5/18/05. Arrived at Palo Duro Canyon State Park in Texas. Quite an entrance as you approach the park. The surrounding countryside is very flat and pretty featureless until you are within about a mile of the gate. Then this great chasm in the earth opens before you revealing a breathtaking view. Especially the descent when you're in a 37' motorhome. Just go real slow.

Tomorrow, we pull chocks and are on the road for Palo Duro State Park in northern Texas. But for now, we're just enjoying the scenery of Colorado City State Park.

At Colorado City State Park, there are hiking trails through cactus, rocks and sword plants. Wear good shoes and take a walking stick, as my mom did find a snake (she hates them) on her early morning walk. This cactus flower shows the beauty of the park at this time of year. The cacti are plentiful and they were all in bloom.

One of the great features of Colorado City State Park is the lake and surrounding scenery. As with most of the state parks we have stayed in, this one is well maintained, clean, and a beautiful stop. We were able to get some paddle time though the water is still pretty cool.

Lucy really appreciated the break from the day's long drive. She found a few rabbits to keep her interest peeked.

Our first camp stop was yesterday at the Colorado City Texas State Park. Very nice. Water and electric with dump station. As you can see here there are also pull throughs. Beautiful day.

Yesterday we finally got on the road. We are headed for Alaska (via a Rod's folk's house in Kansas, a friend's house in Nebraska, Christa's cousin's house in Nebraska as well, and my brother's house in Montana). Along the way we'll be hitting a lot of eateries and campgrounds. Our first stop was here at J.R.'s Restaurant in Juction, Texas, for a little lunch. Turns out that a lot of celebs like this place as well, including Troy Aikman, Whoopi Goldberg, and Willie Nelsen to mention a few. And I can see why. I had the Jalapeno Sausage an BBQ brisket plate. I have eaten a lot of brisket in my time, but this was a memorable event. Cooked to perfection (no lie). I gather the BBq is provided by Cooper, but did not get the local skinny on the relationship between them. What I know though, is that if you like Texas style BBQ, this place is a must stop.

While visiting and getting ready to depart for parts north, we went up to Canyon Lake (our future homesite) to look around. If you go up to the Corps of Engineer office, one can access this view point that is pretty fantastic.

Here, Becky and Rod's German Short Hair (Buford) greets his guests.

Not only people had a good time. My son's dog (Vixen, Fox Terrier) and my niece's pooch (I forget the name, but he's a Basset) enjoy a bit of fun in the sun.

Here my sister (Becky) is finishing up some odds and ends before the main crowd arives. Also in the picture is my wife Christa, Mom, and a friend of Becky's from her work at Texas Lutheran University (which happens to be my alma mater by the way).

Saturday 14 May, 2005. Well we made it to Seguin. The main purpose for the visit here was to pick up my Mom prior to our heading north for the Alaska Trip we are about to embark on next month. But as it happens, on the 14th, My sister and bro-in-law had their 6th anniversary, so of course there is a party. Pictured here is my bro Rod finishing up some tasties for the menu. In addition to the chicken coming off the grill here, he cooked up 4 11lb briskets, of which part of one was left.

A quick revisit to the "Aquarium" restaurant. Christa and I ate there tonight. Incredible place with 5 very large fresh and salt aquariums built into the place. By large, I'm talking 55000 gallons with about 50 species in the main tank. Sharks, cuda, sea bass, a sea turtle, and many others. The tank in the entry way is a cylinderical model bout 2 or 3 stories high, not sure of how many gallons, but very nice. The food was super. Christa had the blackened catfish, spicy and deliscious. I had the broiled Captains Platter fixed to perfection. Bring your wallet though, you will be helping to pay for the care of those tanks. Didn't mind though, the meal was excellent as was the service. To add to the evening, a big celebration was going on in the forground courtyard for Cino de Mayo. Live band, kids running all over the place, just a lot of fun. Tomorrow we hoist anchor and move on down the road towards Seguin, TX to visit family.

