The new Rebecca Caroline tasting room occupies the historic Hye Post Office. Pam LeBlanc photo

William Chris Vineyards has officially entered the bubbly business.

The Hill Country winemaker west of Johnson City opened the doors of its Rebecca Caroline tasting room today. I stopped by for a sneak peak, and sampled four types of sparkling wine, all made with Texas grapes.

The history runs deep.

The new tasting room occupies the old Hye Post Office on Highway 290, across the road from the main winery. Lyndon Baines Johnson mailed his first letter here when he was 4 years old, and years later, as president, swore in his postmaster general on the front steps. Inside, you can belly up to what was once the counter of the old post office, see some of the building’s original mailboxes or look up at the stamped tin ceiling. (A tiny post office still functions in one corner of the 120-year-old building for a few hours a day.)

Marcy Stellfox sips sparkling wine at the new Rebecca Caroline tasting room at William Chris Vineyards. Pam LeBlanc photo

From the front porch, you’ll see a faux storefront for M.L. Leddy’s, a Fort Worth-based bootmaker. Peek inside and you’ll see an antique barber chair, a cache of old ledgers and some cool old hats and boots. Just don’t plan on placing an order. The shop isn’t real; it never opens.

The Rebecca Caroline tasting room also serves raw oysters and caviar.

Chris Brundrett, co-founder of William Chris Vineyards, shows off some of the winery’s grapevines. Pam LeBlanc photo

Chris Brundrett and Bill Blackmon teamed up to start William Chris Vineyards in 2008. While the winery has gussied itself up in recent years, expanding and adding a formal tasting room in 2019, it’s held on to its small-town roots.

“We get to see hyper experienced wine connoisseurs and people who just downed a Dr Pepper,” Brundrett said. “Wine can be so dang intimidating.”

The Fredericksburg area is now the second largest wine region in the country, behind California. It’s known for a variety of grapes, including tannat, a full-bodied red heavy on tannins and dark fruit flavors.

William Chris Vineyards sees about 60,000 visitors annually. It uses grapes grown in the High Plains of Texas, the Fredericksburg area, the Llano Uplift and the ancient salt flats of West Texas to make its wines.

“We used to hear that Texas wine sucked,” Brundrett says. “That perception has changed. People know who we are now.”

Reservations are recommended.

The Faust Hotel in New Braunfels reopened in May after a multi-year renovation project. Pam LeBlanc photo

For decades, my memories of New Braunfels centered around sausage, beer and dirndls, because I only visited during the ten-day German celebration known as Wurstfest.

That changed last week, when I made an overnight trip to experience the city in summer. Turns out it’s heaven for a water-loving swimmer like me.

Here are my suggestions for what to do if you plan a trip…

1. Stay at the historic Faust Hotel, which opened as the Traveler’s Hotel two weeks before the stock market crashed in 1929. It reopened in May after a $10 million renovation, and staying there feels like sliding back into the Roaring Twenties. A pocket bar off the lobby occupies what was once the hotel barbershop, a speakeasy will open soon downstairs, and the hotel’s original cash register is on display next to the front desk. Pro tip: Instead of paying for valet parking, park for free in the city lot on South Castell Avenue, a block away.
2. Eat dinner at Wilhelm & Werner. I’m no foodie, but dinner here ranked as one of the best meals of my life. The menu is Texas-themed (think Texas sweet onion soup, Gulf oysters, Hill Country rabbit pie and a dessert called the Cenizo Pot made of smoked Texas sage custard that brought me to my knees.) Just bring a fat wallet, because it’s expensive.
3. Take a flying leap into the spring-fed pool at Landa Park I might have been the oldest person to launch myself off the rope swing the day I visited, and I loved hanging out on the floating platform at the center of the pool. If you don’t like the feel of aquatic grass under your toes (who doesn’t!), you can opt for the cement pond and splash pad just up the hill.

Stacy Thigpen paddles along the Guadalupe River with his dog Joey. Pam LeBlanc photo

4. The park was nice, but the highlight of the trip for me came when we hopped on inflatable standup paddleboards and rode them down the Guadalupe River upstream of the city. The half-day trip took us past huge cypress trees, along limestone bluffs, and through a rocky, natural chute in the riverbed. If you book with Stacy Thigpen at PaddleTX, like I did, the trip includes lunch at the Lonestar Float House. (Order the burger and sit on a half-submerged picnic table in the river for best results.)

