Friday,
2 March 2018
Martin
Dies, Jr. State Park, Jasper TX
Silly
me – I chose a site here next to some standing water, thinking it
wouldn’t matter because it’s not mosquito season yet. Wrong. The multiple mosquitoes lined up on my screen door are telling me I’m
way off base. Good thing David mended the door for me, because it’d
be stuffy in the cabin without the open door.
Lots
and lots of pine trees out this way, and especially in this park. There are 2 large ones a couple feet away from the RV. The rest of
Texas doesn’t have many pines, but east Texas does and it’s
really nice to be among them.
Today
is Texas Independence Day! One year, Momma and I drove over to
Washington-on-the-Brazos to enjoy their elaborate celebration there.
Reenactments and handcrafts displays and the Texas history museum
they have there. We enjoyed it.
Back
at Brazos Bend State Park (last night), they’ve got lots of signs
warning people about alligators. The call the park “the home of
the American alligator.” I’m very glad we didn’t see any,
because Dexter would undoubtedly be a vet patient now.
 |
| Our campsite at Brazos Bend - lots of Spanish moss |
But
there really were a lot of deer. I mentioned it to the ranger when I
checked out, and she said they didn’t allow a deer hunt this year
because so many deer had died during Hurricane Harvey. But, she
said, the population was clearly rebounding anyway and yes, there
were lots of them.
Sometime
in the middle of the night, I heard a very loud owl. It was an odd
sort of call but recognizably an owl. This morning both my neighbors
mentioned it, one saying it must have been in the tree right behind
my RV – which would explain why it sounded so loud. He said it was a
Barred Owl and, reading the bird book’s description of the call, I
think he’s right. I don’t remember hearing the who-cooks-for-you
but I definitely heard: “a drawn-out hoo-ah,
sometimes preceded by an ascending agitated barking.” It sounded
weird in the middle of the night.
At
that park, I also heard something that sounded like a monkey,
although I’m pretty sure it was a bird. I asked the ranger and she
said she knew what I was talking about but didn’t know the name. Since I was on my way out of the park, she told me to call and transfer me to the nature center, where they’d definitely know. I
have to remember to do that, because it was such a bizarre sound.
Did
you know there’s a very small town named Soda? Neither did I but
I’ve been there. It’s one of the many small towns on Hwy 109
between Livingston and Jasper.
I
noticed when I was getting things set up tonight that the TV had
moved during the drive. It had never occurred to me that I need to tighten the
arm it swings into the cabin on. Yet another lesson.
I
had a great visit today with Mrs. Blackwood and Patty and her husband
Gary. Actually, I think I mostly talked nonstop, but occasionally
I’d let them get in some information about the rest of the family. It was really good to see them again.
I
stopped on my way into Houston to buy gasoline this morning because
the gauge registered nearly empty. As a result, I’m in a position
to state that it only takes about $80 to fill up the tank, given gas
prices of $2.13.
 |
| And the adventure begins!! |
Tomorrow
night, I’ll be staying at Lake Bruin State Park in Louisiana, near
the Mississippi River. They wouldn’t let me have a reservation
because I’m only staying one night (it’s a weekend so they get
picky), but the ranger said not to worry, they weren’t anything
like full right now.
Sunday
night, I have a reservation in Florida at the Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou
State Park. I think it’ll be quite a drive from LA but for some
reason Alabama state parks cost more. Maybe I’ll plan to stay an
extra night at the Florida park, just to get some rest.
The
driving is turning out to be okay – the RV drives like a Ford
pickup, which it sorta is. But I’m not used to driving so much so
regularly, although I’m rapidly getting used to it.
No comments:
Post a Comment