11-08 Lubbock to Amarillo Texas

Lubbock Tx.

Amarillo Tx (The Panhandle of Texas)

Campground: Buffalo Springs Lake. $24 elect 30 amp/water. 7 days, $126, 30 days $420. Caution, they advertise $18 elect sites, but they are 110 not 30 or 50 amp.

Campground: West Rim RV Park. $10, full hookup. A Recreation USA park. At the entrance to Palo Duro Canyon, on the rim of the canyon. You’ll feel like your in an abandoned campground. It’s old and run down, but the sites are all pull-thru’s and the full-hooks all work, so enjoy a rustic setting overlooking the canyon.

BLOG NOTE: I recently added a list of all the camping resource books I use along the way and hope it may help all you campers or future campers. I also moved My favorite camping things from the bottom of the Blog to the right hand column and added the list of Camping Club info there as well. Check them out.

I decided to leave Ballinger Tx, mainly because the only wi-fi site in town at a small Bakery coffee shop was closed temporarily due to family emergency. The town really had nothing to offer, except for a really cheap city park campsite.

Driving along hwy 84 Abilene Tx to Lubbock Tx. The scenery continued to change as I left the Hill country and entered a vast area of farm country. Signs appeared warning of heavy winds. And they arrived. Gusts easily in the 25-35 mph range. A constant wind, with power behind it. Just as I noticed the winds, a slew of wind turbines appeared on the horizon. You may remember I was thrilled to see some of them in the past year, in of all places Minnesota. Well I think I found the mother load of wind farms. As I drove along hwy 84 from Snyder heading NW on, the hugest wind turbines I’d ever seen appeared in the fields and on top of mesa’s. Thousands of them, from one horizon to the next. Mile after mile all I saw were those huge three bladed windmills. Many on desolate land, useless for anything else, but others, planted in the middle of rich farm land and ranches. Dotted among all this were the oil wells, bobbing up and down. Riches underground, in the land itself and in the constant winds that blow through here.

I had found Buffalo Springs listed in one of my camping books and decided to check it out. Coming off of hwy 84, down a farm road FM 835, past fields recently planted with crops, I arrived at Buffalo Springs. A large gated entry clued me into the size of the place. After registering at the gate, I was directed to go towards the church at the edge of a cliff, then turn right, down to the lake. A sign at the turn off pointed to the Fire hall and City hall as well.
After taking the turn, I headed toward the rim of a canyon, descending down a steep road leading into the canyon, I could see lush trees, the spring fed lake with 7 miles of shoreline. Houses dotting the cliffs and shoreline. From up above, the flat terrain and fields gave no clew that this canyon was here.

The land the houses are on is leased land. Along with the gulf course which wraps around one end of the lake, campground, ATV trails, swimming and boating and even an amphitheater are all owned by the Buffalo Springs Lake District. It’s like entering a sunken oasis. I’ll only be here this time for one night. I had to pay the $24 nightly fee, which is at the top end of my budget. Ok it’s reasonable, but when you have to pay close to $100 a day to fill up the truck with diesel you try to get a bargain wherever you can. Next time, I would stay for a full week or longer to get the discount that would be well within my budget range.

Heading out the next day along hwy 27, I’m only traveling about 100 miles. I’ve now hit the flat arid panhandle of Texas. Miles and miles of flat farm land, much if it just being planted, due to the lack of rain.

Heavy winds have begun and will continue for days. This is a regular occurrence in this area. The camp owners warned me not to open my awnings or put up our antenna, as the winds would rip them off.

Note: At times I even closed the big slide because of the high winds.

Palo Duro Canyon is the second largest canyon in the US, after the Grand Canyon of course and is almost 1,000 feet deep. There are a number of activities around here and things to see and do, so I’ll stay for 4 days. I couldn’t help but think about my good friends Walt and Ben who are into horses. Just a short distance from my campsite is a horse ranch with lots of horses for riding into the canyon. I’m not much of a rider, but would love to have Walt along to encourage me to get up on one and go for a ride into the canyon.

Unlike the Grand Canyon, Palo Duro Canyon lets you drive right down into the canyon for sightseeing and hiking. Can’t do that at the Grand Canyon. There are a number of great campsites right in the state park for $22 a night, not bad, of course you would also have to pay the $4 entry fee each day if your camping in Palo Duro.

