Sadly, it was time to leave the magnificent, rugged lands
known as Big Bend National Park. We
hitched up and traveled leisurely along US-90 for 2 peaceful overnight stays as
we made our way over to the Rio Grande Valley, where we are considering staying
for future winters instead of Quartzsite, Arizona.
We spent our first night at the Vishti Skiles Community
Center in Langtry, Texas.Mom was “pretty sure” it was available for
boondocking after speaking with the docent at the nearby Judge Roy Bean Visitor
Center during our 2022 visit while camping at Seminole Canyon State Park.Sure as Swiss cheese has holes, Mom’s memory
served her correctly.Easily accessible
via TX 25 Loop right off US-90, the Community Center has a huge, level parking
area available for a $5 donation.It is
right across the road from the Bean Visitor Center, which is an interesting
place to peruse.In addition to being a
tourism facility with free Wi-Fi, the Bean Visitor Center has some beautiful
gardens and provides the history of Texas’s famous “hanging judge” Roy Bean. (you
can read more about him in this blogpost I did in November 2022 https://ramblingrvrat.blogspot.com/2022/11/guadalupe-mountains-national-park.html).
Vishti Community Center parking area.
A blooming cactus plant in the garden bordering the parking area.
We walked across the road to revisit the Judge Roy Bean Visitor Center.
We took a short half-mile walk...
...to overlook the Rio Grande River.
We have driven by Amistad National Recreation Area near Del
Rio, Texas, dozens of times through the years.
However, we stopped only once to peruse the Visitor Center and to
purchase our America the Beautiful National Park Pass. So, we decided this trip to overnight at the
San Petro Campground within the Recreation Area. San Pedro Campground has approximately 30
sites, most of which can accommodate all RV sizes. The access road is well maintained. The RV sites are level and include a covered
picnic area. Though the Campground does
not offer water/sewer/electric, it does provide trash receptacles and vault
toilets for those who may need/want them.
Best of all, it costs only $6/night ($3 with the “geezer” pass),
and the transaction is completed quickly via credit card/debit card at a
payment kiosk right within the Campground.
Easy and efficient!
We saw the smallest Buc-ee's EVER along US-90 near Sanderson.
In the distance is the confluence of the Pecos and Rio Grande Rivers.
Our spot at San Pedro Campground within Amistad National Recreation Area near Del Rio, Texas.
Beautiful blooming tree in San Pedro Campground.
Sunset at San Pedro Campground.
We spent our 3rd and final overnight before
reaching the Rio Grande Valley at Horizon Ranch, Limited in Jourdanton, Texas, a
Harvest Hosts site.It has a huge area
in which to park.However, the
description of “grass pasture” that it indicates on Harvest Hosts did not
exist.Instead, it was all red
clay.The ground was very uneven, and hay
was used to cover divots. Furthermore, the
entranceway, built over a culvert, is very narrow, so it is not easily
accessible for big set-ups like ours.The region was suffering a severe
drought—until the day we came.We no
sooner set up than the torrential downpours commenced, lasting well into the
evening.We made our obligatory purchase
of 4 dozen eggs at $8 each, but I was sorely disappointed in the size of
them.(Several looked only slightly
larger than a robin’s egg! I think I
could have laid a better-sized egg!)My parents admonished me.Forget
the eggs; we had bigger things to worry about, like getting out of here without
burying our axles in the mud!Thankfully,
Dad had parked us facing the exit gate, for we would surely get stuck if we
needed to turn around within the field when we departed.Mom went out to the main road to act as
traffic control, because once Dad started moving, he was not going to
stop.Needless to say: there were many
more divots to fill within that parking area AFTER we departed!
This photo is before the storms came. The area doesn't quite meet the description of "grass pasture". We were so worried about getting out, we took no photos of the area after the torrential rain.
As I mentioned earlier, after 10 years of wintering in
Quartzsite, Arizona, we wanted to explore the Rio Grande Valley as a potential alternative.But apparently, our perception of the “The
Valley”—a rural setting with RV Parks nestled among palm-tree-lined roads with
a river view—was completely off-base.Much of the area, like McAllen, Pharr, Donna, and Edinburg are highly
congested areas.Their busy roadways are
lined with tons of commercial/retail/hospitality businesses.The area is reminiscent of Conroe and the
suburbs of Houston!
