Finished!

The guys finished up today, well ahead of our tentative schedule, so we now have four days to rest or explore or whatever before Romney's June Fling square dance weekend which starts a week from today near St. Louis. We gathered up our things from the customer lounge and said goodbye to Carolyn and Nancy before setting out to do our laundry and shopping.

Judy, Ann, Diana, and Pete gathered around the New Horizons reception desk.

We ran into Judy and Bob and Laundry Land as they were also preparing to leave Camp Horizons tomorrow. I made one last stop at Goodwill, where I found a nice artificial flower arrangement

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Lots of Company

We are out of the service bay, yay! The sun has been out, and we haven't had any tornado watches today. And most of our work is done. Things are looking up.

This afternoon Rick and Joni stopped by the customer lounge to say goodbye. They'll be returning in a few weeks to pick up their new Majestic. Later we were on our way to Four Seasons RV in Abilene to pick up some supplies when we saw a Majestic heading east. We knew right away it was Bob and Sue Guthrie (it's hard to miss their matching Volvo and Smart Car). When we returned to New Horizons, they were parked next to us. Interestingly, one of the major reasons for their arrival here is that one of their brake shoes is completely gone. That sounds like a familiar complaint, only they do not have ABS. They also experienced extreme temperatures in the affected tire (200 degrees), something that did not happen to us, so the causes may be unrelated. One rather unsettling fact is that they had a very hard time finding a repair shop willing and able to work on an RV with air over hydraulic disc brakes.

A bit later, another Majestic pulled into the parking lot. It was David and Ann Brown, who picked up their Majestic just before the rally a month ago. They have a couple of minor issues and one more serious problem, a delamination where the cargo door and wardrobe slideout come close to meeting. This is evidently a known problem. In fact, the Guthries have the same problem on theirs (only on the street side), and the repair done earlier is not holding. They're hoping for a more permanent fix this time.

The Guthries, Emersons, and we went out to dinner together (David and Ann had just eaten when they arrived). Bob and Sue wanted to go to Cox Bros. BarBQue. Ken and I shared some pulled chicken, onion rings, and southern seasoned collard greens. We all enjoyed our dinners and the opportunity to talk.

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Progress

Well, the best we can say is that Dan and Tony are making progress on our list of repairs. We're still in the service bay with no wheels tonight, but we expect that the brakes will be fixed and the wheels back on tomorrow.

Actually, staying in the bay may not be a bad thing. We parked the truck inside too. So far we've ducked the severe weather, but we've been under a tornado watch all evening, and the possibility of severe thunderstorms with large hail still exists. One thing we learned by watching the local weather TV is that when there's a tornado watch, you should wear shoes so you'll be prepared to make a quick move to safety (e.g., a storm shelter).

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New Campsite!

We were up early this morning and out of our home for the day while the guys worked on it. The first thing they did was pull it inside a bay. Smart move, since the weather around here is very chancy just now. They pulled all the brakes to inspect them. Unfortunately our misgivings proved correct. Ken U. reported that the brakes on the same two rear passenger side wheels were "toast." The upshot of this situation is that we are spending the night in a new "campsite"--inside the service bay.

The brakes are still dismantled but will be reassembled tomorrow, with new parts as needed. The decision has been made, in consultation with Tucon, to replace the ABS brake actuator. They are also planning to do a complete visual inspection of the brake lines to determine if they might possibly be damaged.

Meanwhile, we've moved our truck and Emersons' truck into the service bay too, at Cole's suggestion. The idea was to protect them from possible hail damage. The tornado watch has ended, so we think we've dodged the bullet again. However, the NWS is warning that all kinds of severe weather are still possible over the next few days. Note to self: let's try to avoid Kansas in May and June.


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Memorial Day Doings

We had another quiet day today. The New Horizons office and factory were closed for Memorial Day. When we woke up, the weather was threatening, but after our walk it had cleared up enough that we decided to clean the outside of the trailer again. It looks much better and needed to be done even if it rains. It actually cleared up and was sunny during most of the day.

On our evening walk we saw some evidence of locally severe winds: Four small trees at the nearby townhouses were uprooted and lying on the ground. They may be salvageable.

This evening during dinner we saw a New Horizons Summit pull in to the parking lot. It was Bob and Judy Emerson. They set up on the far side of the factory and went to dinner. Afterwards they stopped by to see us. Old home week ensued. They were here having some repair work done last September when we were here, and we also saw them at the NHOG Rally in Kerrville.

We had a good chat, except for the wind picking up again. Ken discovered that there's a tornado watch for Geary County. We're hoping that if it turns into a warning, the fire station will be open.

