Sasquatch's, Mermaids and Graboids Oh My!

Our hunt for proof has us moving west now. We spent time looking for Sasquatch's in the mountains of Oklahoma. Then to the gulf coast of Texas to find proof of Mermaids. Now we are making our way to the desert southwest. Looking for Graboids and warmer weather. Both seem to be challenging to find.

We stayed near Galveston at the Galveston State Park.

It was a nice park. All of their beach sites are closed now for 2 years for a major renovation so we had a site in their bay campground. Still near the water but it was more of salt marshes and muck. Our next stop took us to Magnolia Beach just past Port Lavaca, Texas. Another beach with free camping. Lots of open space on the beach to park and you can get pretty close to the water. High tide isn't much of anything here.

The beach is very hard packed so if you brought a big rig out here, there would be no problem at all. In fact there were many motorhomes and fivers out there. Lots of oyster shells on the beach.

Moose was even enjoying it.

Moose keeping an eye out for Mermaids.

We walked the beach. We also got our bikes out and biked the 4.7 miles to the end of the road and through the ghost town of Indianola. We admitted to ourselves that not being on a bike in over a year was kind of hard on our leg muscles, but we made it with minimal complaints. That was over 9 miles round trip.It was time to sit, hydrate and watch the ships come in. (Hydrate is code for drink beer.)

The weather was near 80 and sunny until a cold front moved through. The temp fell into the 60's within hours. The wind decided to blow at gale force from across the bay. But before we went in we had neighbors arrive. Now keep in mind that there is a lot of open space on the beach right now because it is off season. So where do you think they parked? Practically on us.

I thought we were back in Seward, Alaska. There it's expected. Oh well, it is what it is. Nothing a little hydration can't take care of. We left the next morning and we decided to head west from there. We heard of some Graboid encounters so we wanted to check them out. Next stop on the list was Fredericksburg, Texas. It was founded by German immigrants. 

We got to town early enough so that we could park and walk the streets.I know Jim will think we are hooking but we are really just sightseeing. It was the weekend and it was crowded. The stores were typically touristy and full of people. There was no room at the wine tasting bars. We decided to hydrate  at the Fredericksburg brewery and then find a campground for the night. We had had enough. Being that it was the weekend most campgrounds were full and overpriced. So we went out to the fairgrounds and got a spot there for half the price. It even came with a water heater and the bathroom was about 6 feet away. 

With proper aiming and a good tailwind I probably could of made it through our window and into the bathroom without having to get up at night. One night there was all we needed so we got up early for our next leg of the journey. We were going to make a little 30 mile detour because we saw that there was a Taco Casa in Kerrville, Texas. It has been a year since our last Taco Casa so we just had to stop and if you are ever going through northern Texas and come across one. Stop. It is so worth it.

That was magical taco goodness. Thanks Robin and Mike for introducing us to Taco heaven. Our next stop was going to be in New Mexico. Halfway between our Arizona stop we wanted to get to but as we looked at the weather we saw that a major wind event was going to happen. So we didn't want to be on the road for that. 

We stopped somewhere undisclosed in New Mexico. We are still at this spot so I will not name it until we leave. We have to stay ahead of the paparazzi. I will however just include a photo of us in our spot.

If you may know where this is, keep it to yourselves or we will give you the stink eye. That's no joke. 

On a more personal note. One good thing about Facebook is that it lets us video call our grandsons. Virgo is such a card. He makes us laugh and smile just thinking of his antics.

And of course the new one. Baby Audie. Who will be 6 months old when we see him next.

We sure do miss those little shavers now.

The winds should die down by this evening so that we can head to our next destination for Thanksgiving. We would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and also a reminder to people. Don't lose your cool on Black Friday. But if you do send us a video.

"Glady's! Have you started cooking that turkey yet? I didn't get any last year. And while your up, get me something to hydrate with."

Lucky to be Alive

It's no secret now that we have left our super secret undisclosed location in Minnesota. We were forced out by the cold and Beverly hinting to us that it was time leave. So we left, we had to, she changed the locks. Anyways, we left. It was 7 degrees when we pulled out of Bev's driveway.

