West at Fort Griffin State Historic Site. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

Fort Griffin Living History Days

Watch history come alive with frontier demonstrations, cavalry and artillery drills, longhorn cattle, the Army Camel Corps, chuckwagons, cowboy music and poetry, Centennial games, and more.

Oct. 9, Albany, thc.texas.gov/historic-sites/fort-griffin

Cisco TX Pie Fest

Enjoy an all-you-can-eat 40-foot pie buffet, pie baking contest, and pie eating contest, along with live entertainment, local arts and crafts, boutique vendors, and food trucks.

Oct. 16-17, Cisco, www.ciscotxpiefest.com

Stories in Stone: A Walk Through the Goodnight Cemetery

This is a free, one-of-a-kind program touring the historic cemetery in Goodnight, Texas, and meeting the people who settled this lonely outpost on the Texas frontier. 

Oct. 17, Goodnight, thc.texas.gov/historic-sites/goodnight-ranch

Good Times Celebration Barbecue Cook-off

One of the largest cook-offs in the state brings together more than 100 pitmasters competing for prizes and bragging rights. 

Oct. 8, Amarillo, www.amarillo-chamber.org/barbecue-cook-off.html

PINEY WOODS

57th Annual World Champion Hopkins County Stew Contest

What began as an end of school tradition has become an annual event that is the second-largest food competition in Texas. $8 gets you a bottomless stew bowl. 

Oct. 24, Sulphur Springs, hopkinschamber.org/hopkins-county-stew-contest

PRAIRIES AND LAKES

State Fair of Texas

Celebrating its 140th anniversary, the longest-running fair in the nation presents over-the-top fair food, live entertainment, and quintessential Texas traditions.

Oct. 1-18, Dallas, bigtex.com

Quarter Horse Season

Feel the excitement of the fall running of the quarter horses. 

Oct. 1-Nov. 11, Grand Prairie, www.lonestarpark.com

Dia de los Muertos Ofrendas

Celebrate Day of the Dead with local families who place beautiful altars (ofrendas) to loved ones who have passed on display in the museum. All are welcome to contribute to the community ofrenda.

Oct. 2-Nov. 2, Bastrop, www.bastropcountyhistoricalsociety.com

Pioneer Heritage Festival

Features pioneer demonstrations, printmaking, log cabins, and the Mary Martin and Larry Hagman Gallery in the museum.

Oct. 3, Weatherford, dosscenter.org/events/phf

Texas Renaissance Festival

The largest Ren Faire in the country features 400 shops, non-stop entertainment, and enough food booths to feed a kingdom. 

Oct. 10-Nov. 29, Todd Mission, www.texrenfest.com

Texas Arts and Music Festival

Centered around live mural paintings, the day is filled with art shows and concerts. 

Oct. 16-18, Brenham, www.texasartsandmusicfesivtal.com

Great Pumpkin Fly-in and Barbecue

Check out the museum’s collection of airplanes, enjoy the barbecue with homemade ice cream, and then at 2pm, they will close the airport for the pumpkin drop. Each plane will have a pilot and bombardier who will drop a pumpkin on a target.

Oct. 31, Hallettsville, www.whereolddogsfly.org/events

SOUTH TEXAS

17th Annual Mole Festival

One of the most unique gastro-cultural experiences mixes good food, drinks, cultura y música while supporting Centro Cultural Aztlan. Mole dishes will be prepared by local restaurants, chefs, and community cooks.

Oct. 15, San Antonio, centroaztlan.wpengine.com/mole-festival

Fall Festival at Helton Nature Park

Bring the whole family out for an afternoon of outdoor activities, live entertainment, community fun, food, and more.

Oct. 17, Floresville, www.sariverauthority.org/fall-fest

Basilica Heritage Tour

Learn about the history of the Little Flower Basilica and the saints depicted in the sacred art and stained glass windows and mosaics. 

Oct. 24, San Antonio, littleflowerbasilica.org/events/heritage-tour-october

La Catrina will make an appearance at San Antonio’s largest Day of the Dead celebration. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

Muertos Fest

From the 80-plus carefully crafted altars and ofrendas to musical performances on five stages and two processions paying homage to those who have passed, this is one of the Texas’ largest Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) events.

Oct. 24-25, San Antonio, muertosfest.com

Generative Disruption: Feminist Art from the Collection

The exhibition brings together art made from the 1990s to today, largely from the Linda Pace Collection, to show how the ideas of 1960s and ’70s feminist artists still shape art now.

Through Aug. 29, 2027, San Antonio, rubycity.org

OUT OF STATE Hot air balloons over Albuquerque come in all shapes and colors. Credit: Gerald E. McLeod

Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

More than 500 hot air balloons fill the skies over nine days in Albuquerque’s turquoise skies.

Oct. 3-11, Albuquerque, www.balloonfiesta.com

Gerald McLeod has been traveling around Texas and beyond for his “Day Trips” column for more than 35 years. Keep up to date with his journeys on his archive page and follow him on Facebook.

The post Day Trips & Beyond: October Events Roundup appeared first on The Austin Chronicle.