Finally - the weather cooperated today allowing for a bit of paddling around Via Bayou in Dickinson, TX. Beautiful day with a slight breeze and surrounded by jumping fish. No wonder this is such a popular place for anglers. A nice way to relax after washing the rig and car.

Lucy pointing the way to land.

Off of the main island of Galveston is the smaller Pelican Island. Pelican Island is home to Seawolf Park where the WW II sub USS Cavala rests and is being restored. Parking is $5 per car for the park and fishing pier. An additional fee of $5 per person to tour the sub and the destroyer, USS Stewart. A unique opportunity to see what it was like for the sailors of these earlier warships. Having served on more recent ships, I was amazed at the really tight spaces these sailors lived, worked and even died in. A worhtwhile monument that I recommend everyone visits and toss in a couple extra bucks to help the restoration project.

Here I am taking a photo moment with a prop for the "Aquarium" restaurant. We plan to eat here tomorrow night just because of the unique look of the eatery.

Another city that offers a little treat is Kemah. The big feature that attracted our attention from the State Highway 146 bridge was the Bordwalk. Has kind of an old Jersey shore feel with shops, skill games and amusement rides.

Texas City is a few miles up the coast and has a few nice scenic opportunities. One is the Lighthouse Blvd. Pictured here is a replica of the Texas Lighthouse once set about 2 and a half miles off the coast.

When in the Fisherman's Wharf, not only are you treated to good service and a fantastic meal, but able to look out on the harbor watching ship traffic and various seabirds (which you are advised not to feed) wheeling about.

In the Downtown Historic District are a number of really good restaurants. We set our appetites for the Fisherman's Wharf, great atmosphere to go along with the fantastic seafood dishes offered.

This is a picture of the aqua tunnel (my name for it) just before exiting the aquarium complex. This is a site to see.

While in the Galveston area, we had to stop into the Moody Aquarium and Rainforest exhibits. Exceptional. Comparable to the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga.

A small park and fairly new, but if you're into fishing or boating this is a great RV park. With a Good Sam discount the site was reasonable for a front seat at the water.

Arrived at the Via Bayou RV Resort on the 28th. A really nice park with level concrete pads, full hookups and water front sites.

Today, our last before heading for Galveston, TX, finds us stuck in the rain once again. Out of boredom, I am updating the blog (on time for a change). A pretty fierce little storm moved in last night and really dropped some rain, leveled some wind, clamored with thunder, and exploded with lightning. Tornado warnings were in effect for the counties immediately to the north of us. Harrison county was only under a flooding alert. Hopefully, the skies will clear for our travel tomorrow.

Whenever we are in Biloxi, there are a couple places we always visit. First is the White Cap Cafe, actually a short drive to Gulfport. We have been eating there for thelast 5 or so years and make it a habit to eat there everytime we come through due in large part to their good seafood and a great view. The other place we like to go is the Casino Magic casino in Biloxi. Three very good restaurants and a feeling of the house being "lucky" for us make this a favorite hangout. I prefer the Beau Rivage's buffet (excellent), but find the place not "lucky" for me.

Inside Cajun RV, we found a clean well kept park. We were parked in the front section of the park which is gravel covered and offers a bit of tight maneuvering. Though not very visually appealing, the sites are level, have all amenities, and close to the downtown action.

Arriving in Biloxi on the 28th of April, we stayed at the Cajun RV Park. A very nice store and real friendly folks. The parks best feature is the location to the beach, just a short walk across Hwy 90. A Good Sam park, we, of course, took advantage of the discount.

Yesterday we visited the Estuarium, a research/ecotourism facility on the Shoreline of Mobile Bay. This is a late entry, but I was trying to catch up on a lot of blog time while we have the opportunity. Tomorrow will find us on the road to Biloxi, MS, for a little adult fun in the casinos. For me this means some good food (not much on the gaming thing) and an opportunity for a couple of shows. Maybe we'll see you on the happy trail.

Exterior view of the Estuarium. Sitting right on the Mobile Bay shoreline, this facility exhibits a lot of the infromation gathered through the research being done to understand the importance of the unique ecosystem of the bay.