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Sunday, Sunday

We had another quiet day today, with the usual brunch and dinner and walks. This morning on our walk we spotted a rather large snake crossing the drive. It looks like a Kansas Glossy Snake and is definitely a fast mover. That probably helps it catch the small lizards that are its prey. Darn! I was hoping it ate mice.

One high point of the day was listening to an interesting piece on human memory on the TED Radio Hour. It included an interview with psychologist Daniel Kahneman, who most famously won the Nobel Prize in Economics. He and his collaborator, Amos Tversky, jointly founded a new branch of psychology, or is it a new branch of economics?—behavioral economics. In this particular interview, of course, he was talking about the operation of memory and the split between the experiencing self and the remembering self.

The other notable thing we did today is finally get around to cleaning the truck and putting 202 Protectant on the tonneau cover.

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Dutch Baby?

Today was a rather quiet day. We celebrated the weekend by sleeping in until 8:00 a.m. I fixed a German apple baked pancake for brunch and learned that the recipe may also be called "Dutch Baby." I wonder where that comes from? The pancake turned out delicious, even though I definitely had a senior moment. As a finishing touch, I sprinkled the pancake wedges with powdered sugar. Only it was actually white flour, and what's worse, I didn't realize what I had done until we were almost done. Wince.

We biked around another nearby neighborhood this morning. This one was definitely uphill, and both of us ended up pushing our bikes up the last few feet, huffing and puffing. Of course that meant we got to fly down the hill on the way home. I got to use my new Avenir small panniers--actually, only one of them. They are marvelously easy to attach and detach and look really sharp. I am definitely going to love them.

We got a tour of Doug and Melody's new Majestic this evening. Several of the employees came in today to work on getting the trailer ready for occupancy. It's beautiful, with wood floors and granite countertops in the kitchen. They plan to stay around tomorrow to test out all the systems and then leave on Monday.
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Waiting Game

We got up at 6:30 this morning so as to be out of the rig by 7:00 a.m. so the guys could start work. We could have slept in as long as we wanted--say, until next Tuesday.... That's when work is now expected to begin.

We spent the morning in the customer lounge. Doug and Melody were there for a while, so we talked. They are hoping to get on the road soon in their new Majestic.

This afternoon we went to Laundry Land, so now we have clean clothes. We also have a full tank of diesel and more groceries. The best part is that we stopped at Goodwill. I only bought two things, but both are things I'm really happy to have. The first is a set of four very nice cut glass wine glasses (.29 each).

The second is something I've been looking for: a replacement for my USC ID wallet. Mine is battered and worn, but well loved. The Velcro has worn off, and it's held together by strapping tape. I tried to get a new one from USC Bookstore, but they are no longer selling the kind I want, which has a small zipper coin pocket inside and an ID window outside with another one inside. It's meant to be a key holder too, so it has a key ring on one corner. I love it because it holds everything I need and is the perfect size to fit into a pocket or my fanny pack. There's only one thing: it's embossed "FHSU." I guess I'll be advertizing Fort Hays State University, but that's okay. My USC wallet will go into memorabilia.

This evening Ken made reservations to fly to visit his sister Romaine. She lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and he'll fly out of Atlanta while we're there visiting Ed and family. He's making a special visit now because Romaine has just learned that her ovarian cancer has returned, three years after her original surgery in April 2010. She has decided to go back on chemo, and the doctor has said she will be on it "indefinitely." Fortunately, Romaine's daughter Julie lives nearby and she has support from her church family.

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Repairs

Well, at least the first step. We went over our list with Ken U. Then we spent the day in the customer lounge, although we didn't see any evidence that any work was being done on our rig. Tomorrow Ken U. says we need to be out by 7:00 a.m. so they can start work.

Meanwhile Ed and Karen are on their way. We talked briefly with Doug and Melody, who are here to replace their Royals International with a new Majestic. We haven't seen anyone else around today, but a Grand Teton came in. We haven't met those folks yet.

We got the bikes down and rode around a nearby neighborhood. There are enough ups and downs to offer some challenge, but they're reasonably gentle. The neighborhood is clearly inhabited by military families from Fort Riley.

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Back at Camp Horizons

We got up early this morning for the last leg of our trip to Junction City. Much of the trip was again north on I-35, just as it has been for the last two days. Only this part of I-35 is the Kansas Turnpike, so we had to pay a toll to drive on it. The charge is per axle, so we pay as much as the big semis, even though we weigh much less.

We stopped at the Kansas Welcome Center service plaza for fuel, and I read the plaques describing the Chisolm Trail and the role of wheat in the Kansas economy while Ken pumped the diesel.

After we left I-35, the rest of the trip is via Kansas 77. It’s mostly straight as an arrow, with two lanes and little berm. There isn’t a decent place to pull over and change drivers between El Dorado and Junction City.

