A Few Photos

Took this photo of a painted bunting at Garner State Park in Texas while Gene and I were playing Scrabble.





The Florida Gulf coast is beautiful! White sandy beaches and aqua blue water.



The baby foxes were playing at Poe Springs near Gainsville, FL. We arrived here yesterday and will leave for Key West on Thursday morning.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

The good: Drove from Port Arthur, TX, through the south part of Louisiana. Had a fun trip across a river on a ferry with the RV and Saturn attached. Pretty exciting! The ferry crossed in a strong tidal current and was almost sideways by the time we reached the far shore. Felt alot better once we were docked and had all wheels on solid ground again.

The trip thru the south part of Louisianna was quite different. Narrow roads with water on both sides most of the way. So narrow that we could not even stop when we saw a tree filled with about 40 roseate spoonbills (like a flamingo but with a bill shaped like . . . you guessed it . . . a spoon).

Camped for two nights at Fontainbleau State Park on the north shore of Lake Ponchetrain where there are eagles, alligators and beautiful live oaks filled with Spanish moss.

The bad: Had a water hose break while driving on I-10. Louisianna has the worst roads in the nation. Narrow, bumpy and in need of repair. Pulled into a restaurant parking lot, called GoodSam Club and they had a mechanic to us in about an hour. He fixed the hose and we were back on the road in about three hours.

The ugly: Alligators! We had pulled off the road to watch birds and I meandered across a vacant lot toward a pond. I heard a loud "splash" and immediately thought "alligator". Headed right toward me was one of the ugly fellers. Needless to say I made a beeline back to the RV.

There is a lot of evidence of hurricane damage in S. Louisianna. We drove past many, many house foundations . . . with no houses attached. They are rebuilding on many of the same lots, but adding either stilts to the houses or building up the house pad several feet.

Cajun Cuisine and Croca . . . oops, Alligators!

We are now in Port Arthur, TX, at the Pleasure Island RV Park. Sea Rim State Park, where we had planned to stay, is closed due to Hurricane Rita damage.

We're in a great spot! Nice grassy park with a pond outside our door. When we looked out the windown upon our arrival, Gene thought there was a log in the pond . . . until it yawned! The alligator is a local resident and won't bother you if you leave it alone.

Had wonderful cajun food today. Crawfish ettouffee, boudain balls (fried rice, pork and liver mixed together), and a fried oyster Po' Boy sandwich. Yummmmm. They also served Land Shark Lager.

Tomorrow we head for Lake Ponchetrain (Sp?)

Bird sightings today: an indigo bunting (all blue) and a flock of cedar waxwings

Sue

Change of Itinerary - Now at Garner State Park

Seminole Canyon didn't get us far enough east for one day's drive, so we decided to drive to Garner State Park. It's a beautiful site with live oak and cedar trees set along the Frio River only about an hour west of San Antonio.

Birding here is fabulous! Saw my first ever painted bunting, a beautiful little bird with red breast, green back and blue head. Also saw our first Crested Caracara that looks like a turkey vulture, but has a white head and tail. AND we saw a few scissor-tailed flycatchers at a rest area on Rte. 90.

Other birds seen: Vermillion flycatchers, yellow rail, black vultures, common black hawk, Scott's oriole and black-crested titmouse.

Life is good!

Check It Off the "Bucket List"

We've always wanted to soak in a natural hot spring . . . and Big Bend has one of its own. We drove down a dust road three miles to the edge of the Rio Grande where an enterprising man built a motel, post office and store out of stone in the 1920's. He enclosed the hot spring with a rock bath house, but a flood washed away the structure many years ago. All that exists today is the foundation of the bath house, which makes a large hot tub for bathers. Temperature of the water is a perfect 105 degrees. The spring dumps directly into the Rio Grande that runs alongside, so you can step over the foundation wall into the river to cool off. Check it off the bucket list!

Big Bend is BIG!!!

