Stephen F. Austin State Park

We spent January 22 - 24 (2 nights) at Stephen F. Austin State Park near Sealy, just off of Interstate 10 about 30 miles or so west of Houston. We had never been to this park before, and that’s a shame, for it is a real jewel.

The park actually sits on land that was part of the San Felipe de Austin town site; I'll provide more information about this in another entry. The historical complex is just east of the park. The park is on the west bank of the muddy Brazos River, and a golf course is located along the east boundary of the park.

A loop in the campground provides 40 sites with full hookups for trailers. Our site had only 30 amp electrical; I do not know if 50 amp is available within the campground or not. There are 2 other loops for camping as well. One loop contains 20 screen shelters, and the other loop contains about 40 sites for tent campers. These two loops share restroom/shower facilities.

The firebug getting a fire ready at our campsite, #39.

In our camping area, sites were all pull thrus, and they were located far enough apart to provide sufficient privacy. Each site contained a picnic table, fire ring with grill, and a pole for hanging lanterns or whatever. Each camping site was well cleared and had a very clean look. As with most state parks, all internal roads are paved, and all camp sites have paved parking. The park also recycles aluminum cans, so be sure to dispose of these properly.

View of our campground from our campsite. The wagon is located at the site of one of the hosts, and it contains firewood for sale.

One of the screened shelters available to campers

A typical site available to tent campers

Although some state parks do offer WiFi and, occasionally, even cable TV, neither was available in the park. However, the park is close enough to Houston that we were able to pick up a number of TV stations. We also picked up the local CBS affiliate from Bryan/College Station.

We picked a great time to be in the park. Daily temps reached into the low 70s both days, so we spent almost all of our time outside. We were fortunate to be at the park while fires were permitted, so we enjoyed an evening fire both days of our stay.

The park offers numerous programs throughout the year, but since we were there during the week, none was available during our stay. Most such programs occur on the weekends when more people visit the park. During our stay, we saw no campers in the screened shelters or the tent sites; there were probably 15 to 20 trailer sites occupied each night. During weekends and times of the year when the weather is more reliably pleasant, I’m sure the park has near full occupancy since it is so close to Houston.

I saw evidence of an active park staff throughout the park. One screened shelter, for example, was undergoing a major upgrade. 3 park hosts were located in the park, and all stayed busy each day. Trails were clear and well-maintained.

Catching Up

I know. I'm way behind in my posts. We've been without Internet for about a week now, so I have some catching up to do. We've had a good time, and I have lots to share.

We are back in Angelo now. We did a quick check on the house about an hour ago, and it is coming along nicely. I'll take pictures later this week. The brick is almost entirely up, so it is beginning to look like a house now.

I'll try to post an entry each day until I catch up. I'll need to hurry, though, for we are leaving again in about 10 days, and I'm sure we will be without Internet some at that time.

Stay tuned . . . .

Propane and Other Things

We're in Conroe at the moment. We've been visiting Donna's mother. We leave this morning to start heading back west, but we'll visit at least 2 state parks on our return trip to San Angelo.

Our first stop will be at Stephen F. Austin State Park near Sealy, Texas. This park is located near the original San Felipe townsite where Austin located his original 297 families, sometimes referred to as the "Old Three Hundred". As a history buff, I'm looking forward to exploring the area. I've never been here before.

From there, we head west to Bastrop State Park, site of a terrible wildfire a little over a year ago. We spent nearly a week there in 2010, so we're interested in seeing how the park has changed since the fire. If you are interested, you can see a hike report on the park from our previous visit if you click here.

The weather the past few days in Conroe has been great. As usual, we're staying at Omega Farms (see reviews for May 2012 and July 2012 by clicking here). One of the things I like about this RV park is that you can wash your RV here. Most RV parks do not allow any vehicle washing, while others will allow you to do some washing for a fee. Omega Farms allows you to wash your RV and there is no fee. The trailer was pretty dirty from our recent experience in the snow down in the Big Bend area. So, I broke out the scrub brush and extending pole and scrubbed away one sunny day.

We've been using over $100 a month in propane the past 2 months. We've run into some very cold weather nearly everywhere we have been since early December. We had very cold weather in Lubbock and pulled out just a few hours ahead of a good snow system. We spent Christmas in extremely cold weather in Big Spring, with temps in the teens for 3 nights in a row and daily high in the low 30s. We headed to Big Bend to get warm, only to get snowed in down there. We returned to San Angelo to 2 cold and rainy days. Then we headed east looking for warmth but found ice and cold instead.

We have two 20-pound propane tanks on our trailer, and I carry a spare as well. We normally pay anywhere from $16 to $18 to fill the tanks up at propane stations. However, if we do a tank swap, we can pay as much as $22 per tank. In extremely cold weather, we probably use a tank in 3 or 4 days. So I love these sunny days when we can turn the heat off during the day. We usually try to find a spot where we can park our trailer with our big bay window towards the south so that we can get as much sun into the trailer as possible.

