Day 845: San Antonio Missions NHP and The Alamo

Last night’s Walmart has designated RV parking.  Thanks!

Day_845_01-2

This little fellow was hitching a ride on the RV:

Day_845_02

Our first stop of the day was the Mission San José unit of San Antonio Missions National Historical Park:

Day_845_04

They grew them big out here:

Day_845_03

The mission courtyard was ringed by housing which doubled as a defensive wall:

Day_845_05

Day_845_06

Day_845_07

Day_845_08

Day_845_09

Some of the original plaster and paint from 1768 still remains:

Day_845_10

We checked out the mission’s grist mill, the oldest in Texas:

Day_845_11

Day_845_12

Day_845_13

The kids completed their Junior Ranger books and received their badges:

Day_845_14

Day_845_15

We left the RV at the visitor center and drove the truck to downtown San Antonio to visit the Mission San Antonio de Valero, more commonly known as The Alamo.  Here, 200 Texian defenders fell before Santa Anna and his 1,800 troops:

Day_845_18

Day_845_19

No interior photography was allowed, unfortunately.  After touring the site, we drove back to the RV, hitched up and continued driving west to overnight at the Walmart of Del Rio, Texas.  See the trip map for today’s drive and our current location.

Day 844: Houston to San Antonio

Shabbos at the Young Israel of Houston was great.  We enjoyed sharing lunch with new friends.  Thanks for hosting us!

We were delayed a bit today in Houston, as we had our annual vehicle registration mailed here, but it briefly went missing at the target address.  Once we got that settled, we headed out, founding more cheap diesel on the way west to San Antonio:

Day_844_01

This evening, B made an origami hat from a large piece of paper:

Day_844_02

Day_844_03

We’re overnighting at a Walmart in San Antonio, Texas.  See the trip map for today’s drive and our current location.

Day 842: Fleeing the Bolivar Peninsula

This morning we woke up to a muggy, cloudy day.  Overnighting at the fishing pier wasn’t the most inspiring experience.  I backed in such that the final position had the truck at a right angle to the RV so that I wouldn’t block the thru lane:

Day_842_01

Day_842_02

This pelican wanted a snack from the fisherman:

Day_842_04

We spent a few hours walking the beach:

Day_842_03

Day_842_05

Day_842_06

Day_842_07

Day_842_08

Day_842_09

Day_842_10

We looked through the shells we had collected:

Day_842_11

Day_842_12

We really wanted to have an on-beach dispersed camping experience, but a beach flood watch was in effect for tonight as well, and we really didn’t want to spend Shabbos at the fishing pier.  Also, the weather looks lousy for most of this coming week, so we said goodbye to the Bolivar Peninsula and headed to Houston for Shabbos.  On the way out, construction crews were clearing the road from the sand washed up in last night’s flood tide:

Day_842_13

Good Shabbos from Houston, Texas!  See the trip map for today’s drive and our current location.

Day 841: To the Bolivar Peninsula

I noted this sign this morning next to the RV in the Walmart parking lot.  Is this such a common problem that this specific law is required, and signs have to be posted?

Day_841_01

Louisiana, land of cheap diesel.  I guess it helps to be close to the refineries:

Day_841_02

Day_841_03

We crossed into Texas:

Day_841_04

We made our way down to the Bolivar Peninsula, a barrier island immediately east of Galveston Island.  High tides coupled with stiff onshore winds piled up the waves, completely submerging the beach and over-washing the highway:

Day_841_05

We now understand why they build houses on stilts here:

Day_841_06

The plan was to disperse camp on the beach, which is legal here, but at this end of the island as well, there was no beach above water:

Day_841_07

Day_841_08

Day_841_09

We drove back east on the peninsula to a fishing inlet area that allows overnight parking.  We’ll re-evaluate what to do tomorrow.

See the trip map for today’s drive and our current location.

Day 840: Gulf Islands National Seashore

This morning we said goodbye to Rick:

Day_840_02

M’s Junior Ranger banner, the second one Trish made on this trip, is now full:

Day_840_01

We drove west, entering Alabama:

Day_840_03

Alabama’s coastal region is not that wide, so we soon entered Mississippi:

Day_840_04

We soon arrived at the visitor center for Gulf Islands National Seashore:

Day_840_05

The visitor center is quite nice:

Day_840_06

Day_840_07

Day_840_08

We walked out to the shore, where we could see the gulf islands along the horizon:

Day_840_10

Day_840_11

Day_840_12

Day_840_13

Anything that stands still gets overtaken by vines:

Day_840_14

Day_840_15

The kids completed their Junior Ranger books and received their badges:

Day_840_09

20151202_120635-1

We wanted to visit a pair of NPS sites in New Orleans, but they’re closed tomorrow for Thanksgiving, so we continued on to overnight at a Walmart near Baton Rogue, Louisiana.  See the trip map for today’s drive and our current location.