Wed. I went back down into Palo Duro canyon in the evening for a Steak dinner and show. What a deal, for $35 you get a full steak dinner with all the trimmings, eating outdoors with the winds howling around us. Covered areas for all the picnic tables, with mist being sprayed too keep us cool.

And for the $35 they put on a huge show called “Texas” about life in the Panhandle of Texas. The amphitheatre, a huge stage and sets are dramatically back dropped by the canyon walls as the sun sets over them. The show, a full production of 85 actors and singers portrays the exciting times during the settling of this prairie Texas Panhandle area.

It’s a good way to experience the history of Texas told through song and a compelling story. It lasted about two and a half hours. As we all left the canyon, you could see the red tail lights of each vehicle as they climbed the switchback road up to the top of the canyon. A dramatic ending to a great evening.

Now that’s a great way to enjoy history without going to some stuffy museum. Which I did do one day back in the town of Canyon on the outskirts of Amarillo. There I found the Pan Handle Plain Historical Museum, touted the largest history museum in Texas. The displays were huge.

Particularly the oil well rigs which took up an entire two story room and windmill displays, both being a major part of the development of the area. They had a couple great antique cars on display with the history of the local owners along with pictures of them with the cars when the owners first bought them. Really added to the display.

Side Note: I thought Fla TV stations had lots of weather warnings, but here in the Panhandle of Texas as an example, I am currently watching Tv with the following warnings: High Wind Warning, Wildfire Danger, Wind Advisory, Tornado Watch and T-Storm Watch. Yikkees! PS, they’re all color coded on a map stamped in the lower corner of the screen and the text in the upper right hand.

My last day here in the Panhandle of Texas I spent over at the Elkins Ranch for a Cowboy Morning Breakfast. Kind of a neat thing. It’s right across the street from where I’m staying and is the remains of the million acre ranch that once encompassed all of Palo Duro Canyon. They continue to raise cattle down in the canyon today. The group was driven to the bottom of the canyon in open-air jeeps where they had a cowboy breakfast waiting for us. After the breakfast, we were entertained by Ed Montana and Hody “Long Bow” Porterfield. A bit of comedy and music. A fun way to end my stay in the Panhandle of Texas. Oh, they also give jeep tours in the canyon.

So, till we meet again…. (here the music) Happy days to you, till we meet again….

Opps, almost forgot to mention this last picture. I went into Amarillo and saw the Cadillac Ranch. That's where the rancher decided to line up some old Cadillac's and bury them on his ranch. Really cool. They get painted with graffiti all the time so each time you visit they look differant. I met a mother/daughter team who have seen it a half dozen times and each time it looks differant to them. The tires were whole when they first started visiting the site.

10-08 San Antonio to Kerrville Texas and...

San Antonio

Kerrville Tx. (Hill Country)

Ballinger Tx.

Campground: Ballinger City Park. $9.00 Elect & Water. Nice city park, site are along a river/dam. City park has lots of shade trees and a community swimming pool. Pool is not open on Sundays.

Campground: Kerrville-Schreiner Park. Formerly a State Park, it is now owned by the city of Kerrville. $18 Elect and Water. Full hookups are available. Most sites are pull thru. Premium sties are on the Guadalupe River.

I’ve had a few more days in San Antonio, waiting for the truck to get a bit more service work done. All courtesy of General Motors. Not having any transportation, gives me a chance to review my upcoming route I’ll be taking and checking out campgrounds along the way that I may be staying at. Having the Verizon air-card is a real treat, even though the campground I’m in does have wi-fi as well. Just being able to get online at anytime is a real convenience.

The courtesy driver, Juan, from the Chevy place, obviously Mexican, told me a bit about his life as he drove me back and forth from the Chevy dealer to my campsite. His parents were migrant workers and he along with the family traveled the mid-west, starting in Michigan picking fruit, apples, cherries, you name it. Following the season as things ripened. He was born in the U.S., so automatically became a U.S. citizen. He described how it was hard to get an education. He worked the fields and orchards along with his parents. Back then, you did what you were told and respected your elders. He eventually married and started a small landscaping business. Hard work. Eventually ending up doing the run around chores at Vara Chevy… sweeping floors, driving customers to their destinations, getting ice. We talked about life and my travels of course. He loves life and as long as your in good health and can appreciate the beauty in this country, what more do you really need. I met his boss the owner, Mr. Vara and John Rodriguez (son-in-law to the owner) the service manager. All Mexican. One making it to the top, one made it due to family ties, and the driver, just making a living. Each one a good person.

