The State of Texas, USA
Part of a year long trip from Sept ’94 - Sept ’95 through 36
USA States and 2 Canadian Provinces by Jean and Graham Beven in ‘Serendipity’ their
30 foot Winnebago Chieftain.
Texas - Round Trip USA
We spent a lot of time in the state of Texas, USA as there was plenty
on our must see list of places to visit.
There are thirteen National Wildlife Refuges, eleven National Parks and
---- State Parks in the state of Texas.
The State Tourist Office for the state of Texas, USA is: Texas
Dept of Tourism Division - Box 12008, Austin, Texas TX 78711
~~~~~~~~~~
Texas is a big state. Around 800 miles from west to east and just under
1000 miles north to south. Texans are living in the past – they still
think they are an independent country! (It is big enough and diverse
enough.)
There are areas like: the plains of the pan handle, the mountain area in
the far west, hill country in the middle, the tropical area in the south,
the lakes area in the north east and the forest area in the far east of the
state. There are tourist trails in all of these areas plus: the Independence
Trail around the south east costal area, the Forts Trail and Brazos in the
centre, the Pecos Trail in the south west.
We were in Texas twice. Once when we were setting up and setting out. The
second time was in December when we came back through Texas to spend
Christmas with the people who had helped us to get started.
We set off today, Friday, 30th September 1994 . If our plans were to work
out we would be traveling virtually right round the USA. Leaving from
Suncountry, RV, Resort, Whitney, Texas (Which is on the south west
section of the lakes trail). We were heading north to Dallas, on I-35E
and then east towards Arkansas (pronounced ark-an-saw)
The weather for the day was great, 85º. First real stop though was
going to be Fort Worth, on Saturday just to the west of Dallas,
where we visited the renowned Cattleman’s Museum on 7th Street, Downtown,
Fort Worth. We felt like we were now seeing what we had
come to see - America! The museum was jam packed with great stuff
to do with the history of ranching in Texas. With great examples of
branding irons, guns, equipment and believe it or not a massive collection
of different barbed wires. Some of the diorama displays have 'talking
mannequins', talking you through the displays.
There is also a Memorial Hall that honours
individual cattlemen and women whose enriched the growth and development
of the cattle industry.
We followed the trip to the Cattleman's Museum with a trip to Fort
Worth Museum of Science & History just around the corner. The museum
had sections about Rocks and Fossils, Your Body, Man and his possessions,
and the History of Medicine. The most interesting exhibit was the
Texas dinosaur, a 20 foot long Tenontosaurus who roamed the shores
of an ancient sea near Fort Worth!
First night camping out on the road was at Camping
World, Denton. We were after more RV stuff. There is free overnight
parking for ‘customers’,
so it is worth arriving after the store has closed! We did and got
our free night camping, waiting for the shop to open on the Saturday
morning. We had hoped to have a ‘Top box’ fitted but the workshop
was fully booked for the Saturday. We learned a lesson here – to book
ahead for important work. 
We joined the ‘Presidents Club’ which
gave us a 10% discount on anything we were to buy at Camping World
for the next year. As the store is closed on Sundays you could stop
overnight Saturday and Sunday-nights and visit the surrounding area.
We
headed off towards Texarkana, on the border between Texas and Arkansas
. We traveled on the interstate highway through Greenville and Sulphur
Springs. We planned to stay overnight at a free Corps of Engineers
camp site at Wright
Patman Lake, Part of the red River complex in eastern Texas. We
found the campsite OK and were greeted there by a party of rednecks
who invited us to their campfire – which
we declined – as we weren't too sure of ourselves yet. We were
woken around 3.30 in the morning by the sound of heavy traffic and
we could see blue flashing lights through the curtains. Upon investigation
we saw that a largish fire was raging about 400 meters away. It would
seem that a trailer (caravan) had caught fire. We didn't venture
out. In the morning we were told there had been an electrical fault
with the 12v system. All that was left was a burned out chassis. No
one hurt fortunately. Our first bit of excitement!
Sunday, after sleeping in late, having been awake half the night we set
off towards Arkansas .
