Blame it on Eddie!

It’s Eddies fault for getting us those great National Geographic books.

Canyons, cliffs, rivers, wild flowers, ghost towns, vistas and hoodoos are all here at the Big Bend National Park. We came here from the Amistad Recreational Area near Del Rio and just beat the cold front that was heading here with high winds and up to ¼” of ice (in the Del Rio area). Real gusty with crosswinds all the way but we arrived safely and got set up before the temp dropped and the winds picked up…significantly. By morning, all was quiet and still, chilly, but still. Today we went over to Boquillas Canyon, a short drive away. Really pretty! I saw a couple of guys from the other side of the river coming over in a yellow float. They were apparently coming to check out their stock of walking sticks and “artwork” of twisted wire scorpions that they put out for the tourists to buy. They place them on a large rock in the parking area of the canyon overlook trail. If caught, they are arrested and deported to a location 100 miles from here. Any purchases made by a tourist will be confiscated if caught. Prior to 9-11, the town of Boquillas del Carmen, Mexico was fairly prosperous as there was pretty free open trade. Tourists could go over in a rowboat and do some shopping but after 9-11 that all ended. And, the prosperity of Boquillas ended as well. Now they scrap for anything they can get.
After we visited the canyon, we took a nice drive through some absolutely spectacular country. We went to the Chisos Basin first, then to Terlingua, Lajitas and over toward Presidio, TX. We stayed on the US side of the Rio Grande River the whole way, of course. The diversity of terrain and scenery is truly breathtaking. The pictures I took do not do the area justice. Every direction is different but just as beautiful. Wild flowers are starting to bloom, as are some of the yucca plants. The coloration, formations and character of the mountains made the trip a super pleasure. The road from Lajitas to Presidio is a real roller coaster ride following the course of the Rio Grande and the natural up and down terrain of the area. A true E-Ticket ride for all those older Disney visitors Debbie and Tom would have a real ball on their Harleys on that road!
And now, we are in Ft. Davis Historic Park area because there is a scenic loop that was in the Nat. Geo. Scenic Byways book. Can't pass up a nice drive:) We'll take the tour tomorrow and then get on the road, again. Destination is uncertain at this time but it doesn't really matter. I'm Retired!!!

Westward, no Southward Ho!

We have decided to go ahead and travel down to the Big Bend National Park before continuing to the AZ deserts. We have heard too much good and read a lot of interesting stuff about it (thanks again, Eddie) that we just have to see it. Or at least some of it. So, we leave in the AM for Big Bend. We are at the Amistad National Recreation Area on the Texas/Mexico border. It's a very large reservoir formed by a dam and is world renown for it's bass fishing. Since it is a federal area, camping is quite inexpensive for us old duffers. No hookups but who cares?
I noticed that I didn't attach a group picture of the gang that enjoyed the fish fry so it's added here along with the pix of the lake and the dam. This is as close to Mexico as we'll get.
One of the pix shows Hiway 90 and the railroad trestle westbound across Lake Amistad. The dam and reservoir were built to support the close "friendship" between the US and Mexico. Unfortunately, it has become another pipeline avenue for drugs and immigrants as the large lake extends across both borders, but then, so has the rest of the border:(
It is doubtful the cell service will support calls and internet in Big Bend so it will be a few days until we return to "civilization" again:)

Stay warm and safe.

No more Gulf sunsets

We have left the beautiful Padre Island National Seashore and wended our way as far as Laredo, TX. We have left an interesting mixture of Winter Texans from Michigan, Wisconsin, Canada and even Oregon. Last Tuesday, we enjoyed a great fish fry provided by 2 of the regular visitors (they come every year) who enjoy fishing all day long. After they have enough fillets in their freezers, they invite all the campground visitors that have been here as least a week to a fish fry. There was approximately 40 people that showed up to enjoy the fare. It was excellent. We even left this AM with a package of fresh caught Whiting fillets. We will have our own fish fry down the road:)
Speaking of on the road, we are going to head back to AZ to do some touring. There are many scenic areas that we want to see and the National Geographic book we received at Christmas (Thank You, Eddie) has whetted our appetite for some of the scenic routes. So, tonight in Laredo, tomorrow night at Amistad Recreational Area near Del Rio and then a run for the border:) It has been a lot of fun in Texas but it's time to leave. We opted to skip visiting our Southern neighbor, Mexico. Just too many mixed signals as to what to expect.

