7 Weeks Back in Livingston, TX – The Best of Times, The Worst of Times

Our 7 weeks back in Livingston can best be described by quoting Charles Dickens’ line from A Tale of Two Cities: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”  We experienced so much joy and happiness yet witnessed so much devastation and despair.  But I am getting ahead of myself.  Let me start at the beginning…

 

We had a stressful ride from Hondo on April 10, first for Mom through San Antonio traffic, then for Dad through Houston later that afternoon.  But we arrived home safely in Livingston and completed our 3.5-month trip without incident—that is until Dad backed our set-up into our site and began to unhitch.  He forgot Mom’s motorcycle, Yellow Jacket, was on the rear rack of Big Boomer, our medium duty truck.  Transporting Yellow Jacket this way requires extending the RV jacks a second time for clearance before pulling the truck away—a step Dad neglected to do.  This resulted in a dented gas tank for Yellow Jacket.  Mom tried to warn Dad ahead of time.  She screamed “STOP” and gave Dad our agreed-upon hand signal for stopping.  Too bad Dad was oblivious to Mom’s warnings, and he ended up receiving a whole different hand signal from an upset Mom of Italian heritage!  Truthfully, Mom took it in stride.  She knows that whatever Dad breaks, Dad always fixes. And Dad taking us all out afterwards for a veggie pizza at Joe’s Italian Grill certainly helped diffuse the situation.

 

On April 11 we were in the Houston area for errands, delicious lunch of Indian cuisine at the Curry House, and Dad’s doctor appointments (he’s doing great, out of a-fib since October 30, and weening off some meds).  Dad also had another mission in mind:  finding a new-to-us Jeep now that we sold Rat Patrol II, our Polaris RZR side by side.  And once Dad gets something in his head, it is “move it, move it, move it”.  Consequently, we were back in Houston the very next day picking up our newly-purchased 2012 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon, which we will use on-road and off-road.   I am excited that I now have a mature set of wheels to transport my lovely lady Mademoiselle Rochelle, Pocket Pal Nezumi, and my nutcracker Rat King.  Dad/Mom were pleased that the Jeep was well-maintained and already equipped with many off-roading and towing amenities, so less prep work for Dad for our upcoming 4-month trip.

 

Introducing my new set of wheels, appropriately named "The Rat Pack's Rubicon"

After having 2 roadside emergencies on our previous multi-month RV trip, we brought Big Boomer to the International Truck Center in Houston for maintenance/preventative service.  I guess he wasn’t feeling too well again, ‘cause Big Boomer’s “hospital” bill amounted to $3,100!  This is another reason why we purchased the Jeep.  It will reduce the miles/wear and tear Big Boomer bears day in and day out. 

 

Our social calendar was filled during our short stay in Livingston.  We joined our pickleball pals on and off the courts... 

 

...and reconnected with fellow Park Residents at various events. 

The Status Crowes performed as a fundraiser for Escapees CARE, an assisted living RV Park.  We have enjoyed their performances several times previously, and they did not disappoint this time around.

The April Pot Luck get together was well received.

We resumed our dance lessons.

And we enjoyed fellowship with friends, whether Livingston locals...

Think you are seeing double?  Nope...

...we went out with this fun group on 2 different occasions!

...or folks we have met along our travels who were passing through Livingston.

 

We utilized our Texas Park Pass, too, with visits to Lake Livingston and Martin Dies Jr State Park in Jasper.  

 

Lake Livingston State Park

A family of fungi

Sights along the hiking trails within the Walnut Ridge Section of Martin Dies Jr State Park...

Another day we visited Sam Rayburn Lake/Reservoir in Jasper.  This Army Corps of Engineers recreation area includes RV parking, picnicking, and water activities.  The RV Park was nice, with spots available right along the Lake/Reservoir, but it would be very difficult for us to maneuver with our set-up. We read that the premises included hiking trails.  But if there are trails at this location, we didn’t find them.  Based on the lack of groundskeeping here, we presume the trails are probably unmaintained.  The area, in general, is underutilized.  We enjoyed a picnic lunch in a secluded grove by the lake and spent several hours planning our upcoming 4-month RV trip.

