On to Town

Saturday we got on our bikes and took a ride to town. We are only three and a half miles from down town San Antonio along the river trail and were there in no time.
We rode through one of the historical neighborhoods with it's big mansions and then on past a street fair to the Tower of the Americas. We went to the top of the tower and walked the observation deck and then had a drink in the lounge. Fantastic views from the top decks!
From there we went by the Alamo and then walked the downtown riverwalk and watched the tour boats and the crowds walking the walk. It's a busy place on the weekends!

Biking through one of the neighborhoods near the river

The mansions along here were gorgeous

There is a rich history of wealth in this town

One more before we move on

Thje tower of the America's. This is a landmark seen for miles and miles

And a view from the top. Our third visit to San Antonio and this is the first time we went up.

Remember the Alamo!!

The old federal courthouse in downtown. Boarded up due to the government shutdown.

The tourboats were loaded on the riverwalk.

So were the sidewalks and cafes.

Biking along the river and the missions

On Friday we finally got a large dose of sunshine and warm temperatures as it hit seventy today. We had a great day outdoors.
We started the day with a long bike ride to the southern end of the river walk trail about seven miles south of camp. On the way back we visited several of the old Spanish missions along the way. Several of the smaller structures resemble the Alamo, which was also one of the original missions. We had a picnic lunch along the trail in between stops.
After getting back to the campground we got on our shorts and took our books down to the pool and enjoyed the sun.
Later still we drove into town and had a great Mexican dinner at one of the local restaurants.

A beautiful day along the San Antonio River.

The southern terminus of the river trail. The plans are in the works to extend the trail to neighboring towns soon and add miles of additional trails.

Mission Espada is one of the smaller missions in the area. It is all decorated for the Christmas season. 

These missions were built in the early 1700's and renovations have been underway in recent decades to restore them to their original beauty.

The missions were not only places of worship, but were entire communities with residences and garden areas to make them self sufficient.

The inside of  Mission Espada's church.

I thought this was quite the ornate drinking fountain.

Mission San Juan Capistrano was our next stop. It was across the river and a bit north of  Mission Espada. This area was still being restored, and a lot of it was locked due to renovations and the government shutdown. Go Donald!!

An outdoor sanctuary with Mother Mary and a sacrificial candle alter.

The missions used the rivers for agriculture and had a series of dams and aqueducts to supply water for farming.

One of the oldest remaining man made dams in the country.

Mission San Juan was one of the largest and most ornate missions in the area. The grounds were huges and once contains an entire small town.

The sculptures decorating the mission were ornate and beautiful works of art.

San Antonio River

The weather finally warmed up and we had bright sunny skies all day! After lunch we took a long walk along the river from the campground. There are miles of walkways along the river that were developed by the city for the community to enjoy nature along the river and to let the area revert to it's natural condition.

The San Antonio River

Downtown in the distant background

Saw grass?

Blue Agave, Tequila anyone? 

The river didn't look conducive to kayaking. 

Built in rapids in many places.

This looked like the Sydney Concert hall.It's actually a structure built to collect rainwater. 

Hunkering Down through the Cold Snap

The temperature stayed in the forties today and rain, rain, rain. It kept us inside most of the day. We did get out after lunch and bought a new TV since ours in the camper lost it's picture. I guess Legend is not such a good brand?
We got the new one set up and Nancy bought new filters for the water source on the coffee maker. We turned the afternoon into a repair day and that kept us busy until dinner time. After that we watched the new TV and listened to the rain on the roof. Today looks dry and by tomorrow they are promising high sixties and sunshine. WooHoo!!

Happy New Year to All. Touring Texas

We left Louisiana on Sunday and drove past Houston, Texas. We called to our favorite campground in San Antonio and couldn't get in until Tuesday, January First. We looked at the map and found a state park campground at Bastrop, Texas. We spent Sunday and Monday nights at Bastrop State Park and found it to be a nice park in a decent location. The hiking trails in the park were wonderful and we did a four mile hike on Monday and a five mile hike on Tuesday.  The park was not far from Austin, but we never ventured into that town. We did go into Bastrop and did some shopping for New Years Eve. Our celebration dinner was coconut shrimp and Sushi with a nice broccoli salad. Couldn't have been better.
We watched TV and listened to fireworks going off all around until midnight, then hit the sack.
We packed up camp after our hike and lunch this morning and are now at Travelers World RV Resort in San Antonio.  This is a great spot about four miles from down town and the river walk. We can ride our bikes to town along the San Antonio River or go in the opposite direction and see the old Spanish missions along the river. The weather doesn't look promising for the next two days, but should improve quite a bit after that.
Wishing everyone the best New Year with great things to come in 2019 !!

We made it to Alexandria, Louisiana

We thought that as we moved south it would get warmer. Not the case! Today's high was 43 and it rained on and off through out the day. So tonight we are holed up in a Hampton Inn for the third night.

After breakfast at the hotel this morning we got back onto the Natchez Trace and drove over two hundred more leisurely miles on the parkway. This is the third time we took this route through Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi either to get back to the Midwest in the spring or to get to the southwest in the wintertime.

The parkway follows the route that the early settlers used to return home to their farms and towns after floating their crops and furs south on the Mississippi River. The roadway was used in the early eighteen hundreds and by the Civil War was pretty much abandoned. The federal government bought up all the land along the route and built a modern roadway for 440 miles. There is not a single stop sign or traffic light for the entire length of the parkway.  The speed limit is 50 for the majority of the way on a two lane highway through the country side. Imagine driving 440 miles from home how far you could get and then imagine never having to stop the whole way unless you needed gas or a break! (There are numerous pull outs for historic sites and scenic views as well as Indian mounds and picnic areas).

We made it to the end of the Trace at Natchez, Mississippi and drove further southwest to Alexandria, La. One more night at a hotel and tomorrow we should be able to make it to San Antonio and we will set up the camper and spend a few nights. Hoping for sunshine!!

A view through the windshield on the Natchez Trace Parkway. This was the typical view for four hundred forty miles of roadway. It's a totally relaxing drive. Just set the cruise at 58 MPH and steer! 

At one point in Mississippi we had a reservoir along the highway. Most of the rest was either forest or farmland.

Crossing the Mississippi River from Mississippi into Louisiana late this afternoon.

Hopefully this is the last night the camper sits in a Hampton Inn parking lot!!

The Start of Another Great Winter 2019

We left Ann Arbor on Thursday morning after spending two nights in Romeo with Mike, Lisa and the kids then two nights with Becky, Dave and the kids in Ann Arbor.
We spent a night in Bardstown, Kentucky then hooked up the camper from storage and drove to Nashville, then onto the Natchez Trace to Tupelo, Mississippi.
It's nice to get to much warmer weather here. It was 60 degrees today and sunny on the drive. We left the snow behind us even though Leelanau county was 45 and rainy today. We're looking forwad to a great winter vacation this year. Three months will be in Texas and then across the Florida pan handle and finally to see David in Johnson City, Tennessee for the final week.
Stay tuned...