Category: Airstream

Three Lakes in Three Weeks from Texas to Oklahoma

~ Wandering Cindi ~ 2 Comments

We left Lake Colorado City State Park and made our way to northern Texas. Our first two-week stay was at Clear Lake Campground on Lavon Lake east of Dallas, Texas. It is run by the Army Corps of Engineers, and it was a lovely place to call home for a time.

The sites are very nicely spaced apart, and we had a pretty view of the lake. Wildflowers were blooming in the field on the other side of the Airstream. Murphy and I spent most of our days walking to the shore of the lake so that he would swim and wear himself out. The park was not crowded or full during the week, but it would get very busy on the weekends. That is OK with us, as we usually do our laundry and shopping on the weekends, and our recreation during the week.

Close-up of a yellow wildflower blooming in a grassy field.
A dog standing by the water's edge, looking out at a lake under a partly cloudy sky, with grass and plants in the foreground.

Murphy photo bombing my picture.

A small plant with reddish leaves growing on a grassy bank by a lake, with calm water in the background.

This was the shot I was aiming for.

I swear the dog is part dolphin. It is near impossible to keep him out of the water.

There were a few rainy days, but that is expected in spring.

The day before we were supposed to check out and move to our next stop, we got a phone call from the state park we had booked for the next 2 weeks. Lake Texoma State Park was experiencing very high water levels, and the site we had booked was closed due to flooding. They did have other spots available in a different part of the park, so we went ahead and took the offered campsite.

Since Aaron had a company truck, I had to do the towing of the camper. I don’t tow it very often, so this was good for me. If ever Aaron were not able to drive, I need to be comfortable towing and parking the rolling house. I will say, driving through and around such a metropolitan area as Dallas was a bit intimidating. My nerves were shot, but I did a good job. This picture is from my Snapchat story.

I was excited for our new spot, It was in Floyd’s campground in the state park. My grandpa’s name was Floyd, so I thought it was pretty cool to park here for a few weeks.

This was the view from our site. As you can tell from the trees in the middle of the water, the lake was crazy high. And it only continued to rise.

We stayed in that spot for 2 nights before the park called us again. They were worried that our site was going to flood and asked if we could move to another site, still in Floyd’s, but up a hill and further from the water. We semi-packed up and moved across the street, up the hill.

A shiny Airstream trailer parked under lush green trees with a black truck nearby in a campground.

I still took Murphy down to the water, considering his part-dolphin heritage, but didn’t really let him swim. There was so much trash washed up from the lake. I was really mad about it, too. People use the lake for boating, fishing, and swimming, but do not respect it enough to take care of it, and throw away their trash. It really frustrates me! It won’t be a beautiful place to spend time if it is abused and trashed.

Close-up view of a muddy area with scattered debris, including plastic cups and sticks, along with patches of green grass.

We stayed in our new spot for 2 days, and then got another call. We would need to move sites again for the night and would have to leave the park the next day by 2 pm. The park was closing due to rising water levels. Aaron was at the new office trying to set it up, so I was scrambling to find us a new home for the remaining week and a half we were supposed to be at Lake Texoma.

I found 1 spot available about 30 minutes away at Murray Lake State Park in Oklahoma for the rest of the week. It was a lovely state park, but the campground was very crowded. We were very grateful we had somewhere to go, and Murphy, as usual, enjoyed swimming in the lake. I was getting more towing experience than expected, and it was a good reminder to always have a plan B in mind, in case of something like flooding occurs.

I was also able to reserve a spot for us at Hickory Creek Campground in Lewisville Lake, just north of Dallas, for the following week.

I want to take a moment to thank everyone who reads and follows my blog. I will be back in a week or two with more Texas adventures.

Exploring Texas: A peaceful week at Colorado Lake State Park

~ Wandering Cindi ~ 6 Comments

We said goodbye to New Mexico and made our way into Texas. Our first stop in Texas was near the oil fields at Colorado Lake City State Park. After we had made the reservation, Aaron and I realized that we had stayed at this particular park once before for about 3 days in 2023. We stayed there for the same reason: we were on our way to the Dallas, Texas, area for Aaron’s job. This time, though, we will be in Texas a lot longer.

We spent a week here and saw almost no one else. When we arrived, our campground was almost completely empty and remained that way throughout the week. It started filling up on Friday for the weekend, but that was OK. We had fun during the week when we had the place virtually to ourselves.

A white dog on a leash explores a grassy area in a state park, with trees and picnic shelters visible in the background.

It was nice to see trees again, but it was still somewhat like a desert. There were cacti, and there was plenty of sandy dirt. But, there was the lake, so I spent most of my time taking Murphy down to Lake Colorado for a swim. Murphy does not like water to have sticks, branches, or debris in it, so he does his best to bring all those things onto shore. The little cove I took him to for swimming had lots of sticks and branches to keep him very busy while he swam.

A white dog wading through shallow water, playfully carrying a twig in its mouth, surrounded by sparse vegetation and water.
A view of a lake with muddy water and sparse vegetation, including tall, thin plants and a large rock in the foreground. A dog can be seen swimming in the water.