5. Back in town, drop by Red Stag to shop for clothing, jewelry and furniture, all arranged in a sprawling restored historic building. I felt like I was on a treasure hunt.

Naegelin’s Bakery in New Braunfels opened in 1868. Pam LeBlanc photo

6. My mom used to bake anise-flavored cookies called springerle, and I was thrilled to find them at Naegelin’s Bakery, which opened in 1868.

7. I didn’t make it to the city tube chute this time, but for $7 you can hang out on the riverbank downtown and make as many trips down the cement-lined channel around the dam as you want. (When I was a kid, we called this area Stinky Falls.) You can rent a tube on site for $15.

8. I also skipped Schlitterbahn Water Park & Resort, but if you’re into man-made pools, waterslides and a lazy river, it’s mecca.

9. If you’re feeling fancy, head to Old City Hall, a high-end eatery located in what was once the New Braunfels City Hall building. We went for lunch on a weekday, and the joint was packed.

10. Krause’s Café & Biergarten once only served a noon meal, but it evolved into a place where people went to drink beer and play dominos and card games. Now it’s known for live music and German specialties like schnitzel, bratwurst and pretzels. I swear it’s home to the longest row of beer taps I’ve ever seen. Oddly, it also serves breakfast, and the peach French toast made me swoon.

The Eagle Creek run at Sunshine Village feels like zooming through Mother Nature’s half pipe. Pam LeBlanc photo

Temperatures might be hovering around 90 degrees in Austin, but ski season hasn’t wrapped up yet. And even as Colorado suffered through one of its lowest snow years in history, Banff is recording one of its best.

I just spent a week in Canada, wallowing in the white stuff – and you’ve still got plenty of time to get there.

Mt. Norquay in Banff has the longest and fastest tube runs in Alberta. Pam LeBlanc photo

Here are the 10 reasons to make the trip.

1. You can ski three resorts in one vacation. I made Brewster Mountain Lodge in Banff my base, and hopped a free shuttle each day to get to Lake Louise, Sunshine Village and Mt.Norquay.
2. Ski season stretches on forever here. Sunshine Village, which opened Nov. 4 and doesn’t close until May 18, boasts one of the longest non-glacial ski seasons in North America. Lake Louise operates until May 3 and Mt. Norquay keeps lifts spinning until April 19 this year.
3. This season will go down as one of the best snow years on record in Banff. December set records, and it snowed about 6 inches during my stay the last week of March.
4. The luxurious lifts! Sunshine Village and Lake Louise have “bubble lifts” with heated bucket seats and tinted covers that pull down to protect you from the elements. I’m officially spoiled.
5. Norquay, Banff’s backyard ski area, celebrates its 100^th anniversary this year. The place is steeped in history – it’s a pioneer of ski racing and you can still see the old ski jump judging towers.
6. Speaking of Norquay, or “the Mighty Quay” as some call it, it’s home of the longest, fastest tube runs in Alberta.
7. The view of Mount Rundle, which looks like it’s been smacked with a giant frying pan, gives me chills. (You might recognize it if you’ve ever attended the Banff Film Festival road show in Austin.) I made the steep hike up Tunnel Mountain to take it in.
8. Whisky! Stop by Park Distillery for a short distillery tour followed by a whisky tasting. You’ll get to sample six different whiskeys, all made with glacier water and Alberta rye.
9. Order a “Texas of the North” Tea, Alberta’s spin on a Long Island iced tea, at a new country bar called the Dusty Boot in downtown Banff. The vibe is perfect, especially if you snag one of the fluffy upholstered chairs next to the bar. Or grab the mic for cowboy karaoke downstairs.
10. Check out the food scene. My favorites? Chuck’s Steakhouse for locally-grown Alberta beef, Hello Sunshine for sushi and a groovy atmosphere, and Brazen, for the ginger beef and pear tart.

Lake Louise is having one of its best snow years on record. Pam LeBlanc photo

Pam LeBlanc warms herself on a boulder next to a creek in the French Alps.

