Day Trips & Beyond: October Events Roundup
The weather’s ideal to learn about Bob Dylan or see hot air balloons
By Gerald E. McLeod, 3:15PM, Fri. Sep. 30, 2022
Is it rolling Bob? On May 10, 2022, the Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa, OK, opened. Fourteen days before his 81st birthday. Dylan wasn’t in attendance, yet he was everywhere.
The museum is a mix of videos, photographs, timelines, posters, and memorabilia that show another side of Dylan. Even long-time fans will come away inspired and informed. The uninitiated will discover a man who contributed six decades of creativity to the music world.
The young man at the front desk said they sell far more $10 seniors’ tickets than the $12 general admission tickets. I did hear one old-timer say as he read one of the museum boards, “I didn’t know Dylan wrote that song.”
In the main gallery of the two-story museum, a small, light green typewriter sits on a pedestal glowing under a spotlight in the dimly lit cavernous room filled with signs and video monitors telling the step-by-step progression of Dylan’s career. It’s like walking through a coffee table book. As a longtime fan, not much was new to me, but the videos scattered throughout were like bits of filmed memories.
Hero worship is not what the Dylan Center is about. When you see Dylan as the man he is instead of the pop star on stage, you come away with an appreciation for his talent and genius. Two of my favorite things in the museum were a video of a young Dylan in the studio recording “Girl From the North Country,” and a video of a grizzled Dylan as a lounge act with a three-piece band. Bookends of a career that has given us so much.
His music says it all and that should be enough. It was thrilling to walk through a biography of Dylan’s life and career. The real story is in his songs and what they meant to you.
Tulsa is about a 7-hour drive from Austin. The wonderful Woody Guthrie Center is next door to the Dylan Center. A few blocks away is the Greenwood District, site of the 1921 massacre of Black residents (try the fried chicken at Wanda J’s Next Generation Restaurant). Across town, Leon Russell’s Church Studio offers tours.
Bob Dylan Center, Wed.-Sun. 10am-6pm, 116 E. Reconciliation Way, Tulsa, OK, 918/392-3483, bobdylancenter.com.
Up, up, and away. It’s time once again for the annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, one of the largest and most spectacular displays of flying object in the world. What started as TV station promotion 50 years ago with 13 hot air balloons has grown to welcome more than 500 balloons from around the world.
During the first nine days of October the skies around central New Mexico are filled with the colorful and sometimes whimsically shaped balloons. The two prime times for balloon watching are the Mass Ascensions in the early morning and late evening Balloon Glows. In between are activities at the fairgrounds and time to explore the area.
Oct. 1-9, Albuquerque International Hot Balloon Fiesta, Albuquerque, NM, balloonfiesta.com.
Travel Notes
Queen of Tejano. Through Oct. 15, the Wittliff Collections at Texas State University in San Marcos will display a sort of afrenda to Selena Quintanilla during Hispanic Heritage Month. The exhibit includes never before seen photos of a teenage Selena in concert in early 1990 by photographer Al Rendon. Even at a young age as the opening act for comedian Paul Rodriguez, Selena exhibits the charisma that propelled her to stardom. Rendon went on to photograph the Corpus Christi native for multiple other projects. The Latina pop star was shot and killed on March 31, 1995, by her friend and former boutique manager.
Black Power. Two charismatic leaders of the Civil Rights movement during the 1960s come together in a new exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The exhibition Gordon Parks: Stokely Carmichael and Black Power will open at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, presenting the five images from Parks’ 1967 Life article, along with nearly 50 additional photographs and contact sheets that have never before been published or exhibited and footage of Carmichael’s speeches and interviews. On view exclusively at the MFAH, Gordon Parks: Stokely Carmichael and Black Power runs Oct. 16, 2022 to Jan. 16, 2023.
A record-high total of 282 loggerhead turtles appeared on the Texas coast between April 1 and August 19, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is more than double the total strandings in any year from 2012 to 2021. There are five species of sea turtle found in the Gulf of Mexico. Loggerheads are the most abundant species to nest in the United States, although their population has declined, largely due to bycatch from fishing operations. Over the past decade, an average of 109 loggerhead sea turtles have stranded on Texas beaches each year, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Most of this year’s strandings have occurred in Texas’ Coastal Bend between the counties of Calhoun and Kleberg. Scientists think the explanation may lie with changes in the sea turtles’ habitat and access to prey. Stranded sea turtles can be found year-round in bays, passes, the Gulf of Mexico, or along the shoreline. If you find a stranded sea turtle, please report it by flagging down a passing turtle patroller (April through mid-July) or law enforcement officer or call 1-866-TURTLE5.
2022 sizzled. It is official, NOAA announced that the United States sweltered through its third hottest summer on record this year. The hottest summer – in 128 years of record-keeping – was last year, 2021. And the second hottest was the Dust Bowl year of 1936.
