Third hop in Texas!

 Marble Falls, TX - April 12 -  April 29, 2020

On Sunday we drove an ENTIRE 85 miles north to Sunset Point RV Resort located on Lake LBJ. The lake is actually a reservoir and part of the Colorado River. The reservoir was formed in 1950 by the construction of Granite Shoals Dam by the Lower Colorado River Authority. They had originally called it Lake Granite Shoals but renamed it to Lake Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 after the president.

Once again, we will be here for only a week and I am already dreading that decision because this is the best park we have stayed at in a month!  The view and weather are perfect!   Next time we visit, I will be sure to spring for a river front site!

The small town of Marble Falls is very cute and they have tons of art displayed throughout the town.  The town is also located in the Texas Hill Country that is known for its award winning wineries.  There are more than 50 wineries in the area and they offer events including Wine Lovers Celebration, Wine & Wildflower Journey, Texas Wine Month Passport and the Christmas Wine Affair.  These events are self-guided driving tours, with wineries offering tastings and discounts.  But once again none of the tasting rooms were open.  Dang, Dang and Dang it!!

On a happy note, we did discover a popular organic grocery store called H. E. B. and loved it.   Come to find out, the company is out of San Antonio. Wish I had known that tidbit earlier.

A day trip to Austin

Since Austin was only a hour's drive from our park, we decided on Saturday to make a day trip out of it.  I have to say that this Covid-19 thing has made it super easy for us to cruise through these big downtown's in a dually.  Normally we shy away from huge cities just because there is never, ever any parking for us.  We can't get into parking garages due to our height, length, and width nor do we fit into a normal parking lot.  We have been turned away many a times.  But now with the offices empty, the shops, parks, and restaurants all closed, we have found even the biggest city's streets empty.  Even though it has been nice to travel the empty streets, I would rather have our normal lives back any day.  America must get back to the norm!

On the way back we took some little side road not knowing where it would take us but we ended up being pleasantly surprised.  It took us along the winding stream and roaming longhorn cattle.

The road sign says it all!

Came across this on our way back. Sad!

It also took us past this marker highlighting events from the civil war era.  This was seriously out in the middle of nowhere so I can only imagine how obscure it was back in those days.  These guys really didn't want there deeds found out and for good reason.  

The monument of Dead Man's Hole states that the hole is believed to have been the dumping ground for up to 17 bodies, including those of a pro-union judge and several reconstruction-era county government officials.  These men were known to have a conflict with local freedman.  An oak tree once stood over the cave and was said to have rope markings caused by hangings.  Luckily they have since filled in the hole.

Sunday is our hop day and this time we will be traveling 5 hours NW to Lubbock. Adios!

Second hop in Texas!

San Antonio, TX - April 5 - April 12, 2020

For our 2nd week in Texas we stayed at the Alamo City RV Park in San Antonio.  To no surprise none of the amenities were open and once again we were not allowed inside the office. Our paperwork was posted outside with our site number on it and we had to call them when we arrived to check in. The park was pretty full except for the pull through sites located in the center of the park. These were wide open.  I am assuming they are reserved for folks that are just dropping in for a few days like us.  There was no shade in site and unusually warm weather for April so needless to say there were a few warm days. The day it hit 93, when D got off work, we took to the road in the truck just so we could cool down.  Even though our 5th wheel is a four season one, with temps in the 90's and no shade around the A/C's just couldn't keep up!

Once again, the main reason we came to San Antonio was to visit sites!  D was very excited to visit the Alamo!  Ha!  Here's hoping this shut down of America ends soon!   And I was so looking forward to hanging out at River Walk while listening to live music, having a glass of wine and then doing a little shopping.  Double Ha!

We did explore a little bit here but everything was closed of course.  So we DROVE by The Alamo and The River Walk.  The Alamo is really small!  I would have had to duck to get in it if it had been open.

On Wednesday, D took the truck to an accessory shop, Texas Hitch and Truck Center, where they added a 45-gallon slimline tank in the back of the truck.  It has a gravity feed setup.  The fellows at the shop were quick, efficient, and fair priced.  They did very high-quality work.

We also recently opened an account with a company called EFS.  This enables us to buy diesel in the trucker lanes at the big fuel stations at significant reductions.  For example, we filled up the truck's tank, 36 gallons, and the brand new slimline tank, 45 gallons.  The price on the pump was $170.  But the price we paid was $111!  so we paid about $1.58 per gallon.  Awesome!

