Somewhere in Texas

The fog lifted the morning we left Galveston. We detoured down Beach Blvd for a few blocks for a farewell look at the beach, this being the first time we could see it from the road. We took I-35 to Houston even though we normally shun interstates when we can. As I suspected the land between Galveston and Houston is never ending suburbia so we didn’t miss much by zipping by on the highway. Soon we started getting glimpses of the Houston skyline and the interstate started getting wider. By the time we got to the city it was 4 to 5 lanes in each direction.

Houston Texas

Both the city and its freeway system are quite stunning sights to behold. Houston is a very large city with more high rises than I’ve seen anywhere except the Big Apple. Houston is in fact the fourth largest city in population behind only New York City, LA, and Chicago. When you approach intersecting turnpikes the connecting ramps spiraling every direction look like a plate of linguini. Where I-35 and I-10 merged together for a short stretch I counted 8 lanes in my direction that makes that section of road a total of 16 lanes wide. 

I-35 and I-10

Our quick fly by of the city has sparked an interest and next time we come by this way I think I’ll schedule some time to see the town.

Our destination for Saturday was a Thousand Trails Campground about halfway between Houston and San Antonio. The campground is on gently rolling pasture and pecan grove along the Colorado River. I haven’t researched it but don’t see how it could be the same Colorado River that spills over the Hoover Dam in Arizona, there must be two of them. 

A rose among the wild flowers

We’ve been trying to have a zero day where we do nothing, but there’s always something that needs our attention. Our two little dogs have their routines, the derailleur on Millie’s bike had to be adjusted and as usual I am behind in the blog.

Colorado River

Today we took a ride into the nearby town of Columbus, population 3600+/-. Typical small town, but the countryside in this area is very nice, very rural, it has rolling hills, pastures that extend as far as you can see, woodlands with hardwoods of live oak and pecan, Spring has sprung here and the fields are green and dotted with blue, orange, and yellow wildflowers. The trees are just starting to leaf out and soon it will be summer and as I have been told hotter than the dickens.

Texas Blue Bonnets

We discovered a really cool store in our travels today; it’s called the Industrial Country Market. The whole place is off the grid, powered by solar power and outfitted with many self sustaining features, like hydroponic gardening and solar heated water. The grounds have a collection of eccentric art on display and I assume for sale. The owner had wild hair and wore a tie dyed shirt, I didn’t get to speak with him but I’m sure he is an interesting fellow. The store has all sorts of stuff both new and used; I bought ten used audio books for $2.00 a piece. We listen to them on the long stretches of interstate.

Galveston Texas

03-28-2014

Next stop in our spring adventure was Galveston Texas. We stayed in a campground on Beach Blvd called the Sandpiper Resort. The campground is like brand new; I assume having been rebuilt after one of the recent storms. Our cost for two nights was $110, which is the most we’ve paid for a campsite in a long time. As we have found in most of the beach towns around the gulf, the economical state parks are fully booked but we thought being on the beach would be worth it. Unfortunately Galveston was covered with fog the whole time we were there. 

Crossing Galveston Bay on our way to the Sandpiper RV Resort

Our driving tour of town was interesting despite the fog; it’s not your typical gulf coast beach town. It has a deep water port on the bay side of the island and the narrow island has been densely developed from bay to gulf. Galveston has a long history of being battered by storms and maybe it was the fog, but it looked pretty tired to me. But, we had lunch with a friend of Millie’s who had previously lived in Myrtle Beach and Kathy loves living in Galveston. To each their own, for me I haven’t found anyplace I like better than Myrtle Beach

Sandpiper RV Resort

Several people told me to avoid driving thru Houston, for a few reasons, traffic, road rages, crime, and complicated expressways. Well I’ve driven through Chicago, LA, Detroit, New York, Baltimore, DC and lots of other cities so I figured I needed to do Houston too. Tomorrow on our way to our next stop we drive thru the heart of the city.

Pleasure Pier on Galveston's waterfront

 PS: The Sandpiper Resort and Pleasure Pier pictures were collected from the internet, the sky was never that clear while we were there. that

Tabasco factory tour

Wednesday 3-26-2014

New Orleans to New Iberia 122 miles

A few miles south of New Iberia Louisiana is Avery Island, home of Tabasco Pepper Sauce. All the Tabasco sauce ever sprinkled onto every food imaginable came from the McIlhennys factory on Avery Island. It’s a simple process; age crushed red peppers in oak barrels for 3 years, then mix with vinegar and salt. Don’t have time to ferment your peppers for 3 years, neither do I. It’s easier to by Tabasco at your local grocery store, I don’t think I’ve ever been in a store that didn’t carry the brand.

