July has been a lot of fun, but has posed a couple of challenges too. Plans have had to be changed a little, and rather than stay in Austin through August as we had originally planned, we are back on the road again.
I wrote a couple of extra blog posts in July. The most recent one fills in some of the details about our reasons for the change in plans.
Here are some of our highlights from July:
Lockhart State Park
We spent an extra night at McKinney Falls as there was so much to see and do there, then headed the next day for the little town of Lockhart, famous for being the “BBQ Capital of Texas”. vanessa had her first turn at the wheel on the way and did a great job. I’m looking forward to being able to see more of the countryside from the passenger seat in the future.
The State Park in Lockhart was beautiful, and even had a swimming pool and its own 9-hole golf course.
July 4th – Circuit of the Americas
The Austin Symphony Orchestra, 4th July fireworks and cycling around a Formula 1 racetrack marked our experience of Independence Day in Austin.
Wedding at Huntington Beach
We flew from Austin to LA where we stayed in Huntington Beach, attended Evan and Teresa’s beautiful wedding, caught up with fellow RV traveller Creighton, then took the train down to San Diego to catch a flight down to Mexico.
Los Cabos, Baja California, Mexico
In order to renew our US visas we planned a quick trip south of the border. We couchsurfed with wonderful hosts Jim and Jill Marie in Los Cabos for a few days. We then rented a jeep to see some of the peninsula, visiting Todos Santos, La Paz and the beautiful marine park at Cabo Pulmo. What a lovely area. Maybe we could drive the RV down the Baja Peninsula for winter?
Farewell Austin
We flew back from Mexico to Dallas, arriving back in Austin just in time to celebrate my birthday in “C Hunt’s Ice House” – an amazing bar run by Chester Hunt, a fascinating man.
It is now time to move on, so we enjoyed a last couple of days in Austin, saying a fond farewell to all here who have made us so welcome. Big thanks to Michele for allowing us to park outside her house for so long, to Damon and Laurie, and to all we met through “Friends of Peter” and other groups here. I hope we’ll be back one day soon.
Pedernales Falls and Enchanted Rock
We paid an annual fee to the Texas State Parks authority and plan on visiting and staying in a few of the lovely State Park campgrounds as we head west across Texas. Our first two stops have been an overnighter at Pedernales Falls, and a day visit to the amazing Enchanted Rock.
Coming up next month…
“On the road again…” Plans take us across westward across Texas, into New Mexico and then Arizona. We plan to turn north in Arizona, aiming for Utah and the Grand Canyon.