I promised last night that I'd probably be brief tonight. I think I can keep that promise but with the aid of many pictures.
The day started in the upper 60's, overcast and humid at Tyler State Park. The coffee and crossword session was enjoyable. The new extendable cell phone booster antenna mast (Mrs. C' doesn't much like my technology prototypes... but she sometimes likes the results... and this is in that category) was put to the test and performed perfectly. It's a 20' flag pole in 7 segments that collapses to under 4 feet. I snap a magnetic base cell phone antenna to it, raise it, bungee to the awning supports of the trailer, hook the 30' coax cable to the booster inside the trailer and... voila!... three bars of 4G LTE connectivity where previously there was a 1X or 3G signal at one or two bars. We're streaming Lester Holt where other people have resorted to tiddlywinks and dominoes (I'm not saying our camping experience is more "authentic"... only that the tech we carry works).
We pushed off at about 10:00 and headed west toward the "Big D"... Dallas. On the way we passed through Canton, TX which was in the news over the weekend as it was hit by tornadoes. The damage was visible even from the interstate and in particular we saw two adjacent buildings at what appeared to be a used car lot on an adjacent road that were shredded as if bomb had hit them. Sobering.
Navigating the Airstream around Dallas and through Ft. Worth in a downpour with construction everywhere was the challenge it sounds like. Piloting an 8'6" vehicle through two lane stretches and lane shifts with lanes of about 9'6" with jersey barriers on the left and right has its white knuckle moments. When we made a gas stop shortly after Ft. Worth I walked around the Airstream to see it there were any scrapes or dents telling me I got a bit too close. It was all good. Phew... getting Airstream body work done usually necessitates a trip back to the factory in Jackson Center, Ohio.
Once clear of urbanity I checked the GPS for the next major town... Decatur... and Tripadvisor showed the top restaurant was Casa Torres Mexican Restaurant. As the title of today's blog says... everything had changed. This was the first sign. If you've been following along you might notice the steady shift in food as we "eat local". Although we didn't eat there, the typical top choice among Florida diners is Cracker Barrel. I'm not kidding you. This says a lot about Florida and Floridians. I feel no need to elaborate for you. When we got to Alabama we ate gulf seafood, in Louisiana it was Cajun... especially the fried variety, yesterday in East Texas it was bar-b-que and finally in North Texas we hit Mexican. The patrons of Casa Torres had left just enough spots next to each other for us to park the rig (I didn't count there, but usually we take up 7 adjacent spots when we park across the grain in "head in" parking spots). Lunch was winding down. People with inferior vehicles still had plenty of spaces for their puny machines. Romeo feels like a king owning a corner of a parking lot and hanging in the trailer while we eat.Here's our fajita combo for two and a pic of my sopapilla. That's butter on it (never had it that way before... will always do it in the future) and a bottle of honey behind the plate. Fried dough with butter (to raise the fat component) and honey. There's no way that can miss.
That wasn't the only change. While we were overwhelmed by the presence of the Dallas/Ft.Worth metroplex the surrounding terrain had changed. By the time we stopped lunch we were out of the eastern US forests and into the Great Plains. Vegetation was sparse and low. The land itself was flat. Although Mrs. C' objects every time I do this, I felt compelled to share with you the first "Silver Cliche' Driving Experience" of this trip. Taken on US 287 between Decatur and Wichita Falls, Texas heading northwest at 2:30 PM local time. This is what one sees out the driver's side window, windshield and passenger window:
Tall trees? Gone! Rolling hills? Behind us! Major rivers? Dried up! You[re in the Great Plains now. The emphasis belongs on plain. Out here they just call it Tix-s as in "Weelcome to noth Tix-s. Hire y'all?"
We sped along to Wichita Falls. Actually, we jumped off the big road just short of Wichita Falls to head to the campground. We'll pass through there tomorrow on the way to Amarillo. The plains in Texas have a charm and beauty. Sometimes you have to look closely to spot it, but it's there. I took a few pics in the late afternoon after we settled in. See what you think. Here are two easy ones...
Here's what the Airstream looks like settled among the mesquite:
A short walk from the campsite took me to the top of a man made ridge. I'm guessing its flood control, but it provided a vantage point for me to share a view of the dominant terrain and vegetation... flat and mesquite:
So, that's it for today. Tomorrow we press on to the Amarillo area. We have no reservation but there are three campgrounds we can pick from. I'm thinking we'll wind up on Lake Meredith near Sanford, Texas in the Lake Meredith National Recreation Area. It's "dry camping" (no water, no electricity) but free courtesy of the National Park Service (that's you... thanks again for making this possible!). We may not have internet out in the boonies, but heaven knows the antenna will be up and I'll be messing with wires until I've exhausted every possibility!
Until next time...
SC'
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