Creating Really Awesome Free Trips: Marfa, TX–Part 2

Last week I did a Marfa post all about lodging and food. Today is10 fun, free (or inexpensive) things to do in:

1: Climb in an old mill- It is right in in town, you won’t miss it.

2: Ride bikes: You can rent them from El Cosmico for $10 for half a day or $20 for a whole day. I must admit the bikes aren’t in the best shape but they get you from A to B. There is no bike shop in Marfa… I guess it is a pain to bring them to the nearest town to get them fixed!

3: Farm Stand Marfa: On Saturday mornings starting @ 9:30 a.m. In the middle town, next to the train stop and under the awning. Lots of samples and if you went out on Friday night, you are sure to see someone you know!

4: Marfa Book Co.- The owner is always behind the counter which I think is nice… he even hand drew us a map of places we needed to see! There is a second room that is used as an art gallery and/or reading room. I bought Andy a shirt from here for his B-day.

[baby got books]

5: Chinati-This is right next to El Cosmico, so we rode our bikes over for a tour of the Donald Judd’s 100 Works in Mill Aluminum ($5 bucks for a student). We had a really nice tour guide who answered all of my questions including, what is an art installation? She said its debatable but basically anything an artist purposefully places somewhere.

15 untitled works in concrete… see them way out there.

6: Prada Marfa- Another art installation in the middle of no where. Interesting. About a 30 minute drive down route 90 west, past Valentine. Prada Marfa is located 1.4 miles outside of Valentine. It is just an installation, you can not go in it.

Great light. Can take pictures in the middle of the street since there aren’t a lot of cars.

7: Go on Scenic Loop drive around Ft. Davis- We did not do this. It is a 75 mile drive and takes about one hour and half. It could be fun to bike part of it too!

Ft. Davis

8: Day trip to Fort Davis- Make an impromptu picnic from the yummy foods Stone Village Market. Visit the Bookfeller bookstore and the road side rock shops.

9: Take pictures and enjoy nature- Marfa is very photogenic little town.  We took beautiful sunset pictures, and  even stopped on the side of the road to pick up sticks that you could buy in West Elm for $20! Even the roads are pretty.

10: See the Marfa Lights- Rachelle and I saw what everyone was saying were Marfa Lights. Apparently there are good conditions and bad conditions depending on moon light, clouds, and headlights. The stars are pretty whether you see the lights or not. Read others opinions on Marfa Trip Advisor. This is the viewing station… It is kind of hard to see in the dark on the side of the road. It is on the right hand side, coming from Marfa, and about 16 miles from the center of Marfa.

[wikipedia]