Thursday, February 28, 2008
Today's Photo
28 February 2008 - This is my choice for 'Photo of the Day' for the Crawford travel blog. This was taken at Matthew's babtism and is a great shot of our newest family member and his parents. We are missing him terribly and appreciate Dave and Lori keeping us in touch with his progress. Last night's 'conversation' with Matthew assured us of his verbal progress!!! Surely 'da-da' and 'ma-ma' can't be far away!
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Lake Sam Rayburn near Jasper, Texas
27 February 2008 - We made it to Jasper, Texas for our scheduled date of 1 February after the long drive to/from North Carolina. Great little campground here in the Lake Rayburn community and it is just what we needed - quiet and peaceful and about the least expensive place we have stayed; certainly best value for money as they have super facilities plus Wifi. Only negatives is it is quite a ways to shopping (and not much 'life' when you get there) plus you cannot pick up ANY TV channels unless you have satellite TV. Oh well, could be a lot worse.
Never having been to a bass tournament and last week there being a large Stren Series tournament here on the lake, I went over to one of the weigh-ins. Here are some shots from that experience.
Boats come into the harbor and up to the bank where they load their catches into bags provided for them to carry their bass to the weigh-in. Never having seen a weigh-in I was interested in the process. Mind you, a bass weighing over 10 pounds will make you consider whether 4 lb test line is adequate!!!
The bass fishermen come out of the fog for the weigh-in on Sam Rayburn Lake in Texas. The boat with the 'flag' is a 'judges' boat where they check-in prior to the cutoff time for fishing.
Here we see a pair of contestants walking toward the weigh-in carrying their catch for the day and in the next photo we see them both coming and going; coming up the hill to the weigh-in and down the hill toward the pontoon boat that will return the bass to the lake after all have been weighed.
Never having been to a bass tournament and last week there being a large Stren Series tournament here on the lake, I went over to one of the weigh-ins. Here are some shots from that experience.
Boats come into the harbor and up to the bank where they load their catches into bags provided for them to carry their bass to the weigh-in. Never having seen a weigh-in I was interested in the process. Mind you, a bass weighing over 10 pounds will make you consider whether 4 lb test line is adequate!!!
The bass fishermen come out of the fog for the weigh-in on Sam Rayburn Lake in Texas. The boat with the 'flag' is a 'judges' boat where they check-in prior to the cutoff time for fishing.
Here we see a pair of contestants walking toward the weigh-in carrying their catch for the day and in the next photo we see them both coming and going; coming up the hill to the weigh-in and down the hill toward the pontoon boat that will return the bass to the lake after all have been weighed.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
From Florida to Texas (via North Carolina)
14 February 2008 - HAPPY VALENTINES DAY TO ALL OF YOU!!!
Becky and I are happily settled in southeast Texas for Valentine's Day and the rest of the month of February. I hope all of you have as much to be thankful for as we do and are able to share the love of your very own personal valentine. I will attempt to catch the blog up on what has been going on since 2 January with words and photos so bear with me for this being a l-o-n-g, l--o--n --g entry.
Just in time for Valentine's Day Becky and I went to Nacogadoches on 13 February for the day and found these ladies preparing for the big day. NEAT town.
One of the 'views' in the oldest town in Texas - Nacogadoches.
Becky takes a short rest outside the little bakery where the cookies were being made and, yes, we had to sample some of their wares!
A selection of photos from around the town. The old brick cobblestone streets and the beautifully restored buildings make it a great town to visit.
Driving around Texas is quite an experience. Here we are driving through a small town when a cop stops traffic at the signal light in town, a bucket truck pulls up (with an operator RIDING in the bucket) and proceeds to raise the traffic light to allow a 'high' load to pass through (that's him in the bucket). Only in Texas!!
We traveled from Florida (and Matthew) through the states of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana toward our destination in Texas. We had to detour back northeast to North Carolina along the way due to Mom Whitehead taking seriously ill. The story is told here in reverse taking you back in time to Florida.
Here is our last stop before reaching our 'home' (for February) near Jasper, Texas. This is rated by Frommer's as the number one RV park in the state of Louisiana. It is a state park on Toledo Bend Reservoir called North Toledo Bend. A beautiful park (and quiet this time of year) it has to be one of the best bargains in the US - $8/night. The state of Louisiana honors the Golden Passport issued by the National Park Service and gives you 1/2 price on any of their state parks! Wake up you other states.
During the detour to North Carolina we managed to endure a brief spell of really cold weather including snow and ice. In case there was any doubt about which direction you need to go come winter in the US this certainly removed it.
Becky and I are happily settled in southeast Texas for Valentine's Day and the rest of the month of February. I hope all of you have as much to be thankful for as we do and are able to share the love of your very own personal valentine. I will attempt to catch the blog up on what has been going on since 2 January with words and photos so bear with me for this being a l-o-n-g, l--o--n --g entry.
Just in time for Valentine's Day Becky and I went to Nacogadoches on 13 February for the day and found these ladies preparing for the big day. NEAT town.
One of the 'views' in the oldest town in Texas - Nacogadoches.
Becky takes a short rest outside the little bakery where the cookies were being made and, yes, we had to sample some of their wares!
A selection of photos from around the town. The old brick cobblestone streets and the beautifully restored buildings make it a great town to visit.
Driving around Texas is quite an experience. Here we are driving through a small town when a cop stops traffic at the signal light in town, a bucket truck pulls up (with an operator RIDING in the bucket) and proceeds to raise the traffic light to allow a 'high' load to pass through (that's him in the bucket). Only in Texas!!
We traveled from Florida (and Matthew) through the states of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana toward our destination in Texas. We had to detour back northeast to North Carolina along the way due to Mom Whitehead taking seriously ill. The story is told here in reverse taking you back in time to Florida.
