http://www.blogger.com/html?blogID=4316350785635987648 Cave Dwellings: Our I-35 adventure....
Cave Dwellings

Buckhorn Creek, Lake O' The Pines, Jefferson, TX

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Our I-35 adventure....

Note to self...do NOT take I-35 South through Round Rock or Austin 2 weeks before Christmas!
We got up early yesterday morning..about 6AM. We wanted to be on the road by 7-7:30 and Den had to dismantle the TV and the computer dish...neither of which I am any help. He did a quick check on our computer radar and saw that rain was fast approaching, so we "kicked it up a notch" (with apologies to Emeril) and were pulling out of the gate at 7:30AM.
We originally were planning on stopping in Waco for the night, but we were only on the road for 1/2 hour before we got into the rain. Den decided he only wanted to set up our RV once, and we passed by Waco about noon, so we pressed on toward Canyon Lake. Our drive was pretty messy...Lots of rain...We got just North of Round Rock (south of Waco) and traffic became 4 lanes of bumper to bumper, with brake lights flashing all over up ahead in the rain. Keep in mind this rig doesn't stop on a dime, so piloting under these conditions can be very conducive to high blood pressure. We couldn't figure out what the big deal and big hold up was all about until suddenly I had a brain flash. I remembered that there is aHUGE Premium Outlets in Round Rock just off I-35...and it was Saturday...and it was 2 weeks until Xmas...AHA! Just what ol' Den loves....shoppers in every direction..And to make it worse, shoppers driving like crazed people on a mission!
 We made our way slowly down the interstate, Den keeping a death grip on the wheel. What was up ahead was no bargain, either. We had yet to go through Austin, and this interstate goes right through the middle of Austin, about 8 lanes wide..What is that thing up ahead??? Oh, great...someone towing a pre-fab house through the middle of Austin...Getting around this was very interesting and involved waiting for just the right moment to ease over into the middle of the left lane to go around (which meant we were now taking up 1 1/2 lanes for a brief minute)...Kudos to Dennis!
 We finally got off the interstate onto Rt 12 at San Marcos..good thing, too. There is another outlet mall just South of San Marcos. I know Dennis would get road rage if he had to encounter one more shopping quagmire. We were finally in beautiful Hill Country on what they call the Devil's Backbone..a road that takes many twists and turns, gradually uphill..It is normally a beautiful drive, but as we climbed, we slowly got into the fog...but slowly came down and out of it.
Arrived Canyon Lake, Potter's Creek campground at 3PM...It had stopped raining, thank God, so we got to set up in dry weather. We picked a spot we have been in before, up in the Live Oaks and Cedar. Den started getting our electronics under control and I opened slides and set up our cozy home of the next 2 weeks. Believe it or not we were all set up and having "happy hour" by the campfire at 5:30PM...and it was warming up to about 55degrees.
 Today, Sunday, is a beautiful day...70 degrees and sunny. Here is our spot...

Another view from the lake...


We decided to clean up the camper....It was really filthy after the drive from Illinois...Here is Den, lending me a hand with the big back window..Notice we were not wearing coats!


Truth be told, I had to get my hands in it too...I cannot stand a dirty rig!

















I got a little carried away and decided to  wash our black truck too. Some places won't let you use their water to wash vehicles, but this place does, so I took advantage. There is a guy across the road from us who was showing off..He had a huge duster on the end of a long pole and he was "dusting off" his motor home with it while I was going up and down the ladder like a frenzied fireman. I tried to ignore him and his giant duster.


Dennis came outside again after a few rounds with a 4 star crossword puzzle and washed the windows for me...



.We are all set up here until December 26th..This lake is actually the Guadalupe River dammed up..so it is very bluegreen and there is a nice breeze out of the South...Here is a view of Canyon Lake from our camper...Last night we sat right here by the fire and played Christmas CD's on our little ghetto blaster I brought. We do have music on our I-Tunes I can  put on surround sound, but we don't have any Christmas stuff on it...


 Tomorrow we need to go into Sattler and do laundry. I actually had to buy some new underwear because I was running out...time to dig out our jar of quarters and have a "Washateria"(that's what they call some of them down here) adventure...and I do mean ADVENTURE!! These trips always are! We meet some of the most colorful characters doing our "dirty laundry", so to speak..So I will end for now from our home till after Christmas..I will post more as we experience some more of the San Antonio Hill Country!!

See ya!

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