Belle Starr RV Park

 Saturday, March 1st 2025

Our last stop on the road home. On the shores of Lake Eufaula in Oklahoma at the Belle Starr Corps of Engineers RV Park.  A nice spot to rest and relax before the final leg tomorrow.  We had originally planned to stop here on our way out but it was still snow covered last week.  Today its a nice sunny 68 degrees with a mild breeze.  

It was just two years ago we began our journeys in Georgie Girl. Now, just 27000 miles later, we've decided to get another Motorhome.  Georgie Girl has been great and we've been with her long enough to recognise we enjoy the time spent out touring the country.  As ideal as she's been, we've also figured out what more we might like beyond what Georgie Girl provided.  So, We've decided to put her up for sale. So for anyone who might be interested, feel free to contact us and we'll be glad to give you the full run down.

I'd prefer to sell her outright, but a dealer trade-in could be in the works if we find what we want and they can make the paperwork easy.  That said, I expect I'll have to get back to changing up the RV Spot at the house to accomodate the new one.  In the mean time, we still have plans for a short trip to Hot Springs, AR next month and a summer trip to New England is also in the agenda.  Hopefully we'll be in the new RV in time for that trip.

I'm glad to have so many friends follow along on our journeys, and the blog has helped me to remember all the places we've been.  Happy First day of March, Cheers!

Kimball Bend Park

 We left San Antonio about 11 am and took the scenic route north through Bourne and Fredericksburg.  After spending the past few days in 80 degree weather I'm looking forward to Spring in the Ozarks.  It was a rough and stressful drive north across the rolling hills of texas.  Nicely, many of the Texas stae highways have roadside picnic areas and I took advantage of a few to calm my nerves.  Driving the Texas back country would have been a lot more enjoyable in a car but in the RV the roads were just narrow enough to test your skills and didn't leave room to take in the views especially when there was oncomming trafic.

We stopped for gas and groceries in Meridian, TX and continued north to Kopperl, TX pulling in for the evening at Kimball Bend Park. It's a Corps of Engineers Campground on the Brazos River southwest of Ft. Worth, TX.  We arrived at about 4:30, got a pull-thru site with a nice covered picnic table, water and electrical hookups.  After getting the RV opened up, Toto and Bilbo took a walk with me across the campground and down to the river.

We'll be here overnight and split up the last 500 miles home with our next stop somewhere in between.  We've been reviewing possible options for tomorrow nights stay but haven't found a winner just yet.  I'm wishing for something more forested or maybe mountains with a view. It's all up in the air at the moment but we'll get something figured out.  

Come back tomorrow and find out.  Cheers!

BFF February

 February, historically has always been the peak of winter in Arkansas. This year was well represented with below 0 temps and an 8 inch blanket of snow to show for it.  I drove the RV up from the lower drive 5 days early to avoid bringing it up in the snow.  Temperatures never got above 30 the whole week and with all the snow we ended up pushing our departure date out another day.  The plan was to take a 3 day drive to San Antonio, TX but our original first stop at Lake Eufalla State park in Oklahome got scrubbed since the park was still covered in snow.  Instead we left a day later and our first stop was at the texas border, below the snow line. 

If ever there was a great way to test your patience, owning an RV should be high on the list.  We arrived at the Red River RV Ranch with a flat tire on the back of the RV.  No idea when it happened, but it wasn't something that could be patched.  We made dozens of calls to neighboring areas looking for a tire but came up empty.  Since we were headed into texas and much denser populated cities I decided to limp along on what we had and continue south.  The tire we needed wasn't found at any of the tire service points we came accross and we stopped for the night in Lampassas, TX at a Harvest Host Vinyard called Texas Legato Winery.

The place was quaint, quiet, and the perfect spot to relax after driving all day totally stressed short 1 tire.  The owner noted a few tire shops in town and we hit the jackpot next morning when a shop in town had the right tires we needed.  Not only that, they accepted the fleet tire service contract we got when we bought the RV and replaced 2 tires in the process.  A ton of weight off my shoulders and we completed our route to San Antonio.

San Antonio, TX is the home of my lifelong BFF Weston and we make an effort to see each other as often as we can manage.  Wes is a much better host than I have ever been. He's always ready to take us anywhere we might want to see or experience.  Of course since it's San Antonio, and Lynn is such a history buff, we find ouselves at the Alamo and Riverwalk often.  Today we went to Market Square and had lunch before doing a little window shopping.  We even walked from Market Square to the Alamo and back.  So much has changed, there was a lot of construction going on and renovation of some of the historic buildings.

We're staying at Lost Resort Ranch on the outskirts of San Antonio.  The place feels like its well out of town but the city of San Antonio has been spreading out more and more for years and as remote as it feels here there are already a lot of communities nearby.  I imagine this place will be surrounded by housing in the very near future.

I know I'm quite late getting this post up but this is really the first time this trip I was up to the task. We have two more days here before we begin the trek back to Arkansas. I'm not sure where our next stop will be just yet but I'll be posting again soon now that I have my mind in a better state.

Thanks for checking in.  Until next time, Cheers!

Northwest towards home

 Well, Sorry for the delayed post.  We spent thursday afternoon in town with friends for lunch. I drove along the coast afterwards looking for a good place to enjoy the beach and let the dogs roam but sadly there wasn't a good spot to get parked when we finally found a nice stretch of beach.  We headed back to the park and spent our last night getting prepared for our return trip.  We awoke Friday morning and were treated to a visitor enjoying the local flora.