We headed straight south. It took us 1300 miles to find temperatures that where warm enough so that we could de-winterize the camper and stay in it. Funny thing about that is that we have the usual uncomfortable RV mattress on our bed. So we put a 2 inch gel foam topper over that to make it more comfortable. Those things can freeze solid and become hard as a rock. So there was no sleeping in the bed until that got thawed out.

Our first 2 nights we just stayed in motels/hotels. One in Mound City, Mo, and another in in Ft. Smith, AR. (we call it Ft. Sniff. Why? Because we are funny like that.) Our third night we stayed in a State Park in Oklahoma. Beaver Bend. We were able to de-winterize and stay inside of the camper.

It was still cool but at least it was above freezing. The night after that we found a very nice Army Corps Park near Jasper, Texas. Sandy Creek. Temps have finally warmed up a bit now.

Lisa has been doing some research and there are places that you can go in Texas along the gulf coast and camp right on the beach for free. So she found a beach on the Bolivar Peninsula. Crystal Beach. Not sure how things worked, we decided to stay in a Passport America park there so we could check out the beach and find out the rules and regulations.

What we found out is that you can drive your vehicle up and down the beach for free. If you park or camp on the beach you are supposed to have a 10 dollar permit which you can get at any gas station there or a county rep can sell you one on the beach. Also you can drive atv's or side by sides on the beach but you cannot drive them to the beach. They must be trailered. Golf carts are the main form of transport on the beach.

So the next day we left the campground and drove to the corner gas station to get a permit. The guy there says that it is the end of the season and they don't have them anymore. He even said that they don't check for permits either and if the county did check you could just purchase it from them. Alrighty then. We like to follow the rules but the rules are not enforced at the end of the season I guess.

We drove out to the beach and set up camp. It was a nice spot. Nobody around because it is the off season.

We unloaded the Ranger and went for a drive. Upon our return there was some people in front of our truck and some idiots and I do mean idiots parked behind us. They even had a portable tiki bar on a trailer they brought with them.

We sat there for hours without a problem but then those idiots behind us had more idiots from the Mall Crawler Jeep Club join them and one had an enormous stereo system. He turned that on and didn't care who it offended. I yelled to Lisa to pack up, we are moving. What ass's.

We moved about a quarter of a mile away and could still hear them. They finally left at sunset. The thing that gets us is that this beach is 27 miles long and we drove it in both directions. There's plenty of room that you don't need to be on top of someone else and then pull that shit.

After that first night it was very enjoyable out on the beach. We drove the Ranger up and down the beach looking for shells. We walked many miles on the beach looking for shells. We have lots of shells now.

Who could have sailed this?

Just your everyday tiny beach shack.

Here's the part where I am lucky to be alive. We are not ocean people and don't know a lot about high tides and low tides. So, being our first night, Lisa was nervous about how high the tide would get. So occasionally I would have to go outside and take a look. Now what happened next is that there is some confusion on the details. The short version is that I opened the door and fell out of the camper onto my back. It happened so fast and I think there are three plausible explanations.

The first one I think is the least plausible. That is that my beer goggles made me step on a step that wasn't there. Far fetched I know. Second least plausible explanation would have to be that I had too much sand on my shoe and my foot slipped off of the step and down I went. Lastly, the explanation that I think is the most plausible is that I may have been pushed from behind. Everyone knows that I am worth more dead than alive. We will just never know how I got that handprint on my back.

When I did fall out of the camper there were some people having a fire not too far away. They did come running to my aid and I think I heard them say something like "Well the entertainment has arrived."

Our first day on the beach was Sunday and once all of the weekenders left it turned out to be a very nice peaceful day and evening.

