AUSTIN, Texas – We arrived at a campground in this city today after covering 382 miles in two days from Hot Springs, Ark., to Waco, Texas, with a stop in Sulphur Springs, Texas, along the way. We are now deep in the heart of Texas, roughly halfway from one coast to the other.
In Sulphur Springs, we stayed at what was arguably the loveliest spot in Shady Lake RV Park. Our “front porch” faced a large pond that was home to two flocks of ducks. I went for a run in Coleman Park in the city on the morning of our departure and drove by the ornate Hopkins Country Courthouse on the town square (pictured here).
While at the RV park, we had a few conversations with Tony, the park manager. He’s a 60-something Marine veteran who gave us lots of good advice about maintaining our RV while dispensing a few political opinions along the way! On the morning we left, Tony came by to remind me that I had left our front awning extended all night, a no-no for RVers. He invited me to contact him anytime if I run into any issues on the road.
On the evening we arrived in the campground we met two brothers and an older sister, probably aged 9 to 15, who told us they live full-time in one of the trailers, that their parents live in the one next to theirs, and that they’re home-schooled. Tony told us later that their grandmother also lives in the park and that they are model residents. “I wish all our campers were just like them,” he told us. In many of the campgrounds we’ve stayed in, the residents are a mixture of travelers like us and more permanent residents. At the campground in Smyrna, Tenn., the manager told me many of them are temporary workers in construction who stay at the park for up to six months.
On Wednesday, we drove 176 miles to Riverview RV Campground a few miles southeast of Waco, Texas. Waco will forever be associated with the Branch Davidians (you can actually visit the site of the compound that went up in flames in 1993), but there is much more to the town. It’s the home of Baylor University, the Dr. Pepper Museum, the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame, and the Magnolia Market at the Silos.
That last tourist stop is a development downtown with a design shop, bakery, family-friendly public spaces, and two giant silos no longer in use. The sight is the latest project of Chip and Joanna Gaines, the hosts of the HGTV show “Fixer Upper.” Elizabeth occasionally watches the show, so this morning we spent a pleasant two hours at the Magnolia Market, enjoying breakfast and coffee and browsing the design store.
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After covering a lot of miles in a short time, we’re looking forward to staying here in Austin for five days and in Hondo, Texas, for 10 days. In Hondo, 40 miles west of San Antonio, we’ll enjoying being neighbors to our friends Lyle and Melanie Brunson, who have been staying there for much of the past year. With less time on the road in the next two weeks, I hope to write a few posts as promised about hitching up and towing an RV, living in a small space, and managing the various systems of this 30-foot house on wheels. I’ll also try to capture some of the wonder and culture of this giant of a state that will be our home for almost all of March.
Dashboard: Days on the road: 24; Miles towing the RV: 1,950; RV parks stayed at: 11;
National parks visited: 2
The road ahead (Lord willing): San Antonio, Hondo, and the Texas Hill Country.
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