Postscript to Pig Hunt

When the guys got back to town with their trophy pig, they were fixin to drop it off at the local butcher's. It was around 10:00 pm and closed, so they called the after-hours phone number on the door, and, only in Texas, the guy told them where to find the hidden key to the shop, told them to drop the pig off inside, and then make sure to lock up and put the key back where they found it. Ha!

Texas Waffles

We went to a breakfast buffet at a university here on Sunday, and you could make your own waffles AND the griddles were shaped like the state of Texas! See photo of my Texas waffle below.

We got ourselves one of the big round iron cauldrons that the park provides for campfires, and we are getting a half-pickup full of dry live oak for 40 bucks so we can have us some fires at night. There is a real saloon here in the park and it has a nice big old fire pit on the patio about 3 feet high. It is round and made out of the local stone slabs, which are kind of a chalky creamy-white and brownish color.

Some of the boys in the park went out wild pig hunting yesterday. The pigs are a real problem down here and are destroying the land, so there are private properties that offer pig hunting. The one they went to is free, and you pay the owner $75 if you get a pig. I guess the guys just go sit in blinds alone for hours on end, even into the night, and the pigs come in for mash that is thrown out for them. Sounds kind of boring, but they did get one pig anyway.

There are some really weird place names around here

Back in Roswell Again

Spring break started on Mustang Island on Saturday, March 12th, and things were heating up down on the beach literally.  There were hundreds of people camping out down there, mostly teenager/college kids, driving up and down in their vehicles, playing volleyball, guys in gorilla suits, large pickup trucks with equally large smoker BBQs in tow, and more than a smattering of large Confederate flags being flown on the back of pickups and on the dunes.

 
We left Mustang Island on Saturday, March 12th, and headed for Ingram, Texas, which is about 12 miles NW of Kerrville, where we stayed about a month before.  The RV park in Ingram was actually a working pecan orchard with large mature trees, and they had made a smaller RV park at the back of the property by the river, so it was very quiet and serene, with birds singing and deer romping around in the trees.  It's a little early for the leaves to be on the trees yet, though, and the temperatures were definitely lower than we have been used to on the island!

We then drove about 4 hours NW and stayed at Fort Stockton overnight at the same RV park we had stayed in on the way down.  This is the first time we have stayed in a place we knew, and it was far less stressful getting there because we knew where it was and what to expect.

When we arrived at Trailer Village in Roswell the next afternoon, it was like returning home.  We stayed about a week here in January on the way down to Texas, checking out the old stomping grounds of Billy the Kid in Lincoln and Fort Sumner, and we had made friends with the family who owns the RV park we stayed in called Trailer Village.  When we pulled up at the office, one of the owners came out and said, "Didn't you see the sign?  It said 'No Suntanned Gypsies,'"  Ha, ha. 

It has been great staying here and visiting with them again.  The weather has been nice and hot during the day (80 to 90 degrees F.) but, being the desert, it tends to cool down at night to around 5 degrees C., something that we are adjusting to after the steady and humid temperatures of Mustang Island.  Spring has arrived here, though, and the trees are all leafing out and the blackbirds are singing in the trees. 

We will be heading out of here on Saturday to head up north to Albuquerque and over to Gallup, New Mexico for a few days to check things out up there. 

Kerrville, Texas

We are staying in the 2010 Best RV Park in Texas, located right on the Guadalupe River.  Its location is what has given it this rating, I'm sure, because it is situated on acres of giant old oak and pecan trees and lawn that stretch for at least a quarter-mile along the river, with the RV sites and buildings located on the bench above, which is separated by a rolling grassy knoll (not the famous Texas grassy knoll) and it's an easy stroll down to the water.  They have some nice old tree swings hanging here and there which are great for relaxing in and watching the wide, shallow river pass by.  It must look absolutely spectacular in the spring and summer when all the leaves are out in full force on the trees.  The opposite side of the river has the same type of vegetation and is undeveloped, so this tranquil spot with birds singing and squirrels scurrying is truly a gem in the hill country of Texas.

And boy, do we KNOW we're in Texas!   How so, you ask?  Two words for you (by Reservoir Dogs' standards):  The fabulous Texas barbecue!  We went to a BBQ joint the first night we got here, Saturday, just a shack on the highway with a couple of huge smokers that look like big old iron cylinders with chimneys on them, and a couple of gigantic square tanks full of what they soak the ribs and meat in before they smoke them.  The smokers were going full tilt when we got there, and the local cat was curled up underneath one enjoying the warmth on a chilly night here (it was 10 degrees C.)

There is no describing the ribs, brisket, and pulled pork that we had, nor could you do justice to the potato salad, coleslaw, pinto beans, or sweet tea (a Texas specialty).  This place was kind of cafeteria-style, in that you ordered your meat (by the pound -- $12.00), had it dished out onto a plate by a friendly lady with a great Texas drawl, then went around and added your side dishes, drinks, and desserts (home made sweet custard pie and pecan pie beyond description).

The eating area is through another door.  It's furnished with tables that each have a part-loaf of sliced bread in plastic bags, just like you'd buy at the supermarket.  The walls are decorated with various heads of dead animals, mostly deer, although there was a wild boar as well.  They are closed Sundays and Mondays.  We are going back Tuesday.