Activities,
Schedule & Attractions
Four days on the historic Chisholm Trail — live music, horseback riding, canoe rentals, campfire acoustic sessions, a fishing tournament, Cowboy Church Sunday, and one of Texas's most remarkable outdoor museums. All right here in Cleburne.
THURSDAY SEPT 18 IS FREE — Museum open until 5pm · Campfire acoustic sessions at dusk · Come early and kick off the weekend
Four Days of Texas Good Times
Live Music
Friday & Saturday
The main stage fires up Friday afternoon and runs deep into the night — two full days of Texas country, red dirt, and everything in between. Headliners Brandon Rhyder and Tyce Delk lead a stacked lineup of artists you'll be talking about long after the last chord fades.
Horseback
Trail Ride
The organized group trail ride departs Saturday at 8am with a classic chuckwagon breakfast included. Bring your own horse (BYOH) or sign up for a guided ride — all skill levels welcome. After the organized ride, the trails are open for leisure riding Friday, Saturday afternoon, and Sunday at your own pace.
- Organized ride departs 8am Saturday — chuckwagon breakfast included
- Bring Your Own Horse (BYOH) welcome
- Guided rides available for all skill levels
- Leisure riding open Fri, Sat afternoon & Sunday
- Ride the historic Chisholm Trail grounds
More to Do & See
Campfire Acoustic Sessions
Thursday evening, meander between 3 different campfires scattered across the grounds and soak in true country cowboy tunes. Acoustic artists perform around each fire — wander at your own pace under the Texas stars.
- 3 campfires across the grounds
- Acoustic artists at each fire
- Thursday evening at dusk
- Wander freely between fires
Water Activities
Rhodes Canoe Rentals will be onsite Friday and Saturday with canoes and tubes available for rent. Hit the water, float the lake, and cool off between sets. Sand volleyball courts are also set up right on the lake shore — grab a team for pickup games between music sets.
- Canoe & tube rentals onsite · Fri & Sat
- Operated by Rhodes Canoe Rentals
- Sand volleyball courts on the lake shore
- Open play all weekend · All skill levels welcome
Bank & Kayak Fishing Tournament
Compete in the Saturday fishing tournament from the bank or your kayak. Brub's Trading Post will have live worms and loaner fishing poles on site. Fish must be weighed and photographed — winners announced before the headliner.
- Saturday 8 AM–8 PM · Prizes awarded
- Bank & kayak fishing
- Live worms + loaner poles by Brub's Trading Post
- Fish weighed & photographed · TX license required (adults)
Cornhole Tournament
RoRo's Cornhole Express is bringing the bags to Sand & Saddles for two days of competitive cornhole. Switcholio format — no partner needed, all skill levels welcome. 100% payout both days. Outdoor event — bring your chairs and canopies!
- Friday Sept 18 · $10/player · Open Boards 1 PM · Bags Fly 4 PM
- Saturday Sept 19 · $20/player · Open Boards 11 AM · Bags Fly 1 PM
- Switcholio format · No partner needed · 4 games guaranteed
- 2-game Round Robin into Double Elimination
- Any bags allowed · ALL skill levels welcome
Vendors, Food & Drinks
Browse handcrafted goods, western wear, food, and drinks from local Texas makers and vendors. Open all weekend — support local and take home a piece of the fest.
- Western wear & handcrafted goods
- Food & drink vendors
- Local Texas artisans
- Open all 4 days
Cowboy Church & Bluegrass
Sunday morning opens with Cowboy Church on the Rowletts Hardware Stage, led by preacher Glenn Murray — PRCA Rodeo Announcer, Chaplain, and horse breeder. Chuckwagon breakfast for all, followed by acoustic bluegrass & gospel with Brad Blayless, Brent Hayworth, Bob Hatfield, and Jay Argumaniz.
- Cowboy Church at 9am with Glenn Murray
- Rowletts Hardware Stage
- Chuckwagon breakfast for all
- Bluegrass & gospel music follows
- Open to all — come as you are
Meet the Preacher
Glenn Murray is one of the most recognized voices in professional rodeo — a veteran PRCA announcer who has called the action at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo alongside legends like Wayne Brooks, Roger Mooney, and Anthony Lucia. His smooth, energetic style has made him a staple at major rodeo events across the country.
Beyond the arena, Glenn is a devoted Christian minister whose 63-year walk with Jesus shapes everything he does. His ministry — Thoughts from my Spiritual Journey — covers the central message of Jesus, intimacy with God, servant leadership, and personal spiritual growth. He brings that same warmth and authenticity to every pulpit he steps behind.
On Sunday morning at Sand & Saddles, Glenn will lead Cowboy Church on the Rowletts Hardware Stage — an outdoor worship service open to all, followed by a chuckwagon breakfast and live bluegrass & gospel music. Come as you are.
10 Historic
Attractions on the Grounds
The Chisholm Trail Outdoor Museum isn't just the backdrop for Sand & Saddles — it's the whole reason we're here. Ranked #1 in the region and recognized as one of Texas's most authentic living-history experiences, the museum preserves 10 distinct attractions spread across the grounds. Your festival ticket gets you access to all of it.
Walk through a working blacksmith shop. Stand inside the oldest log courthouse in Texas. Peer through the original 1855 jail door. Sit at a desk in a one-room schoolhouse. Every corner of these grounds tells a story that shaped the Lone Star State.
Dusty's Lines of Love
Sand & Saddles is proud to partner with Dusty's Lines of Love — a charitable foundation that gives terminally ill children and their families moments to forget the illness and just feel like a kid.
Dusty's Lines of Love was founded in 2022 in memory of Dusty Lane, who passed away from cancer in 2015 at just 16 years old. Dusty always put others before himself — and this foundation carries that spirit forward.
Jamie Alkire, Chisholm Trail Museum Operations & Events Coordinator, is Dusty's mother. Her connection to this festival and this land makes this partnership deeply personal.
The foundation provides sick children with fishing trips, Christmas in July hospital events, toys, and care packages — anything that gives a child five minutes of feeling like a kid again.
Sand & Saddles falls during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Join us September 17–20 in Cleburne as we collect fishing equipment and donations for Dusty's Lines of Love — and help give a sick child a moment they'll never forget.
1941 – 2026
David Murdoch
Founder & Visionary
Sand & Saddles is more than a music festival. It's a fundraiser — and a tribute — to the man who refused to let Texas history disappear.
David Murdoch founded the Chisholm Trail Outdoor Museum with a simple but powerful conviction: that the stories of the people who built this state — the drovers, the settlers, the Native peoples, the lawmen, the schoolteachers — deserved to be preserved, protected, and passed on. He spent decades collecting artifacts, restoring buildings, and building a place where history isn't behind glass. It's alive. You can touch it, walk through it, and feel it.
Every ticket sold at Sand & Saddles goes toward keeping that mission alive. Every trail ridden, every song sung, every campfire lit on these grounds is a thank-you to David and a promise to carry his work forward. Come for the music. Stay for the history. Leave knowing you helped preserve a piece of Texas that can never be replaced.
Open Until 5pm Each Day
Ready to Be There?
Sept 17–20, 2026 · Cleburne, Texas · Family Friendly · Benefiting the Chisholm Trail Outdoor Museum