Trek Across Texas

Our trek across Texas began by spending the first night in Katy, TX, just west of Houston. Red Lobster is located there just off I-10, and since we had a $10 gift card and a $4 coupon, we had decided that’s where we’d eat dinner. We parked the RV under a tree at the mall, walked over to the restaurant, and enjoyed our 27th wedding anniversary a day early.

The next morning we made our way to Canyon Lake RV Resort in the Texas Hill Country passing fields and fields of wildflowers along the way. The resort is located on the edge of Canyon Lake with lots of trees for shade, and with the hills in the distance, you almost forget you’re in Texas. We had stayed here in Oct. 2008 alongside our friend, Scott, and we got the same site this year. There were moments when we half expected to see him come from behind the RV next to us. The next couple days were spent just relaxing in this beautiful setting and watching the deer who wander through the campground. Mikey and Abby think those are some mighty big dogs!



Sun. we continued west towards Ft. Stockton, TX, but along the way made a stop at the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historic Park (http://www.nps.gov/lyjo/index.htm). The park is split into two separate areas: LBJ’s boyhood home in Johnson City and the LBJ Ranch 14 miles west. Across the street from his boyhood home (white house in the background at left) is the National Park Visitor’s Center featuring a timeline exhibit of the President’s entire life. When people speak of great Democratic leaders, FDR, JFK, and Jimmy Carter are invariably mentioned but seldom LBJ. Agree or disagree with LBJ and his policies, one sometimes forgets just how much he did…civil rights, Head Start, Medicare, Medicaid, education reform, etc.

We didn’t walk the rest of the grounds but instead headed towards the Ranch to take the self-guided auto tour. Located along the Perdernales River amid towering oaks, one can see why LBJ loved this land and why he found it a place to relax and recharge. Among the sites there are the one-room school where he first attended as a 4-year-old, the Johnson family cemetery where he and Lady Bird are buried, and the simple ranch-style house that became known as the Texas White House. This is a working cattle ranch, as had been stipulated by President Johnson to the national park planners when donated, and to this day the National Park Service maintains a herd of Hereford cattle. We did not tour the house but did visit the cemetery…what a beautiful and peaceful place.