Corpus Christi and Padre Island

  

On Saturday, we decided that since we were just two hours from the gulf coast, we might as well drive down to Corpus Christi and Padre Island to see what all the fuss was about.  The citizens of that city were not doing very well at maintaining social distancing so it's just a matter of time before they become a hot spot... just sayin'!

I found Corpus Christi not so appealing.  The heavy smog from the oil refineries really put a damper on the city for me.  We had been thinking about wintering their next year but have since changed our mind.  The city is a little to busy for me and to find a park out on the island with excellent cell signal was zero to none.  Or at least for T-mobile.  So we have X'ed that plan and are moving on.

This Easter morning, as we were prepping for our next hop, we had a video call with the fam as it was also our D-I-L, Ali's Birthday!  Happy Birthday, Ali! We love you!

Thank you God for the gift of the cross and technology too!

Texas!

 Highlands, Texas - March 29 – April 5, 2020

Well we made it to Texas!  We are currently here: San Jacinto Riverfront RV Resort in Highlands, TX.  Once again we will be staying for only a week.  This is good news because the park is very peopley and most of the RV-ers here seem to be long term stay.  There are at least 60 sites that have men that drive big loud work trucks and leave each morning at 5 am.  Oy! 

Not a fun park to be at if you are in the front.  There are sites along the river which are very nice and I'm assuming out of the noise of the none-stop traffic coming in and out of the park.  I say stay away from this park not only because of the traffic from all the construction guys but also the noise from I-10 and a very busy train track!  Needless to say it was a long week!

On Monday, the governor of Texas just announced on TV that they are effectively closing the border with Louisiana.  Anyone traveling from New Orleans is being refused.  Wow!  We just squeaked in! 

The original purpose of staying in the Houston area was my D-I-L was going to join us for a few days so we could go to this big antique fair in Round Top. Yep, you guessed it, it was cancelled. 

But hey, neither of us is sick and we are definitely self-quarantining as much as possible and sitghtseeing what little we can. Life goes on!

Highlights from Houston

Goodbye Houston, we have loved your city!

On Sunday, we had west to San Antonio.  God only knows what we will or will not be able to see, taste or visit.  Prayers for all who are suffering.

On The Road Again!

Holt, Florida 

We moved back into Ivan at Eagle's Landing RV Park in Holt, FL on March 7th, 2020.  We had to stay there because Penny was going to have jury duty in that county on the 15th.  However, it got canceled due to this Pandemic (Covid-19) panic.  This might be the ONE good thing that came out of the pandemic. No jury duty!!!


Holt is a very small town so if you need to shop for ANYTHING you will need to drive into Crestview.  Luckily it is only 9 miles away.  Or you can drive back down toward the beach area of Fort Walton / Destin which is 45 minutes.  For most of our shopping during the two weeks we were there, we went into Crestview.

Blackwater River State Park

During our two weeks in Holt, we revisited Blackwater River State Park.   The original name was Oka-lusa: meaning water black.  The park is considered to be one of the purest sand-bottom rivers in the world.  The river's sand-bottom, dark tannin water, and contrasting large white sandbars have drawn worldwide attention and provide the perfect setting for this 590-acre park.  It also boasts of having one of the largest, contiguous, longleaf pine/wiregrass ecosystem left in the world which is described as being rarer than a tropical rainforest.

When we had came down last February in order to establish our Florida residency, we had visited the park then.  We had found the river deserted and very peaceful, so we decided to go back.  This time, we found loads of folks hanging out by the river, kayaking and hiking all along the trails.  Little did we know that they would soon close all state and national parks!

Arriving in New Orleans in the Nick of Time

Sunrise over Lake Pontchartrain

On March 22nd, we moved to Pontchartrain Landing in New Orleans for a week's stay.  Lucky for us, the park was light and we got a free upgrade to a waterfront site!

It was cool to watch the boats coming and going.  We also made socially-distant friends with Doug, Cassandra & Ginger - from Canada, eh!  Very cool people and I have the feeling that we will be long time friends with them.

St Patrick's Cemeteries

Metairie Cemetery

Metairie Cemetery

I had found out on the websites that there were a few cemeteries still open, so after D got off work we all four - and the big dog too - headed to downtown.  Unfortunately, when we arrived at Metairie and St Patrick Cemeteries we found out they had closed early.  So instead we had to settle at looking at the beautiful headstones and statues through barred gates.  Our purpose for stopping in NOLA was to visit the cemeteries so it looks like we will just have to return when all the virus scare is over!