 

Though the area is underutilized by humans, the fire ants have made it a permanent home.

We noticed a lack of general groundskeeping.  The grass/brush was so high, you couldn't even see this table in the picnic grove.

Perhaps leaving this guy in charge is the problem.

The say April showers bring May flowers.  But this year we experienced the showers in May.  But these were not normal showers.  Instead, they were comprised of torrential long-lasting rains with horrific thunderstorms, the likes of which my family never had witnessed before.  Though it was daytime, the skies blackened.    My beloved Grandma always told Mom as a little girl that the sounds of thunder were the heavenly angels bowling.  Let me tell ya, the rumbles of thunder during these storms were so loud, long, and earth shaking, the angels must have been having one spectacular bowling tournament!  The number of lightning strikes in the area was unprecedented.   The first storm on May 2 dropped 12 inches of rain in less than 4 hours!  All the creeks in the area crested, causing irreparable damage to homes, vehicles, and businesses.  Aerial views by Drone Brothers captured the devastation throughout the area, and Livingston’s plight was broadcast on National news.

And the next day, we received more distressing news:  One of the buildings at Pine Hill Apartments was ablaze, the victim of a lightning strike.  Thankfully, there was no loss of life, but occupants lost all their personal belongings and the roof over their head.

 

And the rains continued, creating another problem--The Trinity River was reaching flood stage.  The River Authority was forced to increase the output of water from the Dam, creating a flooding nightmare for all those living downstream.  Evacuation orders were mandated for many area residents, while other residents whose homes were on stilts in low-lying areas were confined to their second floors. It was nearly 2 weeks before the last of the evacuation orders were rescinded and folks affected by flooding from the Dam output could begin their clean-up process.

 

While clean-up and recovery were ongoing, the Livingston area was hit with a second horrific storm!  And it seemed every few days thereafter, we would have another thunderstorm.  We incurred more than 36 inches of rain this month, and it is raining yet again as I write this blog post.

 

Most of us at Rainbow’s End fared well with the storms and were blessed with minimal damage.  A corner section of Rainbow Oaks flooded twice, pouring nearly 2 feet of water into a few sheds of leased-lot occupants and causing problems for at least one transient RVer.  And we know of at least 2 residents of CARE who suffered water damage to their rigs.  Additional storms during this final week of May came with heavy winds, resulting in many fallen trees in the area and loss of power both in the Park and throughout Livingston on multiple occasions. 

 

Rainbow Oaks

The torrential rain created ruts and rivets on our lot and that of our neighbor, causing us both to lose lots of gravel/stone, but we were thankful this is all that happened.

Our hearts ache for all those affected by storm damage in Livingston as well as Houston, Dallas, and beyond.  Many lost everything but the clothes they were wearing!    Some remained unscathed from the floods, but subsequently suffered severe property damage from downed trees.  Many incurred power outages, having no air conditioning to combat the excessive heat and humidity we are experiencing (temps have been in the 90s, with a heat index of 105F degrees.)

 

We did what we could to support the storm victims.  We volunteered an extra shift to our once-a-week work at the Mannafest Food Pantry.  We purchased food items for Our Father’s House, a ministry of Life Vine Church that provides meals to the homeless 5 days a week.  We provided financial assistance to the Polk County Center of Hope, which was remaining open 7 days a week to offer services and shelter to flood victims and was operating as a headquarters for FEMA.  Most importantly, we are offering continued prayers to our Heavenly Father for all affected.  May the despair in their hearts be replaced by hope.  

 

On a happier note, we were invited and attended our first Texas wedding!  We were so honored to be a part of our dance instructor’s special day, although its occurrence on the holiday weekend precluded us from participating in most of our Patriot Guard Riders (PGR) Motorcycle Missions.  Thankfully, we were able to honor our fallen on Memorial Day by attending a service at Gibson Funeral Home in Lufkin, TX.