The factory tour consists of a ten minute film about the history of the McIlhennys and Tabasco and a short walk past the bottle filling machinery. Afterwards you can visit the gift shop which sells anything and everything Tabasco. I thought the pepper sauce flavors not available anywhere else were the most interesting, Like Raspberry Chipotle and McIlhenny Family Reserve ($10 a bottle). 

While on the island we also toured the 275 acre park built by one of McIlhennys sons. It has a 3 mile road that goes past the major points of interest and also several walking trails. The park is mostly natural with native plants but has several highlights. There is a nine hundred year old Buddha in an oriental garden setting and a 35 acre rookery in which thousands of Snowy Egrets return to mate and raise their young. The linage of the birds goes back to a small group of birds that the McIlhennys moved to the island when they were in danger of going extinct. Snowy Egrets were almost hunted into extinction when plums of feathers were fashionable on women’s hats.

We stayed the night in a convenient RV park right off the highway; it was your typical overnight quality stop , no amenities, just a safe spot to park for the night and reasonably priced at $25. As a plus it did have cable TV.   

Let the good times roll

We’ve moved again, we have been in New Orleans for the last few days, camped in Bayou Segnette State Park on the west bank. It’s an interesting place with a flood control dike running thru it. I’m assuming the campground is on the safe side of the dike but there’s water on both sides so, who knows? Anyhow it’s very convenient to the French Quarter via the Algier’s passenger ferry. 

By the French Market

How do I describe New Orleans? As the old idiom says, it is all things to all people. From the party scene of Bourbon Street to the interesting architecture of the Garden District, it is indeed the most eclectic city of the antebellum south.

The French Quarter

Admittedly a brief visit we hit most of the tourist spots; The French Quarter, St Charles street Trolley, the Garden District, cemeteries, the French Market, Jackson Square, the waterfront park and  Bourbon Street. 

Interestingly there are very few epitaphs on the grave markers here, just names and dates.

We enjoyed a delicious lunch at the Old Coffee Pot Cafe which has been serving guests in the French Quarter since 1894. Afterward we planned on getting beignets for desert from Cafe Do Monte but so did every other tourist in town. We opted to not stand in the long line for what is essentially a powdered sugar covered donut.

Our feet were tired when we boarded the Algiers ferry for our mini cruise across the Mississippi to our jeep and a short ride back to the campground.

Poor Po Bo in Bayou

3 22 2014

Saturday we went to the nearby Waters edge Mall here in Biloxi. There was a sale at Belk’s so Millie went there and I went to the book store. Five pair of pants and one travel guide book later we were done. Millie was thrilled about getting her favorite brand of britches on sale and from a male perspective not having to go in Belk’s made the shopping trip a painless experience. 

beach front stores on stilts

After shopping we had lunch in one of the reconstructed waterfront restaurants, all of the new stores and restaurants built on the gulf side of Beach Blvd are on very tall piers, I’d say they are about 20 feet off the water. Sadly our lunch was just mediocre. Millie had an ok “Philly Cheese steak” but that didn’t surprise me. I wouldn’t expect to find a good one outside a 100 mile radius of Philadelphia. Philadelphia’s (nobody from there calls it Philly) 100 mile dome was for a time also the limit of Tastycakes and scrapple. Tastycakes will never be the same; they are now shipped frozen all over the country. Scrapple is slowly finding fans outside the area. I had a shrimp Po Boy Sandwich and I am just dumbfounded as to how a seafood restaurant in the Mississippi Bayou could have messed that up, but they did. The one redeeming item was their spiral cut fries, they were excellent.

Our camping spot behind the Biloxi Elks Lodge

After stopping at the motorhome to walk the dogs, we switched from jeep to bikes and rode up the beach to the two large casinos. Millie put a five dollar bill in her pocket as her gambling allowance and I planned on spending one dollar. Our friend Doug told us this morning to bet number 14 on the roulette wheel.  He said it had just popped in his head when he was talking to us and it must be our lucky number. So I took my dollar and headed to the wheel, much to my surprise the minimum bet is $10. I left with my dollar intact and Millie with her five. Her enthusiasm for gambling was squashed by of the large number of people who looked like they were on welfare throwing their; or as we saw it, the taxpayers money away on the slots.

As I proof read this I noticed it looked a little negative but don’t think it was a bad day. How could it be bad, we are on the coast, the sun is shining, we are wearing shorts and riding our bikes along the waters edge. Life is sweet! 

Jefferson Davis Home

03-21-2014

We are still guests of the Biloxi Elk’s Lodge and have decided to stay two more nights. Today we rode our bikes 4 miles along Beach Blvd to the home of Jefferson Davis, the only president of the confederacy. We spent several hours touring Beauvoir as the house is called and also the grounds, and confederate cemetery. We also watched a couple short films about the history of Beauvoir and President Jefferson in his Presidential library which is also on the property. 

