10-26-17 - (Day 87 - Home Sweet Home)

We watched a few more barges on the river this morning then motored the last 159 miles of the trip.  Ferny Kat got excited about half way between Varnado and Bogalusa.  She knew she was Crossroads bound.

The grass had really prospered with all the rain it received while we were gone.  Lauren was able to mow the entire yard before dark.  I pittled in the house and camper, getting the necessities taken care of.

We thought Ferny Kat would get home, find her a place to hide, and sleep for the rest of the day.  We thought wrong.  I could hear her hollering every time I went out to the camper to bring in a load.  Finally, she snuck by and got out the door.  She must be part dog.  Every time I went out, she went out.  Every time I went in, she went in.  She is one sassy cat.

We grilled burgers and sat by the propane camp fire tonight until the cold weather ran us in.

We were gone 87 days.  We traveled 7,502 miles in the truck.  We traveled 4,650 miles on Amber.  We took 7,590 pictures.  Our average camping per night was $ 11.90.  The solar Lauren installed on the camper saved us a lot of money and allowed us to boon dock in some fantastic places.

Pictures are right here:

10-25-17 (Day 86 - Homecoming Eve)

It was a nice quiet, dark night last night, boon docking at the Little River.  We slept good with our extra blanket on.  Around 6 am, the fishermen started coming in.  I hope the fish were striking their hooks as good as they were striking the water last night.

38 miles later, we are at Riverview RV Park in Vidalia, La.  This park has grown and changed a lot since about 13 years ago when we frequented it often.  The owner has made a lot of improvements.

We took a ride to check out Beau Pre' Golf Course and hoped we would see Geoghegan there.  The course was as pretty as ever, and yes, Goeghegan was there.  We were flooded with the great memories of all the fun we had while playing golf here.  Good Ole' Times.

We took a ride through down town Natchez then headed back to camp.  Of course, Ferny Kat was ready to give her stomp of approval when we got back.  She strutted around like she owned the place.

We watched the river traffic go by on the Mighty Mississippi River this afternoon.  A few days into the trip we watched barges on the Mississippi in Missouri, and now our last night of the trip we are doing the same thing in Louisiana.

Home sweet home tomorrow!!

More pictures:

10-24-17 - (Day 85 - Little River Closure Dam)

We got 241 miles closer to home today.  We are Boon Docking at Little River Closure Dam at Archie, Louisiana.  The Little River is larger than it's name implies.

We have a nice grassy, hay field on one side of the camper and the river on the other.  It is quiet here, except for the howling, cold, wind.

We plan on moving to Vidalia tomorrow and watch barges go by on the Mighty Mississippi.


More pics click here:

10-23- 17 - (Day 84 - New Waverly, Texas)

We moved 281 miles east today.  Getting through San Antonio on I 10 was a breeze.  Then we took the leisurely, country roads.  We had no desire to go through Houston.

We are parked at a nice campground, Hillcrest RV Park in  New Waverly, Texas.  The campground has a swimming pool, hot tub, pool table in the lodge, and green grass.

I thought about getting in the hot tub, bur Ferny Kat changed my mind.  Green grass trumps hot tub.  She couldn't wait to get her toes in it.

It has been  a nice, quiet, cool, evening.  Tomorrow, we head to Louisiana.

More pics right here:

10-22-17 - (Day 83 - Bandera Lunch Ride)

It was really cloudy this morning, with that thick southern humidity.  And then the wind started howling.

All the sudden we heard a train noise, luckily there was a horn with it.  Whew! Not a tornado.

After a while, the sun made it's appearance and it was time for a ride

We waited on a train in Hondo that must have been the longest train ever.  It must have had at least a complete gravel pit in the all the train cars..

It was a pretty day but a little bit on the windy side.  We stopped at TJs at the Old Forge on Main Street for our Sunday lunch in Bandera.  The food was very good, and the service was exceptional.

We motored around to the Medina Lake on a rough narrow road and continued on the country roads back to Hondo.

Tomorrow is moving day.

Click for da pics:

10-21-17 - (Day 82 - Frio Canyon Motorcycle Stop)

It was a cloudy start this morning on our hour drive to Frio Canyon Motorcycle Stop.  We passed by there a few days ago, but did not stop.  I took a picture that disappeared from the camera card for some unknown reason.  What a better thing to do today, than to go back, get a picture, and buy a tee shirt.

We saw a few motorcycles when we rode through during the week.  We saw a bunch of them on the weekend.  A lot of people are here to ride the Twisted Sisters.

We avoided the Twisted Sisters, made our way on the river/country roads.  A very relaxing, no roller coaster ride, with pretty scenery and few vehicles.