~~~~~~~~~~
Re-entered Texas from Louisiana on
23 November 1994 after going through Arkansas, Tennessee, West Virginia,
Washington DC, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama,
Mississippi and Louisiana, since the beginning of October. Camped at
Bay Oaks Resort –
24th Did absolutely nothing! Today is ‘Thanksgiving’ – Nowhere
open.
25th Busy day today. On our way to Houston, Texas, visited the (570 foot)
high San
Jacinto Battleground memorial, a tribute to the defeat of Santa Anna's
army, a memorial to an 18 minute battle in 1836 that was a complete
rout of the Mexican forces of Santa Anna by greatly outnumbered Texans,
and the associated museum of artifacts
Also visited the Battleship ‘Texas’ and
heeded the Alligator Warning signs!
In the afternoon we went to the NASA - LBJ Space Centre, 'The Closest Thing
To Space On Earth', just outside Houston, Texas. We thought this venue
was much more interesting than the JFK Space Centre at Cape Canaveral.
More technical stuff to play with, theatre shows, computer games and
we saw the training centre facilities which were being used by actual astronauts
on a space programme. The NASA Tram Tour took us 'behind the scenes'
on a trip that took us to the Space Station Control, training and test areas.
We visited the Rocket Park and saw many of the types of rocket that
have gone into space. We spent about four hours at the centre. An excellent
day.
Camped
(and shopped) at Wal-Mart, Houston, Texas.
The following day traveled from Houston, Texas to Galveston beach and spent
most of the day on the beach, we saw some people using metal detectors
on the beach and not being ones to be left out when we left the beach
we went to an out of town shopping mall at Port Lavaca and guess what?
We bought a couple of metal detectors from Radio Shack, for a more
active beach (desert) life.
Camped at Wal-Mart, Port Lavaca.
27th Traveled to Rockport coast road, Camped at American Adventure.
28th Was a very special day. We left American Adventure at 11.00 and went
to find a dog! We called in at an animal shelter in Rockport but they
were unable to accommodate us that day. We were advised to try PAWS
in Corpus Christie, on Navigation Blvd. We were pretty useless finding
it, a wrong turn here and there. At 1.00pm we found the unit and were
allowed in to look at the dogs. There were some sorry sights but one
stood out as pleasant natured, and lovable dog – “Mickey”.
As soon as we held her she licked us both and played about. We had
found a dog to love. Next stop was the vet – another 20 minutes and
we arrived at one on Padre Island. It was 3.30pm. 
Fortunately
they could see us right away – very
nice people throughout the practice. We changed ‘Mickey’ to a
more feminine ‘Miki’ on her documentation. She was jabbed and
prodded for half an hour and eventually came away with all the right
lotions and potions. It was too late to do anything else by the time
we had finished so it was off to Wal-Mart, Padre Island to overnight
and do some doggy shopping. We had to leave Miki in the house while
we both went – we
weren't
sure what we would find when we got back! She had been a good girl
and seemed to have slept to time away on the passenger’s seat.
We bought a ‘Redwood’ name plaque for on site use, so other
RV’ers passing would know who we were. The day was not over for Miki,
she had to have a bath to get rid of the pound puppy smell! This she did
not like, but afterwards she looked and smelled great! We thought she would
be happy with us.
29th Traveled from Wal-Mart to North Padre Island, South Texas. We all
had a great time. Miki could dig all she wanted but couldn't get
the fetch a ball bit! Moved on towards Brownsville, the southernmost
point in South Texas and the USA mainland. Passed through Kennedy County
on the only public road in the county. THe road is also part of the
'Texas Tropical Trail'. Arriving at River Bend Resort around 4 pm.
Another chance to do some laundry and have a relaxing evening.
30th Left Brownsville via South Padre Island, the weather was warm and
windy but we still stayed until 3.30pm and headed for ‘Camping World’ Mission,
South Texas. (Mission is the self proclaimed 'Home of the Grapefruit'
- The Texas 'Ruby Red' is delicious!) When we arrived there were 4
other RV’s ‘camping’.
We managed to get an electric hook-up (free). Spent a peaceful evening
watching TV and cuddling Miki.
The following day, 1st December, our stay at Camping World was several
hours to 12.30pm Work was done on the Suburban central heating unit
again and they looked at my ongoing battery charging problems. Collected
mail from Mission post office. Our Vehicle deeds had finally got to
us.
