Falcon Lake State Park

Gary and Bev are on their way back to their winter home in St Petersburg and we have been enjoying the warm weather. The temperatures are in the eighties for highs and the nights are staying warm. We ran into some neighbors from near home in Leelanau county. Mike and Martha live on Burdickville road just south of us across from Glen Lake High School. We are hoping they are going to join us for a camp fire so we can get better acquainted.
There is also a couple from Grand Rapids across the street in the campground but we haven't had a chance to talk with them.
This is a nice campground on the Mexican border with a big reservoir next to it. Falcon Lake was created by building a dam across the Rio Grand River. We are out in the country and in a very rural area so it's nice and quiet. The javelinas are around and we had one in the campsite the other day. We see them on the trails as we are walking. Birding seems to be very popular around here also although we haven't concentrated on that yet. Eight nights at this camp so we will do a lot of exploring. Stay tuned.

Yucca in bloom along the hiking trail. We did about a three mile walk yesterday morning.

Our last day at Lake Casa Blanca

We woke up to bright sunshine this morning just as it's time to move on! We're heading south to Falcon Lake on the Mexican border.Don't tell Nancy but the area is notorious for the tourist shooting some years ago where an American couple were jet skiing on the Mexican side of the lake and the husband was shot and killed. They pinned it on drug runners but I don't think the murder was ever solved.
The bass fishing is supposed to be excellent there so maybe I'll get into that!

Here's hoping everyone is surviving the snow and cold in the north country. I know the kids are enjoying all of the snow days!

A pair of Northern Shovelers on Lake Casa Blanca

Toughing it out in Texas

The weather here is testing our true grit as we tour Laredo and Rio Bravo. John Wayne would be proud. The cloudy skies and cool temperatures are staying with us making a liar out of the local weatherman.
We've been taking rides to amuse ourselves and see the local attractions but we are having trouble finding anything interesting. Yesterday we drove south to the town of Zapata to find the old Spanish square but couldn't find it. On the way back we stopped at San Ygnacio and there we found the old Spanish village from the 1830's A lot of the buildings were in pretty good shape and the area well preserved. Quite interesting.
Other than the outlet mall in Laredo we really haven't found anything else very exciting. We had a great lunch at one of the Mexican restaurants in town, but that's about it.

We've been seeing white pelicans and ospreys on the lake.

Lots of prickly pear cactus here. 

A yucca ready to bloom.

Here's a look at the campground and lake from Osprey Hill.

San Ygnacio's Spanish Square.

The pier at the campground. Lake Casa Blanca.

Same

Indian paintbrush in bloom

Eighty Degrees for two days!!

We have had some great weather for the past two days, but now winter has returned to Texas. Highs in the forties for two days then a warm up begins.
We are heading to down town Laredo today for lunch and to see the sights. Hopefully I'll have some pictures to post.
We checked St Petersburg weather and they are sunny in the seventies all week. Bev and Gary might wish they stayed home!

Laredo

The past two mornings at Garvin State Park were foggy and misty. We did drove to Bandera to see why they are the cowboy capital of the world. We found that the Bandera pass was a thoroughfare for driving cattle from southwest Texas to the markets in the north. It is estimated that up to ten million head of cattle were moved through here over the decades. The town has quite a bit of history and the shops and boutiques are dedicated to cowboy and Indian culture.
We are now at Lake Casa Blanca at Laredo and the weather looks much more promising. We are in the eighties for highs and are looking for some cooling on Friday. Bev and Gary joined up with us last night. They drove their new motorhome from Florida and are spending at least eight nights with us. We are looking forward to doing some exploring together.

It seems we were very close to the very best place in the world.

Bandera, Texas, the cowboy capital of the world!

The beautiful courthouse was built in 1890-91

The history of Bandera and the surrounding countryside. (if you can zoom in to read it)

This is a lifesize Remington bronze of the old west cowboy in the park here at Bandera

The beautiful ranches in the hill country of Texas raise these imported antelope. Some of the ranches had elaborate entrances and you could see the drives going back but the houses were so far back they were out of view from the highway. One can only imagine how many acres they covered.

A west Texas sunset at Lake Casa Blanca

Superbowl Sunday (for some)

We're enjoying the warming weather and finally some sunshine. The park has some great hiking trails and the Frio River runs through it. Very scenic with the hills all around us. Yesterday we drove into Uvalde and I got an oil change for the truck. Also did a bit of shopping. Nancy's birthday dinner was coconut shrimp and followed by chardonnay. A happy camper!
Today we took a long hike over the mountain and had some nice views from the top. The campground emptied out and we have it mostly to ourselves now

The Frio River running through the campground

The cypress trees were enormous!

Almost as big as giant redwoods

The Frio River again

The buildings and park were built by the CCC in the 1930's

A view from the top of the mountain on our hike this morning

The back of the mess hall and dance area built by the CCC

More tree fun

Standing inside this big old tree

Happy Birthday Nancy!! 39 and going strong!!

We picked up the camper on Thursday and spent a night east of San Antonio. On Saturday we moved on to the Texas hill country and are spending four nights at Garner State Park near Uvalde. It's quite hilly here but the cloudy weather puts a slight damper on things. We had a bit of rain last night, but nothing so far today. Temps are in the 60's so it's not too bad. The drawback is that we have no TV reception and only one Spanish station comes in on the radio in the camper. What are we going to do for SUPERBOWL?? Looks like we may have to spend the evening in a sports bar.
Wi Fi is also a challenge but we can get a signal at the visitor center here at the park.
Happy Trails to you all!!