Turned the corner
After a month’s rest in southern Arizona, we turned the coach eastward with a warm winter closer to family and the winter holidays in mind. Still a long run with some great places to experience along the way.
First stop was a visit to the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute near Ft Davis, TX. CDRI has a long history focusing on the protection and management of this unique desert environment. It’s a place I’ve known since early in my professional career but never had the opportunity to visit. They maintain a beautiful arboretum with nature trails and an amazing nursery for every species and variety of desert cacti.
A short drive off I-10 in west Texas – not to be missed.
Next stop was at our favorite Corp of Engineer’s park in Georgetown, TX (Jim Hogg). We spent some time there last year. It’s close to Austin and some good friends of Denise – so another good visit.
The sunsets over the lake are spectacular. And we get visits from the local deer population…..
It was then a short run south to San Antonio to visit the Alamo and experience the old town river walk.
We enjoyed a ride on the water around the walk… Christmas decorations were just going up …
It was time to make our annual visit to Red Bay, AL and the Tiffin service center. The list was short and assorted minor issues. It is as much an educational stop as service. The techs are always helpful and ready to answer questions and show how to do many simple repairs. The Fall is always busy there, but our expected stay of a couple weeks turned out to be just 5days.
With some extra time, we headed south to the Gulf coast and found a nice RV park at Emerald Beach
Made a visit to Gulf Island Seashore, Ft Pickens and were treated to a visit by an apparently friendly armadillo …
…and got some beach time to put our feet in the sand!
We found Captain Dave’s for a delightful evening and delicious dinner..
Some years ago I came through St Augustine – actually several times, but never saw the old historic city since those visits were by sailboat on the Intracoastal Waterway (AICW). This time I saw the Bridge of Lions from the shore instead of waiting for it to lift for passage.
Also visited the fort that is such a prominent view from the water.
It has been beautifully restored…
And our Thankgiving dinner, while not the traditional menu, was outstanding seafood … including a fine wine list and remarkable deserts of bread pudding and my favorite – Key Lime pie…..
Near the end of this part of our travels we found another Harvest Host stop for a couple days at Summer Crush Winery…. A pleasant place to park, good wines, and live music entertainment ….
Harvest Hosts offer free overnight parking for RVers. In return it is expected that at least a few wines are likely to be sampled 🙂 A second treat for Denise, after the Armadillo, was this resident alligator.
I’ts December now and time to be near family, including all the grandkids !
Postscript: These posts are brief and intended to provide friends, family and others with a look at places we’ve been. Hopefully, it gives a sense of where we are and that we haven’t fallen off the face of the earth, and perhaps a view of what full time RVing can be……
chesapeaketidings & more.. 