 

Dad was asked to escort the groom's daughter to her seat.

The happy couple!

Memorial Day Service at Gibson Funeral Home in Lufkin, TX.

Kudos to Lowe's.  The Corporation set up displays at all our area stores to honor our fallen heroes, demonstrating the true meaning of Memorial Day.

Speaking of weddings, Mom and Dad celebrated their own anniversary (albeit late) with a trip on the Texas State Railroad.  I took them for “a ride to the train station!” (I’ve been waiting to use that line from Yellowstone!), except this was a scenic 2-hours in the Jeep along US-287 to Palestine, TX under cloudy skies and light rain.  I saved my cheese money and bought them first-class train tickets, which included table seating, a complimentary mini charcuterie, and bottled water.   

 

Dad wooed Mom at home with a dozen roses in her favorite shade, which just happens to be the State Flower of Texas!

All aboard!

The Texas State Railroad runs 25 miles between Palestine and Rusk, TX.  The route was originally built by supervised inmates at the Rusk Penitentiary in the late 1800s to facilitate the prison system’s ability to haul iron ore, timber, and other raw materials to and from its grounds.  Later the route expanded, and the railroad began to offer freight and passenger service.  But this endeavor proved to be unprofitable.  Today, the Texas State Railroad operates strictly as a tourist attraction.

My parents have taken about a half dozen of these train excursions throughout the U.S.A.  Some they enjoyed immensely, others they believed to be a total waste of money.  They offered this tourist line a 3.5 on the Rambling RV Rat 5-Cheese Award Scale.

 

For starters, the train got off to a late start.  Apparently, they had some bad storms come through the area earlier in the morning, and the tracks had to be cleared of debris and downed trees.  Some narration was provided during the trip, but most of the time there was just Victorian-era music playing.  Mom was grateful that the Railroad did provide a brochure providing some history and designating points of interest along the route.  Among the various sights viewed by my parents were the Neches River Bridge, the North Pole set up used for the Railroad’s Polar Express, and the Maydelle Turntable, technology from the 1890s used to reverse the direction of locomotives.  They also saw the infamous Train Robber Ranch, which at one time provided actors to come onboard and re-enact a train robbery.  (Interestingly, we saw this group perform last year when they were hired as the entertainment for the 97^th birthday of a resident at Escapees Rainbow’s End).  Sadly, this tradition of a train robbery re-enactment was cancelled by Texas State Railroad a few years ago--it was deemed too frightening for any young children on board.

Maydelle Turntable

 

Train Robber Ranch

The route was somewhat scenic, 'cause Mom is always happy to see deer, goats, and cows.

Cows and cattle egret living in harmony.  Why can't humans do that?

But to my parents, the best part of the trip was reaching the Rusk Depot and viewing the beautiful grounds, which included a lake, an iconic country chapel, and even a rustic campground.

 

I've gotta tell ya about Stella's Bakery, Livingston's new eatery which opened in January 2024.  Sadly, we had already left Livingston for our trip to AZ/NM when it opened, so we were anxious to try it upon our return.  And try it we did--every single week after our volunteer shifts at Mannafest!  Stella's has unique sandwiches on home-baked breads (Mom loves the Italian Grinder), freshly-prepared soups and salads, quiches, and gourmet deserts to die for, earning it a coveted Rambling RV Rat 5-Cheese Award!

Based on the table assignment holders, Stella's loves rodentia as much as I do!

It is blueberry season here in East Texas!  We were so glad to visit C&M Farms in Livingston on opening day!  The berries are tasty, plump, and plentiful!  Mom’s been busy baking:  blueberry muffins, blueberry crumb cake, blueberry-banana bread.  My tummy is looking for something yummy, so I think I’ll go taste-test some of her goodies now.  Then I’m turning in early—we embark tomorrow on our next 4-month RV journey.

 

This cardinal was admiring the berries as much as we were.

Our treasure trove!

I’ll talk to you again soon!

