Amistad NRA - Del Rio, TX

Short walk from our campsite to Amistad Resevoir

With a fairly early start on Mother’s Day, we got to San Antonio’s Riverwalk at about 11:00.  We sorta found a parking space, that we might never be able to get out of, if somebody doesn’t park nicely.  After about thirty seconds, we decided this was a stop for another day (probably without the RV).  Had lunch at the Castroville Regional Park.  I walked the dog, while Deb walked her Fitbit. Then Deb talked with both our sons.

Strawberry Pitaya Cactus

Amistad Recreational Area is a manmade lake that spans the US Mexico border.  We are up on a ridge, overlooking the lake, among all sorts of cactus and other succulents.  We had our choice of campsites because we are the only ones here except for occasional visits by the Border Patrol and the Feds.  We had our first little rain followed by buffeting winds that kept waking us up all night, but then again, we were sort of sleeping with one eye open anyway.

Stephen Austin State Park - San Filipe, TX

We’re up by 7:00 with our transitional Bacon & Eggs Saturday breakfast.  It’s all Interstate Driving.  Lunch at the Texas Welcome Center,mile marker 880.  While Deb is driving, as usual I check the information on the next Campground reservation, site number, etc.  But the message on the calendar say, “Closed due to Hurricane Harvey, should open soon, check back later.  A quick online check indicates that the Campground is full.

Barred Owl Trail

This leaves me quietly pondering alternatives, in silence...probably not the best traveling companion. At the campground there is a sign that says the campground is totally reserved.  I put on my best puppy face to beg for a little spot, anywhere...side of the road, anything.  Turns out there are quite a few spots that have not been reserved, but they could have been...this is called Texas Logic!

We got the most gorgeous campsite, with full hook-ups, an acre of mowed grass to ourselves.  Deb has her new Fitbit that started counting every bump on I-10 as a steps. She was already up to 6,000 steps by the time we stopped.  We finished off her goal with a short walk to the river.  

After watching half of “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,” I let Drex out for his nightly relief.  There were so many Fireflys out, it looked like we were overlooking a small city.

By morning, Deb got to review her Fitbit sleeping habits...it turns out that she sleeps in fits and bits, how appropriate.

Baton Rouge KOA - Denham Springs, LA

Today was a short day, 250 Miles or so, finishing at a KOA...our maintenance stops.  We watched a 5th wheel decide to take an exit at the last minute, up on two wheels...gonna be some broken dishes in that rig.  Deb checking out the route ahead saw all red on Google maps.  Instead of getting into town and then doing a Walmart run, Deb suggested we stop a at Walmart ahead of the red, do our shopping and continue on later.

Our shopping included new sneakers for me.  I stepped up to $25 sneakers, maybe they will last longer than the $10 pairs that I hav3 been buying.  Deb wanted a Fitbit for Mothers’s day...what ever happened to flowers and chocolates.

Back on the highway again it was clear sailing.  Got to the KOA, they had just got their power back and were working on internet...seems there was a big accident on the interstate that cut the power to the whole town.  Of course, we already knew that.

Deb did laundry, I cleaned the bugs off the prow, and then we both went to the pool.

It’s Friday, so it’s date night.  I found a Cajun Restaurant rated #1 on Trip Advisor.  Deb had already said that we should do Cajun.  Dinner at the Don’s restaurant was awesome, we both had gumbo, hers chicken and andouille sausage, mine seafood.  Apparently, in my zeal to eat Cajun food, I missed Deb’s interest in the Greek restaurant across the street from the KOA.  My bad!

Ft Pickens (National Seashore) - Gulf Breeze, FL

Bike trail to Fort Pickens

We have been traveling a hard three days driving south and finally heading west along the Gulf of Mexico.  It’s time for a break!  Ft Pickens is a narrow sandbar off the coast of Pensacola.  It has been fortified from the Revolutionary War until World War II.  Strangely, it was a Union stronghold during the Civil War.  There is a plaque to some poor soldier, the only person ever killed by any of the guns here when one of the howitzers came loose from its mount during a practice firing and crushed him.

Almost all of the campsites are out in the sun with little shade.  By luck, we scored a fantastic site, the closest to the beach, with the shade of a small live oak.  We found out that if put one rear wheel right on the edge of the tarmac, our awning will miss one of the branches by at least half an inch.

So we started our day-off with teriyaki chicken, rice and a Greek salad sans olives.  In the morning, a bike ride to Ft Pickens which is the northern terminus of the Florida Trail, a 1,300 mile path to Key West.  With that trip, we have a mile under our belt...only 1,299 to go.  Back at camp, things were getting exciting when an armadillo wandered through.  I suppose for Floridians, they are like squirrels, but we thought it was interesting. After lunch, we strolled the beach, no dogs allowed.  Drex stayed in the air conditioning.  Back at camp Deb made Crock-pot meatloaf...we’ll see how that comes out!

Our first trip here, there was a camp store that sold ice cream...IT’S CLOSED!  we thought they might sell it at the Camper Registration Center, which was a mile away.  So back on the Florida Trail...now only 1,298 miles to go, but still no ice cream...maybe tomorrow in Baton Rouge.

Stephen Foster State Park (Okeefenokee Swamp) - Fargo, GA

The morning started out with a short hike, and the realization that the clinky noises we were hearing were coming from the rear hubcap which was in need of a few pop-rivets.  With our maintenance issue resolved, we headed out.  At lunch, we tried our first Crock-pot meal on wheels, a slow cooker meal in the sink, with the lid well secured.

Stephen Foster State Park was a place we visited four years ago, we had a memorable canoeing experience.  This time, we decided to rent a small motor boat instead, hoping that we could go a little further in the limited time that we had.  Unlike last time which was fairly cold, and mostly bird watching, this time we saw hundreds of alligators swimming all around us.  So first of all, the mandatory life jacket did not seem the most critical item if I accidentally fell overboard.  Second, there is no way I that I wanted to take a tippy canoe anywhere near this place.  Beautiful, yet exhilarating is the way I would describe it.

Santee State Park (Cypess View Campground) - Santee, SC

Santee SP, SC

Our first day out on our Jubilee Trip (I googled it and Jubilee can be anything special - not necessarily 50 years - in our case our fifth year).  Today was the “get out of Dodge day.”  Deb is okay with long days as long as she has some warning.  This was a 420 mile day, all interstate driving but non the less a fairly long day.  Fortunately for me, the campsite was in a gorgeous park, and right next to Lake Marion (site 39).  On arriving, Deb said we should do this again!  Either I brought the wrong wife, or my dasdardly plan worked!

We are breaking in a new rug for our patio area.  The rug that survived several years at the Bay School and then four years on the road finally gave into a burning mosquito coil last year.  We are also breaking in a couple of solar panels, we check them every so often to make sure they are still there. So far, so good.

Tomorrow, we plan on taking a short hike before heading out to the Okeefenokee Swamp.  This year we are trying out a tiny crock-pot that we can put in the sink while driving,  Tomorrow night, we will be having Brunswick Stew (in Georgia) or peanut butter sandwiches depending on how things go. And maybe boiled peanuts!

Jubilee Trip (2018)

We are all packed and ready for our last cross country RV trip.  The plan is to end the trip just before Father's Day and visit with family for a few days before heading home.