Beauvoir is located just across Beach Blvd from the gulf; its floor is 23 above sea level. Even at that height Katrina flood waters entered the house and its winds blew off all the porches. The 150 year old house survived and is being restored by its owner, The Son’s of the Confederacy.

 Almost all of the other old mansions that once lined the shore did not fare as well, privately owned almost all of them are gone forever. Ten years after Katrina brick steps and concrete driveways are all that remain on the many empty lots where charming southern homes once stood

Biloxi, Mississippi

3-20-2014

On Thursday we drove from the Styx River RV Resort in Alabama to Biloxi Mississippi, a distance of about 75 miles. We are staying at the Biloxi Elks lodge which sits right on Beach Blvd with a beautiful view of the Gulf of Mexico. The lodge was flooded during hurricane Katrina despite being about 20 feet above the gulf waters but has been repaired. The surge along the coast on the east side of New Orleans was 24 to 35 feet high. The storm was much stronger and devastating here but Orleans got all the notoriety because of the flood. This area is still recovering from Katrina and has been largely on their own, all the media and government's attention being given to New Orleans. 

The Katrina storm surge here at the Elks lodge was 24 feet above sea level

In the afternoon we drove the length of Beach Blvd from Biloxi to Gulfport. In Gulfport we walked the docks of the new city marina. Everything of value except the boats is located at the top of tall platforms about 20 feet above the water. The platforms are camouflaged with slats and look pretty good, IMHO

The towers above the docks contain the electrical equipment and will hopefully keep it from being damaged in the next hurricane

In the evening temperatures dropped into the sixties so we put jackets on for a stroll along the beach. We walked about a ½ mile down to a public fishing pier that juts out 3 or 4 hundred feet into the gulf. Only two people were fishing; most, like us just enjoyed the night air and used the lighted casino across the water as a backdrop for pictures. The beach sand here is very clean and light colored. It’s not white like the Florida panhandle beaches but a little lighter in color than our Myrtle Beach sand. 

Pensacola Fl to Mobile AL

3/18/2014

On Tuesday the 18^th we drove the jeep to Pensacola, Florida, our main objective to tour the Naval Air Museum. Having been to the crown jewel of military aviation museums (Wright Patterson Air Force Museum) in Dayton Ohio everything else seems a little small but we enjoyed it just the same. The inside displays are very nice and thoroughly document navy aviation History. Millie and I both liked all the early aircraft as well as the state of the art fighters. Like I always do in these places I spent some time gazing at the aircraft I have some connection to,  the OV10  Bronco, O1 Birddog, Huey Cobra and of course the Charlie model gunship that I flew so many hours on.   One thing we both noticed was the static displays of aircraft they have outside are kind of shabby looking. I think the humid salt air is not the best place to have old aluminum aircraft sitting unprotected.

 Gunship

We spent most of our day at the museum but did drive through downtown Pensacola. It’s a smallish city, not very impressive. The waterfront area is undergoing a renaissance and is very nice; some of the city homes have New Orleans style wroth iron balconies but the houses themselves are just plain row house design.

3/19/2014

Wednesday we drove, again in the jeep to Mobile, Alabama and then down to Dauphin Island. Mobile is much smaller than I thought it would be, but it has a huge maritime industry. Everywhere along the shore there are shipyards, bulk unloading docks, and refineries. The highlight of our visit was the Battleship Alabama Memorial Park. In addition to the battleship the park has a Vietnam Memorial, Korean War memorial, war dog’s memorial, and many static displays of aircraft, boats, tanks, and artillery.

The Alabama

We had heard that Dauphin Island was beautiful with sand as white as snow. I think whoever said that was thinking of Detroit snow on the sides of the road halfway thru winter. The Florida Panhandle beaches are the whitest we’ve seen anywhere. For the most part the island is covered with sand dotted with weather beaten stilt houses. It reminded me of the outer banks. We then took the ferry across Mobile Bay to Gulf Shores and drove the coast to Orange Beach and then north to the campground. Both Gulf Shores and Orange Beach looked like nice places to vacation with lots to do in the area.

Mobile Bay Ferry

We're on the move again

Once again too much time has passed without a blog posting. This time I have a good excuse, Millie was away for a week and I’m rather boring without her. Millie flew out to New Mexico to visit the family and I stayed in Florida with the dogs. I did keep busy during her absence doing little jobs on the motorhome, but nothing blog worthy. Millie enjoyed her week out west and flew back into Orlando on Saturday evening. Sunday morning marked the end of our winter retreat in central Florida.