I don’t think I would like living in this part of Texas during the summer, as it’s been in the high 90’s every day along with humidity being pulled in from the Gulf. Without any transportation, I’ve been pretty much stuck here at the campground. I only go out for a walk early in the morning or after sundown. Everyone waits to go to the pool around sundown as well. Way too hot to be outdoors.

Sitting in the camper, it almost sounds like a creaky old house. The winds have been pretty steady most days, and with the awning out over the large side windows, the wind catches it and tugs at the slide-out creating a moaning and creaking sound throughout the day. It’s a good time to relax, read a book and as I mentioned, check on my upcoming route.

On Thursday I finally headed out of San Antonio for the Texas Hill Country. The Texas Hill country is west, north west of San Antonio and is only about a 70 mile drive. I’m staying at a city park on the edge of town. So I get to enjoy a country setting, yet I’m close to everything. Fredericksburg is the big tourist town with about 140 shops.

The drive up here, via I-10 was pleasant. Gradually going uphill and seeing the craggily hills covered in cedar trees. Occasional pastures dotting the landscape. The temperature from the city (98-99 degrees) has dropped to a pleasant (85-89 degrees) and a high humidity in San Antonio to almost none up here in the hill country. Along with having a campsite with trees really helps.

I’m only staying for a couple of days. Today I drove to west along the curvy Guadalupe River, the road curving as well, required a slower speed and enabled me to enjoy the river scenery. There are lots of Lodges, guest ranches and summer camps along the river. I gather that many Texans come up here to get away from the summer heat and enjoy the country life.
I noticed Kerrville had a couple large Rv parks right on the outskirts of town and I imagine this is a good place to Winter as well.

About a 10 mile drive out along the Guadalupe River I drove to the small hamlet of Hunt to see Stonehenge II. It’s a neat scaled down “interpretation” of the original in England. I didn’t get the feeling of being at the real place, but it is fun to think that someone went to all the effort to create it. All from standing a piece of granite upright in a field, to deciding it reminded the owner of Stonehenge. After a few laughs and discussions, he decided to build his version of it. Along with two copies of the Easter Island Statues too boot.

On the way back to the campground, I stopped into the Museum of Western Art. A nice museum with some of the best current western art I’ve seen. They had an entire gallery of paintings and sculptures by high school students. The sculptures in particular were 1st rate. I would have sworn they had been done by established artists. What talent! I wish I could show you some of their work, but the museum had a no picture taking policy. I would recommend looking up the artwork of Frank McCarthy if you like western art. One site to see some of his works is: http://www.greenwichworkshop.com/studio/studio_artist.asp?artistid=43

On Sunday, I drove west on I-10 to Junction then headed north on county road 83. At a wayside stop, a sign designated this road which travels the full length of Texas from North to South as the Vietnam Memorial Highway, remembering “the men and women who gave their lives, their youth or their dreams to a war that …the country…” Wish I would have written it all down…

A quiet undulating road, the asphalt as smooth as glass most of the way. Baked in the summer heat, the black tar worn and smoothed away, revealing the white stones beneath. Hill country with it’s cedar trees suddenly vanishing into open fields, dotted with scrub, fenced in to hold the sheep, cattle and antelope ranches. Small creeks crossing along the way. Passing small towns like Eden, Menard, and Paint being the one that stood out, looking like a ghost town. Pop. 320.

No cell phone signal for miles and miles.

Ballinger Tx. A crossroads to anywhere else. I’ll stay here at the Ballinger City park for a couple days.
On the road. Yes, it’s good to be on the road, even with the outrageous fuel prices. Why not, while I still can.

09-08 San Antonio Texas

Texana State Park

Braunig Lake Rv Resort, San Antonio Tx. A Passport America park. Clean neat concrete paved pads and patios. With nice grassy area in between each site. Full hook ups and cable Tv. Most site have no shade. Half price $18.


My couple of days at the Texana Lake State Park was very pleasant. Lots of shade trees and a great view of the lake. I had two doe (deer) come by my site every evening. One evening, I was sitting outside reading, and they came up on either side of my chair from behind. I was quite startled for a minute. They both have those unbelievable big dark eyes and they really do have huge eye lashes. I never knew that. But they came up so close, I couldn’t help but notice. How Cool! Saw an armadillo as well but couldn’t get a picture because the little dog next door chased it into the woods.