We left Tuesday with our next destination being Galveston Island State Park. If you google the distance from Crystal Beach to Galveston State Park it says that it is 28.8 miles away. You have to take a ferry across the bay and it runs every 18 minutes. Thats cool. Plus it is free. We packed up and drove to the ferry dock and waited in line to cross. We had our camper on the truck and we are pulling a trailer with the Ranger and other things on it. The lady there said that we needed to turn off our propane to the camper. So we did. Then she saw the 2 extra propane tanks I have on the trailer. She said they have to be hooked up to something. I said they are tied down, they are not going anywhere. Nope, you can not get on there with those. Dang. A three hour drive later we got to the park. So in the future hide your extra tanks inside because they don't check the inside of your camper.

On a personal note. Crystal Beach turned out to be a nice place to be after our incident with the idiots. What saddens me is the way the locals treat that beach. There is trash everywhere, even though they provide garbage cans up and down the beach. They don't have respect for such a beautiful environment that they have around them. Lisa read the reviews of the beach and they say that it is trashy and the people can be obnoxious. I was wondering if the locals do that on purpose to keep tourists away and so they get the bad reviews. Also you don't even want to get me started with the dog owners. I have never seen so many dogs running loose and just crapping everywhere and the owners doing nothing about it.

"Glady', watch where you step and lets get going!"

The Sasquatch Hunt Continues

As I have documented before in my blog, we have been on the hunt for the elusive Sasquatch. In Minnesota we found proof. We found the Sasquatch eggs.

We found many Sasquatch eggs on our property so chances of a sighting where high. I set up trail cams in hopes of seeing one.

I have a feeling that one had walked by or ran by because my camera was too slow to capture it. I know something set the camera off. The next photo is really interesting.

This photo shows an orb. That could be a ghost sighting from the paranormal realm. Interesting, but I am not interested in ghosts yet. Also the occasional deer would stop by and say "Hello."

So next year when we are out on our property, we can continue the Sasquatch hunt there. In the meantime we will look for evidence in other parts of the country. Our travels south have taken us to the Ouachita National Forest in southeastern Oklahoma. They have a Sasquatch Festival in the fall, which we missed, with seminars, speakers and real Sasquatch hunters. There have been many sighting of the elusive beast in this area. It is a big deal.

I did an internet search on this area. This photo was just titled Oklahoma hunter has a close call with Sasquatch. Bigfoot caught on tape. Here is a link to another sighting. With anticipation running high we stopped in the Beaver Bend State Park and set up our home base for the hunt.

We did a foot search. Looking for sign. We came across a cute little Armadildo. Not to be confused with an Armadillo. They are different.

We searched high and low until it was time to leave and head farther south. We are not only looking for the Sasquatch but also the elusive warm weather. We don't know what we will find first.

"Glady's, pack your bloomers! We are moving south!"

A Be-lated Anniversary Update

As I sit here in our undisclosed location in Minnesota, I can't help but enjoy the view and think about how quickly the seasons change. Maybe it is a metaphor on life in general and how quickly lives can change.

View from my window.

Even Moose is enjoying the fall colors.

This past July had marked our fifth year on the road. I can't believe that it has been five years. To me it seems like we have been off the road more than we have been on the road.  I think that that is due to spending so much time in Minnesota for one reason or the other. Don't get me wrong. I know we have been on the road because our new pickup that we bought last December already has 33,000 miles on it and it hasn't even been a full year.

In this lifestyle things happen a lot. Traveling around all of the time makes places and dates seem so long ago. Case in point. Our trip to Alaska in June and July. That was only a couple of months ago but to us it seems like years ago.

So a quick synopsis of our year and as I look back on it, it was a busy year. 

We were staying in the Barnesville Campground which is usually our summer home. I can disclose that now because we don't stay there anymore. We were working at clearing our land for building an eventual campsite to stay at while in this area. We also purchased our pickup camper for our Alaska trip the following year.

We loaded it up and for the month of August we traveled to Colorado with it to get a feel for everything. We stopped at the JBarB for a visit also.

There is such a big difference between our fifthwheel and the pickup camper, aka the Hobbit House. Size for one thing but also the ease at which you can travel around in. So even after our trip to Alaska, we will hang onto the pickup camper for awhile. 

