Mission, Texas

We arrived on our lot here in Mission, Texas, yesterday about 11:30 a.m. We had awakened early and decided to get moving so we left camp at 6:30. The drive from there was a breeze, not much traffic, a little road construction around Falfurrias and a speed limit that varied at 70-75. Whew! I think that was new. Don't remember 70 mph on 2-lane roads. Phaeton Place was glad when we got here so she could be relieved of that weighted down, packed to the gills, Sport Trac!

The first order of business here is to finish the Texas room. Not a lot to do yet, but finishing takes more time. I think Terry is going to ask our builder John for some help in order to get it done. Until then, I really can't unload too much into the room as I would just have to find a home for it while they are sawing and hammering. Everything in the room is coating with a thin film of dust. I think it is mostly construction dust. I will try to do some cleaning today.

I was finishing uploading pictures and have a few from our trip down from Red Bay on the Natchez Trace. We travel this every year and never get tired of it. I love to drive it. It is relaxing and scenic. We saw a lot of deer and some wild turkey this year.

The first picture is the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. The "Tenn-Tom" was built back in the 70's connecting the Tombigbee and the Tennessee Rivers to make a navigable waterway to the gulf. When we first visited Terry's family after our wedding in 1971, we toured the waterway construction sites and I have pictures of the building process from then.

In April 2011, tornadoes ripped through Mississippi and closed the Trace temporarily until tree debris could be cleared. I have pictures of that. There are other parts of the Trace with older storm damage that you can pick out as you travel the trail.







 
 





The lake in the pictures is Ross Barnett Reservoir which is close to Jackson, Mississippi. This lake has a lot of stump fields you can see from the road. There is at least one campground which we have tried to get into before, but it requires reservations well in advance as they allow seasonal camping. Bummer.
 
 






We are going to be busy today with cleaning things up and getting Phaeton Place all set up for the next four months. But the weather is great! Mom and Dad were already here and fixed us supper last evening. In other news, I WON AT BINGO LAST NIGHT!
Till next time. . . Dale