Every December, I shake the dirty laundry out of my suitcase, crumple up the last plane ticket, and reflect on the places I visited over the previous 12 months.

This year, I hiked hut-to-hut in France and Italy, sailed on a yacht around the British Virgin Islands, and listened to a glacier groan and splinter in Patagonia.

In all, I booked 17 round-trip flights. I stepped foot in eight states besides Texas and nine countries outside the U.S. I zoomed around Texas, too, reveling in horseback rides and paddling trips in this wildly diverse place I call home.

I did things I’ve never done before, like attach cramp-ons to my boots and scramble up a snow-covered a volcano, and a few I’d rather not repeat, like having my passport stolen in a foreign country.

It sure beats sitting at a desk in an office building. I’m flat-out, can’t-believe-this-is-my-life grateful for what I get to do for a living. And next year’s shaping up to be a doozy, too.

Without further ado, here are my top 10 travel experiences of 2025…

10. Route 66. Next year, the Mother Road will celebrate it’s 100^th anniversary. I zipped up to Amarillo, and from there explored 178 miles of the historic route that cut through Texas between Glenrio and Shamrock. It reminded me, once again, that no matter how far I roam, there’s always something new to experience in my home state.

9. St. Eustatius. So many islands in the Caribbean are crowded with tourists and hotels. Not the Dutch island of St. Eustatius, where I stayed at Golden Rock Resort and went scuba diving on lush tropical reefs, hiked to the rim of a dormant volcano, and gnawed on stalks of sugar cane fresh from the field. Next year, the island celebrates the 250^th anniversary of the First Salute, which officially recognized the United States after the American Revolution.

8. Biking in Idaho. I’ve snow skied and rafted in Idaho, but for years I’ve wanted to pedal some of the state’s Rails to Trails paths. I finally got the chance this year, when I visited the Idaho Panhandle in summer. The highlight? Riding the Route of the Hiawatha, a 15-mile gradually descending path that takes you through 10 tunnels and over seven trestle bridges.

7. BVIs. Time slows down when you kick off your shoes and spend a few days aboard a yacht that comes with its own captain and chef. All I had to worry about on my trip with Dream Yacht Worldwide was snorkeling, swimming and making sure I was back on the boat when it was time to sail to the next island.

6. Great Lakes. Cruises aren’t generally my thing – unless they’re wildlife and education focused, like the Viking trip I took through the Great Lakes. The bulk of the week-long cruise was spent in Lake Superior, stopping at several national parks in Canada. As a bonus, I got to show my husband a little of Mackinac Island, where I worked at a hotel one summer when I was a college student.

5. Yellowstone. I love our national parks, and I worry about their future. That’s why I signed up for an activism-themed trip to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks with Intrepid Travel. The wolves gave us the shaft, but I watched a grizzly bear trot alongside a river, marveled at herds of bison, and admired the biggest moose I’ve ever seen. I also met Yellowstone National Park Superintendent Cam Sholly, whose father happens to be a good friend of mine.

If it hasn’t rained in many months, it’s possible to hike to Fern Canyon in Santa Elena Canyon. Pam LeBlanc photo

4. Santa Elena Canyon. I’ve visited Big Bend more than 30 times, but I still find new things to do and love while I’m there. This year, I joined Charlie Gandy, who’s putting together the new XTX Trail across the state, for a hike far into Santa Elena Canyon. You can only hike to Fern Canyon during times of drought, but the adventure still involved wading into neck-deep water, plodding through knee-deep mud, and scampering over boulders the size of Volkswagens. In a word, dreamy.

3. Chile’s Lake District. I somehow managed to land in Chile twice this year. A hike to a glacier atop Osorno Volcano that involved ice axes, helmets, harnesses, ropes and crampons highlighted the second trip, when I homebased at Hotel AWA on gorgeous Lake Llanquihue. And did I mention the visit to an estuary, where we ate oysters freshly caught by a diver on our boat?

2. French Alps. With mountain biking, white water rafting, canyoneering and hiking over a mountain pass from France to Italy on the agenda, what’s not to like? I spent a luxurious week at Eleven’s Chalet Hibou, where the focus is on adventure. And I’ll never forget taking a dip in an ice-cold alpine lake.