Traveled to Laredo , stopping at the dam at Falcon, saw the restoration
and saw the tell tale signs of conflict. Camped at Wal-Mart, Laredo
TX. We should have complained to the managemental team, as the state
of the car park, it was not as clean as most others we had stayed at!
Drove up to the border - just to have a look - We couldn't cross as
we had Miki.
02.Dec 218 miles. From: Laredo via Uvalde, Knippa, Concan, Utopia, and Tarpley
to Bandera TX
Picture
of Winnebago Chieftain, 'Serendipity' in Texas.
On the ‘Hill Country Trail’, crossing the Frio river and drove
through some beautiful hill country. Between Utopia and Tarpley we stopped
at the historic marker of the place where a deputy sheriff was killed by
Indians in 1876. A couple of miles down the road we turned off the trail
and spent some time looking for the dinosaur footprints in the solid limestone
bed of Hondo Creek. We still don’t know if the dents and hollows were
the footprints or not? On the journey today we saw 3 white hart deer,
2 wilds turkeys and at least 50 vultures feeding on a road kill deer.
Camped at Yogi Bears Jellystone Park Resort, Bandera arriving around tea
time. The town were having their Christmas tree illumination ceremony.
Bandera’s
title, “cowboy capital of the world” originated when it became
a staging area for the great cattle drives in the past. Dude ranches
operate throughout Bandera County . A bronze monument honouring the
many National Rodeo Champions, who call Bandera ‘home’, stands
on the courthouse lawn.
Visited
the Frontier Times Museum in Bandera - The collection included artifacts
from prehistoric Texas, cultural exhibits, clothes, weapons and household
items from the 19th and 20th centuries. The life of the cowboy is depicted.
The authentic totem pole outside was one donation. Picture: left.
03 12 94 Taking Miki with us, we walked the local historic trail through
Bandera. 
The
trail turned out to be a 3 hour walk. Along the way Miki attracted the
attention of a large Alsatian dog. We called on a Sheriff’s deputy
to remove the dog back to its owner. We went back to the RV for lunch
around 2 p.m. There was a rodeo a few miles outside town, but we couldn't
hitch a ride – so we just sunbathed!
We spent a wonderful Saturday
evening in a honkey tonk – dance hall, watching real cowboys and their
families doing the Texas two-step and Cotton-eyed-Joe. Jody Jenkins
sang live – great! The Sheriff showed his face a few times during the
evening to check the under 21’s for alcohol consumption. He was carrying
his gun in holster – This is the (wild) west. Stayed a second night
at Jellystone Park .
04 12 94 Followed part of the hill country trail from Bandera to San Antonio,
Texas. Went straight to Dixie Campground in order to meet a couple
that we had met at Suncountry, in September. Once we had booked in
we were taken downtown to see the Christmas lights. There had been
a pageant earlier in the day, unfortunately we missed it. Spent the
evening with our friends.
05 12 94. We got up early to see our friends before he went to work. She
volunteered to look after Miki while we went back down town on the
bus. We arrived at the Alamo about 8.50am.
Picture of The Alamo, San Antonio, Texas.
The Alamo was made famous in late February and early March 1836, by the
189 patriotic defenders of Texas, led by Colonel William Barret Travis,
against the overwhelming odds of the 
4,000 strong army of General Antonio
Lopez de Santa Anna. The patriots who faced certain death included,
Colonel James Bowie (of Bowie knife fame) and David (Davy) Crockett
along with his Tennessee Mounted Volunteers, the 'Tennessee Boys' and
the revered James Butler Bonham who returned to the Alamo whilst it was under
siege. The battle cry for Texas became 'Remember the Alamo! Remember
Goliad!' The former is still used today as a rallying cry.
(Goliad was another massacre by Santa Anna when James Fannin and around
350 of his men fighting the Mexican forces, surrendered with the understanding
that they would be treated as prisoners of war, and then under orders
from Santa Anna were massacred. Like the men who had died for Texas
independence at the Alamo, Goliad also became
a rallying cry.)
The Alamo is maintained by an organisation called The Daughters of the
Republic of Texas.
