We are in Andrade Ca. which is the name of the border crossing into Los Algadones, Mexico. We have spent the last week since leaving Boerne, TX traveling across the southern Texas plains to Carlsbad, New Mexico. We spent two days there and went to the Carlsbad Caverns.
Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a
United States National Park in the
Guadalupe Mountains in southeastern New Mexico. It became a national park in 1924. What an amazing place. I took the hike down the
natural entrance while Jan looked around the gift shop and then she took the elevator down 754 ft to the Big Room where we met and continued the tour together. We left Carlsbad traveling through the Guadalupe mountains ( they have a neat, informative visitor center at the park) and then on to El Paso,TX and Las Cruces NM where we spent the night. The next day, heading towards Tucson, AZ on I-10 we began seeing signs saying “ see the Thing” after 150 miles and signs every few miles
Jan said we should stop…. ha-ha, like I wanted to go to a tee shirt shop. Well the signs also said there was a Dairy Queen there also, so I thought okay—Ice cream sounds good so we stopped. Well it was a tee shirt shop, but we spent the dollar each to see the Thing. Boy was I surprised, so surprised that I had to go out to the truck and get the camera and take some pictures. The Thing is in a
collection of old cars, wagons buggies, guns, wood carvings and many other strange things housed in three steel pole buildings behind the gift shop and I talked to the manager who would or could not tell us much about the collection. He said he read that it was started by a world traveling family of collectors in the ‘40’s in California and spent some time traveling with a circus. He wouldn't say much else except thought that it arrived a this location in the mid ‘60’s and has been there since.
I took some pictures and did find one website
roadsideamerica.with a review and a short video. I am glad that Jan’s curiosity was aroused and that we stopped at this old time roadside attraction. Stopping at Tucson and leaving early for us we stopped at the Space Age Restaurant ( complete with a flying saucer on it’s roof)
in Gila Bend for breakfast and headed towards Yuma and the border crossing. Arriving in mid-afternoon to 88 degree temps and an almost empty campground. I am also loading more pictures of all of this on our web albums.
natural entrance while Jan looked around the gift shop and then she took the elevator down 754 ft to the Big Room where we met and continued the tour together. We left Carlsbad traveling through the Guadalupe mountains ( they have a neat, informative visitor center at the park) and then on to El Paso,TX and Las Cruces NM where we spent the night. The next day, heading towards Tucson, AZ on I-10 we began seeing signs saying “ see the Thing” after 150 miles and signs every few miles
Jan said we should stop…. ha-ha, like I wanted to go to a tee shirt shop. Well the signs also said there was a Dairy Queen there also, so I thought okay—Ice cream sounds good so we stopped. Well it was a tee shirt shop, but we spent the dollar each to see the Thing. Boy was I surprised, so surprised that I had to go out to the truck and get the camera and take some pictures. The Thing is in a 
collection of old cars, wagons buggies, guns, wood carvings and many other strange things housed in three steel pole buildings behind the gift shop and I talked to the manager who would or could not tell us much about the collection. He said he read that it was started by a world traveling family of collectors in the ‘40’s in California and spent some time traveling with a circus. He wouldn't say much else except thought that it arrived a this location in the mid ‘60’s and has been there since.
I took some pictures and did find one website roadsideamerica.with a review and a short video. I am glad that Jan’s curiosity was aroused and that we stopped at this old time roadside attraction. Stopping at Tucson and leaving early for us we stopped at the Space Age Restaurant ( complete with a flying saucer on it’s roof)
in Gila Bend for breakfast and headed towards Yuma and the border crossing. Arriving in mid-afternoon to 88 degree temps and an almost empty campground. I am also loading more pictures of all of this on our web albums.
All along the route to San Angelo (our first planned overnight stop) we saw people stopped along side the road taking pictures. At a couple of our stops we talked to local people and the all said that it has bee a few years since the flowers have been so profuse. The last few years have been so dry that not many flowers showed. 
a great spring to be in south central Texas.We left San Angelo and felt lazy so we only traveled about 125 miles to Midland. We stopped for the night. Midland is the center of most of the TX oilfields....the area 
arrived early..... (Mountain Time change) to the warm weather we have been looking for..... It was 86 degrees today. The Caverns tomorrow.
and everyone throws their meat on the communal grill at the bar. You can get a side salad, roll, baked potato or green bean casserole to go with your meat for $5. Since we have been doing nothing but eating, we choose just to get the $5 fixin's.....and dessert! There was coffee and rolls to start the day for the people that did not chose to sleep in. There was a pot-luck one night. Favorite dessert contest on another night. Tacos in-a-bag another night.
I don't think anybody went around here hungry. There were a few seminars during the day, blogging, geocaching, volunteering and Alaska travel. This link 
more I looked ,the more I started to think about the great country that we are so privileged to travel in. As you have seen in the last post, we took a trip with Jessica to San Antonio last week. I love the Riverwalk and the boat ride and the restaurants. The other place I like there is the Alamo......
Alamo and Texas are amazing places. 200 or so people died here fighting for a freedom we take for granted. It is a place in the 
This cornerstone is on the Masonic temple in San Antonio. I think we all have to look at going back to educating our kids and taking care of our family, friends and neighbors and not asking for handouts and loans from the government. I am also going to post some other links at the side of the blog if anyone would be interested
Jessica's friends all had spring break at a earlier time than she did, it was decided that Jessica would come to Rockport, TX to visit us for her spring break. She was hoping for great weather, which with temperatures in the low-mid 70s, and no rain came close to fulfilling that desire. Tuesday, March 23 we picked her up at Corpus Christi around 4:30pm. We went from there to Mustang Island and did a quick drive along the beach. A couple dolphins were spotted a ways off shore. We then got in line to take the ferry from Port Aransas across the Intercoastal Waterway to Aransas Pass, where the dolphins usually play in the wake of the ferry. I think the dolphins were on break, also, since they were not visible on the ferrytrip. Darn! While going through Aransas Pass, we decided to stop at a jam session at the old theater there. There were only 3 people performing so we left early. 
we planned on starting the day with a trip to the Rockport cemetery, where the wild flowers were in bloom From there we took Jessica to a cafe we had heard about from several people, Turtle Bay Cafe. My kind of cafe, breakfast served until 2pm!! We found the cafe quite easily as we were told to look for the brightly painted, in various colors, cafe on the right hand side after going over the bridge. 
! Couldn't miss it! While waiting for our food, somebody from there told us about a swamp near there where a couple alligators have been seen. When our food was served, on paper plates, we were pleased to find that the food was as good as we had been told. Leaving there very full, we headed to the swamp to see the 'gators in the wild. 
Sure enough one was right where they said it hung out. It even swam towards our car for a photo shoot. Could see why the man at the cafe told us DO NOT GET OUT OF THE CAR! We, also, included a side trip to Goose Island to see the "big tree". Of course, the Fulton Mansion was a "must do".
Saturday Bob went to the car show on the beach at Rockport. He got a plaque for 2nd place in the truck division. After retrieving Grizz, Jessica and I checked out the downtown shops and a flea market. Sunday was spent back on the beach, and Monday by the pool at the rv park. All too soon the week was over. It was time to get Jessica to the airport and head her towards Michigan.
