Camping Trip

    It has been a while since we have been camping. Living off the grid and camping is two different things regardless of what some think. So, we got up Monday morning and headed back to the hill country to camp out for a couple days. We decided to go to Sonora Caverns Park because when we went to the cavern we saw that they had a nice campground there.

    The temperatures were surprisingly comfortable compared to what they usually are in the area. I think a cool front had come in. It was nice and breezy plus the area we stayed had a lot of trees. We saw a few wild animals such as deer, a few dove and an armadillo. We also went to sleep each night to the sound of an owl in a tree nearby. The campground also had Guinea hens and peacocks who would beg for food every time we ate. They would even eat out of my hand.

     It was a very relaxing place to stay, very quiet and peaceful. The caretakers for the park checked on us every day and asked if we needed anything. It was unlike any place we had stayed before because they would not allow us to pay until the end of our stay. Most places won't even allow you to pitch a tent until they have money in their hands.
     The campgrounds were nice and well kept. There was also hiking trails and beautiful scenery. The only bad thing was we had no phone service unless we walked to the top of a hill. They also had wi-fi which many people need or want all the time. Camping was only $15 per night so that was a great deal. Water and electric was available as well as close bathrooms and showers. We can't wait to stay there again.
   
   

Thanksgiving in The Chihuahuan Desert

      Thanksgiving would be much different this year. My two daughters and my son-in-law were now living in Tennessee, my oldest son had to work for the entire holiday and through out the weekend, my middle son was headed to Michigan to spend time with our cousins and my youngest son was with his Grandparents. This left us home alone. Our friend Jim had just delivered his son to the dorms of St. Edwards University and found himself alone as well.
     We decided to head out to west Texas to try Thanksgiving on our land. Stephen and Jim discussed building a kitchen on the property with the materials from one of Jim's shops. So we loaded it up along with enough food to feed an army. Stephen's mom came with us. She was excited because she had purchased twenty-two acres beside us but this would be her first time seeing it.
     Once we arrived, we set up camp and I gathered wood. During a previous visit to our property we had assigned each other names. I mentioned before that one of my sons was nicknamed Billyjack- well, I had earned the name "Gatherer of Wood".
     The night was beautiful but freezing cold. We could not get close enough to the fire and Stephen's mom, Virginia, was freezing to death. We gave her a ton of blankets but sleeping in the tent was not going to work for her. Jim made her a bed by the fire and she survived the night. Stephen and I slept in the truck, starting it every hour or so to get warm. The following morning the temperature gage in my truck read seven degrees. The Sake (Japanese wine) had frozen solid... now that's cold!
     That morning we put the coffee on. It was the best coffee I had in a long time, maybe because it was hot and I was cold. We then put the turkey on and allowed it to cook all day. It was very tender with a nice smoke flavor. We also had a big pot of beans, Jim's homemade pickles, and some kind of greens. The guys had spent the day working on the outside kitchen. They ran into several problems but never gave up and by nightfall there was a structure that we could sleep in. Stephen and I still ended up in the truck because it was just that cold! We were later joined by Virginia and Jim slept in a chair almost in the camp fire.
    The following morning, just before packing up, we all talked about the things we wanted to do. We decided to come out again in a week or so to start working on improvements to the land. We went over some of the things we had discussed previously; one being the name of the ranch. I still was in disagreement but had been outvoted by the males.... The property was to be called "El Chupacabra Ranch". Jim wanted us to vote against having Llamas on the property. We refused and said anyone who wants them can have them. Of course, we didn't want Llamas either but it was funny watching Jim squirm over the idea of them being on the property. He hates the things.

A Break From The City

   We decided that we needed a break from the Austin traffic and the stresses of every day life in the burbs so we headed out to spend a weekend checking out our land. We had not found the time to camp as much this year as we usually had so this was a perfect opportunity to do it. We left a bit later than expected so we arrived around dusk. Camp had to be set up quickly and the wood had to be gathered for a fire. It was strange to be in a place that had no burn ban in effect. It also seemed to be much cooler than home. By dark the temperature gauge in my truck read sixty-seven degrees. We were loving it.
   Even with the camp fire, there seemed to be a million more stars in the sky. Out in the desert it is so dark at night, the closest neighbor being miles away. Even though our property sits just off a dirt county road, the only traffic at night was from the border patrol switching shifts. We are only eight miles from the Mexican border but there is a very large mountain range between us and them. The desert silence can be deafening to someone who is so used to the non-stop sounds of city life.

   Around eleven we all went to bed and just a few hours later I woke up thinking border patrol was shining a flashlight in my face. It was the strangest feeling but when I opened my eyes, it was the biggest moon I had ever seen. It had come up over the mountains and was shining in on me with such brilliance that I never would have thought it would be the moon waking me. I realized how cold it had become and tried to steal a bit of blanket from Stephen who is a huge blanket hog.   
   One thing I discovered out there was that time seemed so different. There was about an hour less daylight due to the rise and fall of the sun in the mountains. I woke very early, about 5:30 or 6. The temperature in my truck read fifty-six degrees and it was July. It was amazing!
   We started to walk our property line. The property ran two miles across the front, along the road and then all the way back to the mountains. During the hike we found many things we did not expect to see in the desert such as dragonflies and turtles. There were also jackrabbits, butterflies, many colorful birds, flowers, and crazy looking bugs. It was streaming with life.

 

 

 

    The temperature rose to ninety-five degrees but had a nice breeze and felt cooler than back home. We were much more comfortable and were relieved to be rid of that hot sticky feeling. We had taken our sons, Billy and John, with us and they were enjoying the freedom to run wild... even though they were 18 and 16. We gave Billy a new nickname... Billyjack. He received this name for two reasons. First, he ran through the desert, jumping bushes, and chasing rabbits as if he had been one in a previous life. Second, he tried to ride dust devils by running and jumping into them. One was so powerful that it pulled his shirt all the way over his head with it hanging on by just one of his arms. It was a sight to see.... crazy boy!
   My youngest son, John, spent the weekend hunting jackrabbits. He never gave up and just before we were leaving he finally got one. He brought it home and made jackrabbit stew.... I had none! The guys all said it was amazing.
   This was the beginning of the end for us. Life as we knew it had changed and we really felt it when we arrived back home to over one hundred degree temps and no breeze; even the evenings were barely below ninety. People started asking us why we would buy land in West Texas and we knew that no matter what we told them, they would never understand.