You can hear Perito Moreno Glacier crack and splinter when you stand in front of it. Pam LeBlanc photo

1. Patagonia. From giant, creaking glaciers to jagged towers of rock and windswept hills of grass, the landscape in Patagonia simply stuns. I visited national parks in Chile and Argentina, hiked to the base of Torres del Paine and through the French Valley, admired Perito Moreno Glacier, and toured an estancia on a 10-day jaunt with Smithsonian Journeys. I’m still blown away.

In between all that were ski trips and visits to the Texas Coast, camping trips to state parks, and a visit with dear friends in Cape Cod.

Already on the schedule for 2026? A long-anticipated trip to Antarctica, a hiking tour through the Cotswolds, rafting down the Nahanni River in the Northwest Territories of Canada, and a trip to Nebraska to watch the sandhill crane migration.

Vincent VanGo, Pam and Chris LeBlanc’s campervan, parked at Site 3 at Cedar Point Recreation Area. Chris LeBlanc photo

I’ think I’ve discovered the best drive-up campsites in Central Texas, and it’s set on a peninsula of land that stretches into Lake Buchanan at Cedar Point Recreation Area.

Now I can’t wait to go back with my kayak and paddle from the park to the Fall Creek waterfall, located on the lake’s northern edge. It’s a 4-mile paddle each way.

We made the hour-and-a-half drive to the park yesterday, taking advantage of the first brisk weather of the season. Our trip coincided with the monarch migration, too – I’ve never seen so many butterflies clustered onto tree branches in the Texas Hill Country.

Another reason to go now? After more than five years of drought, lake levels are up. All the campsites are truly waterfront once again.

The park remains under a burn ban, so we cooked in Vincent VanGo, our camper van. I stepped out in the middle of the night and caught a sky full of stars. This morning, temperatures hovered in the mid-30s.

The sun sets at Site 3 at Cedar Point Recreation Area. Pam LeBlanc photo

The park is one of more than 40 owned by the Lower Colorado River Authority between the Texas Hill Country and the Gulf of Mexico. There are no electric or water hookups, just primitive sites.

If you head to the park, try to get Site 3. It’s set off by itself, with a hill between it and other campsites on the peninsula. A picnic table offers a spectacular view of the surrounding lake.

Six other campsites are located on the peninsula, but they’re all grouped together, so there’s not much privacy. Site 2 is also good, but the road leading to it is rough and rocky. And Site 1 has hardly any shade.

Read more: Entry is free to all Texas State Parks on Nov. 2

The park doesn’t have flush toilets, but it does have a pit toilet and a port-o-potty.

The 310-acre park is located 80 miles from downtown Austin on the south shore of Lake Buchanan, which is known for white bass and striped bass fishing. It’s got a boat ramp and 3.5 miles of shoreline. Campsites cost $25 a night and include a picnic table, fire ring and grill. Pets are allowed.

The park is just down the road from tiny Tow, Texas, home of Fall Creek Vineyards, which opened in 1975. It’s also about 20 minutes from Inks Lake State Park and Longhorn Caverns.

Monarch butterflies gather on a tree branch along Lake Buchanan on Oct. 30, 2025. Pam LeBlanc photo

Entry is free to Texas State Parks, including Pedernales Falls State Park, on Nov. 2. Pam LeBlanc photo

Heads up, park lovers.

Admission is free to all Texas State Parks on Nov. 2, otherwise known as Texas State Parks Day.

You’ve got 89 to choose from, including Inks Lake State Park, which just opened its new headquarters building; Pedernales Falls State Park, where water spills over huge limestone slabs; Blanco State Park, one of my go-to parks for swimming; or Guadalupe River State Park, where towering cypress trees with knobby knees lean over the river.

“We hope that Texas State Parks Day will inspire all Texans to get outside and explore what our great state has to offer,” State Parks Division Director Rodney Franklin said in a press release. “We encourage you to spend time with family and discover what makes our state parks so special.” 

Pam LeBlanc sits under the spillway at Blanco State Park. Photo by Chris LeBlanc

Visit the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department website for activities and events in a park near you.

And another reminder – veterans, active duty and Gold Star family members can get free Parkland Passports that give them free entry to all Texas State Parks.

Reservations are recommended, especially on weekends. Make them online.