A Brief intro.

NO RANCH obtained it's name when I told my fiancé Nan, a red-headed Native Texan, that I had bought a ranch in Texas. When I told her the acreage she laughed and said Honey in Texas that ain’t NO RANCH.

Nan and I met in an unusual manner. In June of 93 she came to appraise my house and we found that we had a lot of common interests. Our favorite activities included in somewhat of a random order are skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, biking, roller blading, walking, talking and oil and water color painting. Nan has been on the Mt. Baker Ski patrol for the last 23  years. We love the outdoors and I should mention that horseback riding is more towards the top of the list in desired activities.

So far we have had two fantastic trips to Hawaii with Kauai being our favorite island (we rented a house through Kauai Vacation Rentals) We have just returned from a fantastic trip to Germany, Austria and Italy. The Castles of King Ludwig were magnificent and the medieval castle in Rothburg, Germany is not to be missed if you go. We ate sausage and kraut in a village that has been serving sausage continuously since 879 AD - first to the Romans, who were building a bridge across the Danube river, and now to tourists. Venice defies description when you realize how old the city is - yet the architecture is perfect. If you go try buying Rick Steve's book- Europe Through the Back Door. Europe

During the first week of January in 97 we spent a great week in Puerto Rico . Old San Juan was fantastic and the best food that we consistently had was Cuban food from the Metropol restaurant on route 187 ,Isle Verde, near the airport. Tons of small eateries everywhere. If you don't mind dropping a $100.00 or so for two people then with out a doubt go to Ruth Chris Steak house at the Sand's Hotel on 187 (you will need reservations although we sat in the bar for an hour and got in). Be prepared to pay $6.50 for a small glass of wine and a decent St Michelle red will run $32.00 a bottle but tastes great with the steak. The filet mignon was the best I have had anywhere (even better then the Cattlemen's in Old Fort Worth). If you are not used to driving in Venice; New York or Dallas then get a cab or better yet take the bus. From the hotels you can catch a bus to Old San Juan for .25 cents each way and you see a lot of the local flavor of Puerto Rico. Driving to the east or the south is okay but San Juan proper could be a nightmare.

Next trip to San Juan we intend to try the snorkeling. This year we went and rode the Paso Fino horses out near Loquillo Beach. We weren't impressed with the stables even though they were well known on the island and recommended- but then perhaps our expectations were too high. The gait of the Paso is supposed to be second to none and by the looks of Nan in front of me- she was very comfortable and did not bounce around at all- even at a light gait. We finished our trip by visiting the distillery at Bacardi and sampled the rum afterwards. The tour is free as is all you care to imbibe. Moderation suggested. I have since found a Paso ranch that offers them for sale in Weatherford Texas.

In September of 97 we went to San Juan again for a week but this time we concentrated on snorkeling and hiking in the rain forest. The snorkeling was nice and priced decently for an afternoon. Most hotels have a discount coupon and if you drive yourselves out to the coast then you save a pickup fee. We were disappointed with the first leg of the trip on the catamaran as we dropped anchor off a small island beach and did some minor snorkeling while the cabin boy whipped up a buffet lunch. After that we sailed over to a private island and anchored over a living reef. This is where we had the most fun - diving amongst the fish. We didn't see any barracuda, but did see a poisonous sea snake. The time went fast. The next day we managed to find every hiking trail in the rain forest -plus some. Fortunately it wasn't raining and the weather was perfect. Bring lots of water to drink though. The climb was moderate to us although we met some tourists from Ireland on the top of one observation tower who was muttering that he would be glad to get down and relax. That was only a two mile leg each way. We managed around 11 or so miles altogether which was great. Finally we topped it off with Ruth Chris filet again.

Next year for we are perhaps going to tackle Spain and Portugal with some serious hiking in the Pyrenees. We also have a trip planned to Mexico in the fall of 98 to explore the Aztec ruins and do some hiking in the area. And back home our next venture is to perhaps try horseback camping somewhere down here in west Texas where they offer all the variety anyone could want in outdoor recreation. One of our favorite restaurants is the Cattleman's in old Fort Worth. and Billy Bob's Texas to finish off the evening. Also try some of these fantastic Texas Web Sites, you won't be disappointed. First there is the Lone Star WEB Page, and next is Texas's own State of Texas Web Page and finally a great periodical Texas Monthy Magazine