Destination: Lake Livingston, TX
Route: I-10W, US-287N/US69-N, FM-1293W, TX-146N, US-190W
Mileage: 219
New state: Texas
We are back on I-10W in Louisiana! The road improves slightly west of Lafayette as the ground it is built on turns from swamp to real land. We are initially concerned after crossing into Texas because the first 5 or so miles are rough due to construction. The construction ends and the road is concrete and as smooth as glass. A true joy to travel on. Thank you Texas, thank you.
The speed limits in Texas, even on the county/farm roads, are 70 mph as a minimum. We can only dream of obtaining these speeds in Abby without the trailer; with the trailer the speed limit is truly out of reach. We push on and pull on to the shoulder to let cars pass as needed. We are quickly learning that on beautifully straight roads, good sight lines, passing zone, and no one coming, Texans are highly reluctant to pass. Perhaps they would prefer and element of danger, but it becomes annoying very quickly moving over every time a car is on our tail when we are in a perfectly viable passing zone.
We arrive at Dave’s cousin’s family’s lake house (how is that for a string of possessives?), park the RV at the top of the hill, and settle in for an evening of drinks and laughs with family. The drinks are strong and everyone is having a great time, even the dogs who get to participate in some off leash frolicking. Someone happens to mention the model train set and that is okay to try and run it. Thanks to the liquid confidence, Jess decides to try. There is some success! Two trains get moving and Alex provides supplemental sound effects with ‘too too’.
Just before Alex’s bedtime, we realize his portable crib is still at the RV, and the hill is awful steep. Lake house gator to the rescue! We drive to the RV, collect Alex’s bedtime gear, manage to misplace his pajamas along the way, and return to the house to tuck a little boy in. A few more hours of relaxing, then we get to carry Alex (Jess) and his crib (Dave) back up the hill.
Wandervogel with the McElvains 