It was a nice spot to spend our afternoons while Aaron worked.

After a week, it was time to keep heading northeast towards the Dallas area. Our next stop -Lavon Lake, northeast of Plano, Texas, at the Clear Lake Campground.

A silver Airstream trailer parked in a green, grassy area with trees and a clear blue sky.

From Desert to UFOs: Our New Mexico Travel Highlights

~ Wandering Cindi ~ 1 Comment

We finally made it out of Arizona! Our first stop was at Adobe Deli, a Harvest Host in Deming, New Mexico. This eclectic restaurant felt like it was in the middle of nowhere. It had a small museum, lots of taxidermy, a wonderful staff, and some of the best French onion soup I have ever had. We sat next to the Deli Gator, and we were under a female lion leaping through the air. Aaron and I both enjoyed a great steak and slept well, ready to get back on the road in the morning.

Lincoln National Forest is in an interesting part of New Mexico. The area we stayed in was near the Capitan Mountain Range, the town of Capitan.. Capitan, New Mexico, is the home of Smokey the Bear. A baby black bear was rescued from a forest fire in the Capitan Gap in 1950, and he became Smokey the Bear.

We had planned a week’s stay in the forest, but the weather forecast changed our plans. It was supposed to snow and have mixed winter weather the coming weekend, and we knew we did not want to drive the dirt/gravel road in sleet/rain/snow mix. We did enjoy our stay. It was really interesting to watch the weather change over the four days we were there. Day one was sunny with mild temps, day two had strong winds and a dust storm, day three brought light snow, and the day we left was sunny again.

Day One

Day Two

Day Three

Murphy had a great time running free, finding a few bones, and just enjoying being in the mountains. He found 2 cow jaw bones. We were not surprised, as ranches surround the national forest land. The scenery was beautiful, and I was thrilled to see some trees!

We got a reservation at Bottomless Lakes State Park just outside of Roswell, New Mexico, for our next stop. I was very excited! I was looking forward to being near a body of water again and excited for the opportunity to explore Roswell.

We parked the Airstream and settled in for a week and a half at the Clear Lake Campground in the state park.

It was wonderful to see the wild flowers, let Murphy swim and just to relax next to a lake.

We could not avoid the rain and snow altogether, but at least we were not driving in them. It rained for half the day, and in the second half, it snowed. The ground was too warm and wet for the snow to stick, but I did enjoy watching it fall. Here is a two-second video of the snowfall.

For those of you who are not familiar with Roswell, New Mexico, it is known for a supposed UFO crash landing in a rancher’s field in 1947. It is probably one of the most famous and researched supposed alien encounters. This incident has sparked conspiracy theories, myths, investigations, and a town that has embraced its alien encounter fame.

We spent a Saturday afternoon exploring the International UFO Museum & Research Center located in downtown Roswell. As a bonus, dogs are welcome at the museum, so Murphy got a day out with us.

As we were walking down the sidewalk, I was behind Aaron and Murphy, and just happened to catch a picture of Murphy barking at a window. Aaron started laughing, and I had to see what made the dog bark. Apparently, Murphy is not a fan of the gray aliens. 😂

The museum was pretty cool and had some nice displays with research, and some really cool pieces.

After we enjoyed the museum, we drove around town. It was really fun to see the different ways Roswell has embraced its link to alien encounters and made it part of its identity. Even a big chain like Dunkin’ Donuts has bought into the alien culture there.

Overall, we really enjoyed having more time to explore New Mexico. This state is so diverse, and rich with history from the wild west days, military history, natural geological wonders, and diverse ecological systems. I really think we could spend months just exploring New Mexico. But, we still needed to get to Texas, so it was time for us to move east into Texas.

Family Adventures in Phoenix: Memories Made in Arizona

~ Wandering Cindi ~ 2 Comments

Murphy is always ready to hit the road, find a new adventure, and see new things. Sometimes, though, we also revisit places we have been to before. We had a reservation at Tortilla Flats, but we needed a place to stay for a few days before that, so we went back to West Pinal County Park for a few days. This is a conveniently located park to Phoenix and Maricopa, Arizona.

Murphy likes to help whenever Aaron and I are doing work on our computers. He thought he had some good ideas to help with photo editing.

After West Pinal County Park, we made our way to Apache Junction. We had been to Apache Junction once before, in July. At that time, we were able to stay at Lost Dutchman State Park. No campsites were available this time, so we found an available spot at Tortilla Flats, which is located northeast of town off of the Apache Trail.

The Apache Trail was a stagecoach trail that ran through the Superstition Mountain Range. Before it was a stagecoach trail, it was a trail used by the Apache, and before that, it was used by the Anasazi and Hohokam tribes for trade and migration. The road is a windy mountain road that is paved for the first portion, and then turns to a dirt road after Tortilla Flat. There are beautiful views of the rugged desert mountains in every direction.