Here is our last stop before reaching our 'home' (for February) near Jasper, Texas. This is rated by Frommer's as the number one RV park in the state of Louisiana. It is a state park on Toledo Bend Reservoir called North Toledo Bend. A beautiful park (and quiet this time of year) it has to be one of the best bargains in the US - $8/night. The state of Louisiana honors the Golden Passport issued by the National Park Service and gives you 1/2 price on any of their state parks! Wake up you other states.
During the detour to North Carolina we managed to endure a brief spell of really cold weather including snow and ice. In case there was any doubt about which direction you need to go come winter in the US this certainly removed it.
There were a couple of really bright spots of the trip - first, mom improved rapidly and was able to return home within 10 days (thank all of you for your prayers) and second, all of her children managed to make the trip home and have a mini-reunion. These photos capture an evening they all spent at the nursing home visiting mom.
In the last photo Becky gets a short 'fix' after leaving our Matthew by holding her great-nephew, Aaron who is Linda's first grandchild. Yes, just about EVERYONE had a grandchild before I got mine but, I assure you, he was worth the wait!!
This 'friend' was in a bayou along side the road and Becky saw him and called for a 'photo stop'. We passed by the next day and he was still in the same pond so I told her he was a 'tourist' alligator tied out just for tourists!
Before heading back to North Carolina we had stopped at another Louisiana state park. It was also quiet and beautiful, like North Toledo Bend, but in addition had these great cypress trees with their unique 'knees'. The light was right and it was a great day. If only we had been able to fish!
We traveled along the Mississippi coast and took the opportunity to drive along over to Biloxi to have a look at the damage from Katrina. We were not prepared for how much evidence of it still remained! Somehow we thought by now most of the damage would have been repaired but, as you can see, the only thing that has really been accomplished is to clean up the area. We only saw two buildings that were functioning as they had before Katrina and saw many For Sale signs on property along the coast indicating many people have decided not to rebuild. Perhaps they are the wise ones!
Before going over to Biloxi we had spoken to some locals about buying fresh shrimp and had been told those available along side the roadways were always good and fresh but you could get a somewhat better price down at the harbor. We wanted to go to the harbor anyway so we wandered out on the pier and found a shrimp boat captain who had just come in and had a hole full of fresh shrimp. He gave us a price of $2.50/pound and we bought 3 pounds (remember the size of our freezer!). When we split them up in bags to freeze them I weighed them and found we had over 4 pounds! Talk about a generous measure. Thanks captain - they were delicious.
We stopped in Destin, Florida to see Melissa and her fiancee, Ryan Smart, and had a great time getting to know him and catching up with Melissa's life. We did not have enough time - do you ever? - but are thankful for the time we had. Ryan was easy to be with and is a worthy suitor of my little girl. He is a gentleman and we look forward to getting to know him as a son. Next stop with Melissa will be in May for her BA graduation!!! Way to go girl, dad is mighty proud of you.
On the way up to Destin we stopped overnight at a park with a most unusual procedure for overnighters. They just lined us up one behind the other!!! The sites were arranged such that you could pull around a rig in front of you if required and the system, although unconventional, worked. Just when you think you have seen it all!!
This is a photo of our rig in Woodsmoke RV Park in Ft. Myers amidst the pines. The park was perfect for us as it was only 10 minutes from Matthew!!
And there you have it - Florida to Texas via North Carolina. See you in the coming days with more from Texas - our adopted state.
This 'friend' was in a bayou along side the road and Becky saw him and called for a 'photo stop'. We passed by the next day and he was still in the same pond so I told her he was a 'tourist' alligator tied out just for tourists!
Before heading back to North Carolina we had stopped at another Louisiana state park. It was also quiet and beautiful, like North Toledo Bend, but in addition had these great cypress trees with their unique 'knees'. The light was right and it was a great day. If only we had been able to fish!
We traveled along the Mississippi coast and took the opportunity to drive along over to Biloxi to have a look at the damage from Katrina. We were not prepared for how much evidence of it still remained! Somehow we thought by now most of the damage would have been repaired but, as you can see, the only thing that has really been accomplished is to clean up the area. We only saw two buildings that were functioning as they had before Katrina and saw many For Sale signs on property along the coast indicating many people have decided not to rebuild. Perhaps they are the wise ones!
Before going over to Biloxi we had spoken to some locals about buying fresh shrimp and had been told those available along side the roadways were always good and fresh but you could get a somewhat better price down at the harbor. We wanted to go to the harbor anyway so we wandered out on the pier and found a shrimp boat captain who had just come in and had a hole full of fresh shrimp. He gave us a price of $2.50/pound and we bought 3 pounds (remember the size of our freezer!). When we split them up in bags to freeze them I weighed them and found we had over 4 pounds! Talk about a generous measure. Thanks captain - they were delicious.
We stopped in Destin, Florida to see Melissa and her fiancee, Ryan Smart, and had a great time getting to know him and catching up with Melissa's life. We did not have enough time - do you ever? - but are thankful for the time we had. Ryan was easy to be with and is a worthy suitor of my little girl. He is a gentleman and we look forward to getting to know him as a son. Next stop with Melissa will be in May for her BA graduation!!! Way to go girl, dad is mighty proud of you.
On the way up to Destin we stopped overnight at a park with a most unusual procedure for overnighters. They just lined us up one behind the other!!! The sites were arranged such that you could pull around a rig in front of you if required and the system, although unconventional, worked. Just when you think you have seen it all!!
This is a photo of our rig in Woodsmoke RV Park in Ft. Myers amidst the pines. The park was perfect for us as it was only 10 minutes from Matthew!!
And there you have it - Florida to Texas via North Carolina. See you in the coming days with more from Texas - our adopted state.
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