We are currently sitting stationary in our 5th wheel trailer at Riverside Resort in Canyon Lake, Tx. The resort is nice enough - not fancy, but more than adequate to fit our needs.
We chose this campground basically for one reason - our cat Barney. Most campgrounds will not allow your animals to be off leash. Even here all dogs must be on leash. But since the owner has a big fluffy cat that runs the campground, she understands that cats aren't like dogs. Besides, she knows Barney from when we were here in 2008. Another campground we stayed at is a bit nicer (all roads are paved, more activities for the grandkids, etc.) but Barney has to stay inside. So, Riverside won out thanks to Barney! The other campground is within site of Riverside and we can take the grandkids there for extra activities...we know the owners and they like us! :)
We have 2 large oak trees on 1 side of our trailer that casts a lot of shade and we have a larger than normal campsite. The picture shows us in the early stages of setting up, so it doesn't properly show the final results. Our awning is extended and we have our indoor/outdoor carpet on the gravel. Our door faces a green yard so Jack doesn't have far to go when he takes a trip to the "John".
On the awning side of the trailer there are no trees, so we purchased 2 sunscreens and sewed them together. They attach to our awning and it's staked to the ground. The picture only shows 1 of the 2 sunscreens, but we found that we wanted another to go all the way to the ground. It is sewn to the bottom of the one shown and provides the necessary shade to keep us cooler in the heat of the day, but it also provides some required privacy. Eventually I will have some beautiful Bouganvilla potted plants as well as others to dress up the "porch" area.
Living in a campground isn't for everyone, obviously. Your neighbors change constantly and some are better than others. Some are loud, some are quite. But overall we have found that most of our neighbors are quite friendly and even chatty, especially in the early evening as things begin to cool off. Everyone's out walking their dog and dogs greet dogs, which leads to conversations with perfect strangers.
Here's an example of a neighbor we met yesterday with his 11 month old "puppy", Brutus. I drove by and stopped and he walked up to my window and rested his head on the bottom of the window! He has the prettiest blue eyes I've ever seen...sorta looks like a ghost dog! He was Jack's worst nightmare and the first dog our cat Barney didn't like...I can't imagine why!
For the next month we have next door neighbors out our front door that are from Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, where we just moved from! They retired about 4 yrs. ago and have been full-time RVing ever since. After this month they will be moving to Glen Rose, Texas to be Workampers at a campground there. They even attended the same church as us a few times! What a small world, huh?
For those who do not know what a Workamper is, that is usually a couple that works at a campsite either in the little grocery store, the office or being a grounds keeper for the price of their campsite, which includes wi-fi, cable and electricity. The required hours are usually 20 hrs. a week per couple. Not bad, huh?
In our particular situation we do not need or want to be a workamper. We want the freedom to come and go at will and even workamping ties us down. For those who haven't discovered this about us yet, we are very impromptu people. We do not care for schedules, particularly at this point in our lives. We lived according to someone else's schedule all our lives. We retired to be able to travel and we intend to do that once we get settled.
Moving back to Texas has been our dream for several years now. We enjoyed our time in Arkansas and know that the Lord called us there, but we feel that season of our life is over. Of course we will always be back to visit our son and his family and our many long time friends there.
Texas has always been home to us and still is. This particular part of Texas, the Hill Country, is one of the prettiest parts of the state. The large oak trees provide valuable shade from the desert heat and bring back memories of the times we both climbed those trees.
Since moving back here we feel that we're on vacation because everything is new. New restaurants, grocery stores, department stores, malls, friends, the atmosphere and climate. So for now, we don't feel a need to travel. We've arrived at our destination! We've Hit the Road with Jack and we're waiting to see ya! Ya'll come!
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