Inside the Estuarium. Educational and entertaining.

I forgot to mention that we saw the Fort Gaines monument park yesterday. Very interesting for the history buff. The Fort saw service through WW I.

Today we toured the Belingrath Gardens in Mobile, AL. A must see, these gardens will make your jaw drop. We stayed at the Belingrath RV Park just up the road about 6 miles. The RV park is a pretty basic park and the entrance could possibly make the passing camper want to keep on passing. But being a Passport America park we took a chance and found the park to be clean and the manager to be a very friendly fellow. They are currently working to improve this older campground. Our site was very nice, with a gravel base that was very level. Good water pressure, too. Not a very pretty park (at the moment), but I would recommend it, especially to Passport America members.

I took many beatiful photos of the gardens, too many to post here. Even so, I could stayed here for a week just shooting different views. We were here today and the weather was beautiful, making the garden extra special.

Here, Christa is standing in front of the Belingrath Home. Mr Belingrath made his fortune with Coca Cola. He and his wife, Bessie, used his fortune to make these gardens. Having no children of their own, they left the gardens to a foundation that would preserve the grounds for the public. Wonderful.

While walking through Belingrath Gardens, one will come across many beautiful scenes like this one of a bridge crossing the large pond. Fantastic.

Oriental Gardens at Beligrath Gardens in Mobile, AL. Wow, pictures do not do this place justice.

Our ever present companion - Lucy - in one of her pensive moments. She is a very forgiving and wonderful family member.

A view from Anastsia State park says it all for me. We tried to stay here, but they were booked. Will make it a point to come back.

One of the things I like most in my travels are the people we meet. While walking down St Georges Street, I came across Mr. Victor Kowal. Mr. Kowal is a local artist with some fame in the local galleries for his renderings of St Augustine's historic past. We spoke for a little while about his nautical paintings (being of particular interest to me). The large painting to his right (your left) was especially intriguing to me. A painting of a spanish sailing ship pulling into an early St Augustine harbor. Very nice work, I have added him to my contact list for when we build our next house.

What is St Augustine without remembering Govenor Ponce de Leon. Here lies the "Fountain of Youth," well at least the tourist version anyway. We just passed by the parkpromising to see it the next time we visit. I would really like to come back to this place.

The Taverna Gallo, boasting establishment in 1740. The guys that run this pub dress in pirate garb and put on quite an exhibit of drinking songs and privateer bravado. I enjoyed a good black and tan while Christa tried the sangria, tasty.

One of the main features that I really appreciated was the extraordinary beaches. Here we see a young man enjoying wind and surf with a para sail and surfboard rig. I gathered that it is a fairly popular sport, but was new to me. Had it been a little warmer, I think I might have liked to give it a try.

After the Disney emulsion experience, we needed to release a little of that magic we were overflowing with. We chose to stay a couple days in St Augustine, FL. A beautiful city with many sites. One of which is the Ripley's Believe It Or Not museum. This is the "Flagship" of their exhibit houses, and the one a majority of their TV shows are filmed at according to the tour person. One crazy place, a real gas.

One tip for seeing the complex of Disney theme parks is to save your shopping for Downtown Disney. All the souveneer items featured throughout the park can be bought here in a little easier atmosphere. Some really good restaurants reside here as well. We tried to eat at the Rainforest, but the lunch crowd was heavy. Instead we went next door to Captain Jack's for a couple of sandwiches. Very tasty with a nice little lake view.

The studio tour was pretty nice as well. The crowds, as can be expected, tend to dull the magic after awhile. Alas, the price to pay if you want to enjoy first rate attractions.

The castle at night under different lightings. The fireworks show was something to see - and hear. What a sound system.

The coup de gras - The Magic Kingdom. We thought we had timed it perfectly. After spring break and before schools out for summer. Unfortunately, our world view was a bit narrow. I think New England must have moved to South Florida. The Red Sox playing the Devil Rays was a key factor as well.

Epcot Center, what trip to Disney World would be complete without seeing this major theme park. I particularly liked the Living Sea Exhibit. We were here towards the end of April 2005.