So……now it is 10 days since I’ve updated…not from lack of interest, but from lack of internet service.
We have arrived in Tucson at the Voyager RV Resort, our most western destination. We find the weather delightful. We are at 2500 ft above sea level. There are mountains all around us. So, it gets very cool after the sun goes down. Tucson is very spread out, so you have to go a distance before you find shopping. But, hey, we do it. So here’s a cap of the past 10-12 days:
We left San Antonio on Friday the 16th, and headed for 2 days at Fort Stockton, which is very small community. But we didn’t plan to stay but 2 nights – just to rest up for the next drive, which was Las Cruces NM. It is 30 miles from downtown El Paso TX. We drove down one day to take a walk across the border into Mexico. We found it to be very grungy and depressed looking, so after 3 blocks we turned around and walked back over the bridge into El Paso. We lunched at a spot that was highly advertised in national mags to be one of the best authentic eating places in El Paso. We thought it was good, but ate too much, as usual. The next day we took it easy. Then we drove over the Organ Mountains into the White Sands Proving Grounds. Remember this? Werver Von Braun came over to the US after WWII, bringing the V2 technology, as well as tons of parts --300 train car loads to be exact. They have a lot of the missiles that have been developed over the years displayed in an exhibit outside. They also have a V2 missile that they reconstructed that is displayed in a building by itself. There is a museum that we were in for a couple of hours. I took pictures, and will add them later today or tomorrow morning. We were to spend 5 nights in Las Cruces, but left a day early for Tucson because of a high-wind forecast. This was the same storm that did all that tornado damage in Arkansas the next day. We still ran into a lot wind though. Not too much fun driving in high winds!
We arrived in Tucson late Friday. In San Antonio Brian lost a filling in his front tooth, so I called Michelle Ellis if she could recommend a dentist for us. She did one better. She made an appointment with her dentist, and got us in on Monday – yesterday. It was wonderful to see Chelle again. We have been friends since 1960. She is now the Director of the Behavioral Health Services of the Marana Health Center in Marana NM—just 30 miles north of where we are staying. Marana is the place where the latest golf tournament was held – Tiger Woods did not make it…sigh—last weekend.
On the way back from the dentist, we stopped at Beaudry RV just a few miles from our park. We made a good decision when we bought this coach. We could upgrade and get a king size bed, but the cost is staggering. Nearly double what we paid for our Knight!!! So, we have decided that a king bed isn’t quite worth it…duh…rocket science, yes??
So, now we are up to date. Keep checking back. We hope to get internet service this week. They charge by the month, and we also have to buy a modem. Well, we have one….in Michigan. So, we either decide to bite the bullet and buy one from the provider, or make a trek up to the registration office each day to plug in free to the wi-fi there. We haven’t fully decided to go the modem way, yet. So stay tuned!!
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
San Antonio Feb 14
We visited the Alamo yesterday. The weather was sunny, but windy. But, last night was a different story. We awoke today to 32 degrees, and tonight it will be 27! Brrrrrr. No rain, though. AND, no tornado! We have missed 3 of them so far. Last one was in New Orleans last night (Tues), and we left there last Saturday. Tornado #2 hit Mobile on I-10 (we were in N.O.), and then before that, was #1 in Tampa, north 35 miles of where we were. Wow, we've sure dodged a few bullets, haven't we?
We hope to visit more of San Antonio today or tomorrow. Yesterday we had to cut it short because Deanna wasn't feeling well. So, today and tomorrow it will be a high of 50, but 60 and sunny on Friday. Then we go to Fort Stockton, TX on Saturday morning for a couple of days.
We are looking forward to being in Tucson so we can be still for a bit.
Deanna and Brian
We hope to visit more of San Antonio today or tomorrow. Yesterday we had to cut it short because Deanna wasn't feeling well. So, today and tomorrow it will be a high of 50, but 60 and sunny on Friday. Then we go to Fort Stockton, TX on Saturday morning for a couple of days.
We are looking forward to being in Tucson so we can be still for a bit.
Deanna and Brian
Monday, February 12, 2007
San Antonio TX
We left the rv park??? near Houston a day early. It was misting rain on our windshield, and it was time to "get out of Dodge"... It was only less than 200 miles to San Antonio, and it was a breeze, compared to the road construction we drove through from New Orleans to Houston! We are all hooked up, have cable tv, internet, and a nice pull-through site. We even found the liquor store nearby!!
Tomorrow we might go into San Antonio and visit the Alamo. We hear that the city is built around this particular historic site. The weather is sunny, warm (68 today), and no rain. Sounds good! Michigan is cold and snowy, so we are ahead of the game in that regard!
More tomorrow...
Deanna
Tomorrow we might go into San Antonio and visit the Alamo. We hear that the city is built around this particular historic site. The weather is sunny, warm (68 today), and no rain. Sounds good! Michigan is cold and snowy, so we are ahead of the game in that regard!
