Second week in San Antonio

Monday – January 9, 2023

We got the first week behind us and whew, was it an interesting week!  Facing challenges of all sorts and working through them has been quite an experience.  Mag has said out loud, a few times, that our space has been getting smaller and, although the space is roughly 300 sq. ft, we seem to have developed a routine and habits that makes it quite livable despite it’s size.

Most mornings begin for me at 5, or so, with some quiet time, a cup of coffee; a mix of caffeinated and decaffeinated, in barista parlance, half-caff.  There was time when drinking coffee throughout the day, for both of us, was common.  Nowadays, I have to limit my intake because I tend to get a little jittery with more.  On occasion, I’ll have a cup in the afternoon but only if I have the sense that nothing could keep me awake overnight, otherwise, I mysteriously find myself awake around 2 AM.  Mag’s caffeine consumption is nearly nil.  An occasional cup of green tea, that’s about it.  We use a Cosori pour over coffee maker so we don’t have another electric appliance to manage.

Next on the agenda is the smoothie.  Most times, while I’m finishing up my quiet time, Mag sets up the Vitamix and tosses in the ingredients; kale, cabbage, chia seeds, pear, banana, avocado, then a mix of frozen strawberry, mango, and pineapple.  After 45 seconds in the blender, it’s done.  Usually two batches, one for each of us.  When we started the protocol, we both consumed two, for a total of about 128 oz.  Sometimes I pitch in but, in the trailer, it seems that two is too many.

I put together breakfast which typically includes cereal with almond milk, toast, and some combination of blueberry, strawberry, banana, either on the side or in the cereal.   The toast gets a light coating of peanut butter for me and almond butter for Mag.  Most days I will end breakfast with 1/2 grapefruit.

The trailer windows, especially toward the rear, are very dirty from the drive so I gather a roll of paper towels and window cleaner.  I also need a ladder which is in the pass-through (the storage space stretches from one side to the other with a door on either side) storage compartment underneath the trailer.  Its one of those collapsible types ladders.  It collapses down to several feet but can extend to seventeen feet.  While I’m attacking the windows, a couple staying across the way stopped by to introduce themselves.  After at least and hour and a half chat, we learn they are from St. Louis, have a beautiful Class A motor home and have been camping/RVing on and off for many years; they’re here to get away from the cold, both are retired.  They’ve camped here previously and are familiar with the area so we pump them for information.  

We run out for some groceries, a walk around the campground, a fairly quiet day.   

Tuesday – January 10, 2023

We are thinking we’ll go for a hike today, a little further out.  Other than that, I need to make some calls; Social Security, my former employer, and the billing service that manages billing for BRL (Baystate Reference Labs), seems that missed a payment we sent.  Managing mail, bills, and so on, is a little challenging.  It hard to forward mail directly to us because we’re a moving target so instead, we are having our mail forwarded to Jeanne in North Carolina, which is working out fine. Most billing and payments can be done through the Internet and we take advantage of that when possible but are careful we don’t expose ourselves to any scams or hackers.

Over breakfast we poked around on the All Trails app to find a hike in the Guadeloupe River State Park, a little less than an hour northeast near Spring Branch and we decide to head that way.  Its a good drive up into the “hill country” which seems to be experiencing a lot of development.  We can see large ranches, developments, and a large military installation.  We’re greeted at the entrance by a smiling face and a fee of $14/person to enter the park.  After a brief chat with the park employee, we elect to purchase an annual pass for all state parks, which seems to makes sense, if we make just one more trip to any of the other state park.  

A meandering 2 mile drive leads up past live oaks and scrub brush with several camping areas.  Two areas are for all type of camping, tent, trailer, motor home, with one for no RVs longer than 20′  The second can handle larger RVs.  The third campground is solely for tent camping.  Some of the sites have cabins, by cabins I mean canvas tent.  The sites have an options for electric and water hookups, the tent sites have no option for hookup and there is a dump station.  We made notes and will consider a future camping trip.

It’s a beautiful park with lots of hiking trails, very well maintained facilities, many picnic tables and benches along the trails.  The Guadeloupe River passed through the center of the park and years of erosion are very evident when you look up at the wall of limestone on the far side of the river.  It’s lunchtime when we arrive, it’s about 80 degrees and we select a picnic table overlooking the river that is mostly shaded.  Mag put together a lunch of chickpea salad sandwiches, PB & J, tortilla chips, oranges, apples, and assorted nuts.  After lunch, we hike the Bald Cypress Trail, not because it’s short but because it runs along the river.  There is a beach area where several youngsters are enjoying the water and we can also see folks fishing as we hike along the bank.  The river doesn’t appear to be very deep and the color is somewhere between Saltpan and Peppermint (I looked it up).  It’s warming up and the humidity is low but we’ve loaded up on water and drinking plenty.  Bald Cypress is a short trail so we head to River Overlook trail then onto Cedar Sage trail back down to the river.  We bumped into a park employee who was strolling about.  He mentions how its a beautiful day and we chat a bit.  He’s not from around here, he’s from St. Louis.  He and his wife are spending the winter here because the winters seem to get colder every year and we understand exactly what he is saying.  His wife is a traveling nurse so they just bounce around enjoying the country.  Nice!

On our way out of the park, we take a drive through the camping areas to get a closer look and head out toward the exit.  The ride home is fine but the traffic is a little dense.  I find myself driving on the frontage roads now because, not only can the interstate be crazy, it has a tendency of be stop-and-go traffic.  I rather drive on the frontage road and stop for the periodic traffic lights at a more leisurely pace.  We both beat when we get back and we put together a veggie pizza and salad for dinner.  I think the 80 degree weather and low humidity did us in, early to bed tonight.

Guadeloupe River State Park Photo Gallery

Wednesday – January 11, 2023

We decided on a down day today to catch up on a few things and we have laundry to do.  Late morning Mag headed off to do the laundry and I had some calls to make.  Early afternoon we discussed having Vegetable Shish Kabobs for dinner.  We had most of the ingredients but we wanted to add summer squash and zucchini so, since there was a couple of things needed anyway, we ran to Walmart and Sprouts.  When we got back, Mag jumped on a virtual meeting with some friends and I started preparing dinner. 

We have a small, portable grill that we bought at Walmart during an earlier trip, it runs on propane and, for now, it’s working fine.  I grill the Shish Kabobs, we eat and, after dinner, we discuss our plans for a hike tomorrow at another state park not too far away.

Thursday – January 12, 2023

Enchanted Rock State Natural Area is about 1 hour and 45 minute drive from our site and we head out a little after 9.  Although it doesn’t seem necessary this time of year, we make a reservation at the park, just to be safe.  When a state park reaches it’s daily capacity, they close the gate so, they recommend you make a reservation.  The park has an interesting history, lots of Indian folklore, and a geology which includes a granite dome which covers 640 acres and rises 420′ above the base elevation of the park with and elevation of 1825′ at the summit.

As customary, we’ve packed a lunch and snacks for our trek.  Oh, and lots of water.  At every turn, you are reminded to pack lots of water, 1 quart/liter per hour of activity.  We’ve decided to hike the summit trail first because its always nice ascending a mountain and enjoying the views from the top and afterward we will investigate other trails.  The hike up the dome is only 0.8 miles but it’s all uphill, obviously.  The temperature had dropped below 50 degrees this morning with a steady wind of maybe 15 mph and gusts to 20 mph.  Suiting up with layers of clothing, including hats and gloves, we’re ready to go.  The landscape and geology are remarkable to see and we’re stopping for lots of photos along the way (see below).  It’s cloudy as we begin but by the time we reach the summit, the sky has cleared but the wind is steady and one can almost lean into the wind and be supported by it’s force.  There’s no dilly-dallying on top so, once we find the USGS marking on the dome, we head back down.  Not too far below the summit, we find a collection of boulders we can shelter behind and enjoy our lunch.  The warm sun feels good and we are able to shed a layer.  After lunch, we venture down a little west of our ascent and end up climbing down through a field of boulders, Mag with her eye out for scorpions and rattlers.

Once back at the base, we head over to the Loop Trail which loops around the entire park with a length of 4.6 miles.  We’re not going to do the entire trail but we head to a spot called Scenic View Trail, about a mile in, then head back.  The park is popular for rock climbing and bouldering.  The walk on the Loop Trail reveals more rock formations of all manner of shapes and sizes which have been carved out by erosion over thousands and thousands of years.  After a short respite at the Scenic View Trail overlook, we head back to the truck to begin our drive back to San Antonio.  We decided to stop for a bite in Fredricksburg, about 20 miles south of the park.  It’s a spot we plan to visit soon, a German-themed town and is also home of the National Museum of the Pacific War and Admiral Nimitz Gallery.  The restaurant is called Hill + Vine, Mag has a large salad and I went off the rails with an amazing BLTA (Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato and Avacado) sandwich and fries with spicy ketchup!  It’s a cute little spot, the food was good, staff was very nice and they did a great job remodeling the old building.

105-Dome

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