Winter Excursion 3, Day 123

Another lazy morning after a night of thunderstorms and rain. We are actually getting used to it!
We left camp late morning to run all of our errands. Ice was first,Walmart was next, then went to lunch at this place (Pig Out Inn Barbecue). The food was good and the atmosphere was crazy. There were a lot of locals there so we knew the place was going to be good. We were not disappointed.

Back at camp we got everything packed up to move tomorrow. We were glad we did as the rain and thunderstorms started again around 1630.
Showers, a quick dinner, a little TV, then off to bed,
Travel Day tomorrow.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 122

We had a lazy morning and then went to do laundry. We had seen this laundromat on our travels back and forth to Natchez, but I was not able to find it on google maps. While we were there we met the owner (a really nice guy) and I asked him why it wasn't on the maps. He replied that it has only been here for a year and he had been meaning to get it on google maps. The place was really nice, clean, not crowded, new, and the staff was friendly. So Cath and I hooked him up on google maps as we are "local guides" now because we have posted so many reviews and pics. The owner was really happy. It was our pleasure to help him out, the place was really great. 

I drove back to Louisiana (about 7 miles) to pick up some wine as the prices in Mississippi are crazy.
Back at camp we spent the afternoon outside until the rain started (what else is new on this trip).
Another movie night as the rain will continue, a few errands tomorrow and get packed up to go to see the WACKO (Jacob) on Friday.....LOL...we can't wait!

Winter Excursion 3, Day 121

It started raining around 0400 and continued on and off for most of the morning.
We left camp around noon and did a few errands. The rain slacked off and the sun actually came out in the afternoon. We played some cribbage (Cath was lucky) and watched a little TV.
I think we are going to get some neighbors as the rangers posted reserved signs on some of the nearby sites. We've been one of only three campers at this campground since we got here.

Another evening for dinner and a movie.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 120

We left camp and stopped at Emerald Mound. This is the second largest mound in the US.

As we discovered our first year of traveling there are hundreds of these mounds throughout the US. We try to stop by if we are near one.

Next stop was Melrose Plantation in Natchez. The large mansion was closed for renovations, but the gardens were open.

The gardens will be beautiful in a few more weeks, everything is just starting to bud.

On the other side of town is the Natchez National Historical Park and Visitor Center. It is right on the Mississippi River. We watched the short movie about the area. The movie was OK, but we wished it would have been more about the history of the area rather than how "wonderful" the area is. 

Across from the Visitor Center is a bluff with a great view of the river.

We had lunch at Fat Mama's tamale joint. Read the red banner in the upper left corner of the pic. That is their slogan!

We snapped a pic of this place. It is a private home!

The Natchez Grand Hotel is the large brick building to the left.

Another view of the Mississippi from the opposite direction.

Back at camp the weather was so nice we were able to sit outside, a rarity on this trip! We played some cribbage and watched an old John Wayne flic.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 119

We woke up to a beautiful, clear day with temps in the 50s. Finally some nice weather.
Here's a pic of our campsite.

And a pic from our site looking down towards the other campsites. There is no one there!

We left camp and headed to Grand Gulf State Park. This was the place we were supposed to be at, but flooding canceled our reservations. We took the Natchez Trace National Parkway to get there. We didn't know about this parkway. It is over 450 miles long and goes from Natchez, MS to Nashville, TN. Next year we will do the whole thing.
First stop on the Parkway was Mount Locust.

We got our passport stamped and headed north.

This is called Sunken Trace.

Google Natchez Trace, it has a long history. It reminds us of the Blue Mountain Parkway.

We arrived at Grand Gulf Military State Park. Here's a view of the Mississippi! That road is about another 1/2 mile long!

This is the front gate to the park and campground. It's a nice place, everyone who is camping there is packing up and leaving as the flood will close the road in the next two days.

Back at camp I rinsed off the truck and Cath did some cleaning up inside.
More exploring tomorrow. All is well!

Winter Excursion 3, Day 118

Woke up to a humid, drizzling, foggy morning. Cath got the inside ready to go and I put the finishing touches on the outside stuff.
While I was finishing up my phone rang. It was Grand Gulf State Park (our next destination) calling to inform us our reservation has been canceled! Seems the place is flooded or at least the road into the park is flooded. We will add this to our list of campground woes for this years trip. We made some hasty reservations at Natchez State Park, MS and headed down the road.
The drive through the rest of Texas and Louisiana was nice, all backroads, and a little rain. When we crossed the Mississippi River into Mississippi our phones stared to alarm. Seems we are now under a tornado watch! Another event to add to the ever growing "woe list".
Got to the campground, checked in, and got set up. A few thunder storms rolled through, but thankfully no tornados.
Tomorrow we will do some exploring and I'll post some pics of the campground. There is 50+ sites here and only three are occupied including us! 

Winter Excursion 3, Day 117

Today was "watch the rain and pack up in between the raindrops" day.
We drove over to Jasper to pick up a few supplies at the local Wally World.
Had as much as we could pack up done by 1700. Peel N' Eat shrimp with She Crab soup for dinner. Off to bed early, tomorrow is moving day.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 116

The storms started around 0400 and lasted all morning. Not much wind, but the rain was heavy and there was lots of lightning. Kaylee was not happy.
The rain slacked off in the afternoon, but the fog rolled in and the temps are in the mid 40s.
TV and cribbage was the theme for today, along with some cooking.
Cath made this yummy nectarine and raspberry pie.

And I slow cooked some country pork ribs, with a raspberry chipotle rub we picked up yesterday. The rub is really good!

Rain is forecast for the next two days so more food, TV, and cribbage.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 115

We drove down to Big Thicket National Preserve near Kountze, TX. It was our country's first National Preserve. It was once 0ver 3.5 million acres, but today there is only 112,000 acres are protected. The area has a unique history. We got another stamp in the passport!

