The tiny West Texas town of Valentine has the perfect name for a town that hosts an annual February tradition. When I took this photo about eight years ago, the sign read population 217, a number from the 1990 census that was never updated. Today, Valentine’s population hovers somewhere between 65 and 75 residents, give…
Tag: road trip
My How Big Is Texas Top 5 for 2025
As we wind down 2025, I’ve been reflecting on this past year at How Big Is Texas. My hobby blog, photography, and social media posts are now my full-time job, along with consulting work I’m doing across the state. It’s exciting for me because now I can spend even more time sharing Texas with all…
Buc-ee’s: A Texas Wonder of the World
A few years ago, I came up with the idea of traveling around Texas and visiting all 34 of the Buc-ee’s stores in the Lone Star State. For those of you not familiar with Buc-ee’s, they are far more than a convenience store with fuel and snacks. Most are massive with at least 50 fuel…
My How Big Is Texas 2025 Quests
I Do Not Resolve, I Quest!!! As resolutions go, I tend to fail dismally. You may be one of those amazing goal setters and not in the least bit familiar with making but, not keeping, New Year’s resolutions. Good for you. I’m this person, or at least I have been in the past. I purchase…
10 Places for SERENITY NOW in Texas!
Have you ever had one of those days when things seemed to be far more challenging than they needed to be? All you really wanted was a little bit of peace and calm. While it’s not always expected, it would be nice to be filled with a sense of serenity, but that doesn’t continually happen…
2024’s How Big Is Texas Best BBQ List
How It Started In January of 2022 when I was living in San Angelo, I polled my small group of followers on my How Big Is Texas Facebook page to find out their favorite barbecue restaurants in Texas. They came through with a couple dozen selections at the time. I followed that survey up with…
New Headquarters for How Big Is Texas
A New Headquarters It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since we moved across the state from San Angelo, in the Texas Forts Trail Region, to east Texas so I could start my new job in Tyler, in the Texas Forest Trail Region. We are coming up on a year of being in our…
The 100th Anniversary of Texas State Parks
But first, we settle in… Over the past five months, our family has moved, sold our former home, bought a new home, and settled into east Texas with our dog pack of three rescues. I’ve started a new job at Visit Tyler, promoting the Rose Capital of America to visitors. After living in west Texas…
In Closing – Final Thoughts on This Texas Trip
This specific quest completed, we’re sharing some thoughts from our Texas trip, all 3,331 miles of it. I asked the ladies to state their thoughts in their own words so here we go. Favorite Food Stops While we didn’t eat every second of every day, food pictures seemed to get the most comments from our…
Perryton to Gainesville on Our Texas Tour
The Finish Line of Our Texas Perimeter Tour Booker, Darrouzett, Follett, and Lipscomb, Texas Day 9 and the final leg of our perimeter tour around Texas found us in the northeast corner of the Texas Panhandle in Lipscomb County. Towns in the county include Booker, Darrouzett, Follett, and Lipscomb. I actually went to school in…