Friday, April 18, 2008

Bay City Rollers

We are at the Wal-Mart in Bay City, Texas (map).

Our friends in Beaumont were available Wednesday evening, and so we extended our stay at Galveston Island State Park by another day. They were gracious enough to drive all the way down to Galveston to visit, and we had a lovely dinner at local favorite Rudy And Pacos, downtown on the strand.

We were unable to connect with our friends in Channelview, as one of them is under the weather right now, and so we decided to wrap up our stay on the island and head back out the way we came in -- south over the San Luis Pass and through Brazoria county, thus completely avoiding the traffic nightmare that is the greater Houston area.

We are en route to the Corpus Christi area, where the beaches should be somewhat warmer, for a bit of relaxation, but, more importantly, where there is also a branch of Detroit/Allison distributor Stewart & Stevenson. S&S also has a branch in Houston, but Corpus is smaller, less busy, and had a friendlier feel last time we were there three years ago. Our transmission is still giving us Code 12 on a daily basis, and I'd like another professional opinion on it. I might also have them run a quick engine diagnosis, although the low power issue seems to have been mostly rectified by replacing the air filter.

Last night we were inundated with rain, a torrential downpour accompanied by 60MPH winds. This is the first rainfall we've encountered in many months. It all lasted only an hour or so, but with that amount of water all our leaks paid us a visit. Fortunately, Louise's new super-technogeek Midland Weather Radio alerted her in the middle of the night, and she jumped up to batten down the hatches and stow the satellite dish as a precaution.

From here we will continue southwest through Port Lavaca and then angle down to the coast at Port Aransas, where the wobbly ferry will take us across to the barrier islands. I have my sights set on Mustang Island State Park, but advance intelligence suggests that the campground may be full until Sunday night. They also have some primitive sites which might be available, or we may stop for a night or two between here and there.

5 comments:

  1. I saw your bus in Port Lavaca at WalMart today and had to get online to see what a Neoplan Odyssey is! Neat site! Neat bus!

    FYI, you can dry camp at Magnolia Beach, 14 miles from Port Lavaca. RVers fill water tanks and dump at the volunteer fire station and drop a donation in a box there.

    Happy trails.

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  2. Take a look at Goose Island SP (just north of Rockport, I think) also. We spent Christmas 2006 there and absolutely LOVED it. Check our blog for photos. This time of year you can probably get a water spot no problem.

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  3. I forgot to add; we've stayed at both parks (Mustand Island and Goose Island) and right on the beach at North Padre and much preferred Goose Island.

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  4. It is so heartening to see comments and suggestions coming your way from friends AND strangers.

    We like the Forum and are visualizing ET happily ensconsed there.

    xox
    bc & ah

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  5. @R: How fun that you found us by taking the time to search after seeing the bus! Welcome and thanks for the camping recommendation.

    @BearC: I didn't think anyone was stranger than our friends :-) Agree 100% about the Forum. Hugs to you both!

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