House Update

When we arrived in San Angelo well over a month ago, we visited Rio Concho West (RCW) and were shown the houses that were available to purchase at that time. After considering our choices, we opted for one. We then began visiting supply houses in Angelo looking at tile, carpet, counter tops, and other housing options. Since then, we have made all choices and submitted those to RCW. In turn, RCW received estimates for all upgrades. We have approved those estimates, so work is underway transforming our new home.

I can't predict exactly when we will be able to move in, but I hope we are settled in there by the middle of June or so. In the meantime, we will continue to travel about.

We are currently in San Angelo checking on the house. We will stay here another week, then store our trailer for a week while we take a quick trip to East Texas to visit family. Then we come back to Angelo and check the progress of the house. If time allows, we'll hook up the trailer and take off for another week or two. If not, we'll hang around Angelo and prepare to close on our house.

Red Arroyo Trail

Quite a while ago, the city of San Angelo undertook construction of a walking and biking trail along the Red Arroyo, which runs through the southwest and southerly portions of the city. You can read a couple of stories about the trail in our local paper by clicking the links below:

• Red Arroyo on Track for Summer Completion
• Red Arroyo Trails Nearing Finish Line

Although there is still some work to do on the trail system, people are already using it. Donna and I got out this morning and walked the easterly portion of the trail.

This map was part of one of the stories listed above. Donna and I walked the trail on the east side of College Hills Boulevard.

We parked the truck in the parking area on Sul Ross. We began the hike by walking east to Knickerbocker Road. It was almost exactly 1.25 miles from the parking lot to Knickberbocker and then back. We then followed the loop west to College Hills and back. This portion of the trail was right at 1.5 miles. Our total walk was 2.74 miles.

And that's all you really need to know. I'll let the pictures below tell the rest of the story. I'll just close by saying I feel this is a great addition to the city. This is property that is in the flood plain, so it is not suitable for other development. And since the trail is in the heart of several residential areas, it is easily accessible.

One of the many fine bridges that cross the arroyo.

Looking upstream at Red Arroyo from the bridge.

East end of the trail at Knickerbocker Road

Apartments along the trail near Knickerbocker Road.

View of Parkview Lakes through the trees. The lakes are near some condos located just off the trail.

Stormwater pond along the trail near College Hills Blvd.

View from a bridge of the arroyo, a driving range, and a miniature golf course.

Miniature golf course along the trail at College Hills and Millbrook.

More stormwater ponds along the trail.

Lost Alaskan RV Park, Alpine, Texas

We just spent 8 nights in Alpine. We stayed at Lost Alaskan RV Park on the north side of town. I have seen this park for years and years, but we had never stayed there before.

The office is at the entrance. The building in the right background is the United States Courthouse on the opposite side of Highway 118.

This is not a park I can wholeheartedly recommend to others. We really wanted to spend this time in the Davis Mountains State Park in Fort Davis just north of Alpine, but they were booked during the dates we were interested in. So, we decided to take a chance on Lost Alaskan. Now, everything at the RV park actually is fine, but the place is a bit run down. Part of my reason for saying this is just the ongoing drought, which the park has no control over. We visited Alpine from Angelo where everything was green from recent rains. But Alpine has not been getting any rain, and everything is brown already, and that gives the place a depressed look. In addition, there are also a lot of long time residents in the park, and some of their sites look quite messy. And even though there has been no rain, grass is still pretty tall in places around the park. I do not know if water restrictions are in place, but it doesn't appear that the grass is being watered. And to add to all of this, the wind blew hard every single day we were at the park. This caused a lot of blowing dirt.

The park does offer all the standard amenities, including full hookups. Cable TV is provided, but only 12 channels are available. The WiFi works, but it is a bit slow, and the signal dropped several times during our stay. There is a dog park as well as playground and swimming pool. The laundry room is well maintained; it contains 6 washers and 6 dryers, and all appear to work. The laundry room is a bit small, though, with very limited seating inside. The tables are also small with little surface space for working with laundry. The restrooms and showers are also well maintained. One unique aspect of this park is that it has an RV wash slab at the back of the property that can be booked and used.

The community building is in the center of the park. It contains an "adult room", the laundry, and restrooms/showers.

Men's restroom area. Showers have nice sitting area outside shower stalls.

Dryers and folding tables in laundry. There are 6 washers on the opposite wall. Not much room to move about if more than 2 people are working in the room.

The dog run is located at the front of the park, near the highway.

Pool in southwest section of park.

Playground next to pool, with tent area in background.

Sites are equipped with concrete/brick picnic tables. There is no division between sites, so the "front yard" of one RV looks onto the "back yard" of another RV, including all hoses and cables. There are half a dozen or so premium sites, and these have a concrete patio and small fences separating sites. Otherwise, they are more or less like the other sites. Somehow, the grass in premium sites seems to be in better shape; they may have in-ground sprinklers.