South Padre Island

We are enjoying our stay on the beach so much that we have pretty much decided that we will stay here until they throw us out:) In spite of the occasional cold front that comes through with gusty winds, it is really beautiful here. Walking on the beach is breezy but very pleasant. Certainly, not crowded:) And, no vehicles to dodge! We have a spot where we can watch the waves come in and the birds fly around while sitting in our RV. Since we are on the water, the temperatures are moderated so it doesn't get all that cold. It's 5-10 degrees warmer here than inland.
We have come into town today to get our mail, fill up the propane tank and do exciting things like laundry. We managed to beat the price jump of propane by a day or so but have watched the price of gas go from a low of 1.29 to around 1.60 now. We are hoping they don't go crazy again.
The Blue Heron is George, patiently awaiting a handout of a fish from one of the surf fishermen. Our RV is in the middle of the RV picture.
Sleeping and waking to the sound of the surf is a great end and start to another great day! Being a "Winter Texan" isn't all that bad:)

On the Beach Again...

Here we sit, gently rocking on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico. The rocking is due to the gusty winds of the latest cold front to come through the area. We enjoyed our stay in Rockport but have returned to the campground in Aransas Pass for a couple of days. It was time to update the blog as we may be out of cell phone and internet contact for a week or 2 as we will be moving down to South Padre Island to the National Park there. $4/nite sounds really nice now:) By the way, our last gas fill up was at $1.29/gallon. It has gone up to $1.59 in the area in the last few days however. Oh well, maybe it will go down again???? Right!!!
The first picture is sunset on Aransas Pass Beach with a little bit of mist in the air. .
The second is what seagulls do when a cold front with gusty winds come through. They land in a group, face the wind and hunker down for warmth. The odd shaped object is a jelly fish (one of dozens washed up on the shore) proving that not all jelly fish are round. This one looks like it could fly. It is approx. 12" across.
The grey beach scene was our first arrival at Aransas Pass when there was a bit of fog. It was late in the afternoon.
Yesterday when we returned here, we had to wait for an hour or so for the tide to come up. With the full moon, the tide was "extremely low" and the ferry boats that get you to the island could not accommodate the RV.

Today we took a drive down to South Padre Island to check it out. Very pretty and we will be going there for at least a week (maybe 2). The downside is that cell service is very limited so if you call and don't get an answer, please leave a message. We'll get back to you when we get "up by the flag pole at the visitor center" where many people find a signal. I don't think I will be blogging until we get to the Rio Grande Valley... whenever that will be:) Until then, time to go get some shells!

On the Beach!

Prior to leaving San Antonio, we traveled by car up to Fredericksburg in the hill country north of San Antonio. Fredericksburg is a very "artsy" town and is also home to the National Museum of the Pacific War. Lou visited the shops and I visited the museum. They have a PT boat on display in a "mission prep" environment complete with the full armament of torpedos, depth charges and guns. They also have a TBM Torpedo Bomber on display plus a "Fat Boy" atomic bomb that was the backup for the Nagasaki A-Bomb. Supposedly, it does not have the explosives or plutonium installed:) The museum also includes a Japanese Garden of Peace, Veterans Walk of Honor and memorial walls. Very moving exhibits.

Fredericksburg is near the Enchanted Rock Natural area. The Enchanted Rock is a REALLY LARGE pink rock some 47 acres in size . It is a very pretty area but we were not prepared to take the hike up to the top of the rock on a warm day. We just did not have enough time for the trek.

We have now departed San Antonio with all the Texas Hospitality so generously afforded us and headed South to the Corpus Christi area. We spent the first foggy night here on the beach at Port Aransas. Yes! We actually took the RV on the beach to get to the campsite:) Very pleasant listening to the surf until the front came through in the early AM hours with high, gusty winds. We still slept very well. While there, we visited the Univ of Texas Marine Institute and saw all the displays and aquariums they had. Very impressive and informative. We took a drive down North Padre Island past the Mustang Island State Park. We had expected the State Park to be a little larger but it was a fairly compact camping area for RV's. Plus, there is a $4/day/person entry fee that would be added to the camping fee. Texas is the only place we know of that charges a daily entry fee to campers. It is usually included in the site fees.

We are now at our campsite in Rockport and the weather is beautiful. Very cool the last 2 mornings (around 40) but is near 70 today and sunny. I tried my hand at fishing in the 2 lakes here at the park but with no luck so far. Weather permitting, we will try to stay on the beach again before we head out to the Rio Grande Valley. If what we have heard from so many RV'rs, Mission is the place to go for many of the "Winter Texans". The consesus so far is that the economy has kept many of the regulars home this year. This park is usually full but still has a fair number of spaces available. Hopefully that bodes well for us in finding a comfortable and affordable site in the Mission area.

Very slow internet connection so no pictures on this entry. We hope that everyone had a safe New Years.