I drove the back roads, hwy 87 from Victoria, through the small towns of Cuero, Smiley, Pandora and Nixon. Cuero though small was just charming with a couple of nice shops and restaurants. Neat and clean as a button. It just looked like it had gotten stuck in time in the old west. Not a bad thing in this hectic life.



I’ve arrived at my next campsite, Braunig Lake Rv Resort and it is a nice clean place. They told me they have a Friday night dinner and karaoke music and breakfast is served on weekends. I’ll look forward to that. It’s hot as all get out here. Just hit 100 today. Yikees, I’ve got to get to the mountains soon!

I’m having to take care of a bit of business the first couple of days here. Getting a new tire for the camper and bringing the truck in for it’s first oil change, and various filters that need changing the first time around. Then I’ll visit with friends Linda and Trine.

Had a nice visit with Linda and Trine. They live on the north end of town and never get down to the south end where I’m staying. They live in the new section of town.

I’m down where there are corn fields and the southern end of the Mission Trail.

I did some exploring today visiting three sites along the San Antonio River and the mission trail. The Mission Espada, the Espada Aqueduct and Mission San Juan.

The missions date to around the 1690-1731 era. Both missions are currently active and have services. They are part of the 5 missions in the San Antonio area run by the National Park system. Had a chance to witnessed two baptisms today which was quite a treat.

The missions taught the native Indians much about farming and building in the European style. The aqueduct and irrigation enabled the native Indians and the missionaries to grow crops and stay in one place.

While I was exploring the missions, I noticed a National Park sign showing some intriguing rocks that had cross hatch and parallel type lines on them created by an ancient civilization. They are called Gault Lines. The actual site where the small stones were discovered is in North Central Texas in an area called Gault.


The artifacts are attributed to the Clovis era of 11,500 to 11,000 years ago. These native tribes would have seen the extinction of the mammoth and the horse in North America. Some research shows that there are only two known sites in the U.S. that relics with these lines appear. All are on small rocks or stones.


Check out this site for more info: http://lithiccastinglab.com/gallery-pages/2003septembergaultengravstonepag1.htm


I’ve never seen any markings like these on the Petroglyph and Pictographs I’ve seen out west.
It’s fun discovering new and exciting tidbits about the history of our planet.

Live, love, laugh, explore, discover, learn, share.

08-08 Corpus Christi Texas

Colonia Del Rey Rv Park. A Passport America park ($14 a night 4 nights, weekends full price). This park is very close to Padre Island. Small swimming pool and hot tub. Concrete pads, full hook-ups, includes cable Tv.

Corpus Christi Tx. I’ve made it to one of my destination points this year. My goal is to check out the town and see whether I would enjoy staying here this coming winter. I’ve already checked out a number of other Rv parks as well. The park I’m in is one of 4 parks owned by the owner in residence.

Lake Texana State Park. $15 phone reservation. $16 for Elec. And water site. $3 daily entrance fee. Beautiful park on the lake. Lots of deer, a few gators and icky snakes. What one has to put up with to be in nature.

My first impressions are that Corpus Christi is a good sized town. Like Goldilocks, it’s not too big and not too small, it’s just right. I’m within 6 miles of a good shopping area and restaurants, within minutes of getting to the beaches and Padre Island National Sea Shore.

The weather, this is pretty much summer down here right now, is currently in the mid to high 80’s and lots of wind. Seems the locals are a bit perplexed at the constant winds over the past year or so, but it does appear to be pretty consistent and windy most days.

There’s a fair amount to see and do in the area and I’ve gone and done some of the tours already. My first stop was over the main bridge leading into town on Corpus Christi Bay and Nueces Bay.

The Texas State Aquarium and the USS Lexington. The Lexington being a decommissioned aircraft carrier. A huge ship that could easily take many hours to explore. I spent most of my time at the Aquarium, right next door. Now I’ve got to be honest, I was expecting more from THE State Aquarium of Texas. I guess I've been spoiled by seeing some really huge spectacular Aquariums elsewhere. This one does not have any huge tanks, but what they have does give you time to reflect on each individual aquarium and what it has to offer. I particularly liked the ones featuring the various jelly fish from around the world. Some having almost an electrical quality to them. Really cool! They also had a dolphin show. Nothing unusual there, having lived in Orlando and Sea World right in our neighborhood. I’ve seen these shows before. It still brings a smile to my face and a laugh when the dolphins splash the audience.

