Free Camping!

As we were heading north to Oklahoma City Rose was checking out where to stay. She came upon a web site I had bookmarked 6 months ago which lists free camping sites. Generally free is "Boondocking" no power, water or sewer, but this site was different, it had full hookup. We checked to see where it was in relation to Oklahoma City and given that is it was only 30 miles out of the city centre and had 50 amp power we decided to go for it.

Four hours later we arrived at our new lodgings, the Lucky Star Casino car park! The casino sits on top of a hill overlooking hundreds of wind turbines as far as the eye can see. The wind was blowing a gale - at least the turbines were in the right place! We checked in with security - no catches although I am sure they expected that we would be back to gamble! As with most casinos in Oklahoma the Lucky Star is owned and run by the native Indians. The majority of the staff were all descendants of the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes and the income generated from the Casino supports their education and health care systems. We only know this because we talked with a lady when we were trying to work out how to play the poker machines with our free $10 gaming voucher we got from the front desk!

Our free RV site, front view


And the view out our back window



When we initially decided to head into Oklahoma we didn't realise or even consider that part of Route 66 runs through the state. We always try to find accommodation on the outskirts of a large city so chose El Reno because it is actually on Route 66 and in close proximity to Oklahoma City.

Route 66 is full of iconic things to see and do so with our trusty tourist brochure tucked under our arm we headed off to a town called Arcadia to view the 66 foot 'Pop Bottle' . At its base there is a 'gas' station, restaurant, gift shop and convenience store. The gift store has a selection of over 600 different types of soda (softdrink), the walls are literally lined with them! We had one of their signature burgers and a specially made chocolate and peanut butter milkshake before purchasing the weirdest flavoured sodas we could find.

The walls are lined with soda bottles


We just had to buy some soda



The USA is overflowing with museums, every town big or small has one! We had been told about the National Cowboy and Western Heritage museum in Oklahoma City and we are glad we went , it was just fantastic. The museum has a collection of classic and contemporary western art as well as an exhibition wing which includes a replica of a turn-of-the-century town and interactive history galleries that focus on the American cowboy incorporating a western performers gallery with a hall of fame honouring movie stars like John Wayne, Tyrone Power, Jimmy Stewart, Barbara Stanwick etc. We were so inspired we bought a number of old western movies from Walmart the next day!

We spent over 3 hours at the museum and still didn't see it all. An amazing portrayal of the Wild West!





Our final stop for the day was a visit to the memorial site for the Oklahoma bombings. In all 186 innocent people died precipitated by Timothy McVey's perception that the US government was infringing on the rights of US citizens and their handling of the Waco Siege and the Ruby Ridge incident. It is unfathomable to understand how killing innocent people including 19 children helped the cause. Timothy McVey was put put to death for his crimes.

The entrance


The third tree along is where the truck full of explosives was parked and detonated


As it was close to 5pm it was too late to go to the museum which is housed next to the monument in one of the many buildings that was damaged in the blast.

We headed home after a full day of learning - time for a drink!

We had heard that there was a cold front moving in and past experience has taught us that we need to take any and all weather warnings seriously!

Posted by RnR on their IPad

Location:El Reno Oklahoma

Holiday within a Holiday

The day after dropping Lauren off we had arranged to get some minor warranty things fixed on the trailer so we arrived at United RV about 10am. While they were going about their business we sat in the customer lounge, drinking coffee and eating popcorn, deciding where our next destination was going to be.

We had travelled west on Interstate 10 to Big Bend and Interstate 20 east back to Dallas, so we decided to go up Interstate 35 in the direction of Oklahoma City and then head west on Interstate 40. Yep all rather complicated but we are right into the Interstate highway system and its fantastic. We had spoken to one of the service guys who had suggested a place called Lake Murray State Park which is about 2 hours North of Dallas so, based on that recommendation, and after purchasing a few more 'must haves' from the RV accessory store, we hit the highway.