 

Visiting San Angelo/South Llano River Texas State Parks and the 100% Totality Solar Eclipse at Hondo That Wasn’t

We left Dreamcatcher RV Park in Deming, NM, and arrived back in our beloved Lone Star State.  We overnighted again at our usual stomping grounds:  The Ghost Lights Viewing Center in Marfa.  Thankfully, Big Boomer, our medium duty truck, did not repeat his bad behavior from our last visit, and we had an uneventful stay.

 

The next day we headed to San Angelo State Park, taking US-90 and US-67 through the Permian Basin.  Once an area devoted to oil and natural gas, the Permian Basin now is home to huge solar and wind farms.

 

San Angelo State Park is wonderful, offering huge sites with water and electric hookups and easy access to the sani-dump station.  

 

There are lots of hiking trails, all well marked with minimal elevation change.  We traversed all of them on the South side of the Park over our 3-day stay, totaling 17 miles.  We visited the bird blind, but there was little activity since the feeders were running on empty.  Fortunately, we were entertained regularly by a woodpecker who visited the tree at our RV site.  The Park claims to be home to bison and long horn steer.  It took 3 visits before we could spot the bison.  Initially they were so far off in the distance, they looked just like jumbo bales of hay.  Fortunately, they ventured closer to the fence line on my 3rd outing, giving me some photo opportunities.  The long horn steer, however, were missing in action throughout our visit.

Blooming wildflowers were abundant, and their potent fragrance permeated the air.

Though we didn’t see any javalina, we detected many areas where they foraged, and I spotted lots of their poop piles.  It was still early Spring, but the snakes were out and about already.

How upsetting!  This scat contains one of my brethren--I spotted his tail hanging out!

O. C. Fisher Lake can be viewed from the campground.  Its water levels are so low, motorized boats cannot be accommodated.  Canoes/Kayaks are your only options for accessing this lake.  

 

We hear lots of folks complain about “campground crowding” and that it is difficult to get camping reservations at State, National, and private RV parks.  I must say, we have not experienced this.  We did not have our own reservation made until less than 6 weeks prior to our visit.  And even though it was Easter weekend, plenty of sites were sitting empty at San Angelo State Park.  

 

Speaking of Easter, we had a Blessed holiday.  We continued our tradition of watching Ten Commandments, King of Kings, and The Greatest Story Ever Told.  Mom whipped up some delectables for us:  homemade pizza for Good Friday, and tofu lasagna, home-baked bread, a salad suitable for the most discerning rabbit, and a chocolate-peanut butter soy desert for Easter Sunday.

Good thing we walked off our holiday meal early in the day since we experienced a horrific windstorm later that afternoon.  Winds were 35 miles per hour, with gusts up to 50 miles per hour—hitting our rig broadside.  Talk about shake, rattle, and roll! It felt like we were back in the Pocono Mountains of PA in 2012 when Hurricane Sandy hit!

The dust storm sure produced a dramatic photo.

We departed on a glorious Tuesday morning, enjoying sunshine, lots of avian activity, and even a prairie dog sighting.  We enjoyed an easy, peaceful drive via US-67, US-87, and US-83 to South Llano River State Park in Junction, TX.  This area was hit hard by a storm a few years back, so the Park entrance now has a new bridge.

 

We registered at the attractive Visitor and Conference Center, newly constructed and occupied by Park Staff a mere 5 months ago.  We collected all our trail maps and headed to Site 34.  This is another Park that could not accommodate our set-up if we still owned our swivel wheel to carry our Polaris side-by-side.  But now that we are a more “standard” sized unit of 42 feet, Dad accessed our back-in site perfectly with one maneuver.  Our site had water and electric hookups and a pavilioned picnic area.  We had lots of open space behind us, home to both wildflowers and wildlife.  In fact, I watched a fox wander right through and an armadillo forage for his dinner there.  It was so good to see an armadillo alive.  I usually only see armadillos lying dead in the street, victims of their #1 enemy--the automobile.