Did the tour of the Alamo
and followed the trail to The Riverside Mall, followed by some window shopping
and then took a riverboat ride on the San Antonio River and canal branch.
We ended up having a full blown Mexican meal at the oldest restaurant
in town – Casa
Rio. Another great day. Went back to Dixie , picked up Miki and said
farewell. Drove for a few hours to Temple TX, camped at Outdoor America
06 12 94 Spent all day relaxing and doing things around the house. In the
evening went shopping and ended up camping at Sam’s Club, Temple TX.
07 12 94 Traveled from Temple to Austin, Texas. via Salado. Had a domestic
day, laundry. Camped at Wal-Mart, Austin, Texas.
08 12 94 We shopped for material to recover the settee. Upholstery material
seems to be an 'order only' item from in store catalogues, taking 14 – 21
days for delivery. In the late afternoon we were directed to a ‘Cloth
World’ shop.
They stock cut lengths of what appeared to be commercial upholsterers’ remnants.
We found a piece that we liked, but there was only enough to cover
the cushions. We were going to look again the next day. Camped on the
Park and Ride car park on Research Blvd. Nobody seems to park and ride – we
spent a very quiet night.
09 12 94 Spent another day looking for cloth – no joy. We did find
some bits and pieces for Dippy. Camped at Coliseum Park – Where the
free urban transit trams (Dillo’s) run from to town.
10
12 94 Gave up looking for material and decided to do some sight seeing.
Took the Dillo (a largely free tram system) and visited the State Capitol,
(See left) a pink granite building, which was very interesting. In
the main hall there were statues of all the governors of Texas since
the State was an independent republic. We also visited The LBJ (Lyndon
Baines Johnson) Museum. A national institution located on the campus
of the University of Texas. There was everything from the limo’s
he used to his desk with his pen and other personal items. Loads of
photos and exhibits. An interesting audio visual presentation made our
tour more meaningful. On the eighth floor there was a replica of the
Oval Office. (The one we didn't see in Washington DC!)
11 12 94 Traveled from Austin, Texas to Johnson City and booked in at the
Coast to Coast, Pernadales Hill Resort. Booked in for 3 nights (12-13 12
94) to enable us to sort our settee upholstery. Graham installed an outside
light on the drivers’ side,
so we could see to refuel, fill up the water or dump our tanks if it
was dark at the time. We put up some Christmas decorations (ready for
our return to Suncountry soon). Dippy was beginning to look like home to
us now.
14 12 94 After seeing the LBJ Boyhood Home at Johnson Settlement in town
traveled from Johnson City to see the second area of The Lyndon B.
Johnson State and National Historical Parks at LBJ Ranch on the north
side of Hwy 20 about 14 miles from Johnson City. The park straddled
the Pedernales River and had a visitors centre, reconstructed LBJ birthplace
house. There was an informative conducted bus tour. A very interesting couple
of hours.
Then we continued on to
Fredricksburg TX . Visited the town Christmas fair and headed back
to Austin, Texas. Camped at the Park and Ride again.
15th Left Austin, Texas and picked up the Brazos trail headed towards College
Station. This was one of the wettest, coldest days we had known so
far. We camped at Wal-Mart, College Station, TX .
16th Still following the Brazos trail we drove as far as Marlin, TX.
Passing through Navasota , Anderson , Roans Prairie, Singleton, Lola,
Cross, North Zulch , Normangee, Wheelock, Franklin, Calvert and Reagan.
We camped at out favourite kind of place, Wal-Mart, Marlin, TX.
17th Marlin to Whitney, TX. via Mexia and Waco - where we searched out
the location of the Waco siege. (The US government thought David Koresh, the leader of the Branch Davidians was a gun-hoarding criminal who physically and sexually abused the several children he fathered with his followers. He died with almost 80 of his followers in a fire during an FBI assault on their compound in Waco, Texas in April 1993. There are still ongoing questions about the raid having given the "charismatic" religious leader immortality in the press.) All that we could see remaining was the base
pad of the building that the AFT assault team attacked. Nothing to
see really! We then headed straight back to our Coast to Coast home
park, Suncountry, for the Christmas period.
18th - 25th Spent a lot of time with people we knew from our set up
period earlier in September. We met another couple from the UK who
were doing the same as us, only with a Chevy Suburban and Trailer (Caravan).