I do not know if the parks we are going to have Internet, so I may not be able to post anything for at least a week or more.

Building Another Home

When we came back to Texas in October after our trip through the Southwest, we did a bit of house hunting. We wanted to give the Texas housing market one more chance. We spent a month in the East Texas area looking in Tyler and Longview, but were unable to find what we wanted. So, we headed back to our beloved West Texas. We spent some time in Lubbock looking at houses there. We like Lubbock, and we've lived in that area before and thought we would enjoy living there again. We looked at a number of houses, and even made an offer on one, but it was refused.

We had just about given up on living in Texas and were about to return to Nevada and look in Laughlin and Las Vegas. We had seen some housing areas in our price range while we were out there in September and October, and had pretty much decided to return and do some serious house hunting there.

Then our daughter called to tell us she was expecting, and that changed everything. Donna decided she wanted to be around for the new baby, so that was that. We headed to San Angelo and almost immediately found the type of house we were looking for.

Our new home is a patio home. It is larger than our previous home in Angelo, but has very little yard. I like that. I've always enjoyed working in a yard, but once I retired I found it tied me down too much. For this yard, we are putting in a desert xeriscape landscape in the front yard, and our side yard will have limited grass. Very little watering and upkeep will be required. That means more time for me to play.

Foundation was recently poured when this photo was taken on Dec. 12. All houses in this subdivision have rear-entry garages, which we really like. Houses in the background are across the paved alley from us.

Photo of foundation taken from the alley. All houses on this street are patio homes, like those seen across the street.

Photo of the street taken from our sidewalk

The house has lots of storage, much more than our previous house.

We signed a contract on the house in mid-December. It is scheduled for completion on April 19, but I believe it will be ready before then. We have met with the builder several times and have selected everything from brick to sink fixtures.

We're looking forward to settling into our new house and getting out of the trailer. And we're delighted with our decision to settle in San Angelo again. It is close to our daughter, and the town is just a very comfortable fit for us. It is easy to get around, has everything we need, and we really like our doctors there. Our home is located in a nice neighborhood close to shopping and the loop, making it easy to get in and out.

Framing in place on December 22, 2012

Donna and I have never been able to stay put anyplace for very long. We've told our daughter we'll give her three years here. We'll probably get antsy about then and set our horizons for somewhere else down the road.

On the Road: Study Butte, Texas, to San Angelo, Texas

It's 311 miles from Study Butte to San Angelo. That's a long haul pulling a trailer, but it's a good drive, full of history and West Texas scenery.

Study Butte to San Angelo, 311 miles from the mountains to the prairies

We left early in the morning with snow still on the ground in some spots in Study Butte. The roads had cleared off the previous day, so we felt safe traveling. From Study Butte, the road climbs up and through the Christmas Mountains before leveling off near Terlingua Ranch, a sort of desert resort with lots, cabins, RV sites, and other amenities about 15 miles north of Study Butte.

As we neared Alpine, the terrain became hilly again. More snow remained on the ground at this higher elevation, especially on the north slopes of hills. We came down off the ridge and stopped at McDonald's for coffee and snacks.

Back on the road, we headed east out of Alpine on US 67/90, past the campus of Sul Ross State University. About 10 miles outside of town, US 67 splits and heads northeast towards Ft. Stockton. US 67 from Alpine to Ft. Stockton is a good highway, with numerous passing lanes and a good shoulder the entire way. There are very few houses on the stretch. The land is almost entirely devoted to ranching. It's an easy, relaxing drive.

Near Ft. Stockton, we intersected with I-10 and drove in to the largest city in the Big Bend region. The only Walmart in the entire Big Bend is found here. We decided to detour off the interstate and drive along the old highway through town. We stopped for gas on the western edge of town, then drove along the old highway seeing all the old motels and eateries. Ft. Stockton is an oasis for travelers, as the closest town east is 110 miles (Ozona) and the closest town of size west is Van Horn, about 120 miles distant. So, Ft. Stockton provides lots of places for travelers to stop.

I'd like to return to Ft. Stockton when I have a few days. There are numerous places there I want to see, including the 19th century military post, the historic Comanche Springs, the Annie Riggs Museum, and the Ste. Genevieve Winery several miles to the east of town. But that trip will have to wait until another day.

About 10 miles east of town, US 67 splits off I-10 to the northeast. This is mesa country, and the farther we drove, the more wind turbines we saw along the tops of mesas. Wind power is big business out here. As we crossed the Pecos River near McCamey, I began thinking about the historic Horeshead Crossing of the river and the notable Castle Gap that directed travelers from the east to the river crossing. In my mind, I began planning a day trip there from San Angelo, another trip that will have to wait until another day. There's so much to see out here. The land really comes to life when you know something of the history.

