Home of the Concho Pearl

 San Angelo, Texas, lies on the banks of the Concho River. Freshwater mollusks live in the river hereabouts and are the only source of the Concho Pearl. These beautiful lavender pearls are gently harvested and have a strict limit and location; the beauty of these natural wonders is stunning!

San Angelo is also a wool and mohair center. Of the world, if locals are to be believed. One thing for sure, there are thousands of sheep on ranches outside of town and over a hundred fiberglass sheep scattered around town that local artists have painted. We hope to see some while we’re here!

San Angelo is about 140 miles southeast of our last stop in Odessa. The trip here was totally uneventful, as most Texas state highways are a joy to drive on. Highway 158 brought us to US 87, and directly to San Angelo. The scenery along the way was spectacular…..well, sort of.

We’re now comfortably hooked up in the Concho Pearl RV Estates park just north of town.

The park is mostly filled with workers who evidently go home on weekends because it’s Saturday and there’s not a soul around. We had to text the owner when we arrived so we could check in!

Ambient temperature was in the high 90’ when we arrived in San Angelo, with about 26 percent humidity, a much larger number than we have been accustomed to, so to help deal with that we decided to spend a few air conditioned hours in Miss Hattie’s Cathouse. And restaurant.

Located in a restored building that was a bordello in the early 1900’s with an underground tunnel across the street to the sheriff’s office. Allegedly, of course….The building has a private staircase to the second floor. One long hall down the center with multiple doors leading to small rooms on each side. Let your imagination run with that.

A glass of “Ranch Water” and a glass of “Hatties Tea”, along with a Queso sausage dip prepared us for the main course.

A prime filet and a juicy ribeye, mesquite smoked and cooked to perfection took us into gastronomic la la land. Sorry, no pictures. Couldn’t wait! I won’t be telling my cardiologist about this one….