September found us back in Barnesville. Spending time with our new grandson before we left for the winter. October we decided to head south following the "Great River Road" along the Mississippi.

Well if you remember that trip we had lost our fresh water tank somewhere along the road in Iowa.  So we decided to head to Texas to some friends house for repairs. We also committed to them to drive their trams for the Polar Bear Express from Thanksgiving to December.

"Honey, did you forget to pack the fresh water tank?"

Mike and Robin were kind enough to let us stay inside their shop for our stay there. November and December I worked for Trams R Us. Working on the trams and also driving them.

"Tram 4! I hate you!"

The wheels on the tram go round and round..........

In December we also decided to buy Gandolf the Grey for our upcoming Alaska trip.

We left our fifthwheel in Texas and drove north for Christmas. It was babies first Christmas so we couldn't miss that.

After Christmas we headed back to Texas to get our fifthwheel and make our way to Florida. We were going to drive trams at the Tampa RV Super Show, the Florida State Fair and also the Plant City Strawberry Festival for the months of January to mid March.

The Crew.

Me and Tram 4.

After our tram commitments were over we packed up and headed north along the east coast. Stopping and exploring along the way. Savannah, Charleston and up to Myrtle Beach. It was fun being in areas that we have not been to before.

Myrtle Beach.

We could hear the call of the little baby so we started to make our way west and north back up to Minnesota. We did stop in Asheville, NC for a few days and we decided that we liked that area and that we need to get back there again and explore it more.

Lisa in the Appalachians.

We got back to Minnesota and started working on our land again. Clearing more trees and more trees. We got our permits ready for our new driveway approach and started preparing for our Alaska trip.

Alaska was amazing. If you ever have the time to take the drive up there and I do recommend driving it. The scenery is beautiful and always changing. Plus the wildlife that you would see along the way.

Our Alaska trip started in June and ended mid July. We could have gone longer but the forest fires and the smoke drove us out early. Maybe there will be a next time. Who knows. We got back to Minnesota and thought our driveway would have been done, but no. We went to visit Jim and Barb in SD and of course, soon as we left they called and started it. 

It didn't take long once the started to finish it. What took the time was waiting for the inspections. But now phase one of our project is finally finished and I am happy to say that Phase two has begun. Phase two is our building site for our garage. It has been terribly wet here this fall and that is slowing down everything. The contractor said that he would not be able to do everything that we had in mind but at least he could do the pad site so that that could get done.

The ground is so saturated that the big heavy dump trucks just sank trying to get in there. So they assured us that next spring they would be able to finish.

This is our pad site for the 36X48 garage that we plan on building. It will have a cement floor but again they won't be able to pour concrete until next year. So next year it will be a busy one for sure getting that garage finished.

I would like to add that we welcomed our new little grandson, Audie. 

I like the name. If it good enough for a congressional medal of honor winner it is good enough for my grandson.

I think in my posts I need to add a section called "From a Personal Note".

So here goes. 

From a personal note, I hate Obama care. Can anyone tell me honestly that it improved the healthcare industry? Prime example number 1. We were in a transition period. Our insurance changed to another with a 3 day notice, telling us our insurance was getting cancelled. We scrambled and signed up for a different plan that would take effect the day after the other was cancelled. We didn't have our new cards and I had to go to the clinic because of an injury.

We told the clinic we didn't have our cards at the time of the appointment. They sent a bill for $135.00 for the clinic visit. Well we got our ins. cards and called the clinic office. They would submit the bill to the insurance company then. So we get a bill from the insurance company saying the clinic visit now cost $186.00 dollars. The insurance company covered $6.00 and the rest ($180.00) was our obligation. WTF is this load of BS they are trying to sell us. 

So we pay a $444.00 premium a month so that the insurance company will cover .035% of our medical bills. Unbelievable. Thank you Obama.

With that crap off of my mind, at least until the next time I have to go to the clinic, we continue on. It is November now and we are getting anxious for our travels south to warmer weather.

Our view this morning.

What the next year has in store for us, we really don't know yet. So we will just have to wait and see.