Arrived late and it was still windy. Good because it kept the mosquitos from landing and biting. It was 102 degrees here today. The wind howled throughout the night, but we awoke to a calm and cool morning. Camped in a grassy area with lots of cottonwood and ash trees. The high today will be in the mid 80's.

Big Bend is 800,000 acres of desert, mountains and, of course, the Rio Grande River. Reminds us alot of Arizona. We drove the entire park, from west to east and south to north. This is cattle baron country, and the US Govt. bought up ranches in the 30's to create the park. Some of the features in the park include old ranches, cavalry posts and crumbling adobes.

The roadrunners here are abundant and as tame as chickens. There are also many vermillion flycatchers, Wilson's warblers and turkey vultures. Saw our first golden-fronted woodpecker (like a ladderback but with a gold patch on the nape of its neck). There are over 400 species of birds found here. My quest is a painted bunting!

On The Road!

First stop . . . Casa Grande and lunch with Jan Clarke, daughter Dena and newborn Alexandra. Jan looks and sounds much better than a few months ago. So glad we had this visit.

Next stop: Rest area overlooking Las Cruces, New Mexico, where we fixed dinner and watched the lights come on in the city below. One hour later we were in El Paso. Drove thru the historic downtown past St. Patrick's Cathedral. Wondered if any of the Munzingers attended school there. El Paso is hilly and rises above the Rio Grande. We pulled into the Elks Club on Cliff Street where we could see downtown buildings and the lights of Ciudad Juarez spread out across the river and twinkling below us on the Mexico side.

The next morning we found a Costco and filled up ($3.22 gal.) and started off for Big Bend. It was windy today. Lots of blowing dust as we headed east on I-10. At Van Horn, TX, we turned SE on I-90. No more semi's!!! Much easier and less stressful driving. We love it!

Lunch at Marfa, famous for its mysterious "Marfa lights" that blink on and off over the desert. But it being noon . . . we pressed on after a great barbecue lunch at an old adobe house called the Blue Moon. Turned south on Rte. 67 and saw our first antelope herd, then east thru Big Bend Ranch State Park along the Rio Grande. Lots of ghost towns with collapsing adobe and rock houses.

Road Trip Schedule

April 16: Leave Phoenix in RV; overnight at El Paso Elks Club
April 17: Leave El Paso; arrive Big Bend National Park for four day visit
April 21: Leave Big Bend; arrive Seminole Canyon State Park, TX
April 22: Drive to Sea Rim State Park, Port Arthur, TX
April 24: Drive to Fontainbleau State Park, Louisiana
April 27: Drive to Gainsville, FL; stay with Jim and Sandy Dafoe
May 1: Leave Gainsville with Dafoes enroute to Key West, FL
May 2: Arrive in Key West; reservation at Key West Naval Station FamCamp
May 2-10: Explore southern Florida and Everglades area
May 11: Arrive Pensacola, FL for Bashaw reunion
May 15: Leave Pensacola for Charleston, South Carolina

Once in Charleston, we will begin exploring space available military flights to Europe. We'll update this schedule once we reach Europe.

Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

Here's a great recipe for peanut butter cookies using just three ingredients:

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg

Mix together. Make small balls and drop on cookie sheet. Press flat with tines of fork in criss-cross pattern. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Delicious! Recipe from our neighbor Bev Wood in Heber, AZ. My grandson, Riley, loves these.

Sue

Getting Ready to Hit the Road

The Crabbs are now at home in Phoenix working on a long "to do" list before taking off in the RV for several months. Our next adventure takes us to Big Bend National Park, the Florida Keys, Everglades and Dry Tortugas, Pensacola for a Bashaw Submarine reunion, then up the east coast to Delaware where we will hop a military "space available" flight to Europe. We don't know where in Europe . . . that's part of the adventure. Possibilities include Spain, Italy, Germany or England. For those interested, just check our blog to see where we end up!