While eventually started looking lost after we took a few pictures of the tombstones and a nice homeless man told use that the Hurricane Katrina Memorial was just down the street and was never locked.  Sweet!  Thanks, fella!

A crow spying on us for breaking quarantine

The City of New Orleans was under severe quarantine as the residence are not doing so well with the virus.  Still, we risked things a little bit by driving down to Bourbon Street in the city.  We walked several blocks.  It was a ghost town!  We saw one working woman and a few dog walkers.  Eerie!

 Well, the end of our week had came and it was time to move on.  Our next stop is Texas!  See ya on the flip side!

Hanging Out in the Florida Panhandle

Wintering at the Beach!

If you have never visited the white, sandy beaches of South Walton County, Florida, you are truly missing out.  The Emerald Coast is hands down the most beautiful I have seen.   Stunning nature and white sand beaches with waters that only the Caribbean could come close to.  There are tons of restaurants to chose from and shopping is huge here, of course.  There are also loads of bike rentals and water activities for the family.  It definitely has a great family atmosphere.  So if you are looking for a new vacation spot, check out Santa Rosa Beach.

Here is a list of some of the restaurants we ate at during our stay and just for the record, we did cook some nights!

The Local Catch is located on 30A between Blue Mountain Beach and Gulf Place Town Center.  They serve coastal seafood with a Southern twist in a casual environment.

The Bay, which is located on Hwy 331 overlooking Choctawhatchee Bay, serves Southern gulf coast cuisine, sushi, a 12-draft beer system, excellent wine selections, and inventive bar-crafted cocktails. Seating is available inside and out.

The Perfect Pig has 3 locations; Gulf Place, Watercolor, and Seagrove.  Their menu features fresh local grouper, pulled pork, and hand-sliced, applewood smoked bacon.  We visited two out of the three locations for breakfast and were not disappointed with either meal.

Pizza by the Sea has four locations on Florida’s Emerald Coast, Watercolor Crossings, Gulf Place Town Center, Seacrest, and Miramar Beach.  The restaurants specialize in a wonderfully thin crust pizza and also feature a great selection of fresh Italian cuisine, salads, sandwiches, retro sodas, beer, and wine.  They are a family-friendly pizza place.  Since D is a huge fan of thin crust, we were weekly regulars here.

Grayton Seafood Company is a nice neighborhood gathering spot and seafood restaurant on scenic 30A in Grayton Beach, Florida.  The owner is super friendly and very understanding of seafood allergies!

The Great Southern Cafe is located in the heart of Seaside and is well known. The owner and chef, Jim Shirley, prides himself by using local ingredients in international cuisines with a southern flair.  He also owns North Beach Tortilla Company, The Bay, Ji Shi KiChn, and  The Meltdown on 30A.  He is also the co-owner of The Fish House, The Atlas Oyster House, and The Fish House Deck Bar in Pensacola, Florida.

A few honorable mentions include; Chiringo, Basmati's Asian Cuisine, Johnny McTighe's Irish Pub, Blue Mabel Smokehouse, Farm & Fire Southern Pizzeria,  Siam Thai Cuisine, and Chop Stix Chinese Restaurant 

My Sisters Come for a Quick Visit 

In February, my sweet sisters flew down to visit for a week.  My daughter-in-law was away in NYC for fashion week and bummed that she wasn't going be there during their visit.  So we decided that they will just have to come back next year when it's not fashion week so we can all hang out together. 

During the week we, of course, shopped, took walks on the beach, dined out, and then shopped some more.  Their visit overlapped with Valentine's Day so Dennis treated us all out to dinner at Mimmo's Italian Restaurant in Destin and afterward, my son headed to the airport to pick up his homesick wife.  The next morning it was my turn to drive to the airport and drop my sisters off.  I'm always so surprised how time flies when you are with loved ones.  So until we are together again..hugs to my sisters!

 Putting our Remodel Skills to Work!

 

During our stay, I helped out with a few improvements that my son and D-I-L wanted to make on their new home.  First on the list was painting all of the walls and ceilings.  By the time we moved out, most of the first floor rooms were done.  Unfortunately, they have two more floors to go.  Sorry kiddos but the reservations at our next campground were booked and the road was calling.  Whew!  Got out of that!

We also had a time of sadness during our stay.  We had to say goodbye to sweet little Desi.  She was a huge part of our lives and will always be in our hearts.

A big thank you to R & V for the hot showers, room to stretch a little bit, and of course, the hospitality!  We love the new house and can't wait to meet the newest family member in person.  Welcome to the family, Huddy!