Lady Bird Johnson, former first lady of the United States, was ahead of her time in understanding the reparative and regenerative qualities of native plants and beautiful landscapes. “Beautification is far more than a matter of cosmetics,” she said in 1968. “For me, it describes the whole effort to bring the natural world and the man-made world into harmony; to bring order, usefulness — delight — to our whole environment, and that of course only begins with trees and flowers and landscaping.” In 1982, Mrs. Johnson wrote that she was full of excitement about finally “daring to try to establish a National Wildflower Research Center.” In that year, she and actress Helen Hayes decided to do just that, creating a center in East Austin focused on native wildflowers intended to help preserve and restore that beauty and the biological richness of North America. The center is now part of the University of Texas. Under Lady Bird's guidance, the highways in the Texas Hill Country were seeded with wildflowers and that canvas is repainted every Spring. The weather conditions in the second half of 2017 set the stage for one of the best seasons for Texas wildflowers in the last decade. So this year, we're going to explore the Texas Hill Country version. The route follows TX-79 through East and Central Texas, rewarding the rider(s) with award winning BBQ at Louie Mueller's BBQ in Taylor. We then work our way though Round Rock to join FM-1431, perhaps the best introductory road to the Texas Hill Country. Overnight in Marble Falls and have breakfast at the Blue Bonnet Cafe, making sure you save room for some pie before setting off on a day-long run through the wildflowers, with side trips to the Willow City Loop, Cooper's Original Pit BBQ (in Llano or Mason), Wildseed Farms, and the world famous Luckenbach before returning to Marble Falls for the night. © 2018 Copyright Twisted Road Motorcycle Company, LLC. All Rights Reserved.