I am often met with greetings like, “So you grew up in Bandera? I just bought a place off of 1077.”
I will consider that for a moment then realize they mean Dixie Dude Road. Same goes for any mention of 3240.
3240 used to be Ridge Route Road and still is as far as I’m concerned. It was an unpaved way to go to Medina through pastures separated by cattle guards. Highway 16 was the preferred way to get to Medina since it was paved as far back as I can remember.
Not sure about when my dad was a kid though. It is just as winding today as it was back then making it’s way along the Medina River.
For me it’s always been a lot less confusing to identify roads by the place you will get to when you head their direction.
Like the Tarpley Road. You expect to reach Tarpley when you head out and that’s how it always ends up.
Wanna guess where the Hondo highway will take you? I’ll bet there are some oldtimers in Hondo that refer to 173 North as the Bandera Highway.
Back in 1965 when I started working in San Antonio I no longer found myself in familiar territory.
My grandma Clark lived on Sharmain on the southside so I was able to find my way around the old Loop 13 after numerous family visits back in the day. That was mostly a trip through the country back then except for Lackland AFB area.
Being a first year apprentice in the plumbing trade meant that I worked different jobs in all areas of town. Pretty much I would be moved wherever they needed cheap labor for ditch digging or most anything other than plumbing.
They would give me driving directions to the next job by referencing main routes in the city like Bandera Road, Fredericksburg Road, Hilderbrand Avenue and Austin Highway.
By driving around Loop 410 until I saw a familiar exit I always managed to make it back to Bandera Road even though it was sometimes by the long way.
When I first started hearing Bottle Springs Road I was a bit confused and I mentioned it to my dad one day. All through my young life I had only heard it called English Crossing and that’s what I remember all my friends calling it.
To my surprise he said it was Bottle Springs Road when he was growing up in Bandera. Not sure when the change came about but you’ll be happy to know they are now joined together forever.
Let me give y’all a heads up when referring to highways and byways in the area on social media. If you are a self proclaimed funny guy like me you may want to hold off on your comments when posting.
My Growing Up In Bandera attitude on things is oftentimes ill received as some folks don’t get or appreciate my thinly disguised touch of sarcasm. It’s a more hostile and less forgiving Bandera population we are now living among.
So what has changed? Not me!!!
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