We pulled into Camp Horizons at 1:00 p.m. and were greeted by Ken Ullmer, Service Manager. He directed us to a spot in front of the service bays, and we went around back to dump. Ed Dooks came walking up, saying “Welcome to Camp Horizons.” We met him and Karen at the NHOG rally in Kerrville. He presented a session on improving your photography, an area with which he is intimately acquainted as a professional photographer.

We walked inside and were greeted by Carolyn, who has replaced Karen Brokenicky at the front desk, and we said hi to Candy, who has replaced Marty. We stopped in the customer lounge and talked with Karen Dooks about their upcoming trip to Alaska.

Outside, we talked with a couple who had been at Lake Milford when the big storms came through Monday. Evidently there was not an official tornado there, but wind picked up an Excel trailer and slammed it into their Cardinal multiple times, forcing the bed slide and the living room slide in. The man was in the bedroom when this happened, and his wife says he was cut up pretty bad. She is still terrified. Don't blame her. What an awful experience!

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On to Wellington, KS

When we got up this morning, it was still raining on and off. We were tired of rain and lightning, but they stayed with us as we headed north on I-35 toward Oklahoma City. When we stopped for fuel, I talked with a couple who were headed south. They had been full-timers for 12 ½ years and were admiring the Majestic. They told me to expect a delay of about an hour going through Oklahoma City.

They were about right. We sat in four lanes of stop and go traffic for nearly an hour as we approached Moore. We began to see lots of trash strewn about, and the exits were closed. Police and emergency workers were everywhere. Then we came to the actual path of the tornadoes that leveled a good bit of Moore. It was total devastation on both sides of the interstate.

Once we passed that point, traffic opened up quickly. The entire hour of delay was evidently due to “looky-loo” slowdown.

Tonight we’re spending the night in a Walmart parking lot in Wellington, Kansas. It’s out in the country, about two miles off the interstate, and surrounded by fields of grain. As we took our walk, we could see two grain elevators.

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Ardmore Oklahoma: Hidden Lake Storm Shelter

It's hard to tell from these sunny photos of our site, but the most important part of Hidden Lake RV Park in Ardmore, OK, is actually the new storm shelter.

We had time to set up the rig and take a good walk around the park to admire the lakes. We saw a lot to admire. Everything is well designed and well cared for. But about the time we started to fix dinner, storms gathered. When we checked in, the man at the desk said that if the storm sirens went off, we should run for the storm shelter. When the storm worsened, we weren't sure if we'd heard a siren or not, but we ran for the shelter. We had heard some news of the major tornadoes that hit the Oklahoma City area today and didn't want to take any chances.

We weren't the first ones there, either. An assortment of folks with their kids and their dogs, had gathered. One man was following the storm on weather radar, and after a while he said we were okay for a while, but that another storm would come through in 45 minutes. We headed home to work on dinner again, but soon got a message that a tornado warning had been issued for Ardmore, so back to the shelter we went. Fewer people were there this time, and after a while it seemed the storm had passed again, so we went home.

A few minutes later, we got another message that another tornado warning had been issued, and this time the storm hit in earnest. The sky opened up, and lightning flashed and thunder roared. We ran for it again, but this time we ran through lakes of mud, fighting against the wind and rain to reach the shelter dripping and soaked. This time a lot more people joined us, including one family with a little teacup Chihuahua puppy that ran around the shelter.

When the storm let up and most of the folks left the shelter again, we straggled home and stripped off our sodden clothes and shoes (the shower is full of them now). Finally we got a chance to eat dinner. It seems that the worst danger has passed. We've resolved to avoid visiting this part of the country during tornado season.

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On Our Way North

We danced the final C-1 session from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Then we said goodbye to friends old and new and got ready to leave Schertz on our trek north to Junction City. Our first stop was in Bellmead, TX, just north of Waco, where we spent the night in the Walmart parking lot. We weren't the first ones there: the motorhome was there when we arrived, with a gentleman sitting by a utility trailer in the rear. He was on an electric scooter, and another scooter sat on the trailer. We waved and set up for the night.

It was blazing hot, but without an electric hookup, we weren't able to run our air conditioner. We did have the exhaust fans, which helped. When we got ready to walk, we spent the first half hour out walking around the area before going to walk inside in the air conditioning.

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Dancing to "the Most Influential Man in Square Dancing"

Lee Kopman is the grand old man of modern square dancing--the guy who wrote most of the calls and who continues to influence the square dance world as well as calling dances (although mostly now on the east side of the Mississippi). We are lucky to have the chance to dance to this creative choreographer. As CD Vise pointed out, we're also lucky to have his wonderful wife, Lilith, with us and dancing with us, sharing her delightful personality.