On the drive we went through Spurger, TX. We stopped at the local donut shop and had a quick breakfast. Just south of town is a hardware store called Texas Knives & Collectibles or TKC. It has the largest selection of Case knives in the south. They also have lots of BBQ rubs and sauces, a great selection of Lodge Cookware, and are super friendly. We spent almost an hour there.

The weather was perfect today.

Back at camp we got the new tire mounted on the camper.
We took this pic of an air boat right behind the camper. Those things are loud!

Here's two more pics of the campsite.

We picked up some fresh/never frozen Gulf Shrimp from a roadside stand for $5 per pound! I made peel n' eat with them. The flavor is wonderful.
Got everything put away outside as it is going to storm for the next three days (go figure). Looks like lots of cribbage and TV,

Winter Excursion 3, Day 114

The morning started very early as some severe thunderstorms started around 0430. Some of the lightning strikes had to be within 100 yards of the camper. The storms lasted until around 0800. The forecast is for rain the rest of the time we are here.
Here's a pic of the site. The cypress swamp behind us is really interesting.

I took the wheel and busted tire to a shop about 15 miles away. They had it fixed by early afternoon. I just have to put it back on the camper.
We did a little exploring in the afternoon. The COE campgrounds (there is actually two of them) are really nice. The local area seems really depressed. There are lots of mobile homes and many are in sad shape, and there is junk everywhere. Maybe this is remnants of the hurricanes?
Cath said we haven't posted any pics of Kaylee lately. Here she is, in her favorite spot, munching a bone. She is still a great traveling companion.

As we are in Texas and the weather is cold it's Chicken Fried Steak for dinner. We will do some more exploring tomorrow.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 113

Travel Day. Corpus Christi to near Jasper, TX.
The weather was OK today, sunny and mild, but the wind was brutal! We had a head wind most of the drive and gas mileage was terrible, not quite 6 mpg.
Along the way we saw this sign, GEEZS Louise!

Stopped for lunch and more gas. Pulling into the gas station there was a vehicle that would not yield. I put the trailer wheels (right side) into a ditch and ended up with a flat (destroyed the side wall). So our quick stop for lunch turned into an hour long tire change (and we did have lunch).

Got to the campground a little later than we expected. Set up went well as usual. The tire will be replaced tomorrow.
After 360 miles and a flat tire sleep will come easy tonight.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 112

Fished this morning in a dense fog. The fishing was great! I was getting a trout almost every cast, but still no keepers. I also nailed a Red Drum, but it was out of the slot limit.😬 Oh well, it has still been fun fishing. The fog turned to rain around 0800 so I headed back to the camper.
We spent the rest of the day doing laundry (actually that was Cath) and washing the truck and camper (that was me).
Tamales, chips, guacamolee, and salsa for dinner.
Showers after dinner, a little TV, then off to bed. Tomorrow is a travel day.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 111

I fished all morning and had a great time. Caught lots of fish, but still no keepers.
We took a walk down the seawall (float plane dock) in the afternoon. Kaylee got a good run.
After the walk we drove over to HEB again and picked up a few things to include some Gulf Shrimp for dinner. We spent the evening cooking and watching a movie. It's been a fun day.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 110

I spent almost the entire day fishing. It was foggy this morning and the fishing was OK. It cleared in the afternoon, got windy, and the fishing slowed down. Here's the views from my fishing spots.

And here's what we are fishing for; Spotted Sea Trout. This one is about 12 inches, minimum size limit is 15 inches. I have yet to catch a keeper.😭

We ran over to the commissary in the afternoon and look what was there! Cath still wouldn't let me have any hot dogs. 

Dinner and some shows, off to bed,fishing in the morning.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 109

I broke down and bought a Texas fishing license this morning. With all this salt water around us I couldn't stand it any longer. It was too windy for the Kayak, so I fished off one of the boat ramps near the campground. Look in the middle of this pic, this bird (crain) watched me the whole time. Caught a few fish, but no keepers.

Stopped by the fish cleaning station just to check it out. I soon as I walked up to it these guys came right over. I think they are the local "clean-up the fish guts" residents. 

Cath and I went to a Texas grocery store called H.E.B. The place is huge and probably has anything you could imagine. This is a pic of the tortilla making station in the store! We were very impressed and the tortillas are really good.

As it seems to always do on the Gulf it got really windy this afternoon. Dinner and a few shows then off to bed.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 108

Washed the truck this morning and then headed out to cruise Ocean Blvd. This road runs almost the whole length of Corpus Christi Bay.
Here's a pic of the giant marina downtown Corpus.

Not really skyscrapers, but there are alot of big buildings (mostly big banks).

This is the Lexington, a WWII aircraft carrier. It is now a museum.

There are numerous, very nice parks all along the way.

Back at camp we enjoyed a nice sunny afternoon and a cold beer. When in Texas do as the Texans!

We got some local seafood for dinner and were treated to another beautiful sunset.

Winter Excursion 3, Day 107

We left camp this morning and drove over to Padre Island National Seashore. It was a short drive, really just around the corner. Interesting place, bay on one side gulf on the other. Lots of grassland and dunes. There is also two campgrounds there, one on each side. If we ever come to this area again we will stay there. It's dry camping, but it's right on the beach.

Stopped for lunch at a Mexican restaurant, the food was excellent.

Did a commissary run and checked out the PX. We picked up a flank steak for dinner, it was really good. We have yet to have any beef in Texas we haven't liked. We will stock the freezer before we leave this state.
Here's the view from the camper during cocktail hour.

And we were treated to this sunset this evening.

One more night of dog show on TV, then off to bed.