Crossing the State Line into Oklahoma


Lake Murray covers an area of over 5,700 acres and has a number of different camping areas however upon our arrival were advised that the only one that was open during the winter season was the Elephant Rock campground. We drove around picked a site and set up camp overlooking the beautiful lake. Once we stopped we realised just how exhausted we were! Sounds strange coming from two people who are on a holiday of a life time but in our defence we had been pretty busy circumnavigating Texas for the last month ensuring Lauren had a trip to remember.

The view from our trailer


Taking our walk


The next day we walked around the park and took in the serene atmosphere, we had found a gem of a park. We really had no great plans in this place other than to just to sit back and do nothing. We drove into the closet town of Ardmore, a fair size town but nothing exciting (except Walmart of course!)

Yep Bourbon in hand


On the fourth day we finally got ourselves motivated and decided to drive the 40 miles up to the Chickasaw Cultural Centre. It was a great day and and reasonably priced as well. At the entrance they have the local tribes people demonstrating some of their local arts. As always we get asked where we are from and of course when we say Australia they are fascinated. I don't think too many Aussies have visited some of the places we have been to so we are quite a novelty! The first bloke was making jewellery and he asked Rose her favourite colour. He told us to come back and see him after we had looked at all the exhibits which we did and he presented Rose with a pair of hand made ear rings. No charge, a gift to take back to Australia.

Entrance to the Cultural Centre


No wading in the fountain, no chance it was too cold!



There was another craftsman making musical instruments. We asked the usual questions about the materials they use and given our interest in all things musical, he had me beating the drum and Rose on the shaker while he played the flute. We will not make the top 10 but the flute put out a rather eerie sound which sent shivers up my spine. It was a great experience.

Our debut as band members, my drum and Roses shaker for ever immortalised and on show at the cultural centre




We spent many hours in the museum reading the history of the Chickasaw people and their journey to there place in a modern USA. It appeared to us that they were really trying to make a difference to the younger generation of the Chickasaw nation.

After 5 days that familiar itchy feet feeling hit so we packed up in preparation for our next stop. We had no idea where that was going to be.


- Posted by RnR on their IPad

Location:Murray State Park Oklahoma

Lauren Returns to Australia

We ended up staying an extra night at Big Bend but a plane beckons for Lauren. We gave ourselves time to have a few nights at various places on the way back to Dallas. As always we chose a point on the map approximately 200 miles in the direction we wanted to go, so either Midland or Odessa fitted that criteria. Bob and Sherry a lovely couple that we met at Big Bend recommended an alternative destination - the Great Sandy State Park. As its name implies it is a place of sand dunes, rather unusual in that the sand hills constantly shift. We pulled up and spoke to the well armed park policeman and at his suggestion we took a drive in to the park to check it out. It was nice (if you like rolling sand dunes! ) but given that they were predicting 40 mile an hour winds that night and we didn't relish the thought of our new trailer being sand blasted we moved on.

Fields of wind turbines on interstate 25


It was a big days drive



Unbeknown to us Midland is in the middle of the Texas oil fields. The roads were full of semi trailers and all you could smell was oil. The RV parks which are always advertised as 'a home away from home' were filled to capacity with oil workers. So after a really horrible MacDonalds experience we all agreed that Midland was not for us. So another 283 kilometres on we finally stopped at a town called Abilene which was basically three quarters of the way back to Dallas. We drove a total of 670 Kilometres (nine hours) that day - the longest day of driving yet! We settled for a park just off I20 and booked in for 2 nights. Once again the write up sounded wonderful, we were tired and needed rest. We booked in and it's then that we realised that we may as well have been parked "ON" the Interstate, it was so bloody noisy. I swear we could feel the trailer move as trucks went by. The first night was ok as we were all so tired but the second night we counted each truck as it drove by! The township of Abilene doesn't have a great deal to offer, it is predominantly a stop over place for travellers but we did do a couple of tourist type things ie the Abilene Zoo and a tour of the 12th Armoured Division Museum (yes the girls were thrilled! ) The Zoo was great value at $5 entry fee each. The reptile display was one of the best we have ever seen with the majority of the snakes extremely active. It was either feed time or they had the had the heating just reptile right! The 12th Armoured Division museum is self funded and has many great displays and plenty of reading on its formation through to the end of the war.