We hit the hiking trails later that day, which we found well marked and easy to traverse.  Starting with the Buck Lake Trail we hooked up with the River Trail.  Storms make these low-level lands flood, but the effect is a kaleidoscope of vibrant and fragrant wildflowers.  Yellow, blue, red, orange, and purple blooms make such a gorgeous canvas.  Even weeds like thistle have such lovely blossoms (though they do quite a number on folks like Mom with allergies).

The next morning we hiked the Overlook Trail.  It is a little over a mile round trip and has a small elevation change along some rocky switchback areas.  The brochure promised a breathtaking vista and eagle-eye view.  But for us, it was a bit anti-climatic.  The vista, though pretty, didn’t compare to so many we have seen elsewhere in our travels.  But the hike was worth taking simply to enjoy the flora.

 

View as we ascended the Overlook Trail.

View from top of Overlook Trail.

A sea of bright and cheery wildflowers awaits you at the top of Overlook Trail.

That afternoon, we traversed to the Buck Family homestead.  Mr. Buck, a physician, purchased the property in 1920 thinking the fresh air and climate would benefit his son, who was afflicted with tuberculosis.  Sadly, things did not go as planned, and his son passed away.  But Mr. Buck and his remaining family members worked the land and stayed on the property until 1977, at which time the family donated the homestead to Texas State Parks.

Family cemetery on the property.

We saw a huge cage like a jail cell with birds penned up within.  We learned they were brown cowbirds, considered to be public enemy #1 to the songbird population.  Back in the day, brown cowbirds apparently followed the wild bison from grazing area to grazing area.  When ranchers began raising cattle, the brown cowbirds got lazy and decided to stay with the local livestock.  They became squatters:   rather than building their own nests to lay eggs, the brown cowbirds used those of songbirds.  The songbirds, being kind and compassionate, would foster the eggs and chicks of the brown cowbirds, often to the detriment of their own offspring, resulting in a reduction in the songbird population.  So, for every brown cowbird corralled in this pen, the lives of 35 prospective songbirds are saved.  Ain’t nature interesting?

 

I'm just a bird in a gilted cage...

We continued onto the Interpretive Trail.  The area was teeming with deer, but they were too stealth for me to get a photo.  We returned to our campsite via the West Field, Old Barn, and Turkey Roost Trails, the latter of which was along the river bottom where several turkeys were nesting.  We didn’t want to disturb the soon-to-be mammas, so we refrained from picture taking.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed our stay at South Llano River State Park, where I was simply one with nature, one with God in my personal church of choice--the great outdoors.

 

We left South Llano River State Park on a crisp (42F degrees) but brightly sunlit morning heading to the Alamo Area Lone Star Corral, an Escapees co-op in Hondo, TX.   We intended to view the solar eclipse there since it was located within the 100% totality area.  Normally, this co-op (like most of the co-ops under the Escapees umbrella) does not take reservations.  So, imagine our surprise when we called in July 2023 to learn that all the boondocking spots for the April 8, 2024, eclipse were already reserved by Escapees Chapter 10!  No problem, we said.  We will come onto a full-service site on Apr 4 and stay for a week.  Though the Park does not accept reservations, we were asked for our name, phone number, and pertinent info about our RV set-up, and were quoted a rate of $120/weekly or $22/daily, both plus electric.  We called once a month from August 2023 through February 2024, to reiterate our intention to come in on Apr 4.  Each time our information on record was confirmed and we were assured we could most likely be accommodated.  When we called in March 2024, we learned some things had changed.  Our contact was no longer working there, and her replacement was unaware of any of our prior conversations.  Fortunately, our original contact lived on site, and the replacement was apprised of our prior discussions.  So, we were back to feeling confident of having an RV site.  But a new wrinkle occurred:  we were told the weekly rate was no longer applicable.  We would be required to pay $45/night plus electric for April 7, 8, 9, and the regular daily rate of $22/night for April 4, 5, 6, and 10, which increased the cost from $120 to $223 plus electric.  We were agreeable to this rate change, fully aware that it was still much lower than most being offered within 100% eclipse totality.  We called weekly the rest of March and on April 1 and April 3 to confirm our “non-reservation”.  So, we were not only shocked but a bit perturbed to learn UPON ARRIVAL on April 4 that the rate increased to $55/night plus electric for April 7, 8, 9!  Now the weekly costs more than doubled since our original quote!  We refuted paying this increase.  After all, we confirmed the rates as recently as April 1, nor were we advised of the rate change during our April 3 telcon.   They were gracious enough to understand our position and honored the $45/night plus electric rate for April 7, 8, 9.