While we were out on our morning walk, we ran into Terry and Linda from the RGV. They are right now camping in a brand new A-Liner, but there are planning to give up on it and buy a Lance trailer instead (Linda likes the idea of having a bathroom).

They were at the C-1 workshop from 10-noon. David Hefron is here also, although without Heidi, who is still in San Diego. They are in the process of moving to Austin, where David has a new engineering job. We had four squares of C-1 dancers this morning. Lee taught us a brand new call he has written called "Top It Off." It has interesting choreography and even more interesting variations. It usually starts with a tidal wave and all trade, but it can be called from other formations, starting with a call that puts dancers in a tidal wave. For example, from a column you can "Hinge It Off." From point to point diamonds, the caller can call "Cut It Off" or Flip It Off," which gives everyone a chuckle.

This afternoon Ken stayed home and rested while I went over to the A-2 workshop, where I danced with Marty. We had five squares. Lee taught "Top It Off" to the Advanced dancers and also introduced another new call: "Bring Us Together," which is another different way to get a static square to lines facing.

Tonight we went to the A-2 dance and were 20 minutes late, because the dance started at 7:00 instead of 7:30, which is when dancing started on Friday. We only missed one tip, and we stayed for the two C-1 star tips at the end. It's always rewarding to dance to Lee, and especially fun to dance with some of the great dancers we've met before as well as with new friends.
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Moving and Dancing

This morning we packed up and took our final walk around the campground at Cranes Mill on Canyon Lake. Our move was quite short: just 27 miles to Stone Creek RV Resort in Schertz, TX. To get there we drove to New Braunfels where we took the loop to I-35 south. Schertz is between San Antonio and New Braunfels. We have driven through it on I-35 often on our trips to the RGV, but this is the first time we've visited.

We arrived and got set up in a nice pull-thru space with a lovely shade tree. Oops--we forgot to check for a clear view of the southern sky for our TV dish. Fortunately, the dish did find the satellites, although sometimes the wind blows some leaves in the way and the picture is pixelated. After lunch we headed to the grocery store, but on the way we saw a SAS factory store, so of course we stopped. Now we both have new SAS shoes.

After dinner we walked over to the dance hall, which has a floating wood floor--really nice. We signed in and chatted with some of the other dancers. Some we've danced with before, either in the Valley or at Romney's June Fling or AACE or Paris. Marty is here, but without Kit, who is off visiting grandchildren. Mike and Bonnie are the other Valley couple. We had four squares for the C-1 dance this evening. Ken and I reviewed some of the C-1 calls earlier today, but obviously would have benefited from reviewing more of them. We did okay, but not as well as we'd have liked. We're a bit rusty from not having danced for a while, but tomorrow will be better.

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Last Day on Canyon Lake

This morning we looked out the window to see a small bird perched on a flower stalk. It hung around to pose for us and then fluttered to another nearby stalk. It was a scissortail flycatcher, but a juvenile with a shorter tail and a softer, fluffier look.

After our bike ride this morning we put the bikes up on the rack and packed the chairs up, getting ready for our move tomorrow. We drove into town to a laundromat to do the laundry.

This evening when we walked around the campground, we saw some new campers come in for the weekend: one travel trailer with a large pontoon boat and four tent sites. On our last evening, we finally got to see a sunset unobscured by clouds.

We'll be heading to Schertz in the morning to attend a Lee Kopman square dance weekend. It's been a while, so we'll be looking over the C-1 list tomorrow.

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North Side of the Lake

Today is my cousin Jan's birthday. I called to wish her a happy birthday, and we had a very nice conversation. It's really good to hear her voice and know that she is gaga over a rescue kitty she has named Lucky.

We drove to the north side of the lake today to hike and picnic and explore. We managed a hike and drove through a couple of the parks, but no joy on picnicking. We ate in the truck in the Dollar General parking lot. The COE employees at the parks did not have much information and were generally clueless about hiking opportunities. Several of the places we tried to visit were closed. We had to park outside the closed gate at the Old Hancock trailhead. There was a large empty parking lot, but it was inaccessible.

The trail follows the north shore of the lake and is mainly an equestrian trail. We saw lots of evidence of horses in the softer areas especially. The trail offers nice views of the lake, but it's mostly unshaded, so we were glad we started out before the heat of the day. For the first part of the hike, it was cloudy, which was ideal for hiking.

We did find a couple of small groves of trees.