Yes it was beanie weather


One of the displays


Lauren feeding the giraffes



Just loved the colour of the flamingos


On check out day we packed up early - there was no point in lying in bed listening to the trucks going by. We will certainly be checking future RV Parks proximity to the Interstate more carefully!

We arrived back in Dallas and booked into the same park we stayed at previously. I dropped Rose and Lauren off at the shops while I went to get an oil change done on the truck. We had covered over 6700 miles since we began our Texan roadtrip. I pulled into a Jiffy Lube at 4 pm on a Sunday and had the oil changed including transmission and the differential. There is no way you could do that in Australia on a Sunday. They were the most helpful people ever, one bloke even invited us to dinner, said his wife would love to meet some Australians.

On her last day, Lauren wanted to do some last minute shopping and spend the rest of her US dollars so we ventured out to another Outlet centre about 30 miles away. We asked Lauren what she wanted for dinner on her last night in the US and she said Taco Bell! Any thoughts of a home cooked meal went out the window so off to Taco Bell we went. A box of 12 freshly made Tacos for $13 can't beat that for price.

All that was left was for Lauren to start packing and for us to get her to the airport on time. I would drop someone off at Dallas airport anytime, 5 terminals big and it's easy to drive to and park. As usual we were early so we went up to the Hyatt bar for a farewell drink until it was time for Lauren to go.

We arrived back to a very quiet trailer. After a full month it would take a bit of adjustment to it being just the two of us again! No time for sentiment however as the journey will continue with an early start in the morning to get some minor warranty issues fixed before we hit the highway again.


- Posted by RnR on their IPad

Location:Dallas Texas

A Huge Park!

So we set off to see the most remote National Park in the USA.  Due to the distsnce we had to do an over night stop at a place called Fort Stockton. We did not get into the town as the RV park was about 5 miles out of town but the RV park I think has a great set up. They know they are just a "stopover" for RVers heading to Big Bend or further west to El Paso so they have a cafe that does a great dinner and breakfast at very reasonable prices, so no cooking for us at Fort Stockton.
A quick snap on the way into Big Bend (we have since raised our hitch so the trailer is now level)


The next day we set off at a reasonable time and as with most travelled highways in the US the roads are in great condition, even the one to Terlingua which is where we were going to stay. On the trip down we passed a US Border check point which is like a speed camera on steroids! As you slow down to the posted speed of 40 mph and pass several post on your right cameras take pictures of the car, tags, and the occupants, i hope we were all smiling? I think my photo I will be me gritting my teeth as I am attempting to slow our 40 foot trailer down!

As always the roads are in great condition


Terlingua is near the entrance to both Big Bend National Park and Big Bend State Park. We found our park, hard to miss as we are in the desert and there is not much around. Always funny when they name a place with the word "resort" it conjures up visions of palm trees, swimming pools and tree lined avenues but we are in the desert and no such sights. Water is to precious here for that sort of stuff so it's a graded dirt area with full hookups and the odd cottonwood tree which we noticed are being replace with Australian Eucalypts so a feeling of home right outside our door.

Our place in the desert


The usual routine and in no time we are set up and we head down the road to a tour place (yes even out here) to find out what tours were available. Rose and I and Lauren agreed a trip down the Rio Grande in a raft or canoe would be great. So we check out the options and we book a half day canoe trip for later in the week. That done we did a drive around the town, took about 10 mins then back home.