We had a little excitement before we left the campground. A motorhome down the row from us caught fire and the street was soon filled with fire fighters and spectators. The good news is no one was in the motorhome; the bad news is, their motorhome is toast. 

Sunday we drove a leisurely 200 miles to the Elks Lodge in Perry Florida. We spent the night in one of their RV sites adjacent to the Lodge. We arrived early enough to go for a bike ride but didn’t venture far as there was a dark storm front to the north of town. The violent weather stayed to our north when the front passed but it did rain all night. We were the only visitors at the lodge and heard no sounds but the patter of rain drops on the roof most of the night. 

Monday we drove along the gulf road, passing through the beach towns. Some are laid back towns from another era and some are opulent playgrounds for the rich. The small town of Apalachicola looked very interesting and we plan to return someday for an extended visit. Campgrounds along the beach road are very expensive with prices ranging from $75 to $115 per night. These prices make the reasonably priced state park campgrounds highly sought after and almost always booked for months in advance. We went inland about 30 miles and used one of our discount memberships to stay for $10 a night.    

Kelly Pickler concert

Once again a week has slipped by and I haven’t posted to the blog. Knowing so many of you start your day with my literary wit, (lol) I apologize for the omission. I know you’re going to shake your heads and say “what?” when I say this but we’ve been busy. I know, we’re two retired folks sitting in an RV in Florida.  How can you be busy, but it happens.

On Tuesday we went back to the Strawberry Festival for the Kelly Pickler (American Idol runner up) concert. We arrived early to stroll the fairgrounds and eat another carnival dinner. We had pizza this time, it was pretty good too, of course all pizza is good, some is just better. I don’t want to sound like we didn’t enjoy the concert because we did but with a cravat. We all got familiar with Kelly Pickler on American Idol where she sang cover songs that we knew. In her concert she sings all original material and I guess we haven’t been keeping up with her because with the exception of the song about her mother’s abandonment, we didn’t know any of the songs. She is still has a good voice, she still portrays herself as the simple country girl and she has excellent stage presences, but we would have enjoyed it more had she sung music we knew.

As much as I would rather travel without an itinerary we are leaving soon for some popular destinations so I must plan and make reservations. I devoted some time to that endeavor last week. Millie was busy preparing for her trip out to New Mexico. She flew out on Saturday and is visiting her daughter and helping with the kids while Dave is away on business.

As soon as Millie returns we leave central Florida and start our spring time road trip, more on that as it unfolds.

Stay warm and we’ll see you down the road!

Mexican cookies

We’ve done the campground shuffle once again and are back in Orlando. The Shuffle is mandatory because of our time share like membership in Thousand Trails. It’s a little different than the more familiar condo time shares because for our yearly fee we get 50 nights of camping in any of 59 different campgrounds, two of which are in Florida.

Anyhow we’re back for two weeks. Moving isn’t any inconvenience for us, we can pack up and be road ready in ten to fifteen minutes. After a couple weeks in one spot we’re usually ready to move on to someplace new. There is a small town called Bartow that we pass thru when we migrate between campgrounds and we always stop for cookies in the Mexican bakery there. The El Patron Supermarket is a hidden gem we found a couple years ago when we had a flat tire across the street. 

As you can see in the picture, it’s a small ethnic grocery store/restaurant/bakery and to be honest if we hadn’t broke down in front of it we probably would have never stopped there. We’re usually the only non Hispanic customers, but they are very cordial and bake the best cookies and pastries.  

Strawberry Festival

Florida is a leading provider of strawberries to the US in the winter months. A large percentage of the growers are in the Plant City area which is just east of Tampa. Every year at this time the strawberry festival is held, we were aware of it in years past but this is the first year we have visited the event. 

Picture a state or county fair and you’ll have a good ideal of the Strawberry Festival. Two different carnivals are set up, one on each end of the fairgrounds. There were more food concessionaires than I’ve ever seen in one place at the same time. Musical entertainment is none stop all day plus there are two headliner shows per day, each one with a different well known entertainer.  We took in two shows, A Las Vegas band called Savannah Jack and an all female group from Alaska called Redhead Express, both were very entertaining. Many of the pavilions held crafters and entrepreneurs selling every type of gadget or gizmo you can think of. There is also an agriculture building with many different breeds of chickens, rabbits, goats, cows and plants are displayed.

Last but prominently promoted everywhere is strawberries, by the case, in shortcake, strawberry pie, strawberry tart, strawberry pizza, the strawberry princess, take your picture with a giant strawberry. I think the only way I didn’t see them was deep fried, but that’s not to say fried strawberries weren’t there, maybe I just missed them!

While there on Friday we purchased tickets for the Kelly Pickler concert on Tuesday evening so we’ll be going back for that, and more of that fried carnival food!