A couple days later, after touring a couple more Rv parks, I went downtown to visit the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History and the Ships of Christopher Columbus. I was most interested in seeing these replicas of the Nina the Pinta and the Santa Maria. Two are currently on display. These were the ships that were built by Spain and given to the U.S. for the Anniversary of Columbus’s discovery of America back in 1986 (?).

Corpus acquired the ships just a few years ago and they are in pretty bad condition. They were built with much of the same techniques as when Columbus sailed on them a couple hundred years ago. The guides told us that the ships usually only had a life of about 10 years. I could see the rotting wood and could easily believe that 10 year lifespan.

They were built in Spain and sent here on the US “Imagine America” Tour in 1991 for the Quinto Centenario, the 500 anniversary of Columbus’ voyage.

They were of course fairly small ships, only holding about 25 to 35 men. The Santa Maria was the largest and only ship that had private quarters for Columbus. The men were on the ships for about 32 days before discovering the New World. Not a long time when you think about the unknown route they were searching for. The tour guide talked a lot about the ships and life on board, but she told me after most of the rest of the tour had left, that they were not to talk much about Columbus, as it is now “unfashionable” to glorify his discovery.

What I got out of it was the keen feeling of being on a ship that traveled from Spain to the America’s in search of new lands. What an awesome feeling to walk the bowed planks of the deck. No surface completely level. Touching the raw wood and hearing the creaking of the mast as the wind whipped the riggings back and forth. Imagining what it must have been like on these small ships, with the sea tossing the ships back and forth, side to side. Waves constantly splashing over the sides the of the ships. Or sitting in the middle of a vast ocean without a breeze for 4 or 5 days. Not knowing how far land was out there. Needless to say, I would recommend touching a piece of history, even if it is only a replica. If this doesn’t bring history to life for you, nothing will. This one is tops in my book.

You’ll have to visit the museum to learn more about their other science and history displays, as it would take me hours to describe it all to you. The place was pretty big. One exhibit was really neat though…. They had riding saddles you could sit on to watch various movies about the cowboy way of life in Texas, past and present. What a great way to experience being on a horse while learning about the cowboy way of life.

I took the circle route around Corpus Christi Bay. Crossing over to the barrier island, onto Mustang Island and Port Aransas where I checked out some sea-side Rv parks. Thought if I liked the area, I might even winter on the island, but it just didn’t have that feel that I like. Still it was a neat drive, circling back into Corpus Christi and on back to my campsite.

I was going to go to the King Ranch today, but it turned out to be such a nice day, I headed to the beach…. Only about 2 miles from where I’m staying. I’m at the last exit before crossing the bridge to get to Padre Island. There’s not much of a community on the North end of Padre Island, but I was heading across over to Mustang Island and taking the first road leading to the beach.

After a very short ride across the paved portion over the sand dunes which are being replenished in this area, I drove right onto the flat sandy beach. Wow, just like Daytona Beach. Almost felt like I was back in Fla. Except the water isn’t that really pretty blues and greens you see along the Florida coastline, it’s more turbid and rough today. There are so many beach options in this area. You can pay to go to the State park or Padre Island National Seashore, or just go to one of the local access roads and it’s free.

A wonderful constant breeze, which wasn’t too much today, so I was able to put up my umbrella. The sun was perfect, warm, mid 80’s and the water was actually pretty warm for Mid May. Gosh it felt great to get out on the beach, read a book, go for a walk along the waters edge and just breath in the salty air.

Saturday, I’ve driven to a small town called Edna to stay at a State park, Lake Texana State Park to be exact. Crap. I had a flat tire 6 miles from the State park. Fortunately a car passing me alerted me to the situation, as I did not even realize it till they signaled me to stop. In my tips and tricks report from a couple months ago, I warned everyone about the age of tires. Mine were only 4.5 years old, but the wear and tear, especially since there was an alignment issue on the camper as well, must have worn them out before their time. Since I’ve already replaced two ahead of time, I’m going to go ahead and replace the destroyed tire as well as the remaining older tire. Believe me, it’s better to replace them early, rather than wait for them to blow.

I’ll be at this park for 3 or 4 days. It should be a great stay, as I’m on an island surrounded by the lake which has alligators in it. I saw one as I was crossing over the bridge to the island. There was also a warning about dangerous poisonous snakes in the park. Ekkk! I’ll have to watch carefully. The park itself is beautiful. Spreading oak trees, lush lawns going down to the lake. Canoes paddling back and forth across the lake. Lots of people fishing. Families walking and riding bikes around the park.