Our reservations were at Paradise Resort Estates, where our
friends Bill/Sandy have a park model.Paradise is mainly a mobile home park, but it has back-in RV sites
within a parking lot.We took the more
economical “basic” site for $275/week, opting against spending another $50 for
use of a grill and picnic table.
The Resort has a lovely pool, hot tub, and clubhouse. However, with all activities organized by Resort
residents and the season nearly over, there were few activities in which to
participate.For example, we were
excited to learn that the Park has 3 pickleball courts inside the clubhouse.Then we learned that the resident in charge
of pickleball was nursing an injury and would not be playing anymore before his
departure for Canada the following week.We were going to play ourselves.After all, we have our own portable net.But when we went to the clubhouse, we found all 3 courts were covered up
with tables/chairs.Guess the
resident-in-charge advised management pickleball was finished for the season.
Pickleball courts within clubhouse are covered by tables/chairs.
Mural on wall in clubhouse.
An unusual bloom.
Seeing Bill/Sandy made up for our pickleball
disappointment.Mom had prepared a nice
lunch for all of us, giving us time to catch up with these wonderful folks whom
we met in 2015 when we all worked at Amazon.Sadly, after only an hour or so of socializing, nasty weather found us
(again)!We succumbed to heavy rains,
and we were under flood and tornado warnings for the rest of the day.In fact, the weather was less-than-stellar
during our entire stay.But that didn’t
stop us from enjoying our visit.
Bill/Sandy (and their little old man Shredder) were gracious hosts.They included us in happy hours with their neighbors, and they acted as our tour guides.
We visited Quinta Mazatlan in McAllen.It was the adobe home of Jason and Marcia
Matthews from 1936 to 1964.Today it is
an event center, a sculpture park/art gallery, a bird sanctuary, and a peaceful preserve.
A lazy lizard was laying on this jackrabbit statue.
This statue was quite lifelike!
We also spent a day in South Padre Island.Despite the residual flooding from the
storms, we were able to take my Rambling RV Rat Pack Rubicon onto the
beach.I enjoyed watching the shorebirds
and seeing “the spaceship”.Once an
ocean buoy, "the spaceship" is now an eclectic piece of art (and geocache location).Speaking of art, I was bowled over by the permanent sand sculptures on
display.What talent!Afterwards, we enjoyed a meal at Black Board’s.
"The Spaceship"
These two just got done with a round of fighting.
Finally, a real turtle!
We visited the Basilica National Shrine of our Lady of San
Juan del Valle.Not ornate like your
typical Catholic church, but beautiful just the same.I found it spiritually fulfilling to walk the
Stations of the Cross along the lovely grounds.
On another day, we checked out several RV Parks in the Rio Grande Valley.We particularly liked Bentsen Palms in Mission, Texas.With less than 250 sites, it is considerably smaller than most of the parks in the Valley and is laid out nicely with private sites.It is literally right on the border of Mexico—you can practically touch the border wall from sites within the Park.It offers tons of activities including pickleball and line dancing; it has a full woodshop and gun range; and it is right across the road from Bentsen Palms State Park.What’s not to like about this place?THE PRICE, that’s what! A basic back-in site ranged from $939-$989/month.Or you could lock in for 6 months at $4,829.“Supersites” were even higher: from $8,700 to $10,000 for 6 months!To top it off, you must pay separate electric charges at $.17/kilowatt. Mind you, these were the 2024/2025 rates.Lord knows what they will be in 2025/2026!
I needed a cool one to calm my nerves after hearing those staggering rates.So, we went to the nearby Riverside Club located right on the Rio Grande.This is a great place with a varied repertoire of live music provided by Steve May and the Southern Knights.Nothing soothes my parents like the chance to do some line dancing.
As a thank you for their hospitality, we treated Bill/Sandy to
lunch at Kabab Guys, a wonderful Indian restaurant in Pharr that they frequent.
Well, I guess by now you surmised that the Rio Grande Valley is out of the running for our winter retreat. We can stay at no cost except electric on our long-term leased lot in Livingston if we want an urban/suburban atmosphere in hot, humid weather.
Speaking of hot and humid, it is getting like Hades here in the Rio Grande Valley, so it is time to migrate back to Livingston. Talk to you again soon!
All Saints Orthodox Church in America within Victoria, Texas, our Harvest Hosts for overnight.
