Our Little Storm

Over the years we've been through a lot of storms with thunder and lightening and high winds, but non quite like the one of January 9th, 2011. The wind started howling about 3:30AM and then wild lashing of hail, after that the rain came down in sheets and the motor home started rocking. We hung on while this went on for about 3 hours. The next morning, expecting to find wide spread devastation we ventured forth. Our barbecue had been blown over which had never happened before; I picked it up before realizing I should have taken a picture. Unfortunately when it blew over it put a dent in the side of Harvey, which doesn't show in the picture.

The neighbour behind us had his trailer pushed off its jacks by the wind and it slid about 3 feet so he had to relocate it. Another few feet and they would have ended up in the canal. She said that it was moving so much they couldn't stand up so they got on their knees and prayed. She said even the dogs were kneeling beside them.

The neighbour right behind us had his awning wrecked. The radio reported the winds were up to 120 km/hr although I don't think it got that high where we were or there would have been much worse damage.

This boat was floating upside down in the bay in front of us. The night before it had been pulled up on the beach on the far side of the thatched shelter. So it blew end over end across the beach to end up in the bay.

 There was a lot of minor damage like torn awnings and bent flag poles. Some was not visible; one trailer had its skylight broken and got a lot of water damage. A motor home had water driven in by the rain and when the power finally came on it started a fire which burned most of his wiring. The power went off about 4 AM and never came back on until 7PM.

 Drifts of hail were still visible for awhile. The hail was about the size of peas, if they had been larger the damage would have been much worse. A tornado touched down about 5 miles from us and ripped the roofs off some trailers in another campground so we were lucky with our little damage.

All over the campground bark from the palm trees was scattered. The wind ripped them off the palms with enough force to scratch a number of RV's and cars. Fortunately, the palm beside us stayed intact.

The hail came down with such force that it flattened the fins on our rooftop heat pump and air conditioner. I spent 4 hours on my side laying on the roof straightening the fins, one at a time, on the heat pump. As my vocation, I knew damaged fins would reduce the efficiency of the heat pump by at least 30% so I got right at it. I've still got to do the air conditioner but its not warm enough to need it for awhile. We went for a drive and saw lots of damage in town so I guess we were pretty lucky. Hopefully no more storms.

Texas State Aquarium

We've finally gotten bored enough sitting around that we decided to do another tour. Its a cloudy wet day so perfect for a trip to the Aquarium just down the road. Although it looks like a real downpour, actually thats a waterfall feature at the entrance. Kinda cool.

You can see what a dreary day it was but also how close we are to the Lexington, made famous in my last blog. And, just down the street is the equally famous $1.00 margaritas.

The grounds are beautiful with great landscaping. The flowers were lovely, especially the rose in the middle.

We arrived just in time to see the diver enter the large tank to feed the fish. The tank has 350,000 gallons and the acrylic glass is 4" thick. The colours were amazing and all the fish came to her and ate out of her hand. She wears a chain mail glove because if the sea turtle nipped her hand she'd lose a finger.

He looks pretty placid after having lunch, but the moray eel in the lower centre looks like one big mean snake. 

After the diver feeding show was the dolphin show. They put three dolphins through their paces. This was the best photo I got of them jumping. It would be even more impressive if I'd gotten their heads in frame. Damn digital camera lag.

They certainly could jump. Before the show, they just swim in circles and look very bored but really come to life during the show. According to the announcer the training keeps them physically fit, mentally sharp and provides play for them which they naturally crave. They really seemed to enjoy performing.

There was an underwater viewing room so we watched the next show from there. They swim in a circle to pick up speed for the jumps and when they re-enter the water they turn quickly to avoid hitting the bottom.

There were a number of different tanks all with different fish and different themes. This was a Gulf of Mexico tank based on the fish found around the legs of oil rigs. There are over 3500 oil rigs in the gulf of Mexico and very few coral reefs so fish have teemed to the rigs for shelter and food. All these fish attract sharks such as this grey tiger shark. They must feed him well; all the other fish seem to ignore him.

These red piranhas from the Amazon have a tank all to themselves. They are about the size of a dinner plate. The writeup on the wall says they aren't really as bad as we've been told and are just misunderstood. Thats right beside the sign that says "Keep Hands Out" and "Very Dangerous". Not dangerous my eye!

We even found Nemo. This tank had some very colourful fish. It reminded us a bit of the aquarium we used to have at home, only about 100,000 gallons larger of course.

Although this is called an aquarium, there were a number of creatures who inhabit the Texas shores. Such as this migratory tourist found along the shores during the winter migration from the colder climes. A rather handsome specimen in a typical tourist local. Note the paper being carried which helps the tourist to acclimate  themselves to the specific location in which they find themselves.

The animals which are on display have been injured and cannot return to the wild. This roseate spoonbill has a broken wing. They also had sea turtles which lost flippers to fishing line and a large 10' alligator which was removed from a residential area.

 Sea Otters had their own habitat where they could swim and slide down water falls. Of course, as long as we were watching, they laid on these logs and did nothing. Apparently, they are very interesting.

 This bald eagle couldn't fly so he sat high on the tree looking bored. He was huge.

Finally found some otters playing around. It was a fun day and now we're heading over to Pier 99 for some $1.00 Margaritas. Can't believe we had to spend a whole day looking at fish just for some cheap drinks! Although we do feel guilty eating fresh, delicious seafood appetizers after oohing and aahing over a bunch of Gulf of Mexico fish. Naaaah!

USS Lexington

 Well, we've been here for a couple weeks and haven't done much except drive around so we figured its time to see some of the local sights. About 10 minutes down the beach is the USS Lexington museum.