I had seen a few doe on occasion during our stay but this was the first I'd seen the buck.  So keenly aware of his surroundings, he wasn't sticking around to pose for me.  We got everything closed up and disconnected by 7:30 but making our way out of the park took nearly a half hour before passing the gate.  From there the GPS was in charge and it was a 6 hour trek to one of my favorite overnight stops at Mount Olive, Mississippi.  So much so that it is the background scene on the blog.  Being winter, we always have the place to ourselves and the boys really enjoy the freedom to run.

It's only an overnight stop, then back on the road again to our next stop and where we are currently for a visit with Lynn's brother Scott in Winnsboro, Louisianna.  This too was to be an overnight stay but winter weather was threatening our return as well.  It's still two travel days from here to Bella Vista and temperatures are expected to be about 5 degrees at home Monday evening then back up to about 20 degrees Tuesday overnight. With the Bitter cold comming down from the north and moisture comming up from the gulf, 3 to 5 inches of snow is actually expected to fall here in Louisianna monday afternoon.  

Our plan now is to head out Monday morning ahead of the snow and make out way north to Maumelle park again. Then make the final leg home on Tuesday arriving home early enough to get unloaded and winterized before nightfall.  Fingers crossed, Let's hope it all goes to plan.  Cheers!

Florida Panhandle

 We got up early Monday morning getting ready to make the final stretch to Florida.  This trip was all about escaping the frigid temps and snow which we accomplished but thats not to say we had escaped the cold. The same actic air was dipping down to the gulf coast as well with just a little less vigor.  For the most part, we've been able to stay above freezing temperatures but 40 degrees isn't exactly t-shirt weatheer either.  I really can't complain, Its good to get out and I'm happy not to be shoveling snow.  

The skies were cloudy when we were getting ready to pull out and a squadron of White Pelicans came up the bayou dipping for breakfast.  Of course, they spun around and headed back out as soon as they saw me but not before I got a good shot with my camera.

We had gotten under way by 10am and drove East on I-10 as far as Pensacola before dropping south to US-98 and following the Gulf Coast the remainder of the trip.  We had plenty of time to kill before check-in time and making an easy drive along the coast was better than racing traffic along the interstate.  After a few pit stops and a re-supply at Publix, we pulled in at St. Andrews State Park and got checked in.  We had been just ahead of another cloud system on our way east and it had caught up to us by the time we arrived.  It was overcast and with temps in the low 40s overnight but the clouds had cleared and we woke up Tuesday morning to clear skies and sunshine.  It's still a little brisk at 46 right now as I'm writing this but the high for today is 59 degrees. If not for the constant 12-15 mph winds out of the north, I'd be in a t-shirt now. 

Being on the gulf coast, there isn't a selection of forested campsites and, RV sites in Florida aren't exactly easy to find during the winter.  This will do just fine.

We'll be here till Friday.  I'll try and update again before we leave but there isn't any Wi-Fi and I'm having to tether to my cell phone signal for a connection.  Until next time, Cheers!

Sioux Bayou

 It's a cloudy gloomy Sunday, quiet aside from Bilbo wanting to play fetch.  Saturday was actually Sunny for a few hours.  The Sun came out about 2pm and although the temps were in the low 50s the sun made it quite nice.  I even broke out the lounge chairs and we sat out in the fresh air for a while to soak up some sun.

It's been many years since I lived anywhere near the coast and although I've not forgotten it, being here along the bayou reminds me that the moon does a lot more than light up the nights.  I've watched the tide rise and fall about three feet here.  Something I took it for granted so many years ago that now seems facinating to observe. The Sioux Bayou has a rich diverse fauna, although I'm limited to what I can observe from the campsite.  I always expect to see the cranes perched on tall stilts for legs on the banks, and half expect to see a gator poking out of the water but as cold as it has been I imagine they aren't moving around very much.  I did get to see a Belted Kingfisher, not a common bird in Arkansas.  A Great Blue Heron, Brown Pelicans, White Pelicans, and several other coastal birds have made appearances during our stay.  The beautiful sunset (below) Saturday evening was tranquil but another low pressure system moved in overnight blanketing dense clouds over the area and now we're expecting rain to start up and continue for the remainder of our stay here.

I'm going to start putting away everything I can before the rain picks up.  We'll be heading out tomorrow to make our way further east and settle in at Panama City Beach for the week.  Untl then, Enjoy the rest of your weekend and drop in again soon when you can.  Cheers!

Winter Storm Cora

 Well, we got it right.  We left Maumelle Park Thursday morning and stayed just ahead of the storm front arriving in Vicksburg Mississippi for our next overnight stop.  It pretty much rained the enitre time we were there and was letting up as we were pulling out Friday morning.  

Heading Southeast Friday we were on the trailing edge of the storm all day with a light misty rain.  My daughter is back home watching the house while we are away and sent us pictures from the back patio this morning.  Looks like we escaped just in time.  Six inches of snow in Bella Vista, and although it's quite beautiful, I'm happy to be down on the Gulf coast for the next week plus.

We're currently staying just outside Gautier, MS at a place called Sioux Bayou RV Park.  Like the name says, our RV Site is backed right up to the Bayou, and not more than 3 miles from the Gulf or locally Pascagoula Bay.

We'll be staying here for the next couple days, I'm not sure if I'll post again before we leave but just check back when you can.  Thanks for stopping by. Cheers!