The next day we decided on a day trip to a border town of Presidio which sits in the border of Mexico and the USA but our first stop is the ghost town that sits outside Terlingua. This is a barren rock covered place where derelict rock structures litter the landscape a time when mining of mercury was big in this area and to top it off people live amongst the old ghost town structures! There are no building regulations out here, just buy your land at $500 an acre and put any structure you like on it to live in. Feels strange to be driving through the desert and see a battered RV or fifth wheel sitting in the middle of nowhere and someone living in it.
The old ghost towns cemetery, the oldest plot was 1804


Yes this is the Rio Grande' and Mexico just the other side


The road to Presidio follows the Rio Grande and we are told is rated in the top 10 road trips to take. The drive takes you on a winding paved road through the desert, not a sand desert but a harsh rocky terrain with stunted bushes, only the tuff survive out here. The views are breath taking and we are amazed at the scenery keeping in mind this is a desert. Of course no trip to the desert would be complete if you didn't see a "roadrunner" and one runs across the raid in front of us, not a big bird like the cartoon, a quick beep beep from me and he is gone. The journey is truly amazing the country is beautiful in a desert sort of way.
Rose and Lauren looking at Mexico, not what we expected!


This was a movie set used for several movies including, Streets of Laredo and Dead Mans Walk


We arrive at Presidio to a town left behind in time, it appeared to be a very poor place, which it most likely was. We did a drive around the town passed the border check point and back to the main street. We could not let this visit go by without a Mexican lunch so we found a place called El Patio Resturante'. A good choice as it was packed with the locals who must go there for Sunday lunch. We all had a main at about $9 each and they were great, we could not eat another thing and of course you get bottomless soft drink, I think Dr Peppers has had to increase production since Lauren got here.
The Main Street of Presidio (check the sticker on the car, I approached the owner they had no idea what flag it was)


The journey home was uneventful until two blokes sitting outside a roadside smoked BBQ place, they waved and I looked at Rose, feel like a beer?

To be continued.....


- Posted by RnR on their IPad

Location:Big Bend National Park Texas

A Quick Beer!

So a quick U turn and we returned to the "pink" BBQ shack on the side of the road. Now when I say shack I mean this place has character just like the owner. So we got out of the car and this bloke with a beard and bandana on say hi, I give my usual greeting, G'day how's it goin? The owner, Bobby told us that he wasn't officially open yet so couldn't sell us anything, but said thar "as his friends he could give us a beer". I looked at Rose and she at me, ok, why not, we would love to be his new found friends! So what began as a chance meeting with what would have to be one of Texas's nicest blokes, and that's not because he gave us free beer, developed into a great friendship. Over a few Coronas we retold our USA Gap Year story. He called Lauren "baby girl". Not too many guys could carry that off but Bobby, with his Texan accent did it well, and it was accepted as a compliment by Lauren.

Drinks at Bobby's Blues and Cosmic BBQ shack


Lauren at the shack getting her first touch of a handgun


The BBQ Bobby smokes his meat in, yep a converted tractor!



We spent a few hours chatting (or gas bagging as some would refer it as ) ending in Bobby promising to take us all out shooting at a friend's property in a couple of days time. Lauren had never held a gun let alone fire one so it was going to be a good experience for her. Me? I just love to shoot the many weapons that are available in the states.

The next day we had arranged to go on a river kayaking trip down the Rio Grande. We arrived nice and early and another couple turned up as well, they were from Mexico and their English was very limited. We all jumped into the tour bus for the one hour journey up river and our driver/guide provided us with a commentary of the surrounding desert. He definitely has a passion for his job and the desert. By the end of the trip we were almost convinced that Teringula would be a great place to live!

We arrived at our start point and got the run down on the finer points of kayaking. Life jackets were optional, we decided against it for two reasons - all Aussies can swim, but the clincher was the fact the river is currently so low we could walk out if we tipped over. Our paddles actually hit bottom several times on our trip. As the wind was blowing quiet strongly down river we didn't even work up a sweat paddling. Although the river was low the view through the canyons was fantastic. As Lauren was paired up with the guide she was able to just sat back and enjoy the view as he did all the work!

Lauren paddling hard, not!