We saw lots of wildflowers and deer, and I found some ripe dewberries. We also passed a dead skunk (ewwww). The trail is supposed to be 3.5 miles one way. We hiked 2.7 miles and were unable to find any continuation of the trail, so we think is is perhaps overgrown. Much of the trail is a mowed swath in the grass. Anyhow, we turned around and headed back, for a total of just under 5.5 miles

We ate an early dinner at the Silver Sage Grille in Canyon Lake. It got some very positive reviews from Yelpers and on UrbanSpoon and TripAdvisor, and we were intrigued by the eclectic menu. We were the only patrons for most of our meal. The "nice little house salad" included mixed greens, tomatoes, and cucumbers. We chose the Champagne Habanero Vinaigrette, which as you can imagine was very hot but interesting.  The rest of the meal was delightful, but the chocolate decadence cake and Blue Bell vanilla ice cream for dessert was both beautifully presented and the perfect ending to a great meal.

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Happy Birthday, Ken!

Today is Ken's 68th birthday. He'd prefer to avoid thinking about getting older (wouldn't we all!), but birthday wishes from family and friends were a positive addition to the day. Chris and Anara called first, and when he opened his email, he found a whole bunch of cute and funny and touching greetings--plus a couple from companies that are happy to have him as a customer!

Jeff called later and talked for quite a while. He'll be having another PET scan on Friday. Meanwhile he's working in a hospital squadron, but helping them to improve their safety plan, so he's using his safety expertise.

We were going to go out to dinner tonight to celebrate Ken's birthday and Mother's Day, but it turned out that the restaurant we liked isn't open on Mondays and Tuesdays. "Who ever heard of a restaurant that wasn't open on Tuesdays?" he wondered. Anyhow, we've changed the plan. Tomorrow we're going to the north side of the lake to explore and do some hiking, and we've found a restaurant over there that sounds intriguing and is well reviewed, so now we're planning a visit to the Silver Sage Grille in Canyon Lake.

We biked for a while this morning and found ourselves climbing a hill to see a neighborhood that overlooks the lake. That's a challenge to legs more accustomed to biking in the flatlands. We did see some interesting homes, including a couple cantilevered over the bluff and looking rather precariously balanced.

We walked this evening. As usual, we saw lots of deer and butterflies and birds and wildflowers. We watched a Nature program on the Private Life of Deer, too.
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LBJ National Historical Site

Today we went to Stonewall, TX, to the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Site, which is also a Texas State Park. We checked out the Visitor Center and signed up for a tour of the LBJ ranch. It’s a self-guided auto tour, and we received a CD to play as we drove.

We needed to walk, so we took a trail to a dogtrot log cabin. Along the way we saw some longhorn cattle, and of course they saw us. I don’t think they were overly impressed, as they continued eating. The cabin seemed to be well constructed. Disappointingly, it was closed, and the windows were boarded up. We walked back to the Visitor Center. By the time we got there, we were very hot and feeling dehydrated, so we stopped to refill our water bottles before driving to a nearby picnic area for lunch.

Next we drove to the LBJ ranch. As we approached the Texas White House, we saw a large jet. We entered the converted hangar, where we signed up for a tour of the house. With twenty in our group, the tour was quick and superficial, but it was impressive to see the three televisions where the president watched the three national networks, NBC, ABC, and CBS. We saw the immense live oak under which LBJ held important meetings, and the bedrooms in which he and Lady Bird passed away.

We stopped briefly at the Johnson family cemetery, where we saw the headstones of the president and first lady along with those of several other family members.

Then we drove to Johnson City, where we toured LBJ’s boyhood home. It had cold running water in the kitchen and bath, supplied by a windmill in the back which pumped water up into a water tank. We also took in the exhibits in the Visitor Center.

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Canyon Lake Dam and Guadalupe River Trail

We had a great day today. The best part: we saw a baby armadillo! It was right by my feet when Ken spotted it. It was very cute--not a foot long. Ken got a quick photo as  it scurried away into the brush. We drove to the Overlook Park where the dam is that forms Canyon Lake (the COE is so creative in their names--we've been to lots of Overlook Parks).

We walked across the dam. From gate to gate it's .8 mile. It was a lovely sunny Sunday, so families were out for a stroll across the dam too. It's always nice to see kids in the outdoors.

We stopped to talk with one of the volunteers. Their motorhome was parked next to the Lake Office, which was closed for the weekend. The man who answered the door was younger than we usually expect such volunteers to be, and very friendly. He came out and talked with us and explained that his wife had run into some health problems, so five years ago they quit work and started volunteering. He's retired U.S. Air Force and also a teacher.

We also walked the Guadalupe River South Trail at the outlet from the dam. It's 1.25 miles out and 1.25 miles back, mostly through bald cypress forest. That's where we saw the baby armadillo. We saw some spectacularly large bald cypress trees. Just as we were starting along the trail, Chris and Anara and Shawn called to wish me a happy Mother's Day. I sat on a bench in the shade overlooking the river, a pleasant place to have a chat.

We've seen lots of deer, too. They seem mostly pretty unconcerned about people.