We stopped on Highway 90 at the picnic area and continued about 8 miles back to camp.

                                                                        Rest Stop 

I did a little maintenance/cleaning up today, getting ready for the trek home on Monday.  The pretty yellow bellied birds came back for a visit.  They must be the yellow birds of Texas.  LOL.  Ferny Kat stole my chair then jumped in the motorcycle ice chest that we were drying out.  We watched  a pretty sunset, and have called it a night.                       

Pics are right here:

10-20-17 - (Day 81- Slow)

We were slow getting out of bed this morning, we moved slow after getting out of bed, we slowly went to Pizza Hut and ate the buffet, we slowly walked up and down every road in the campground, and slowly settled in for the night.

We have been hard at it for the last 3 days and we were glad for this slow day.

                                                                        Our day

10-19-17 - (Day 80 - Texas Twisted Sisters)

 Today we rode the Twisted Sisters Loop in the Texas Hill Country

                                                                  Coyote sighting

Our first leg was on Ranch Road 337.  Shortly after getting on the road, there is a caution sign that really gets your attention.

The road begins with one curve after another looping up and down hills, overlooking gorgeous scenery, while riding beside jagged rocky hills and deep drop offs.   It was definitely a hang on kind of roller coaster ride.  We rode by rivers and creeks, saw some funny looking antelope, rode through numerous towns, and saw unique field art.

The second leg was on Ranch Road 335.  There were lots of big ranches, deer, and rivers on this leg.  Again the road was true to it's name with the curves, hills, drop offs, and gorgeous views.

Our third leg was on Ranch Road 336, again a warning sign was posted.  The road was similar to the other two legs.

We understand why they call these 3 roads, Twisted Sisters.   One 15 mile section has approximately 65 curves.  This is not a ride for the faint at heart.

We took a much needed lunch break on Highway 83, Texas Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway, before heading back to camp.

We sat around watching the yellow birds in the tree behind the camper, then a pretty sunset.  It was another great day in Texas Hill Country.

click for the pics:

10-18-17 - (Day 79 - Stonehenge II Ride)

We were supposed to get up early enough this morning to get our blog and pictures done from yesterday.  The Ferny Kat Alarm clock must be on Mountain Time.  It was after 8 o'clock before she woke us up.

It took a while to get our tired butts going today.  We missed breakfast and had lunch before we departed.

                                                         Downtown Sabinal, Tx.

It was another surprise trip today.  I was too far behind on yesterday to figure out what we were going to do today.   Luckily, I am married to my own personal travel guide.

It was another pretty, light jacket required, ride today.  We went to Stonehenge II and walked under the monument.  We have not only gone to a remake of the London Bridge but to Stonehenge on this adventure.

The ride to Stonehenge II was awesome.  There were so many dips and curves, I thought we were on a roller coaster ride, while riding along the Guadalupe River.

We rode a short distance back on the Texas Twisted Sisters and made our way on the country roads, looking at deer and big horn sheep ranches.

After a gorgeous sunset we are calling it a night.

Click here for pics:

10-17-17 - (Day 78 - Luckenbach and Lyndon B. Johnson National Park)

Lauren did a great job of mapping out our ride today.  I usually Google his planned trips beforehand.  I decided today that I wanted to be surprised.   I was not disappointed.

                                                                    Rode through

We stopped at Luckenbach, looked around and listened to live music.  It was very unique.  And no, Willie and Waylon were not there, Dang it.

Our next stop was the Lyndon B. Johnson State and National Park.  We ate our picnic lunch, then visited the Sauer-Beckmann Farm, a living/history museum farm in the State Park.  It is the home of the midwife that assisted with LBJ's birth.  We walked through the barn, blacksmith shop, and the house and saw sheep, chickens, roosters, and a hog while walking the grounds.

Riding in the working LBJ Ranch in the National Park was awesome. There were deer, cows, horses, donkeys, goats, and buffalo in the pastures.

We were able to actually walk inside and look at Air Force "One Half".  Pretty Cool!

Many of the Johnson's cars were on display, along with a golf cart, fire truck, Amphicar, and an All Terrain Hunting Vehicle that was equipped with a wet bar and gun rack.

We had a very informative, walking tour of the Texas White House. Unfortunately, we could not take photos. We learned a lot of personable things about LBJ and Lady Bird Johnson. Very Impressive! 

                                                             Texas White House

Our last stop was the cemetery where LBJ and Lady Bird are buried.

It was a nice 8 hour day riding the Hill Country of Texas today.  It was cool enough to need a light jacket.  We had so much fun today that Amber's head lights came on before we got home.  It is very unusual for us to be on the road at dark.

                                                        gone too long today

A bunch of pictures today: