JUST A HOP, SKIP AND A JUMP + A SMALL LEAP = WESTWARD HO!



SUNDAY - Today we made a good sized "HOP" right over the entire state of Alabama and landed in Mississippi, shaving 176-miles off of the distance we need to travel to reach our final destination in California by February 1st.

We've landed at the Davis Bayou Campground which is part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore here in Mississippi. We're no stranger to this campground because we've camped here 3-times before. Once each in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Every time it was either in January, February or March, just like it was this year too.




MONDAY - After making another good sized "SKIP" across the Louisiana bayou on I-10 we found ourselves 189-miles west of where we started today.

The Atchafalaya Welcome Center allows overnight parking with a 1-night limit, just like it should be. We are almost in the shadow of the interstate bridge and hope the traffic noise diminishes after dark. It shouldn't matter much because our windows will be shut tight by then and we'll be running our propane furnace.

The word "atchafalaya" is a Choctaw Indian word meaning "long river". At 1.4-million acres Louisiana's Atchafalaya Basin, a.k.a. the Atchafalaya Swamp, is nearly the same size as the Florida Everglades. Just like the Everglades, it also suffers from the installment of levees for roads, oil and water pipelines and other human impacts.

We've stopped here a few years ago, used the restrooms and checked out the Welcome Center museum. We felt it would be a convenient place to overnight for FREE sometime in the future.

Guess what? The future is tonight!




TUESDAY - Today we made the "JUMP" over the Sabine River and landed in the state of Texas. After a 209-mile travel day we pulled over for the night at the Magnolia Ridge Park on Steinhager Reservoir.

Just by the name alone you've probably already correctly assumed it's an Army Corp of Engineers park. These parks are always near a made-made, or should I say Army-made, body of water. This one is no different and we have a pretty wide open view of the reservoir out of the rear dinette windows.




WEDNESDAY - Today we made "A SMALL LEAP" across rural Texas traveling on the mostly 2-lane, but sometimes 4-lane, US Highway 190.

There were times we drove for ½-hour without passing through anything resembling a town or even passing a gas station. Not something we should have done with less than a half tank of gas.

But everything worked out just fine and we arrived at Walmart way before sunset, which was our original goal to begin with.


Our driving day went according to plan, I wish I could say the same for our morning endeavors.

At 9:00AM I was online trying to book camping reservations for dates in mid-July at Glacier National Park in Montana. This is peak season for this far northern park and the most difficult time of the year to get a reservation. Today was only our first attempt and we have at least three more trys over the next three mornings before we have to rearrange our plans. Wish us luck!


At 10:00AM I was back online trying to get RV camping reservations at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta in early October. Let's just say that their website leaves a lot to be desired in it's ability to handle thousands of requests for their hundreds of campsites for the 9-day Fiesta.

I invited three other couples to join us at the Fiesta, most of their names will be familiar from the Total Solar Eclipse Get Together we had back in April last year.

Long story short, the other three couples all got a reservation and I did not! I did however get on a waiting list (twice) because there are always cancellations when booking something this far in advance. So I've got my fingers crossed we will eventually get in!


Tomorrow morning at 9:00AM we will once again hope to score a campsite at Glacier National Park and then drive another 150 miles to a Texas State Park located just 20-miles from where Tricia's brother lives. We'll have 4-days to visit with him before we get back on the road and continue heading west to California.



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