I’ll be heading to San Antonio to visit a bit with my friends Linda and Trine, should be there by Wednesday.

Oh, has anyone else read Eckhart Tolle’s book, A New Earth? I just finished reading it. I’ve read many spiritual books in my time, but this one was a bit heavy even for me. Seems to me he used the conscious and unconscious to describe the spirit and eternal essence of a person and a lot of other gibberish to say what could have been said much more simply. There are some good concepts there, but it sure made my head spin a couple times, trying to figure out what he was saying. I did get his concept of space though…. Perhaps because I’m a bit spacey at times myself …..Let me know what you got out of it if you read it.

Almost forgot to tell the really big NEWS. I’ve decided to winter this coming year in Corpus. The campgrounds in this area are very reasonable for a monthly stay ($230 - 350) + elec. All the campgrounds I’ve visited also come with cable Tv included.

Some of the features I like: Being close to the water, close to good shopping and restaurants, concert series looks good throughout the year, and the weather is pretty good throughout the winter.

Anyone wishing more information, please contact me.

07-08 Beaumont to Blessing Texas and...

Gulf Coast Rv Resort. Beaumont Tx. Passport America Campground, limit 2 nights half price. Perfectly manicured lawns, all sites have concrete drives and patios. Full Hookups. Cost $17. Including free continental breakfast and waffles that you make yourself in the shape of Texas. Cool.

Chaparral Rv Resort. Blessing Tx. Passport American Campground, unlimited stay, $11 a night. Basic campsite, full hookups and cable Tv, small concrete pad. Similar rates available to anyone if you make your reservations online.

Beaumont, Tx
Blessing, Tx
To ..Corpus Christi, Tx

You know the most interesting thing about the Rv lifestyle is that you meet such a cross section of society. Not all of them are camping or traveling as I do. While I was at the Bay St Louis campground, there were whole families still living in the FEMA trailers. Trailers that were designed for weekend use, not “full-timing” with a whole family. By the way, I understand they are all supposed to be moved out by June 1st in Mississippi and by the end of July or Aug in Louisiana.

I wasn’t planning on driving almost 200 miles today, Sunday, but when I got to my destination, the campground was full up. So I called ahead, something I should have done before heading out this morning, and I’ve ended up in Beaumont Tx. I had to stop and talk to a big tall dude, as he was watching his little kids play outside in front of the biggest 5th wheel camper I’ve ever seen! He told me he’s not there much, but his wife and kids are. He’s usually off in Kazakhstan these days, working on Oil rig ventures for his company. Now why they are living in a camper, with a big 450 ford and a sports car too boot, one can only guess at. He said it’s amazing that most of the oil is found in the most desolate places on earth.

I’m sorry I can’t tell you much about Beaumont since it rained out for the two days I was in town. I do know that it was the location of the start of the oil boom in Texas and the town is noted for having a ton of museums. None of which I saw.

On Tuesday, I headed out towards the Gulf of Mexico via a short ride on I-10 to hwy 124 and then I followed 87 along the coast. The drive to the coast itself was interesting. I passed many catfish farms along I-10 and even some rice paddies. Heading along hwy 124, it was almost like being in the everglades in Florida, except the flat marshy areas are true bayous, with rivers and lakes in between the low lands dotted with small oil well rigs, bobbing up and down.

Oh, I forgot to mention the 20 mile bridge on the west end of Louisiana. It goes over those bayous, and I could see fishermen in their boats, in between the submerged trees and the bridge pilings. The water was very high as the Mississippi and other rivers draining into the Gulf of Mexico are at their highest this time of year. Hard to tell where the river ended, a lake began or the Tree filled Bayou began.

Traveling along the hwy 87 on one of the barrier islands that forms part of the Inter-coastal waterway, I saw many older stilt homes along the water. Newer stilt homes being closer to Galveston, where I got a ride on a fairy across Galveston Bay.

The fairy ride is free and I got a chance to watch the big oil tankers coming and going out of the harbor. A lady pointed out a concrete ship that had sunk in the harbor. It had been built many years ago as an experiment and sunk not far from shore. The top half still visible. I remember growing up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in Houghton, where a man in my home town was building a concrete boat as well. I believe he finished it, but at the time I heard about it, he had no idea how he was going to get it to Portage Lake. Wonder if he ever got his boat to float?

