central texas information Food This is a disclaimer: i chose all of these restaurants because they have good but cheap food. Atmosphere is sometimes sacrificed. In Austin, you have to check out the tex mex... High quality tex mex abounds east of I-35 between 1st and 8th, and off of south first on the other side of the river. DON'T miss the tamale house on airport and 49th. They only stay open till three. In Bee Caves try rosie's Tamale house. For good chicken fried steak and clasic austin dining try shady grove on barton springs just west of lamar. More classic austin establishments, like magnolia cafe, exist south of the river on south congress. For awesome cheese burgers and fries check out the Posse East on San Jacinto and Duval. The Crown and Anchor a block up san jacinto also has good burgers and is a bit of a climber hang out. For breakfast all day. i recommend the omletry on 49th and burnett. there are way more options in austin worth mentioning than i can name here...   Music austin is the live music capitol of the world. for jazz check out jazz's upstairs, cedar street on 4th, and the elephant room on second and congress. for reggae try the flamingo cantina on sixth. for rock/pop try emos on 7th and red river, the black cat on sixth, or red eyed fly, or stubbs on red river. for alchohol, women, jocks, cops, and really cool halloween costumes go to sixth street. check the austin chronicle for more specific information on shows. Weather believe it or not there is year round climbing in central texas. certain areas you'll want to avoid in the summer, however, as it can get pretty damned hot. (This year we were climbing in 113 degree weather) E rock, for example, has not much shade, and long hikes from boulder to boulder across big slabs of shadeless pink granite. Most of the limestone areas are in full shade all summer long though, so while it's hot outside, the sun doesn't beat down on you at all. If you don't like sweating don't climb here in the summer. the fall is usually pretty nice. temps will range from 50 to 100. usually you'll see temps around 85-90, but cold fronts which bring rain, can sometimes cool it down pretty well. the winter sees very little freezing weather (last year i think it froze three times), but cold fronts can bring temps down as low as 10-15 degrees. It is not uncommon to climb in a T-shirt in the winter here. rain is generally more frequent during the winter months. this is the ideal time to go to E rock. The spring in central texas is PERFECT. cool mornings in the 50's and 60's and warmer afternoons in the mid 80's. afternoon thunder storms happen once every two weeks or so, otherwise expect cloudless blue skys. If you're looking for a great place to go and check out on spring break. THIS IS THE PLACE. south by southwest music festival is happening in austin. and the bouldering kicks ass.   Rest days I've always found it fun to go to climbing gyms on rest days, and pretend like i know nothing. I'll bring no fear shits, and use their rental gear. Austin Rock Gym, give em hell. Pitch and putt on north lamar is a par three golf course with rental clubs, and balls. peter pan mini golf is just up the street. there are several movie theaters south on Ih-35, but the alamo draft house on colorado and 5th serves beer and food during the movie and is much cheaper. for independant films try dobie theater or the arbor 7. the austin zoo really isn't worth seeing, but it's out west on 290 towards johnson city off of circle drive. Speaking of Johnson City you gotta go there and visit the snake pit (you can't miss it). this guy will scare the shit out of you. also try the snake farm just south of new braunfels on Ih-35. Tucked inside new braunfels is the historic city of greune. there you can swim at the river crossing, catch a show at Greune hall (the oldest dance hall in texas) or eat at the gris mill. also check out schliterbahn in New Braunfels. for swimming in austin try barton springs, or if the water is up, try campbells hole. you can't beat the cliff diving at pace bend, but check for boulders as the water level can get pretty low. Camping and Lodging There is no free camping in texas (unless you want to drive to east texas). pace bend park has great cliffside camping. Mckinney falls is probably the closest to downtown austin, and you camp pretty close to the bouldering. all of the other state parks will also have camping. for E rock call well in advance cus it's a boyscout paradise. motel rooms are abundant on I-35, but there is a youth hostal off of east riverside. in a pinch one could camp on the greenbelt in austin, but it's illegal so don't go down there and start a bonfire, and if you get caught you didn't get the idea from me...