More tomorrow...
Deanna
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Sunday Feb 11 Houston
This afternoon we tried to tour the downtown area of Houston, but decided to drive to Galveston Island. It was farther than we thought....about 80 miles from our RV park. If we'd known it was that far....didn't look too closely at a map, I guess! Anyway, it was a nice diversion from this rv park. We are leaving tomorrow morning (a day early) and go to San Antonio. Looking forward to the Alamo, etc.
It is raining, and gray, and soon we'll be out of it, I hope.
Cheers!
Us2
It is raining, and gray, and soon we'll be out of it, I hope.
Cheers!
Us2
Saturday Feb 10 Houston
Sunday 2/11: Well, if we thought the last RV park near Baton Rouge wasn't up to par, this place near Houston is the pits! It is in the middle of a field, I kid you not! It looks like they put in electric/water/sewer hookups, ran out of money, and just laid down some gravel and bought some plastic picnic tables. There is dried mud right at the bottom of our front door, and it is suppose to rain today and tomorrow. When we checked in yesterday, Brian paid for 3 nights. (We had reservations for 6.) We haven't unhooked the Jeep yet, and may not do it, either. Just might leave tomorrow morning...forget the small fee we paid for Monday night!
The highway between Baton Rouge/New Orleans was a nightmare. Road construction nearly every mile. If there was a patch of pavement that wasn't under construction, I'm sure it was due to be repaired. We were bouncing up and down...I thought all my dishes were going to be found broken...surprise! They were not. I was shocked. Our brains were sure rattled, but the dishes were not.
Our coach takes up most of the normal highway lane, and when it is under construction, the lanes marked are more narrow, and when they put those concrete barriers next to the right-hand lane, it is harrowing to drive in that lane. Brian was exhausted when we arrived at this park. We left Baton Rouge around 8 am and arrived here at 3 pm....a distance of 330 miles.
But, we are not discouraged...we know there are nice RV Parks out there, just not many on Highway 10 here in Texas. We currently have reservations in San Antonio, Fort Stockton, and Las Cruces NM, then Tucson AZ. We are going to try to add a week at the front end of our reservation in Tucson, and change our reservations in the above cities.
Stay tuned!
Cheers,
Deanna and Brian
The highway between Baton Rouge/New Orleans was a nightmare. Road construction nearly every mile. If there was a patch of pavement that wasn't under construction, I'm sure it was due to be repaired. We were bouncing up and down...I thought all my dishes were going to be found broken...surprise! They were not. I was shocked. Our brains were sure rattled, but the dishes were not.
Our coach takes up most of the normal highway lane, and when it is under construction, the lanes marked are more narrow, and when they put those concrete barriers next to the right-hand lane, it is harrowing to drive in that lane. Brian was exhausted when we arrived at this park. We left Baton Rouge around 8 am and arrived here at 3 pm....a distance of 330 miles.
But, we are not discouraged...we know there are nice RV Parks out there, just not many on Highway 10 here in Texas. We currently have reservations in San Antonio, Fort Stockton, and Las Cruces NM, then Tucson AZ. We are going to try to add a week at the front end of our reservation in Tucson, and change our reservations in the above cities.
Stay tuned!
Cheers,
Deanna and Brian
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Friday Feb 09
New Orleans LA – Feb 06. 07, 08, 09
We drove only 350 miles this time, but still arrived tired. So we are going to try to do only 300 miles each trip.
Our RV Park leaves a lot to be desired. No cable tv (sigh), no wi-fi, unless you wish to pay $5/day. Very basic park. We went to downtown New Orleans on the 7th (Wednesday), 73 miles away, and walked around a lot. Visited the French Quarter, and found it to be relatively empty. I guess the action is at night. This is Mardi Gras Season, and this coming weekend will start the parades in all the cities. I found Mardi Gras to be in all the communities around New Orleans….did not know this. We saw a lot of damage from Katrina, mainly in the vegetation, but didn’t drive through any areas that were flooded from the storm, so cannot report on those. But the French Quarter showed very little damage. Maybe they’ve repaired it all during the last 18 month? We found the walk on the Mississippi River front to be very enjoyable. There was lots of traffic up and down the river. Almost took a tour on the “Natchez” river boat, but the urge over took us! We looked for a place to have some authentic Cajun food, and found very nice restaurant to have lunch. Yum…
On Thursday the 8th, we toured Baton Rouge only 20 miles away and toured it for several hours. The way Baton Rouge (Red Stick) got it’s name: the Indians would put the carcasses of animals and fish high on a pole, and the blood would drip down the pole. It was reported also that some heads of their enemies were also found on top of these poles, with their blood dripping down, Hence, red stick. They have a very nice walk along the MS River, and we did that for a bit. Then, we met a policeman on a bike, and asked him where the Visitor Center was. He directed us back along the river walk, and we walked uphill for several blocks, passed the police station, where the young man on his bike was again. We had only a couple of blocks to go. Very pleasant young woman at the Visitor’s Center. She pointed out several interesting sites to visit, the one she said was new….we could not find it, so decided to have lunch instead. First time we’d had catfish. Not bad, tasted like what we call Fish N Chips, but with a spicy coating and deep fried. As we were heading out of town, we saw the cop on the bike again…He waved!