- Posted by RnR on their IPad

Location:Terlingua, Big Bend National Park Texas

"Remember the Alamo"

On our way to Corpus Christi we went around the city of San Antonio but we always planned to return and we are glad we did. San Antonio would be one of the most beautiful cities we have come across and we wished we had more time there but our time was limited so what to see? Firstly we found a KOA park which was only 7 miles from the city centre and a bus ran from right out the front to downtown - an ideal location.

All set up


On check in we were informed that they book organised tours to see the sights so we booked a full day tour for the following day. We went about the usual routine of setting up our site, no big problems these days, we have our routine and can do it in about 20 minutes. Most times when we find a park and we inform them we have a 40 foot trailer they give us what is termed a "pull through" site which is exactly what it means, you just pull your rig straight in no backing. We are not afraid of back in sites but pull through s can be an advantage with limited roadways in parks. For the convenience some parks charge extra to have a pull through site.

The next morning we were up nice and early to wait the arrival of our tour bus. We were given the usual instructions to be 15 mins early and I added my usual extra 5 mins on that. However all that planning and 'timeliness' was wasted - we waited and waited and waited! 45 mins later our bus finally arrived with apologies from the driver. Not an ideal start!

First stop was the sunken Japanese gardens which are located in an old disused quarry. Very peaceful. We were then driven through the local park where, come thanksgiving, people actually camp out to reserve a table! Tables are numbered and some families have sat at the same picnic table for generations! Now that is keen!

The Japanese Sunken Gardens


Our next stop was downtown to the River-walk. The River Walk is built around the river with waterways and canals which meander through the city. The river is lined with restaurants and cafes. We boarded a boat and sailed through the city with our guide providing us with all the historical information on the city and how the River-walk came into existence. The river walk would have to be one of the most pleasant downtown areas we have seen in a city anywhere - very clean and safe.

The River-walk in San Antonio








Next stop was the Texas Ranger museum which is housed in a large saloon which still has a bar and serves meals. As we entered the barman advised that we could purchase a drink and take it in the museum. In true Aussie fashion I was the only one to grab a beer!. The museum houses a huge collection of stuffed wild animals as well as a history of the Texas Rangers, not enough time to read all the information but it was great none the less. It also high lights some of the "carnival" type shows that existed around the time that Texas was a wilderness state.

The Saloon Bar at the Texas Ranger Museum


Me being sworn in as an Texas Ranger (replaced rifle with beer)


A happy moose?


The highlight of the city tour. and only because we all grew up with the movie, was "The Alamo". I had no idea that Texas has had six flags fly over it, which means that it has been ruled by six different governments until the present day where it's part of the United States. The battle that took place at the Alamo was against the Mexican army. The building sits amid many modern buildings right in the centre of town. it was hard to imagine it sitting all by itself in the desert as the battle raged around it. Both Jim Bowie and Davey Crocket lost their lives in this battle.

The Alamo


We also visited two old missions and this also changed what I "thought" I knew. I thought the missions were just that missions but in fact they were built as forts and places of safety for the local people including the Indians as the Spanish attempted to convert them to Catholics. The Spanish government provided money and troops to the church to build the "missions". The church was happy as they had a whole new flock of people to convert and the Spanish government was happy as this gave them a presence in the country to ward off the many other nations attempting to conquer the world. Texas was a very remote place back then and the people who endured the harsh country must have been truly amazing.

The Mission as it stands today








Back to the van park around 5.00 and agreed that the tour was a great way to see all the highlights that this beautiful city has to offer.


- Posted by RnR on their IPad

Location:San Antonio Texas

A must see destination when in Texas

We started off on this journey with a general direction in mind but with no set agenda. Given the bad weather we had been experiencing we weren't keen to do a beach side location in the rain again so were going to give Corpus Christi a miss. Luck was on our side however and good weather was predicted for the next week so we hitched up and headed to where we thought the sun might shine, and it did, be it with a bit of wind blowing.