Terri called this evening to wish me a happy Mother's Day. She was calling from Tokyo, where it was 7:00 a.m. on Monday morning.

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Sunset Over Canyon Lake

We sat out tonight and toasted the sunset. Unfortunately, clouds obscured most of the western sky, but it was still very pleasant to sit out and look at the water. We watched a water skiier and some white pelicans stringing themselves across the western sky.

Earlier in the day we walked around the park. As we passed the site of the folks who were checking in just ahead of us, they offered us some nice cold small navel oranges. As we walked along we saw two groups of deer who paid little attention to us. We also saw several killdeer. This evening we biked around. Today we found the Cranes Mill Marina open and rode through the parking lot being wowed by all the fabulous sailboats and yachts.
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Moving Day and Whole Foods

We woke this morning to a tremendous thunderstorm! Thunder and lightning and lots of water pouring down from the sky. Oh, no! Are we going to have to pack up and move in this weather? Fortunately, by the time we ate breakfast, the storm had passed, and all that was left was some very large puddles. Fortunately there's lots of gravel, and the earth around here is thirsty, so we didn't have to contend with mud.

We drove east from Hondo towards San Antonio and then took Loop 1604 (the very outer loop) around to the north. We made a stop at Lowe's and had lunch before driving to the nearby Whole Foods. We always like to have the opportunity to stop at large, well-stocked stores with lots of healthy foods and plenty of variety. As we packed the groceries into the truck, I noticed the adjoining furniture store was named "Copenhagen Furniture." A light bulb went off in my head: this looks like the kind of store that just might sell Ekornes Stressless chairs, so they might carry Hide Bracer, the leather cleaner and conditioner that the manufacturer of our wonderful Stressless chairs recommends. They did, so now we have a supply of Hide Bracer that will last us years.

We continued on to Cranes Mill Park, a Corps of Engineers park on Canyon Lake. It has a very nice new RV loop, with some of the largest and best appointed RV sites we have every seen. We have a nice view of the lake out our rear and driver side windows. After setting up, we took the bikes down and headed out to explore the park. We stopped and talked with one of the host couples. They have a wonderful hilltop site with no close neighbors and a great view. Their only job is to make sure the restrooms are stocked, and they only have to work on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. How's that for cushy?

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Breakfast With the Gang

We go to breakfast pretty much every Sunday morning with our friends when we're in the Rio Grande Valley for the winter, but breakfast with the gang goes on hiatus for the summer. Except that this morning we were invited to join a group from Lone Star Corral who go to breakfast together every Thursday morning year round. We met them at Bill and Rosa's Steakhouse and Saloon in D'Hanis, which is just five minutes up the road.

When we walked in, we found two long tables full of folks from the park. All the men were at one table, and all the women at another. The server manages to keep track of which people go together. She must have a really good memory. I had a breakfast taco, which was delicious. It was more like an omelet in a flour tortilla, served with salsa and sour cream and filled with all kinds of goodies. We had thirteen women at our table, but of course I actually got to chat with only five or six of them. I sat next to our friend Sue Guthrie, and she helped break the ice, but everyone we've met at Lone Star has been very friendly.

We biked this morning and walked this evening. The weather forecast sounded somewhat ominous, with chances for thunderstorms, but most of the day it was just overcast, and we never saw any real rain. We found a new little historic cemetery on our walk, next to the ruins of a large limestone church. A sign out front says "Renovation Contemplated" and asks people not to remove any stones. The cemetery was in used from 1847, when D'Hanis was founded, until 1893, when it was closed due to a diphtheria epidemic.

Although it's a very old cemetery, it has some newer markers, generally placed by admiring descendents.

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Hill Country Hiking

Our adventure today was a trip to the Texas Hill Country State Natural Area. It's an hour's drive north of here mostly along a narrow county road and then unpaved park roads, but there was little traffic, so the drive was relatively easy. The natural area serves horseback riders, mountain bikers, and hikers. It is minimally developed as required by the terms of the original land donation.

When we arrived, we checked in at headquarters and showed our Texas Parks Pass for entry. We got a map and some advice on hikes to take and started off on Trail 5, continuing on 5a and 5b, to a wonderful overlook of the surrounding terrain. Much of the trail is eroded limestone, so you have to watch your step. The final approach to the peak was a bit steep and rugged, so we were glad to have our hiking sticks. A loop at the top allows views of the hill country in various directions.

When we returned to the truck it was lunchtime. We ate our picnic lunch on a table near the headquarters and near a horse washing station, which is closed because of the drought. The only potable water in the park is at the headquarters, which is also where the only flush toilet is located. We went into the headquarters to check on the weather forecast. One of the staff mentioned that they had seen a painted bunting behind the headquarters building. We looked but didn't spot that bird.

