CLOSING OUT OUR 2009 WINTER IN TEXAS This was our last week in the RGV for the 2009 winter. It was not the rest and relaxation we sought, as a result of a number of external factors: Arkansas Ice Storm, death of former mother-in-law, a week of illness, work, and an internet-based college coursework. While the first three were beyond our control, we struggled to maintain even a hint of normalcy, and left many things and activities undone, maybe waiting for another year; only time will tell. Anyway, we did get to spend a few days at the hot tub and pool this week. Kay sang with the Bill Fraser combo early Monday evening during the pancake supper, and she sounded great. Also on Monday, Karyn returned to the RGV for work, and we were able to have dinner with her at a great restaurant in McAllen, TX. Tuesday evening included a dress rehearsal for the Pine to Palm Park Spring Concert, and we sang in the chorus for the concert Wednesday evening. Our take is that the Spring Concert is just another activity to most of the participants, and few get really serious about it, despite all the hard work of our friend, Vicky Wortham, to make it an enjoyable evening and success. Otherwise, it was a short and relatively quiet week in the RGV.

OUR JOURNEY HOME We departed Pine to Palm Park Thursday morning at 7:30 AM, in concert with a cold front that had moved into the RGV during the night. It was 50 degrees, dropping from a high of 85 degrees the afternoon before. Rain struck after our first few hours on the road, and stayed with us all day, as it got colder and colder. At Kay’s urging, we stopped at a German bakery in Schulenburg, Texas, where she purchased some great pastry. Schulenburg is in the hill country of Texas, and quite picturesque. We noticed spring popping our all over, with leaves beginning to show up on deciduous trees. (Interestingly, the citrus trees in the RGV had just begun to bloom and the aroma was wonderful!) As we drove further north, we began to see dogwood trees in full bloom, then redbuds. Spring had definitely arrived here. We continued to see dogwood trees in bloom all the way to near the Arkansas border, where we stopped for the night at a US Army Corps of Engineers campground at Wright-Patman Lake, just south of Texarkana. It was a 12-hour drive from Pine to Palm Park to Wright-Patman Lake. Because of the overcast skies, it was dark when we arrived, but we managed to get one of the few empty sites, and a pull-thru to boot. After a good night’s sleep, we drove the rest of the way home, noticing ice on all the trees at Velvet Ridge, Arkansas, just north of Bald Knob. That was the only place we saw ice on the whole trip. We arrived home to blooming daffodils and forsythia.

PARTICULARS Our drive home was 944 miles, and took 18 hours. We only got about 8 miles per gallon driving against a north wind the entire trip home (we normally get 9.5 miles per gallon, including towing the Saturn). Over the course of our stay at Pine to Palm Park, we used about $60 of electricity, and 21 pounds of propane (the propane was for a 13-month period and included several weeks traveling elsewhere) at a cost of $13.75. Our “pad” rent was about $15 per day. That’s pretty inexpensive living! The verdict is still out for next year as we have some other travel plans and both of us want to spend some time at home. One thing for sure, though, is that we will reduce the number of “distractions” whatever we do!

GOOD BYE FOR NOW This will end this set of journal notes. We’re not sure what’s next on our traveling horizon, maybe a side trip to Little Rock for a few days, maybe a few days at one of our beautiful lakes, etc. We will travel to Ely, Minnesota, on May 30 for our annual trip to Quetico Wilderness in Canada’s Ontario Province. Also, we have serious plans to drive to Alaska this summer, our third try. A draft of our itinerary is posted on the DunnGoneTravels website. Next year, we’re not sure about the winter, but we are on the waiting list at Bentsen Palm RV Park in Mission, Texas. We’re also planning a trip to Hawaii to celebrate our 10th anniversary. Our “bucket list” has a trip to Canada’s maritime provinces (northeast Canada) scheduled for 2010 as well. For now, we’re going to enjoy our house in the woods in the beautiful Ozarks of northern Arkansas—with flowers, birds, turkeys, deer, and our obnoxious squirrels.