Driving along the miles of road along the Gulf, much of it unspoiled, a big rat ran across the road in front of me. Grass and sea oats covered low sand dunes separating me from the Gulf of Mexico. Some areas the road edging closer to the water. I eventually crossed back over onto the mainland and headed towards my next stop, Blessing Tx.

My goal is to get to the Corpus Christi area and Brownsville, to see if I like the area as a possible winter residence.

In this coastal area of Texas, I’ve had difficulty finding Ultra Low Sulfur diesel fuel. Most of the gas stations in the small towns only carry Low Sulfur diesel fuel. I wonder how many people with newer 07 diesel engines put in the wrong fuel without even knowing it.

Lovebugs! Yuck! Yuck! Yuck! I thought only Florida had love bugs. Boy, was I wrong. Spat! I’m having to wash the front of my truck daily and the front of the camper each time I move it. What a mess.

Blessing Tx. Pop. 861. Median age, 32. Household income, 25K. This is a poor community in rural America. 50% white and 50% Hispanic. Mainly rundown mobile homes with a sprinkling of newer well maintained homes. Many of the young workers here have children in the 4-5 year old range. Dogs are allowed to run free. I’ve only seen one neighbor that keeps their dog tied up. The town, what little there is of it, has a small bank and gas station. It does have the first designated Historical building in the county. The Blessing Hotel. The town was named Blessing because the railroad decided to come through here. A life line in past years for delivering goods but more importantly for getting their farm produce to market.

I had a buffet lunch at the Blessing Hotel. I would NOT recommend eating there. Lots of over cooked veggies, pasty tasting gravy, overdone rice and something fried… not sure what it was.

I’m staying at the Chaparral Rv Resort…. Well not exactly a resort. There are no niceties. Well ok, they do have a Laundromat and cable Tv, but that’s it. It’s another in between place, and I wouldn’t rush back here to stay. Next time I would stay in a small seaside town called Palacios Tx. It has the largest shrimp fleet on the Gulf of Mexico. Or maybe Port Lavaca. They have a county park right on the bay.

But Blessing is an ok place to chill out and relax before getting to my next destination, Corpus Christi Tx.

06-08 Bay St Louis Mississippi

06-08 Bay St Louis, Mississippi

This past weekend at my new campsite in Bay St. Louis, it was wet and soggy. It has rained most of the weekend. In between rain showers, I did start to tour the area a bit. My campsite is about 3 miles from the Gulf, so I drove down to see where the Silver Slipper Casino is located and to drive into the Old Town section of Bay St Louis.

I’m not planning on doing much this week, but here are a few things I did do and see along the way.

I passed many home sites, that have mostly been cleared, only a few remaining stilt frames remaining. Impressive walled and gated yards, curved driveways, with not a home in sight. This is where the hurricane came on land and even the big homes raised high on their 12 foot moorings where destroyed. The homes that still remain had to be completely gutted and rebuilt. The process is ongoing and will be for many years to come. Some new homes are being constructed and a few traditional mobile homes have been put in. But what I really like are the “shotgun” homes and “Katrina homes” that are being manufactured by places like Lowes and a couple other manufactures in the area. They have the traditional small porch out front and are typically as long as 80 feet X 16 feet. They appear to be really well built and have colorful siding you’d expect to see in the tropics. Turquoise blue, Butter yellow, pink and even red. They fit the coastal area and feel like they belong. I was told that these homes are actually considered temporary and that many locals hope to see them gone in the future. I can’t understand why, they looked great to me.

I ventured into the Silver Slipper Casino which sits right on the bay today to take advantage of all their deals. For signing up with their Players Club, I got $25 in credits to play the slots, half off on my lunch buffet and a free T-shirt. What a deal. After having fun playing the slots for about an hour and a half, I left with $25 in cash, had a great lunch for all of $5.00 and of course picked up my T-shirt. Now that’s my kind of gaming. Yippee!

The beaches are clean and almost deserted this time of year as they curve around the bay like a crescent moon. The road hugs the beach separated only by a low concrete barrier with slots in it to let the sea water and sand wash through during storms and high tide. Much of the roadway had sand along one side of the road. There are two main parking areas, one near Old Town and the other being at the Silver Slipper all the way at the other end of the bay. No parallel parking along the beach. Many docks line the beaches, only their posts remain to testify to the popularity of fishing and boating that once took place here. The grand old water oaks all look like they’ve just been trimmed by a man hatter trying to make them look like huge bonsai trees. I drove over 40 miles along the gulf and didn’t see a single restaurant or place to eat. No convenience stores, gas stations, hotels. Everything was gone.

