Trip East - Texas

Our next stop is an Army Corp of Engineer Campground - South Holiday Park on Benbrook Lake outside Dallas/Fort Worth, TX

It is a long drive so we overnight half way at a County Park at Lake Sweetwater, TX.  Nothing fancy but only $15 a night with hook ups.

We have been following some major storms, looks like one passing through here

We make it to the COE the next day

 

 Right on the water

 

 

Nice large sites

Just 2 sites in this section

Other than the main camping area, the rest is a long stretch of about 2 miles.

There are fishermen out each morning

Tucson gets to swim

and go for some longer walks

 

 

There is a group of deer at the end of our section by the boat launch where the deer hang out every morning.

We are about 1/2 hour from the Stockades in Forth Worth so we do a jaunt up there to check it out.

Between 1866 and 1890, drovers trailed more than four million head of cattle through Fort Worth.  When the railroad arrived in 1876, Fort Worth became a major shipping point for livestock, so the city built the Union Stockyards.  During World War II, the Fort Worth Stockyards processed 5,277,496 head of livestock, making 1944 the peak year.

1 million bricks were used at the Stockyard

The Stockyard boomed when the railroad came

The Stockyard Exchange was known as the Wall Street of the Southwest

While waiting for the Longhorn Cattle drive we check out the Museum

The light bulb on the left has been burning for 113 years.

 

A stop in a hotel to use the facilities and I peek into the Bar

Before the Drive there is a long horn you can sit on and get photos
 

and here they come

 

 

 It's by no means a stampeed

 

 

 A Longhorns Horns can reach up to 120"  tip to tip

The End

 Afterwards we head to the famous Cattlemen's for lunch

 

When at the Stockyards you have to try the steak

 After lunch we do a walk about

 

A beautiful sculpture of a family of Paint horses

 

The historic Drover Hotel

 

A sculpture of  drover at work

An enjoyable stay - next stop an Army Corp of Engineers campground in Louisiana

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trip East - New Mexico

 Final night in Tucson friends throw a party

 

 On the road to NC, pass through  Texas Canyon in Arizona.

  

Our first stop is the Escapee Park in Deming, NM

 

To get to our next stop,  the Escapee Park north of Carlsbad Caverns, we have to dip into Texas

 

 Nice, but remote Escapee Park. 

 I had a voucher someone had given me over 10 years ago for 1st time visitors at $50 a week.  The price went up to $75 but still a bargain and we need to slow down our trip to the East as we don't have to get there until April 20th.

 

Nice size sites

It is a very windy week and some interesting skies

We are here for St. Paddys day and are invited to a BBQ,

 The couple we sat with with were in their 90's and doing shots, we pass.

 

 fortunately they have Corned beef too.

After all that food we thought we'd better do our planks.

Tucson gives Gary encouragement.

Our week is up and time to move on, this time we enter Texas to stay awhile