Generally did a lot of partying all week!
Boxing Day said our lengthy farewells again to the home park and the kind
folk we had been associating with and started to head out west – Yee
ha! Traveled from Whitney to Brownwood, TX . getting there about tea
time. Did a little bit of shopping in Wal-Mart and having partied the
night before, went to bed early, camping care of Wal-Mart yet again!
The best free RV camping around.
27th Traveled from Brownwood to Fort McKavett, TX via Brady, where
we checked out the old Jailhouse and the Gothic style churches. They
were closed for the Christmas holidays? The main features were their
external structure anyway. Camped at Fort McKavett.
28th Visited the ruins of Fort McKavett and the museum housed in the old
hospital. The fort became a settlement after it was abandoned as a
military post. Overlooking the headwaters of the San Saba River Valley
Bottom. There are fifteen restored buildings, including barracks, officers
quarters, hospital, school, bakery etc and the ruins of many others
this is a great insight into the latter half of the 1800's.
We spent the
rest of the day traveling to Del Rio, TX. Camped at Wal-Mart.
29th Spent the day driving around Del Rio. Sight seeing. Did a part of the
walking tour, from the courthouse to the old Methodist Church and back – Visited
the 
Whitehead
Museum, the old 1876 'Perry Store'. In the grounds the last resting
place of Judge Roy Bean's remains. Other interesting items of Native
American origin – artifacts
etc and a Southern Pacific Railroad, Caboose. There was a Chapel dedicated
to the memory of the Spaniards who brought Christianity to the region
over 300 years ago.
Then drove up to Amistad National Recreation Area on
Hwy 90. Saw our first live armadillo and some deer at the National
Park. Spent some time talking to a 70 year old retired surveyor and WWII
conscript called Harley Watts. Another free campsite available within
the park. Stopped over night at Diablo East camping area. The area
is around a reservoir created by the US and Mexican Governments.
The reservoir is fed by the Rio Grande and is dammed on the south end
of a series of canyons that are now flooded.
30th
Left Amistad and drove to Langtry, TX on Hwy 90, crossing the famous
Pacos River . Visited the Judge Roy Bean Visitors Centre at Langtry – Judge
Roy Bean was famous as ‘the law west of the Pacos’ noted for
holding court in his saloon bar. The site now houses the original building
and a cactus garden. 
Langtry is thought to have been named after an
actress - Lilly Langtry, "The Jersey Lilly" who Judge Roy Bean admired
from afar, but never actually met. Visitors step back into history
in the Jersey Lilly saloon, billiard hall and courtroom. The historic
ramshackle structure is complimented by a modern visitors centre. Judge
Roy Bean was a colourful character - he had a pet bear Bruno. Justice
was swift in his court - When an accused was brought in, Judge Roy
Bean would call a jury from his customers. Occasionally he would base
his legal ruling on his one law book! More often than not he would
just meter out his own justice! Judge Roy was cited as a 'hanging judge'
but there are no records of him actually condemning anyone to death!
Camped
at Dyers RV Park, Langtry.
New year's eve drove to Alpine, Texas. Booked in at Pecan Grove RV
Park, Alpine. We would have to stay a day or so until the LPG station
opened after New Year. We were heading off soon into the Big Bend National
Park and didn't
know how long we would be before we could get cooking gas again! Spent
time in Alpine – saw wild deer in the town park.
Saw a dead javelina,
a kind of wild pig like creature, at the side of the road – would have
liked to seen a live one.
New Year over and full of LPG we moved out of Alpine on the 3rd. A clear,
frosty morning! Drove down into Big Bend National Park entering at
Maverick Junction. Took our time as there were fantastic views. Some
really great overlooks and roadside markers giving details of the view.
It is said that when God finished making Texas this is where she dumped
all the remaining rocks and stuff she couldn't use elsewhere!
Picture of the Chisos Mountains, Big Bend NP, Texas
Visited the Visitor Centre at Panther Junction. Ended up at Rio Grande
Village for the night – inside
Big Bend NP. We didn't mind paying
the $10 campground fees.