Oh, the Silver Slipper has a campground right on the bay. Basically a clean parking lot with individual concrete pads for each campsite. $35 with Bay view and $25 for the Inland view. Seems a bit pricey for my taste.

I went into “Old Town” Bay St Louis and had a great lunch at the Buttercup. I sat out on their porch, a wonderful breeze and a sparkling sunny day. The owner of the shop talked to me about the area. The downtown area still looks devastated from the hurricane, but many shops are opening up and they are really busy on weekends. He told me not only the locals but so many of the volunteers and workers re-building the area come downtown on their days off. Good to see them supporting the local business’s.

Since I was so close, I toured the John C Stennis Space Center. This is where they test all of the rocket engines for the space shuttle. There are over 30 agencies that work on this 135,000 acre base. The base is so large as to provide a buffer for the sound created by testing those huge engines. Trent Lott was able to get many agencies moved to this remote location and to bring jobs to Mississippi. When I worked for the Navy, our personnel department and all personnel actions for the Navy ended up going to Stennis. Created a heck of a mess as I recall. For years while I worked for the Navy, I thought Stennis was a person, not an entire base. Dahhhh.

The exhibits are mainly for the kids. I was hoping to see a mock-up of the space station, but it turned out to be a tube made out of nylon tenting material, with a few flat displays inside. Not very realistic. They did have an Apollo capsule on display and a story board showing the new space vehicles that will one day fly into space. Looks to me more like the first Apollo missions, except there will be two rockets, the Ares I and Ares V. Ares I will transport humans into space, where as the Ares V will be an unmanned vehicle, transporting larger payloads into space for the astronauts to use once in space. They also had displays from NOA, The Naval Oceanographic Administration. An interesting computer generated film showed the current influences (updated constantly) on the planet, like volcanoes, earth quakes and weather changes. When looked at from a global perspective, our planet is in constant change. Well worth the time it took to watch the film/presentation.

Back in Old Town (Bay St Louis) I had to visit the Alice Moseley Folk Art Museum. http://www.alicemoseley.com/

Wow, what an inspiring story! A brilliant young Lady, who was destined to graduate from college with honors, has her life put on hold after her father commits suicide and leaves a note to her to drop out of college and take care of the family. After years of doing just that, marrying at age 26, finishing college, becoming a teacher for most of her life, she begins to paint at the age of 65, as a way to stop from going crazy after taking care of a mother-in-law with Alzheimer’s.

Her wit and charming personality along with some of the best folk art paintings in the country can all be experienced here in Bay St Louis. A bonus is a collection of art pottery, art glass and Americana that is also on display. Originally collected by her son and thought to be lost in the hurricane after it hit New Orleans where his collection resided. His home was destroyed, but most of his collection survived. By the way, each one of her paintings tells a story. Charming, inspiring. A reporter asked her for some great wisdom at her ripe old age of 92 and she said she didn’t have any great wisdom. She had accepted the good and the adversity in her life and had learned from it. And the only thing she knew for sure, was to be true to yourself. Be true to yourself. Not what you think others want you to be, or what you think they want you to be. But to be true…. To…. You.

The finally was my attending the New Orleans Jazz Festival on Thursday. It was the first time they had Thursday on the agenda since Hurricane Katrina. Glad I went that day, ($40 one day) the rest of the weekend is expected to be rainy. It was partly cloudy with a great breeze most of the day. Besides, the crowds were just manageable on what was supposed to be a slow day. For me, it got pretty crowded. If you’ve never gone, it’s held at the race track downtown and there are about 10 stages set up maybe more… lots of booths and food vendors. Lots of walking between venues. I enjoyed about a half dozen of the stage acts with everything from Zydeco, Jazz, Blues, some black heritage music. I missed the Gospel music, but I did get to the main grandstand for one of the acts. There weren’t any famous people singing while I was there, but it didn’t matter. All the musicians were seasoned performers, as in gumbo and crawdads. And what fun people watching. Cajuns love to dance at a drop of a hat. And I saw a lot of fun old and young couples throwing off their shoes and hats and dancing on the grass. Talk about rhythm. These people can dance! The wild hats, fun clothes, good Cajun food and of course the music that went on way into the evening. Whew, I’m exhausted.

Ok, so I guess my week was busier than I thought it was.