While we were there, I had to make a quick trip to Iowa to take my dad to a doctor appointment. While there, I had a fantastic visit with my mom, my brother and his family, and as a bonus, my Uncle Darrell came down for a quick visit. I was able to attend a Burns Brunch, where all the many, many cousins (mostly my mom’s generation) gather every month to touch base and keep the family connection. It was really cool to be able to meet family that I had only seen as a small child. Of course, did I take any pictures? Nope…not one…total fail on my part.

The only picture I took was of my brother, Chris. Over the years, he has done so much to help our dad with his health issues and needs. My older brother, Sean, and I wanted to show Chris how much we appreciated him being there when we could not. There is a car museum in Ohio that Chris had stumbled on while driving back from New York that offers people the ability to adopt a car displayed there. Chris thought this was a fantastic way to support the museum, and there was a car there that he had fallen in love with. So, Sean and I decided to gift him the adoption of this car as a small way to show our appreciation. Chris was surprised and over the moon. I was lucky enough to be there when his adoption package arrived.

A man sitting at a table holding a photo of a classic car and an adoption certificate, with a Christmas tree in the background.

Since we could not make it back to Florida for Christmas, we decided that the whole family, including my mom, would spend Christmas in Phoenix. Mom and I flew from Iowa to Phoenix together to start the Christmas holidays. We rented an Airbnb large enough for the whole family to stay together. Well, almost large enough. There were only 4 bedrooms, and since we have three adult children and my mom there, they each got their own room, and Aaron, Murphy, and I stayed in the Airstream, parked in the driveway. It worked out perfectly.

The house came with a heated pool, batting cage, putting green, and a fire pit. We had a blowup Christmas cactus, and a week filled with love, laughter, and the simple joy of being together. Murphy and Lola enjoyed being together again as well.

Mom gave all of us a fantastic gift. She gave us an experience. She booked all of us a desert ATV tour for the day after Christmas. It was so much fun! We had three ATVs, and we each got to drive on some really fun trails.

Aaron and Jenna took one UTV

Mom and Gage took the second one.

Mason and I jumped in the third one.

Mom and I also took a drive up the Apache Trail so she could experience the mountain road. The sights were great, and she and I had a great time exploring.

Sadly, the week had to come to an end, and everyone had to disperse to their homes and jobs. It was a wonderful week full of love and laughs. Our wandering life limits our time with our kids, so every moment we have together is precious and held closely to our hearts.

Aaron and I still needed to be in Phoenix, so we went back to where we started the month, West Pinal County Park to finish the month of December.

A shiny Airstream trailer parked in West Pinal County Park, with mountains in the background and clear blue sky.

Next week will cover our adventures for the month of January.

White Sands National Park

~ Wandering Cindi ~ 4 Comments

On our way west to Arizona, we stopped at White Sands National Park. We decided a quick drive through was necessary. It was not the best time of day to take pictures, due to a very bright sun, but I did the best I could using a polarized filter. I am a bit sad that our timing could not get us there at sunrise or sunset. I can only imagine how the white dunes would glow in the dawn and dusk of the day. Hopefully, we will get a chance later on to experience that.

This national park is the world’s largest gypsum dunefield, covering 275 square miles of desert. It offers sand dune sledding, self-guided tours, and is super pet friendly. There are hiking trails and picnic areas to enjoy a meal with incredible views.

Our dog, Murphy, is part Siberian husky, and we adopted him in Washington State. So, he was accustomed to cold and snow. When he saw the giant white sand dunes, he got extremely excited. He thought it was snow. Aaron had him on a long, retractable leash, and he went running up the closest dune. Aaron could hardly keep up. Sadly, in his excitement, Murphy tried to eat the “snow.” Poor pup was spitting out sand and giving us a perplexed look. He still had fun running in the soft white powder.

The park is vast, with dunes of sand stretching as far as the eye can see. In this picture, in the distant right is a tree, and to the distant left is a person with a sled. When I was taking the photo, I did not even notice the person in the distance. The gift shop in the park sells sleds so that people can sled down the sand dunes. I think that is brilliant.

This is one example of a trail left by someone sledding down the dune.

The patterns in the sand mesmerized me.

This is one of the most dog friendly national parks, so it really made me angry to come across this bag of dog poop left on one of the dunes. If people continue to disrespect national parks, monuments, and national forests, they will ruin it for the people who actually care, that clean up after themselves and their pets. Sorry, rant over.

As we explored, we saw snake trails and other prints from animals that live in the dunes. It was like art that would change with the shifting wind and sand.

I also really enjoyed the reflection of the dunes on our Airstream. They looked very Vincent van Gogh. This work would have been titled The Sandy Afternoon instead of The Starry Night.

We had a great time briefly exploring White Sands, but we needed to get back on the road and into Arizona. Aaron had an office to get opened, we had family coming in for Christmas, and we wanted to get further south before winter really settled in.

We stopped at our usual Arizona standby, West Pinal County Park. We spent a few days here relaxing and working before heading up to Tortilla Flats just north of Apache Junction. My next blog will cover our time there and our Christmas spent with all three kids and my mom in a house…well, mostly in a house.