We actually heard lots of birds singing and calling in the park, but most of them stayed hidden. The ones that flashed by declined to stay long enough for their portraits to be made. We did get a brief glimpse of a wild turkey as it ran into some brush ahead of us, and Ken saw a white tailed deer.

After lunch we set out again, this time along a creek trail to Comanche Bluffs Overlook. West Verde Creek is described as "intermittent." Right now it's a series of small stagnant pools, but sometimes there's enough water to fish and swim. We did hear some frogs croaking. All along the trails we saw a rich variety of wildflowers, many of them yellow or white or various shades of purple and violet.

As we drove west out of the park, we saw the most unusual animals sighted on this trip, a family of feral pigs. One was spotted and had extraordinary large fuzzy ears. Texas is evidently infested with the hogs, which cause significant damage and are very prolific.

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Exploring by Bike

We got the bikes down from the rack today for the first time in a couple of weeks and headed out to explore the nearby countryside. Fortunately we're in a rather flat area, although surrounded by hills. We rode along a variety of corn fields and fallow fields, with giant traveling irrigation machines. Some yelping dogs let us know we were getting too close to their property (fortunately they were small and all bark). The road we were following ended in a whimsically decorated gate.

Riding down another county road we came upon a complex of four cemeteries. The largest was the Holy Cross Cemetery, and the others were Woodmen of the World (WOW), San Francisco and Santa Cruz. We wandered for some time among the graves, pondering the lives and deaths of the many people laid to rest there. Many of the graves show the predominantly German background of the settlers in the area, with another large group representing descendents of the Spanish colonization.

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Nice Folks

We walked around the park again today and met some more nice folks. Larry was one of the founders of this park twenty-six years ago. He was out walking his little dog, Rusti, who looked a lot like Sweetie. It turned out that Rusti was also a found dog and two years old when found--just like Sweetie. Larry's wife is in a nursing home in Hondo. They were at CARE in Livingston for a year. Larry is a big CARE promoter.

We walked outside the park for a bit this morning and located the rooster that woke Ken up crowing in the middle of the night. We also saw some horses and a bull. A sign on the fence advertized stud service by AQHA horses.

This evening Bob and Sue dropped by. We had an enlightening conversation about the problems they've identified with their Majestic, and of course we chimed in with our issues. They also had a real horror story about their experiences buying an HDT and getting it modified for RV towing and carrying a Smart Car.

Tomorrow we're planning on going to the Hill Country State Natural Area, which is north of here.

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Lone Star Corral

We left Buckhorn Lake Resort today and moved south a bit to Lone Star Corral. It's an Escapees Co-op park seven miles west of Hondo, TX, just off US 90. We said our goodbyes to the rally folks still at Buckhorn, with promises to meet again somewhere down the line (perhaps at Camp Horizons?).

Our first stop on the way was actually Bella Vita Country Italian Restaurant in Kerrville. We had a gift certificate we got as a door prize at the rally, and we were looking forward to a nice dinner. We were not disappointed. The welcome was warm, the service attentive, and the food delicious, from the warm ciabatta bread with whipped garlic butter to the triple chocolate turtle cake for dessert (with salads and a trio of pastas in between).

The trip to Lone Star Corral wasn't very long. We were set up in our site by 3:00 p.m. Soon we heard a knock at the door. It was a neighbor out walking his greyhound, Bessie. His name is Edmund Strickland, and he had noticed our Boomers decal and wanted to welcome fellow Boomers. He and his wife Margie used to handle the hard copy newsletter for the Boomers (which was discontinued soon after we joined, in favor of the electronic version).

After a bit we decided to take a stroll around the park and explore. It was very hot and sunny, but as we were walking we saw a couple sitting on their covered patio in the shade. Ben and Jo invited us to join them, and we had a good time sharing RV talk with them. They knew about the rally and mentioned that one of the rally attendees had just recently bought a lot in the park.

As we walked on, we saw a Majestic with an HDT and matching Smart Car, so we knocked on the door, and Bob and Sue invited us in. They had all the rally photos on a slide show on their large television, starting with the group photo. There were some really nice photos, and of course we reminisced and just had a good time talking New Horizons and hearing about their travels.
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Kerrville Riverside Nature Center and Farewell to Friends

We decided to find someplace new to walk today. Checking out Tripadvisor led us to a real gem, a small nature center along the Guadalupe River right in town.  Next to the parking lot we spotted this bat house, built to hold up to 250 bats.

We walked around the small former farm, which has been transformed by volunteers into a sanctuary for birds, insects, and native plants. Two white winged doves paid little attention to us as we walked up close to them. While we watched, they spread their feathers and flattened themselves to the ground. After a minute or so, one slowly gathered itself together and walked a short distance, and soon its mate followed suit.