This is one of the park's "premium" sites. What makes this a premium site are the cement area and the low walls. Take these away and you have a regular site.

Compare this regular site to the premium site above.

Our site, #13. This was taken about mid-morning, so we are getting some shade. In the afternoon, this area will be full sun. Notice all the grass is dead and the site is mainly rock.

Backside of our trailer showing the utilities. They are all located close together, which I like. This is what our neighbors behind us would see if they were sitting outside of their door.

All interior roads are paved, but sites are gravel and I found ours to be very uneven. I had to use a couple of boards to level my trailer from side to side. The office is attractive, and it contains basic RV items.

One of the half-dozen or so interior roads. Trees are plentiful throughout the park, but not all sites have good shade.

I found the design of the park to be a bit odd. I often wonder who designs RV parks. The 5 interior streets in the park run east and west. Most sites are pull-thru with the exception of a half dozen sites just west of the pool and the sites on the north side of the park. All of the sites in the park except those by the pool are laid out so that the doors of RVs open to the west. So the "porch" or "patio" areas of RVs, where people normally set up their chairs for outdoor living, are on the west side of the RVs. So during the heat of the day, these areas are exposed to the afternoon sun. Now, you can extend your awning, but when the wind is blowing hard, as it was during our entire week long stay at Lost Alaskan, we were not able to use our awning. Personally, I would prefer my door to open to the east or possibly the south.

There are a few cabins available as well. These are next to the office.

All things considered, the park is a perfectly good place to stay. If aesthetics are important, though, you may be less than satisfied. This is probably the best RV park in Alpine.

Big Bend Brewing Company

It's no secret that Donna and I -- especially Donna -- enjoy a good brew. So during our stay in Alpine, we decided to tour the Big Bend Brewing Company.

Outside of the brewery on the western edge of Alpine.

We took the tour of the plant, which is offered Wednesday - Friday at 3:00 PM and on Saturdays at 1:00 and 3:00 PM. The tasting room is also open those same times on those days. The tour is very brief, and costs $10. But with the tour, you get to sample each of the brewery's 6 beers and then you receive a pint glass full of any brew. You get to keep the pint glass. Not a bad deal at all.

The tasting room

The web site lists only 5 brews; however, the brewery has recently introduced a new beer. I'm not a beer connoisseur, so I can't really describe the beers for you.

From information provided during the tour, it seems that Big Bend Brewing is expanding. Production was ramped up during our visit. Our guide mentioned during the tour that this is the most remote brewery in the U.S.

The facilities at the plant, with our tour guide on left.

Another view of the brewery.

This board behind the bar shows the 6 brews the facility is producing.

For more information, you can visit the web site linked at the beginning of this entry.

Day Trip: Marathon, Texas

Donna and I took a short day trip to nearby Marathon this morning. It is only about 30 miles east of Alpine, so it's a short drive.

I've always liked Marathon. During my days working at Region 18 Education Service Center in Midland, Texas, I visited the schools in the Big Bend region quite often, and I always enjoyed Marathon. The town is quite small, fewer than 500 people, and the lifestyle is definitely laid back. It is one of the major gateways to Big Bend National Park, with visitors using US 385 to enter the park through Persimmon Gap.

Street scene from Marathon. The Gage begins where the tall trees are in the center of the picture, then continues west (left).

The town of Marathon was founded in the early 1880s. Early day settlers included Captain Albion E. Shepard and Alfred Gage. Shepard actually applied for the post office and, therefore, decided on the name of Marathon. The story goes that the area reminded him of the area around Marathon, Greece, where he had previously traveled as a ship's captain.

Gage came west from Vermont and eventually amassed thousands and thousands of acres. In 1926, he commissioned famed El Paso architect, Henry Trost, to design and build a hotel because there was no lodging in the town of Marathon. Today, that hotel is known as the Gage, and it is a favorite place to stay while in the Big Bend region. The hotel today actually consists of two parts. The old part contains 15 rooms, 5 on the main floor and 10 on the second floor. The newer section, called Los Portales, contains 20 adobe style rooms just west of the historic hotel. Landscaping is beautiful. If you venture to the Gage, keep in mind that there are no in-room televisions; television is available only in the lobby.

The historic Gage Hotel.

Courtyard of the Gage

Los Portales portion of the Gage

Today, the Gage Hotel also owns and operates the Captain Shepard House, originally built in 1890. Today, the house contains 5 rooms, while another 2 rooms are available in the backyard in the carriage house.The Gage also operates the 12 Gauge Restaurant and White Buffalo Bar. The restaurant is very upscale, with very upscale prices. But the last time I ate there, the food was very, very good.

