Day Trips & Beyond: August Events Roundup
Finish up the summer with some adventure
By Gerald E. McLeod, 2:20PM, Wed. Aug. 2, 2023
August is the time to get your feet wet at a grape stomp, go to a music festival, or watch a Shakespearean play.
Free barbecue. It only happens once a year, but when it does, meat lovers come from all over the world to partake in the “World’s Largest Free BBQ” in Dalhart. It’s part of the XIT Rodeo and Reunion held on the first weekend of August every year since 1936. If you come to town before the free barbecue on Saturday there is free watermelon (Aug. 3), or free pork chops (Aug. 4). But it is the 10,000 pounds of beef smoked in two long pits (Aug. 5) that attracts the most attention. Each evening’s feed is followed by a PRCA rodeo and dance ($10-85).
At one time the XIT Ranch in the Texas Panhandle was the largest fenced ranch in the world at more than 3 million acres. Charles and John Farwell, owners of one of the largest dry goods wholesalers in Chicago, exchanged building a $3 million pink granite state Capitol in Austin for the land that encompassed all or part of 10 counties. The brothers also got the county seat of Parmer County on the Texas-New Mexico border named for them. The myth is that the name signified “10 in Texas,” but it was actually an attempt at a rustler-proof brand. The last of the XIT cattle was sold in 1912, and the last parcel of the ranchland was sold in 1963.
Aug. 3-5, XIT Rodeo and Reunion, Dalhart, 806/244-5646, xitrodeoreunion.com
The Bandit Queen. There are so many stories about Belle Starr, it is hard to know what is true. One undisputed truth is that she is buried in eastern Oklahoma near the Canadian River about 45 miles north of McAlester. Belle Starr’s grave is in a heavily wooded area off State Highway 71 near the Lake Eufaula Dam. With such a poetic name, it is natural that she would become the subject of Western novels, movies, and songs. Most of the crimes and adventures attributed to her are pure fiction.
Myra Maybelle Shirley was born in Missouri in 1848 to a rather well-to-do family. At the outbreak of the Civil War, “Judge” John Shirley moved his family to Scyene, Texas, outside of Dallas. It was documented that the family offered safe haven to outlaws Jesse and Frank James and the Younger brothers.
Belle married James Reed in Collin County in 1866. From their farm in north Texas, the couple engaged in bootlegging, cattle rustling, and horse stealing. Reed was killed in a shootout in Paris, Texas. Soon after, Belle married Sam Starr, a horse thief and member of the Cherokee tribe. The pair moved to his allotment on the Canadian River and called it “Younger’s Bend,” supposedly after Cole Younger. The remote farm became a well-known hideout for outlaws on the lam.
The Starrs were caught red-handed making off with a neighbor’s horse, the only crime Belle was ever convicted of. After a stint in federal prison, she became a minor celebrity. A crack shot with a pistol, for a time she performed in a Wild West show. After Sam was killed in a gunfight, Belle married Jim July, a man 15 years her junior.
On Feb. 3, 1889, two days before her 41st birthday, Belle was killed by an unknown assassin. The prime suspects were her husband, her son, and her daughter, but no one was ever convicted of the murder.
Her body was laid to rest in front of her cabin at Younger’s Bend. Soon after the funeral, someone robbed the grave of Belle’s jewelry and pearl-handled pistols. Her daughter, Rosie Lee “Pearl” Reed, a brothel madam, paid for a sandstone protective structure over her mother’s grave and a headstone carved with a horse, a bell, a star, and a poem: “Shed not for her the bitter tear,/ Nor give the heart to vain regret/ Tis but the casket that lies here,/ The gem that filled it sparkles yet.”
The gravesite appears on many GPS programs as “Younger’s Bend.” The site is on private property near the Lake Eufaula Dam, and is marked by an Oklahoma historical marker partially hidden by vegetation. From the small parking lot the trail is moderately difficult with a short, steep climb. When you get to the fork in the path go left, and the grave is at the top of the hill.
Belle Starr’s Grave, 2910 Highway 71, Porum, Okla., www.atlasobscura.com/places/youngers-bend
Travel Notes:
All fly away. In 1923, Audubon Texas initiated its first rookery island leases on the Texas Gulf Coast. Since then, the group has worked to preserve and protect important coastal habitats for migrating and resident birds. To celebrate the 100th anniversary, Audubon Texas has unveiled Texas Coastal Bird Explorer, depicting the history and importance of Texas coastal conservation and present-day challenges.
Meet the pachyderms. With their habitat disappearing and pressure from poachers, Asian elephants are becoming endangered in their native lands. The Preserve outside of Fredericksburg is developing innovations in care and husbandry of the intelligent beasts, which is improving their lives in captivity and in the wild. Visitors can help support the conservation efforts and meet the animals up close through the guided tours. Guests get to meet a menagerie of other animals from Australia and Africa, and feed the resident giraffe.
Day of the dead. Take a tour of the National Museum of Funeral History in Houston without leaving the farm. The museum of burial traditions from around the world, strange coffins, stylish hearses, and mortuary tools now offers a virtual tour of its extensive collection from its website. The self-guided tour costs $14.99 and works with VR headsets.
