Continuing Through Texas

We ended up staying four days at that RV park in Iraan because I was just sick of traveling.  I got a lot of writing done, so I think it was worth it.  It was a depressing little town though.  My mom said she was so glad to get out of there on the walkie-talkie on our way out.

We passed through a beautiful charming town called Oxona.  I hope I remember the name right.  We got food at Sonic and ate at a park bench.  Since we’ve passed through there we’re seeing a lot more charm and scenery in the towns.  They are full of brick buildings hundreds of years old, old west store fronts, and beautifully maintained streets. 

It’s kind of like the ghost towns we saw that had gone to bust after the silver and gold boom in Nevada.  The difference here is that these aren’t ghost towns.  They look like the beautiful buildings and old west store fronts have been in constant use and repair since they were first built. 

From Oxona we went on to Junction, our next camping spot.  We were in a city park that did not appear to have a restriction on camping.  This is our BLM alternative in Texas.  It was free so I wanted to stay for a while.  We parked the RV in a dirt turn-out beside the Llano river.  It was a nice little park.  After we established the camp site other RVs turned up.  They huddled around us, despite my knowing there were other level spots.

I think they were full-timers, like me, looking for a free dry-camp in the BLM-less Texas.  They all had solar panels, which I think is a full-timer sort of investment.  I have a feeling they were like me when we first drove into the park.  It didn’t look like a legal camp site.  We didn’t see anywhere to fit the RV.  All the grass areas were roped off.  But we kept driving beneath the dangerous low branches until we found a spot and made camp.  I think other RVers spotted us and were reassured.  They gathered around us as though we knew what we were doing.  (Or, again, it’s just my egotism.)

This would have been a great place to stay except I had no Internet.  Not a drop.  I have an antenna that’s supposed to give me a smidgeon of a connection, but it didn’t work.  I pay a FORTUNE for Verizon because they’re supposed to have the best coverage (and they do).  But why they didn’t build a tower in this populous town I’ll never know. 

I got so desperate I went to the Radio Shack in town and bought an expensive Wilson booster.  This is supposed to give me a signal anywhere.  It didn’t work.  I had to return it.  Now I know that this isn’t an answer.  No signal is no signal.  It sucked!

I forced myself to stay to get more writing done.  I’m desperate to get this new book done because my income is dropping so pathetically.  I’m two days away from getting it finished, but like an idiot I can’t get into my writing groove on a travel day.  So I literally have to stay in place for two or more days to get any work done.  I did get a good chunk finished, but damn!  It was such a pain not to have Internet.

We continued after three days at the park because it was time to dump tanks.  Freecampsites.net gave me a cheap option with all the amenities I need in Robinson Park Llano.  Unfortunately I didn’t notice that the price was for a tent, not an RV.  Whatever.  I did a $27 splurge for tonight.  We dumped, showered, did laundry, and filled the water tank.  

Llano is not on the path to New Orleans.  After the hectic drive through El Paso I’m making a loop northward to try and avoid San Antonio.  This puts us near Waco (as of tomorrow) and the camp site there should be good for more than a week.  I lived near there as a kid, so when I finish my book we’ll go touring the two towns where we used to live.

So, I’m spending another night not making progress on my book because I know I’ll have a chunk of time in one space coming soon to get it done.  What I don’t know is if I’ll have Verizon or not.  Wish me luck.