From McCamey all the way to Big Lake, there is a great deal of oil-field related activity. There is an oil boom out here. Traffic on the roads is dominated by oil-field activity, and new apartments, RV parks, and other lodging options are popping up everywhere.

About halfway between Rankin and Big Lake, we come across the site of an earlier oil boom, one dating back to the 1920s. On May 28, 1923, the Texon Oil Company discovered the Santa Rita University 1-B, an oil well which brought great wealth to the University of Texas. The well is located just south of the highway, but the effects of this oil boom are obvious along US 67. It is a barren landscape where very little grows.

As we near Mertzon, mature oak trees appear along both sides of the highway.This is unusual for this part of Texas except along creeks and rivers. Although Spring Creek runs to the south of the road, these trees are not near that water source.

We finally pass the Twin Mountains and are back in San Angelo. We will relax here for a week or so, then head back out.


 

Images of Big Bend

Aside from all the locations we visited in Big Bend that I've previously reported on, there are other  spots you happen to along the road. Here are some pictures we snapped of individual events or locations.

West entrance to Big Bend, just down the road from downtown Study Butte.

Tunnel on the east side of the park, with the tops of the Sierra del Carmen in the background.

Colorful cottonwood trees at a picnic area in Rio Grande Village in the east side of the park

Donna snapped this picture of me while on the nature trail at Dugout Wells. The mountains in the background are Nugent Mountain and Pummel Peak, I think.

The rugged Sierra del Carmen of Mexico

The cottonwoods were really colorful during our trip. These are found along the river near Rio Grande Village. In the foreground you can see numerous other desert vegetation, such as ocotillos.

Great picture of the Window from outside the Basin with Casa Grande visible in the background through the notch. Compare it to my other pictures of the Window taken from inside the Basin.

The Mule Ears off Ross Maxwell Drive, with a mature ocotillo in the foreground.

It's obvious how Cottonwoods Campground near Castolon in the western part of the park got its name.

Homer Wilson Ranch, off Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. Building shown is the foreman's house. Also nearby are the ruins of a bunkhouse, corral, and dipping vat.

A rare snow in Big Bend. This was taken in our RV park early one morning.

Big Bend Motor Inn RV Park

While in the Big Bend area, Donna and I stayed at Big Bend Motor Inn RV Park. There aren't many choices for any type of lodging in the Big Bend area; you have to remember where you are and make do with what is available.

Big Bend Motor Inn is actually a complex located at the intersection of highways 118 (which runs south from Alpine) and 170 (which follows the river down from the Presidio area). It consists of a motel, convenience store, cafe, gas pumps, laundromat, RV park, and cabins. Reservations are handled through Big Bend Resort and Adventures. A word of caution should you make reservations here. Be sure to stipulate the location at Highways 118/170 as the service also handles reservations for a campground at Rio Grande Village inside the park.

The entire park is dirt surface with a few scant patches of grass at some sites. It gets really nasty when it rains. Admittedly, that is a very rare occurrence, but we did get snow during our stay. I was surprised, though, that we had a nice tree at our site. Each site has full hookups and a picnic table. Cable TV with about 10 channels is available, and I found that WiFi worked very well in site 01, where we were located.

Site 01

The RV park provides showers and restrooms, but I did not even venture into them. At check-in, I was told that the showers were coin operated and open to the public. We watched day after day as a stream of tourists used the facilities.

Restrooms/showers and motel rooms near our site, with Bee Mountain in the background

This RV park reminded me some of the RV park where we stayed in Moah, Utah. This is a place for outdoor adventurers. Every day, people set out early in the morning for hiking, desert driving in jeeps, and motorcycle riding, and returned later in the day after exploring the area. It's a busy place.

Pull-thru RV sites with cabins in background. During hot, dry, and windy days, the area can be dusty.

The laundromat is used by local residents, so it is busy, and many machines do not work. We also noted several tourists coming in simply to use the restroom as a place to clean up some.

Cafe and convenience store, with gas pumps out front

As you would expect, prices everywhere in the area are high. Gasoline was going for about $3.70 a gallon at a time when it was $3.04 in San Angelo. Grocery items, propane, and just about everything else is priced higher than usual. Terlingua is isolated, and it costs to ship goods down there.

Although we came across a more attractive RV park in Lajitas (Maverick Ranch RV Park), we were satisfied with our decision to stay at Big Bend Motor Inn RV Park. First of all, it is located in a place with more amenities. Gasoline, propane, and groceries were readily available in our immediate area, and there were numerous eateries within a mile or two of our location. And since our purpose in coming to the area was to explore the national park, we were more conveniently located to it.

Yes, the park was dusty and facilities were not up to par with what you will find in more populated areas, but you have to remember where you area. For us, this park worked fine.