Big event for Friday the 9th: A visit to the local Wal-Mart, can you believe it? We will be leaving this park early tomorrow morning, and we like to pull over at a rest area, fix sandwiches and eat lunch, then take a small walk. We will have a little over 300 miles tomorrow to Houston.
Panama City Beach FL – Feb 03, 04, and 05
It was a long drive from Tampa on the 3rd – Saturday, over 400 miles, and we were exhausted. We stayed in a small, but nice, RV park that was located right next to a private zoo. When we arrived around 5 pm and we were hooking up, we jumped nearly out of our skins by the sound of a roaring lion! We didn’t realize there was a zoo next door. Mr. Lion continued into the night. We did visit the zoo on the 5th, and found it to be small, privately owned, but lots of animals. There is a giraffe next to the fence that peeks at the people staying in those spaces….very curious fellow named Sydney. We found Panama City to be a typical beach town where Spring Breakers like to come. But the sand was so neat. It reminded us of the white sand at Crescent Beach on Siesta Key in Sarasota Fl. We had pretty cold weather, so were pleased to be heading West to New Orleans on Saturday morning the 6th.
We drove only 350 miles this time, but still arrived tired. So we are going to try to do only 300 miles each trip.
Our RV Park leaves a lot to be desired. No cable tv (sigh), no wi-fi, unless you wish to pay $5/day. Very basic park. We went to downtown New Orleans on the 7th (Wednesday), 73 miles away, and walked around a lot. Visited the French Quarter, and found it to be relatively empty. I guess the action is at night. This is Mardi Gras Season, and this coming weekend will start the parades in all the cities. I found Mardi Gras to be in all the communities around New Orleans….did not know this. We saw a lot of damage from Katrina, mainly in the vegetation, but didn’t drive through any areas that were flooded from the storm, so cannot report on those. But the French Quarter showed very little damage. Maybe they’ve repaired it all during the last 18 month? We found the walk on the Mississippi River front to be very enjoyable. There was lots of traffic up and down the river. Almost took a tour on the “Natchez” river boat, but the urge over took us! We looked for a place to have some authentic Cajun food, and found very nice restaurant to have lunch. Yum…
On Thursday the 8th, we toured Baton Rouge only 20 miles away and toured it for several hours. The way Baton Rouge (Red Stick) got it’s name: the Indians would put the carcasses of animals and fish high on a pole, and the blood would drip down the pole. It was reported also that some heads of their enemies were also found on top of these poles, with their blood dripping down, Hence, red stick. They have a very nice walk along the MS River, and we did that for a bit. Then, we met a policeman on a bike, and asked him where the Visitor Center was. He directed us back along the river walk, and we walked uphill for several blocks, passed the police station, where the young man on his bike was again. We had only a couple of blocks to go. Very pleasant young woman at the Visitor’s Center. She pointed out several interesting sites to visit, the one she said was new….we could not find it, so decided to have lunch instead. First time we’d had catfish. Not bad, tasted like what we call Fish N Chips, but with a spicy coating and deep fried. As we were heading out of town, we saw the cop on the bike again…He waved!
Big event for Friday the 9th: A visit to the local Wal-Mart, can you believe it? We will be leaving this park early tomorrow morning, and we like to pull over at a rest area, fix sandwiches and eat lunch, then take a small walk. We will have a little over 300 miles tomorrow to Houston.
Panama City Beach FL – Feb 03, 04, and 05
It was a long drive from Tampa on the 3rd – Saturday, over 400 miles, and we were exhausted. We stayed in a small, but nice, RV park that was located right next to a private zoo. When we arrived around 5 pm and we were hooking up, we jumped nearly out of our skins by the sound of a roaring lion! We didn’t realize there was a zoo next door. Mr. Lion continued into the night. We did visit the zoo on the 5th, and found it to be small, privately owned, but lots of animals. There is a giraffe next to the fence that peeks at the people staying in those spaces….very curious fellow named Sydney. We found Panama City to be a typical beach town where Spring Breakers like to come. But the sand was so neat. It reminded us of the white sand at Crescent Beach on Siesta Key in Sarasota Fl. We had pretty cold weather, so were pleased to be heading West to New Orleans on Saturday morning the 6th.
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