TheNature Center provides a trailhead for the new Guadalupe River Trail, which is only partially completed. We walked along the section from the Nature Center to the Louise Hays Park. This section crosses the length of Tranquility Island and offers walking bridge access to the public library, which has just undergone a renovation funded in large part by HEB, which is where we went next to pick up some groceries.

This striking library overlooks the Guadalupe River.

After dinner we welcomed our friends Bruce and Mary Sue and Willis and Rebecca over to share some snacks and cherry pie along with some interesting conversation about ghosts and unusual things to see along America's roadsides. Rebecca has an iPhone app for that! Bruce and Mary Sue told us about the Moonville, OH, ghost that is seen around the railroad tunnel. Rebecca told us about a man convicted of murder on the strength of the testimony of a ghost.Tomorrow our friends are off to McKinney Falls State Park, and we are heading to Hondo, to the Escapees co-op park there.

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Rally's End

Today was Ken's daughter Rebecca's birthday. He called to wish her a happy birthday. She said that Troy and Cathy were taking her out for dinner, but she didn't know where.

Today was the final day of the 2013 NHOG Rally. We started this morning with a very informative, thought provoking, and downright hilarious session on backing and parking a fifth wheel. It was held in the Buckhorn Theater, and the seats were packed. All of us could use some tips on the best ways to get from point A (on the road) to point B (elegantly placed in the campsite). As usual, Tim found a way to make this vexing topic fun. He showed a short video titled "The Scoop: How to Back Up a Towable RV," just to get us all in the mood.

One of the experienced Buckhorn Lake Resort wranglers picked up from there and showed Mark Polk's video on how to back and park a fifth wheel trailer. He took questions from the group--and there were lots of questions. We certainly learned some good tips.

Next we went to a session titled RV Tech #2. Neil Laubenthal has years of experience in the tech world. He shared some really eye opening info about password security (bottom line: to be secure, your passwords must be at least 17 characters long ....). He also talked about apps for smartphones and tablets.

We went to a gadget session, where each couple had the opportunity to "show and tell" one gadget. We showed off the Camco folding bucket we won at the Escapade last summer. One couple showed off a pair of folding full-size mountain bikes that come in travel cases.

This evening we had a delicious assortment of dishes for our potluck supper, including some outstanding baked salmon and great salads, not to mention the desserts. Of course we all enjoyed the meal, but didn't exactly stick to our usual healthy diets.

The closing event was a white elephant exchange.

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Day Off

Today was a free day for rally attendees. Some people made plans to sightsee, but for us the weather didn't seem conducive to that sort of thing. Last night brought thunderstorms and lots of lightning. When we woke up this morning it was very cold and windy.

We slept in and had hot coffee, hot tea, and hot showers to take the chill off. We wanted to do our laundry, but we thought the laundromat in the resort would be busy, so we went into Kerrville to the Country Clean Laundromat, which was pretty decent. Then we went to Kerrville Schreiner Park to check out the RV sites. We camped there in our 32' Excel in 2008, but our current New Horizons is much larger. We managed to identify only two sites that we thought we'd be able to use.

This evening we went over to the Event Center to view photos of "Great Places," session two. Ed Dooks had some photos of the storm last night that were very striking. He caught the sky full of lightning in a couple of pics. Then some fellow rally attendees shared their photos, including Mary Sue. We saw photos of some very attractive and interesting places from Alaska to Alabama.

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Rally Day Three

This morning we attended a session presented by a local RVIA Master Technician. It included information on lots of RV systems, so it was pretty quick and somewhat superficial, but we have some printed materials. We did pick up some good tips on exercising generators.

Next we went to a session presented by Jerry and Maddy Stephens on volunteering and workamping. They have had extensive experience in many venues and talked about opportunities we would never have even thought of, like working with a circus teaching workers' kids or putting together a Rose Parade float. Their stories were fascinating, and they provided some great resources.

We left that session and dashed home to finish cleaning up for the open house due to start at 12:30 p.m. Our home was on the open house tour for the first session, 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. One of us had to be at home to greet visitors while the other went to visit other rigs. During the second session, 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., we were able to walk around together to visit a wide variety of New Horizons rigs. We met the owners and got to see and hear about the special touches they have designed into their rigs. One home has a portable folding quilting table, and the area most people use as an entry closet is filled with small drawers of quilting squares.

This evening's dinner was tacos catered by the resort. They were okay, but not my favorite. The company was great, though. We sat with Willis and Rebecca and Bruce and Mary Sue again, and this time we were joined by Ken and Sue Raislegers. She is a line dancing enthusiast and interested in stringed instruments, so the Rosenbergers and Raislegers happily talked music and dancing. They ran a dance this evening too, while others played ladder ball and Monopoly or just socialized.

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