 

Scenery as we traveled from South Llano River State Park to Lone Star Coral, Hondo, TX.

We got settled into our site, which was spacious and easy to access.    

I must say the staff and residents were friendly and welcoming.  But this whole eclipse thing was quite disorganized.  We were told upon arrival on April 4 to visit their website to learn the special eclipse activities planned for April 7, 8, 9.  However, nothing was posted yet.  We enjoyed line dance lessons and posed questions there.  It was suggested we attend the Social Hour on April 5 to obtain more info.  We enjoyed meeting folks at the Social Hour, where we were told the website would be updated later that evening.  During the afternoon of April 5, we received a lovely welcome packet, which contained a listing of special eclipse activities.  However, this listing did not contain all the same info as the website which we checked the next day.  We learned from friends who live in the Park that vehicle passes were being issued to all residents and guests as a means of “gatekeeping”.  Ironically, we were not informed of this by the office during our check-in and had to go back to inquire/get our pass.

 

Unfortunately, by the time we received accurate information about the planned activities like wheelchair/walker races, BOCCE ball, etc., we had made plans to meet up with Quartzsite line-dancing friends Debbie/Jerry/Willow, 2018 work-camping buddies Carol/Dave, and Escapees residents Jewell/David (no photo) who were also in the Park for the eclipse.  So, other than the pulled pork dinner and celebratory cake, we did not participate in the Park activities.  We did, however, get to catch up with Bob/Nicky and Ruth (not pictured), whose daughter works for NASA and broadcast the eclipse from other locations on a big screen for all of us to watch.

Willow is such as special lass!  We are great friends!

These get togethers were the highlight of our stay since the 100% totality solar eclipse was a total bust.   Though we were all ready with our glasses, you can see from Dad’s time-lapsed video that clouds impeded our viewing ability.

 

Ironically, Debbie/Jerry/Willow had tried in January 2024 to arrange a stay at Lone Star Corral for the eclipse.  They were told the Park was booked up.  Yet, we counted at least 20 lots empty every time we walked around the Park.  Now granted, not all absentee co-op residents put their lots in the pool, but surely our friends could have landed a spot, especially since the Park expected a mere 7 arrivals, of which only half actually showed up after seeing the weather forecast.  (The Park accepts only cash/check—no credit cards.  Consequently, it collects no deposits/imposes no cancellation fees).

 

And just a heads up about a Park policy that was never mentioned to us during ANY of our conversations since July 2023.  If, like us, you plan to leave before the office opens on a particular day, you must go the day before to finalize your bill (again, they collect no money up front).  You will incur an additional $5 charge for electric above your actual meter reading charges (at 9.5 cents/kw) to cover electric usage between the time you finalize your bill and your time of departure the next day.  We use our solar regularly whenever possible, so our actual meter charges amounted to under $5 for our entire stay.  Yet, we were popped for an additional $5 for any electric we used between 4:30 p.m. that day and our departure the next morning at 7 a.m.  Apparently, the Park has been stiffed too often on electric charges.  So, they impose this fee and donate any over-charge to Escapees CARE in Livingston.

 

Despite all this bellyaching of mine, I did enjoy our stay at Lone Star Corral.  I saw my friend Dominic the Donkey, was introduced to several new animals, and walked to revisit the Church and graveyard of the old German colony of D’Hanis. 

 

About a mile down the road from Lone Star Coral is the church and graveyard of Old D'Hanis, a German colony of 29 families established in 1847.

We are now headed back to Livingston, so I’ve gotta go.  I’ll talk to you again soon!