4th Took the Boquillas Canyon Trail, about a mile and a half round
trip on foot. An amazing place where the Rio Grande cuts through a
gorge. Also a historic crossing place where the Mexican army of Santa
Anna crossed into the Republic of Texas. In the afternoon we hiked
up hill and down dale on a primitive trail to find the renowned hot
springs next to the Rio Grande. 
The
hike was a serious effort! We spent a full hour in the hot springs.
It was seriously cold out of the water. We managed to cadge a lift
back to Rio Grande Village from an unsuspecting camper! That night
we saw our first live javelinas, a coyote and some bobtail rabbits which
being in Texas were the biggest wild bunnies we’d
ever seen!
5th Traveled from Rio Grande Village to Castolon Campground along
the main highway. The route was steep in places with some sharp bends.
There were exhibit areas and overlooks along the way, describing the
terrain, which we visited. Some of the views were overwhelmingly awesome!
When we arrived at the Campground we had lunch before heading off to
Santa Elena Canyon – moving
through the canyon on the trail above the Rio Grande was a fabulous
and exhilarating experience. On our return we met a couple of university professors
who had taken a sabbatical and were touring and living in a small camper.
THe
name 'Big Bend' refers to the great U turn that the Rio Grande makes
here in south west Texas. Where the river goes it is like an oasis
running through the desert.
The Rio Grande is not the huge river it used to be as most of its water
is extracted for irrigation by the US and Mexico before it even gets
to the western edge of the park.
6th
Putting Big Bend NP behind us we traveled to Marfa, Texas via Presidio,
Texas.
On Hwy 170 you drive along side the Rio Grande, the border between
Mexico and the USA. At about ten miles outside Redford there is a
cable stretched across the river with a bogey on it - used by the International
Boundary and Water Commission to take measurements in the centre
of the river. Based on their findings water is allocated to both countries
for irrigation.
In Marfa we were looking for our next
experience ‘The
Marfa Lights’. We
arrived in Marfa in the late afternoon and visited the Chamber of Commerce
offices to get details of the ‘lights’. We were directed to a
viewing area a few miles up the road towards Alpine, TX. on Hwy 90.
This is where we spent the whole night. Sad to say we didn't
see any unusual lights. They were usually seen between May and October.
A pleasant night nevertheless! The mysterious 'ghost' lights are supposed
to appear in an area of the Chinati Mountains east of Marfa. The source
of the Marfa lights turns out to be a rather interesting atmospheric
phenomena. The effect is exactly opposite to that which produces a
mirage.
7th Left the viewing area late morning and headed off towards historic
Fort Davis. Picture of Fort Davis, Texas.
.
Pictures of Fort Davis, Texas
The two pictures above side by side show the parade ground an extent of
the surrounding buildings. In 1854 a brand new Fort Davis was commissioned.
The fort formed a link in the chain of frontier forts maintaining protection
for pioneers and gold seekers traveling the 'Butterfield's Overland
Mail Route and the Austin, Texas to El Paso Road. Defending against the
Comanche and Apache raiding parties. When the railroad replaced the
stagecoach and military needs came to an end the fort closed in 1891.
A little further up the road we arrived at the McDonald
Observatory. If you weren't interested in the stars and planets before
you arrived – you
were when you left. The visit was amazing. We visited the 107 inch
telescope – a
large contraption, the huge dome doors were opened and they moved the
dome around to view the moon. We also had a solar viewing through a
specially filtered telescope that blocks out about 99% of the sunlight,
allowing us to see features on the sun - out nearest star.
After the
day visit we were invited back to a ‘Star
Party’. The constellations were identified and pointed out to us along with some of the planets – we
saw Saturn and a real close-up of the moon! / The nebulae of Orion’s
dagger were terrific too. We camped on the Observatory car park, with
their permission. The observatory is on the top of Mount Locke, 6,800 feet
above sea level. The evening was cold but the whole experience was
worth this minor discomfort.
8th Moved out of The Observatory and headed off towards the Guadalupe Mountains
National Park a remote and wild area just south of the Texas/New Mexico border.
When we arrived at the visitor centre we found that there were no park trails
suitable for us to follow in our motorhome 'Dippy' - 4x4 vehicles only. So ended our Guadalupe Mountains
National Park experience - then on to New
Mexico.