For this stop we thought we would go all out and do a "resort" RV park. There are plenty of "resort" RV parks out there but not too many live up to the name, that said we arrived at the Gulf Water RV Resort Park and were impressed big time. We were guided to our site and assisted in backing in (not that I needed it) and we were in. The site had a concrete pad, separate BBQ area, full hookups and only a short walk to the beach. We were impressed with this site not to mention that every person that walked by said "welcome to the park we hope you enjoy it". I have said this before and I will say it again the Americans are very friendly,welcoming people

The first morning Rose and I left early for a walk along the 29 mile long beach. We had no reason to do the whole 29 miles (we are on holidays after all!) but we managed a few hours walk along it and talked to a number of people who were fishing learning about the texan licensing laws etc. We arrived back at the trailer and true to form for a teenager Lauren was still asleep - no surprise there.

An early morning walk looking across the Gulf of Mexico


We had looked through all the pamphlets for this area and Lauren had penciled in a few things she wanted to do. First stop was the USS Lexington, a WWII aircraft carrier which was decommissioned in 1992 which put to sea in 1943! As always this was a great tour, just the size of these ships is amazing, the Nimitz class are even bigger! It took us about 3 hours to look over the ship and we did not even see it all, that would take days.

Just hanging in the hanger


Our next stop was the aquarium which was conveniently located next door. We headed down the ramp when Rose grabbed my arm and said, "hey look, it's Garry and Barb! (We met them and had a few too many drinks together in New Orleans). It certainly is a small world! So we had a chat and made arrangements to catch up later that night.

We headed to the aquarium which was great, we even got to "pat" the stingrays. When You put your hand in the tank they swim up to you, very nerve wracking for the first time but once we got the hang of it it was truly a great experience. Next stop was the dolphin show and Lauren put her hand up to be part of it, be it just to hold a shape against the glass. The dolphin had to pick the triangle shape and of course got it right. For her efforts Lauren got a voucher to the "Whataburger" chain so she was happy.

The dolphin show


Yep patting the stingrays



We arrived back at the 'resort' introduced ourselves to our 'neighbours' and ended up sitting outside chatting. The arrival of 'our landlord's' (Kathy) husband (Jay) all dressed in camouflage right down to the face paint was an additional highlight to the evening. Jay had been out duck shooting, God I love America. Over the next couple of nights we learnt much about duck hunting. Thanks Jay - we loved the insight and we hope to catch up for that duck dinner in the future. Jay also had a flag pole on his site and every couple of days he would raise a different flag. Being as patriotic as we are we have an Aussie flag with us which we hang on the awning when we set up. Jay made mention of it and as it was Australia day the following day he offered to fly the flag for the duration of our stay. Thanks again Jay.

Our flag was raised for Australia Day in the park


Our next excursion was to go horse riding on the beach, not what Rose and I would do normally, but Lauren has us thinking outside our square so we booked a morning beach ride. After ringing for directions, twice, we finally arrived and got acquainted with our horses. All three of of us have horse riding skills akin to below basic so we got a horse equivalent to our skills. We headed off - I am thinking I'm good with this then I remembered that there is no brake pedal - I can tow a 40 foot trailer on the freeways of the USA but not sure if I can stop this horse! We have two guides, one who came in on her day off just to 'hear our accents' (true story!) We slowly headed towards the beach when the guides horse suddenly baulked. Apparently there was an unfamiliar sand mound on the track which spooked him which in turn spooked our horses. Instinctively they about turned with the intention to head back to the ranch! We had received a brief safety instruction at the beginning of the ride so luckily we remembered what we had been told "the reins are your brakes and steering wheel". I hit the brakes, HARD, and pushed down on the stirrups, yelling to Rose and Lauren to do the same. Our guides were amazed we managed to do what we did considering our limited riding skills. The rest of the ride went without incident - a great experience.

Not expert riders but we look the part


Our five nights at Gulf Waters Resort came to end and it was time to move on. As always we have met some great people and it was sad leaving them. We exchanged email addresses and headed off to our next destination.

A 4WD Texan style - street legal and registered.


- Posted by RnR on their IPad

Location:Corpus Christi / Port Aransas