Wildflower Days

It’s that magical time of year when Texas prairies, pastures, and roadsides sprout forth with a palette of colorful wildflowers. True to its name, The University of Texas at Austin Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center will honor the season with Wildflower Days™, a series of events running through May. Texas Highways will join the celebration with a retrospective exhibit (April 19–May 25) highlighting 40 years of photos drawn from our annual April wildflower issue. We’re also partnering with the Wildflower Center and Precision Camera & Video on the annual wildflower photography contest (submissions open April 7–May 5).

Western Women

The history of women in the American West is the subject of a yearlong series of exhibitions at the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum in Canyon. Women of the West, sponsored partly by Humanities Texas, aims to expand viewers’ perspectives on the role of women in the West and its development. The six exhibitions range from Native American art to fashion on the High Plains, historical photographs and artifacts, and the depiction of women in Western art.

Navajo Weavings

In Orange, the Stark Museum of Art explores the history of Navajo textiles in Navajo Weaving: Tradition & Trade. The exhibition features more than 35 Navajo weavings, ranging from 19th-Century “Chief Blankets” to contemporary works by Navajo weavers. A replica Trading Post—where the Navajo historically bartered their weavings for goods—helps explain how culture and commerce influenced the weaving tradition. The exhibition runs through July 12.

High Cotton

It’s a year of milestones for the Burton Cotton Gin Festival (April 25-26), which marks its 25th anniversary of celebrating the area’s cotton farming heritage. The Texas Cotton Gin Museum hosts the festival, including a parade, petting zoo, craft vendors, and folklife demonstrators spinning and weaving cotton. The centerpiece of the festival is the 1914 Burton Farmers Gin, touted as the oldest operational cotton gin in the country. Burton will honor the gin’s 100th birthday on April 26 by firing up the 16-ton engine to gin a couple of bales.

Big Bend Open Road Race

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to blaze across the wide expanses of West Texas at top speed, there’s a legal way to find out: Each April—April 23-26 this year—the Big Bend Open Road Race gives car-racing enthusiasts a shot at posting their best time on US 285 between Fort Stockton and Sanderson, with top racers regularly breaking 200 mph.

Poteet Strawberry Festival

Held April 4-6, the Poteet Strawberry Festival celebrates the Atascosa County strawberry industry. Enjoy fresh-picked local strawberries and a variety of strawberry-based foods, from cheesecakes to salsas. The festival also features a carnival, arts and crafts fair, a rodeo, and musical performances with country and Tejano headliners, including Intocable and Pat Green on April 5.

Diamond Don’s National Vintage Motocross

Diamond Don’s 12th Annual AHRMA Vintage National Motocross will be held April 10–13 at Diamond Don RV Park, located one mile from Jefferson. Over 800 entries are expected for the event, which includes a charity fishing tournament on Thursday, cross country and trials on Friday, Vintage Motocross on Saturday, and Post-Vintage on Sunday.

Photos: (from top) Stan Williams; W.H.D. Koerner (1873-1938), He was a Professional Gunfighter, 1909, Oil on Canvas, PPHM Permanent Collection; Yah-nah-pah (1889-1913), rug, 1910, Stark Museum of Art; courtesy Texas Cotton Gin Museum Archives.

Visit Boerne
Surrounded by the beautiful Texas Hill Country, Boerne offers small town charm in a quaint, historic, picturesque setting.

Real. Texas. Festival.
Mesquite, April 25-26. Rodeo, headliner Big and Rich. Use promo code cvbth by April 18th for $15 tickets.

Butterfly Release, Eco-Festival – for all ages
Celebrate spring with the family at a 2-day festival. Release butterflies, try fun games & crafts, see live animals & more!