The Lexington is a WW2 aircraft carrier, built in 1943 and was the last one to be taken out of service about 20 years ago. It was called the blue ghost because of its colour and the fact it was declared sunk 3 times by the Japanese. This is the hanger deck, one floor down from the flight deck and was where planes were stored and repaired. There is that much room again behind me.

 Anytime I can fly in a plane and shoot guns is a good day.

Apparently I shouldn't have done that.

 After I was let out with a warning, I decided to give an anti aircraft gun a try. This has an optical sight and actually moves so I ended up trying to shoot people who were sitting down the beach in a cafe. Good thing I didn't have any ammo.

This is where the captain ran the ship. He didn't even get a wheel to turn, that was left to more lowly sailors. To my left was the flight deck and straight ahead was the pointy part (bow).

 This is the aforementioned bow. I was sitting behind the upper row of glass windows in the last picture. All of the different types of planes which flew off the Lexington are located here on the deck. They range from WW2 planes to this Apache helicopter.

They shouldn't have left this one running, I almost got sucked into the engine. Fortunately I weight more than I appear to. This was the most challenging plane to land on the carrier because it flew at over 1400 MPH and landed way faster than most. The F4F was used in Vietnam mostly.

 You may find it hard to spot but in the centre left in the picture is a Japanese flag. During the battle of Leyte Gulf a Kamikaze Zero hit the island where the flag is, killing over 20 and injuring over 200. 12 of the dead were pilots who couldn't take off so went up there to watch the fighting. This carrier suffered the most damage of any carrier which didn't sink. 

It is an amazing thing to see. We spent hours walking through the different levels and areas of the ship. Over 2600 people worked here and hundreds died during its various battles. The size of the sleeping areas, the galleys(eating areas) and the heads(washrooms) are huge. Notice how I picked up some sailing lingo. 

After a day of wandering the nooks and crannies of the Lexington, we walked about 100 feet down the beach for refreshments. Notice how close the ship is. When we found out the Margaritas were $1.00 apiece we stayed a little longer than planned. Seafood appetizers were $2.00 off so we had some of them as well. I think we'll be back; we just won't bother with the ship next time.

The building in the centre is where we stopped for a break. Behind that is the bridge to Corpus Christie and the grey building to the left is the Corpus Christie Aquarium. I think we'll go there soon; probably when we get a craving for Margaritas and sea food. Its only another 200 feet down the beach. What a great spot. Too bad we weren't camped right here.

Our Journey from Home to Here

Its been a long and winding road from home to finally arriving at Corpus Christie Texas. Perhaps a refresher on where we've been is in order. A quick and dirty rehash if you will. After leaving home on October 15th., our first stop over was near Flint Michigan, 195 mile trip due west taking 5 hours and $58.00 in diesel.

Next, we drove 207 miles south west to Elkhart Indiana for the RV tours and museum. Took 5 hours and cost $68.00 in diesel.

Through Chicago going due west for 248 miles took us to Colona Illinois in 5.5 hours using $115.00 in diesel.

Then a 5 hour drive going west took us to Des Moines Iowa. It was 196 miles costing $65.00.

Took time to do a bit of house cleaning after driving 227 miles in 6 hours to York Nebraska. Spent $80.00 on diesel. A sunny but windy drive again going due west.

Now 6 hours almost straight north took us to Valentine Nebraska in 268 miles, using $95.00 in diesel. This was a real western spot with the stock yard next door and the smells and flies to add authenticity.

Rapid City South Dakota became our longest stay so we could go to Mount Rushmore, Custer's Last Stand  and the Badlands. Going mostly north west, it took us 5 hours and 222 miles to get there and burned $85.00 in diesel. This is our farthest west and we'll turn south from here.

Due to the distance, this was the only stop over we made where we weren't at a campground but at a Flying J truck stop in Cheyenne Wyoming. The noise of the trucks coming and going made for a restless night, but it was just one night. We drove south west for 6.5 hours, going 312 miles and using $128.00 in fuel to get here.

 Monument Colorado was our next stop after driving 150 miles in 3.75 hours going due south. Fuel costs were $52.00. Although we had been below freezing before, this was our first snow. A beautiful spot though.

Going due south again brought us to Santa Fe New Mexico after 7.25 hours and 357 miles. Fuels costs were $123.00. Hopefully the last of the snow.

Straight south brought us to Las Cruces New Mexico in 6.5 hours and 290 miles, using $119.00 in fuel. Nice and warm, it really feels more southerly here.

Now we're into Texas, getting close! 289 miles and 6.25 hours going south east (notice the direction change) brings us to Fort Stockton Texas. Took $88.00 worth of diesel to get here. Texas wild country with rattler warnings and thorns/briers instead of grass. Lots of room to ourselves though.

More south east travel brings us to Bourne Texas, just west of San Antonio. The drive took 6 hours and was 289 miles of flat relaxing drive. Used $105.00 worth of diesel to get there. Got to see the Alamo and San Antonio's beautiful River Walk while staying here.

Finally, our last leg of this journey to paradise. A good days drive too with only 4.5 hours and 189 miles of south east driving. Fuel use was only $43.00. So, if you've been doing the math, we drove 1563 miles west to South Dakota then turned and went south 1109 miles. Turned south east into Texas and went another 767 miles. Based on the picture above I think the drive was worth it.

Looking along the side of our home you can see across the bay to Corpus Christie. Warm sunny with a distinct tropical feel. A palm tree rustling beside our front door adds to the ambiance. I think we'll enjoy it here. If you want to know the gritty details we got just over 11 miles per gallon on the trip. Not too good for a car but darned good for a home I think.