The restored Captain Albion Shepard House, which offers guest rooms courtesy of the Gage Hotel.

Patio area of the White Buffalo Bar of the Gage.

A handful of shops line the highway near the Gage, including 2 or 3 other restaurants. There are also a couple of curio type shops.

We took a sort drive south on Avenue D to Post Park, which is where Camp Pena Colorado was established about 1879. The post existed for about 15 years, with the original purpose to counter hostile Apaches in the Trans-Pecos area. The park is now an oasis in the desert, as it lies on Pena Colorado Creek near a large spring. The post was finally abandoned in 1993.

The dammed creek at Post Park.

Tall shade trees and water make a West Texas oasis.

Another view of inviting Post Park with its green grass and shade trees.

The views from Marathon of the mountains to the west are really impressive. Even though it is located at the junction of US 90 and US 385, the town is really quite peaceful. If you are looking to get away from the fast paced modern world while not giving up all comforts, you might want to give Marathon a try.

Reporting from Alpine, Texas

It's Wednesday morning as I write this. Donna and I have been in Alpine since Sunday.

I've always loved this part of Texas. We've been visiting this area since the early 1980s. It's rather depressing being here right now, though. Lately Texas has been in the news because of heavy rains in the Houston area as well as storms throughout many other parts of the state. I can imagine that folks in other parts of the country imagine that Texas is awash in water these days; but this area of the state is very dry. It's sad to look out on these mountains and see only brown. All the grass in our RV park is dead. I don't know if water restrictions are in place in this area or if people are just being conservative, but lawns throughout town are also brown.

In addition to the ongoing drought, the area is also experiencing high winds. The wind has been blowing since we arrived. Yesterday was the worst. It blew hard from early Tuesday morning until just a few hours ago. Our little trailer rocked all day and all night. And since the area is so dry, there was a lot of dirt blowing about. Donna and I took off for a walk yesterday, but we gave up after a mile; the wind was just blowing too hard and there was too much dirt in the air.

The rainy season in this part of Texas is June through September, though, so I'm hopeful that the rains will come. And when they do come, it doesn't take much for the area to green up.

San Angelo KOA

For nearly 2 weeks now, Donna and I have been at the San Angelo KOA. We stayed here quit a bit in the past when our other houses were being built. It's a pretty good stop.

Office at entrance. Pool is on far side while bathrooms are on this side. Laundry is in back.

KOA parks are generally pretty reliable. You can usually count on each park having all the basic amenities, and generally they work quite well. San Angelo KOA is no exception. Each site at the park has a nice utility area consisting of water, sewer, electricity, and cable. All are grouped together in a boxed off area.

Utility box with cable, water, and electric box. Sewer is farther to the right. Note how cable is in post, not hanging lose as at many parks.

All interior roads and sites are gravel, and there is no dust. Mature mesquite trees are spread throughout the park, so some shade is available, but don't expect much shade even under the largest of the trees. A dog park is available, and there are numerous cabins available for rent.

A nice pool is located next to the office. In the same building as the office you will also find the small but adequate laundry room as well as well-maintained bathrooms complete with shower stalls. Propane is also available, and basic grocery and RV items are located in the office. One of the unusual perks of staying in this park is that each guest receives the local paper daily.

Pool next to the office. Basketball court and goal on right.

Laundry room in rear of office building.

WiFi is available, but I found it to be spotty and a bit slow. Perhaps it was my location as I was on the edge of the park. For television, the park recently converted to a cable box which, once connected, works rather well and brings in over 100 channels. However, I can see some technologically-challenged folks having trouble making the connection. The folks at the office will help, though. However, if you are leaving before the office opens, you will need to turn in your box the previous day. The box includes the cable box, 2 cables, a power supply, and a remote control.

One of the many KOA cabins.

The park is located near the lake on Knickerbocker Road. The road is heavily used, as it is the main road to the lake and residential areas, as well as to the small local airport. The park is far enough off the road so that road noise is really not a problem. You can hear the traffic, but it is not that loud, certainly not loud enough to keep me awake at night.

Sites vary in size and privacy. Some sites back up to each other, so that utility boxes are located between rigs, which are parked back to back to each other. Other sites have more privacy, including privacy screens. We were fortunate enough to secure one of these, and we enjoyed the patio area and furniture.

Our site, number 70. Notice the patio with nice furniture.

Another view of our site, with awning partially out.

The park staff is great. Employees are visible throughout the day doing various chores and assisting guests. Everyone we met was very friendly and eager to help.

Tonight is our last night here. Tomorrow, we hook up the rig and head to Alpine for a week in the Texas mountains.