Comic Crusin’. Maybe it’s a sign of how far we’ve come or fallen, or how old we’ve become, but the San Diego Comic Con has added Comic-Con: The Cruise, sailing Feb. 5-9, 2025, from Tampa, Fla., to Cozumel aboard Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas, to its lineup of immersive fan adventures. Join the presale to start your journey toward four nights on the Caribbean playing video games and dressing as your favorite character.
Super sized. August has two supermoons. The moon appears larger in the night sky Aug. 1 and 31.
Other August Events:
Concerts in the Park
Aug. 3, 10, San Marcos, www.summerintheparksm.org
XIT Rodeo and Reunion
Aug. 3-5, Dalhart, xitrodeoreunion.com
Zilker Summer Musical
Aug. 3-12, Austin, www.zilker.org
Nueces Canyon Old Settlers Reunion
Aug. 4-5, Camp Wood, www.nuecescanyonchamber.org
Purple Martin Parties
Aug. 4-5, Round Rock, travisaudubon.org/events-calendar
Schulenburg Festival
Aug. 4-6, Schulenburg, www.schulenburgfestival.org
Shakespeare at Winedale
Aug. 4-6, 11-13, Round Top, www.shakespeare-winedale.org
Moondance Concert
Aug. 5, Boerne, www.cibolo.org/moondance
Comic Art Expo
Aug. 5, Denton, www.dentoncomicartexpo.com
Neches Wilderness Canoe Race
Aug. 5, Palestine, www.necheswildernessrace.com
Grape Stomp
Aug. 5-6, Johnson City, www.westcavecellars.com
Free Sandcastle Building Lessons
Aug. 5, 12, 19, 26, Galveston, www.visitgalveston.com
Grape Stomp & Tour
Aug. 5, 12, 19, 26, Fredericksburg, www.hyemeadow.com
Art Car IPA Day
Aug. 6, Houston, www.saintarnold.com
Fiesta 1888: Fiesta Musical
Aug. 8-9, Alpine, visitalpinetx.com
Elvis Week
Aug. 9-17, Memphis, Tenn., www.graceland.com
National Safe Digging Day
Aug. 11, Katy, www.digworldtx.com
UFO Conference and Festival
Aug. 11-12, Edinburg, www.edinburgufo.com
Beer by the Bay Music Festival
Aug. 11-12, Horseshoe Bay, www.hsbresort.com
Grape Stomp and Paella Party
Aug. 12, Fredericksburg, www.texaswinecollective.com
Hatch Chile Fest
Aug. 12, Grand Prairie, www.grandfungp.com/events/hatch-chile-fest
AIA Sandcastle Competition
Aug. 12-13, Galveston, aiahouston.org
Live Pari-Mutuel Horse Racing
Aug. 12-13, 26-27, Fredericksburg, www.gillespiefair.com
Praha Picnic (168th Prazska Pout)
Aug. 15, Praha, www.stmaryspraha.org
Come and Taste It
Aug. 17, Gruene, www.grapevineingruene.com
Margarita and Salsa Festival
Aug. 19, Buda, www.margaritasalsafestival.com
Tulisoma South Dallas Book Fair
Aug. 19, Dallas, aamdallas.org/events
Eastside Market
Aug. 19, Waco, www.eastsidemarketwtx.com
Purple Martin Watch Party
Aug. 26, Houston, houstonaudubon.org
Margarita and Salsa Festival
Aug. 26, Waco, www.margaritasalsafestival.com
Grape Stomp!
Aug. 26-27, Stonewall, www.pedernalescellars.com
Davis Mountains Hummingbird Celebration
Aug. 17-20, Fort Davis, www.davismountainshummingbirdcelebration.com
North Texas Fair and Rodeo
Aug. 18-26, Denton, www.ntfair.com
Eastern Rim Funny Book and Vintage Con
Aug. 19-20, Baytown, www.easternrimcon.com
Santa Fe Indian Market
Aug. 19-20, Santa Fe, N.M., swaia.org
Gillespie County Fair
Aug. 24-27, Fredericksburg, www.gillespiefair.com
Market Days
Aug. 18-20, Johnson City, www.johnsoncitytexas.info
Hotter’N Hell Hundred
Aug. 24-27, Wichita Falls, www.hh100.org
Moonshine Festival
Aug. 25-27, Glen Rose, glenrosemoonshine.com
Bear Fest
Aug. 26, Los Alamos, N.M., peecnature.org
Gerald McLeod has been traveling around Texas and beyond for his "Day Trips" column for more than 25 years. Keep up to date with his journeys on his archive page and follow him on Facebook.
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Gerald E. McLeod, Sept. 6, 2024
Gerald E. McLeod, July 3, 2024
Sept. 6, 2024
Aug. 30, 2024
Day Trips, XIT Ranch, World's Largest Free BBQ, Belle Starr, Audubon Texas, The Preserve, National Museum of Funeral History, Comic Con, supermoons, grape stomp