Other October Events
Haunted Hues
Oct. 1-Nov. 1, Houston, colorfactory.co/houston
Come and Taste It
Oct. 6, Gruene, www.grapevineingruene.com
Gruene Music & Wine Festival
Oct. 6-9, Gruene, gruenemusicandwinefest.org
Big Bend Bluegrass
Oct. 7-8, Alpine, www.bigbendbluegrass.com
Texas Mesquite Arts Festival
Oct. 7-8, Fredericksburg, www.texasmesquiteartfestivals.com
Turkeyfest
Oct. 7-9, Cuero, www.turkeyfest.org
Port A Live Music Weekend
Oct. 7-9, Port Aransas, www.portaransas.org/event/port-a-live-music-weekend/2696
Seafair
Oct. 7-9, Rockport, www.rockportseafair.com
Welcome Home Festival
Oct. 7-16, Kerrville, www.kerrvillefolkfestival.org
Living History Days at Fort Griffin
Oct. 8, Albany, www.thc.texas.gov/historic-sites/fort-griffin-state-historic-site
Remember Goliad Paddling Race and Festival
Oct. 8, Goliad, www.sariverauthority.org/whats-new/events
Fall Fest
Oct. 8, Lampasas, business.lampasaschamber.org/events
Scarecrow Festival
Oct. 8-9, Chappell Hill, www.chappellhillhistoricalsociety.com
Bayou City Art Festival
Oct. 8-9, Houston, www.artcolonyassociation.org
Garden Tours
Oct. 8, 22, Hempstead, www.jfgarden.org
Love Creek Orchards Pumpkin Patch
Oct. 8-30, Medina, www.lovecreekorchards.com
Texas Renaissance Festival
Oct. 8-Nov. 27, Todd Mission, www.texrenfest.com
Indigenous Peoples Day
Oct. 10, Oklahoma City, OK, www.famok.org/ipd
Fall Bird Hikes
Oct. 10, 15, Round Mountain, www.westcave.org
Burger Showdown 3.0
Oct. 14, San Antonio, www.homegrowncheftv.com
Utopiafest Down in the Oaks
Oct. 14-15, Burnet, www.utopiafest.com
Bridge City Gumbo Festival
Oct. 14-16, Bridge City, La., www.bridgecitygumbofestival.org
Fossil Day
Oct. 15, Ladonia, www.cocladonia.org/ladonia-fossil-park.html
Star Parties
Oct. 15, Nov. 12, Dec. 17, Round Mountain, westcave.org
Winefest
Oct. 15, El Paso, www.elpasowinefest.com
Grape Day Celebration
Oct. 15, Lubbock, llanowine.com
Historic Ghost Walk
Oct. 15, Orange, www.heritagehouseoforangecounty.com
ArtOberFest
Oct. 15-16, Galveston, www.artoberfest.com
Chalk Festival
Oct. 15-16, Kerrville, www.kerrvillechalk.org
Parker Brothers, Guitar Duo, In Concert
Oct. 16, Fredericksburg, www.fredericksburgmusicclub.com
Come and Taste It
Oct. 20, Gruene, www.grapevineingruene.com
Hogeye Festival
Oct. 20-22, Elgin, www.elgintexas.gov/191/Hogeye-Festival
Fredericksburg Food and Wine Fest
Oct. 20-22, Fredericksburg, www.fbgfoodandwinefest.com
Southern Smoke Festival
Oct. 21-23, Houston, www.southernsmoke.org
Island Oktoberfest
Oct. 21-22, Galveston, www.galvestonoktoberfest.com
Tombstone Trail at Washington-on-the-Brazos
Oct. 21-22, Washington, www.thc.texas.gov/historic-sites/washington-brazos-state-historic-site
Southern Smoke Festival
Oct. 21-23, Houston, www.southernsmoke.org
Wooden Boat Festival
Oct. 21-23, Port Aransas, www.portaransasmuseum.org
Night Hikes
Oct. 21, 27, Round Mountain, westcave.org
Pie Fest
Oct. 22, Cisco, www.ciscotxpiefest.com
Water Lantern Festival
Oct. 22, Fort Worth, www.waterlanternfestival.com/fortworth.php
Hill Country Indian Artifact Show
Oct. 22, Fredericksburg, www.hillcountryindianartifacts.com
Legends of the Falls
Oct. 22-23, Cottonwood Shores, www.cottonwoodshores.org/living/legends-of-the-fall
Texas Clay Festival
Oct. 22-23, Gruene, www.texasclayfestival.com
Mountain Bike Festival
Oct. 22-23, Kerrville, www.kerrvillemountainbikefestival.com
Spook-track-ula
Oct. 22, 23, 29, 30, San Antonio, txtransportationmuseum.org
Brews n’ Broomsticks Adult Night
Oct. 27, San Antonio, www.thedoseum.org/events/event/brews-n-broomsticks
Texas Fleece and Fiber Festival
Oct. 27-30, Kerrville, www.texasfleeceandfiber.com
Tasting Texas, Wine + Food Festival
Oct. 27-30, San Antonio, www.visitsanantonio.com/tasting-texas-wine-food-festival
Fossilmania XL
Oct. 28-30, Glen Rose, www.dallaspaleo.org/fossilmania
Bison Field Harvest
Oct. 29, Fredericksburg, www.roamranch.com
Elissa Seaport Social
Oct. 29, Galveston, www.galvestonhistory.org
Squared Silly
Oct. 29, Lampasas, www.visionlampasas.org/events.html
Llano River Pumpkin Float
Oct. 29, Llano, www.llanochamber.org
Barktober Fest
Oct. 29, Salado, www.barrowbrewing.com/events
Texas Country Reporter
Oct. 29, Waxahachie, www.texascountryreporter.com/festival
Tablerock Fright Trail
Oct. 29-30, Salado, www.tablerock.org
Dia de los Muertos
Oct. 29-30, San Antonio, www.muertosfest.com
Texas Butterfly Festival
Oct. 29-Nov. 1, Mission, www.texasbutterflyfestival.com
Terry Allen’s Tribute to His Friend, Guy Clark
Oct. 30, San Marcos, www.thewittliffcollections.txst.edu
A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.
Gerald E. McLeod, May 22, 2025
