Decided Bay City was not the place for us to hang... not much to do in town....fishing or birding......neither of which would make us want to stay another day. With the uncertain weather down here...it's a must to check on it daily...even several times a day. Weather Man says the winds have slowed in Galveston...no threats of flash floods any more... so thought we would we head East and check out the coast.
Our campsite was pretty nice. Looks like most who are staying here work in the area in the oil fields/refineries...but served the purpose . We left after 10 and not a soul around...it is Sunday....and most are working here not holidaying...so we kinda get that.
Texas Oil....I guess that's what it's all about. We saw so many Chemical Plants/Oil refineries along the way...it was mind-boggling...Have never seen that before. Last time we were this far South in the USA we did not make it to the Texas coast.
Finally found a place to pull over on the beach...and Gracie always drinks before she smells...and gets herself a big mouthful of salt water....and then runs back to try to figure it out...next time she will give it a "sniff" first...
It did get busier as we headed East down the Gulf Coast....but not too bad...it's a Sunday and Spring Break down here...so it's to be expected.
The pic in this Bumper Sticker ....he was so far from who was living in this park....
Back on the road....checking out the second place....drove in...... it was almost 4:30 now...time to find a place to stay for the night...decided to keep an open mind...
.......this little ol' gal came out (100 lbs soaking wet and about 4 foot nothing)... bit of a spit-fire...there was a lifetime of stories in those lines on her face .....she showed the guys what she had......we parked...and after a bit...we had a chat with Tony.......who we think may be the owner or is she...we don't know for sure, maybe just a worker.
....she started to explain that the pole for the Wifi had to be replaced recently as it was under 3-4 feet of water...from Harvey....Hurricane Harvey last August...only 8 months ago!!! The entire RV park was under 3-4 feet of water.......by the time they got the Evacuation Notice....there was nowhere to go....nobody could get their RV's out...they would not be allowed on the road.......so they stayed put in the Texas Beer Refinery (Brew Pub/Restaurant) beside the RV park....Tony used to a Bartender there years before.
A neighbour kept telling her she needed to get out...and she said she couldn't ....she had her 2 dogs...she also felt responsible to help the people in the park...she would wait it out...finally at 4 a.m. when things were getting really serious... he came...when his own house was flooding...to move her and her dogs to higher ground.....to the Brewery/Restaurant...where others from the area would also wait it out...and it rained and it rained and it rained...and they had no idea whether the building they were in would be enough...
Luckily it was....and then the clean up started...there was no help for most...FEMA...which was supposed to be there to help people like them...didn't...they assessed RV's that had mold....holes in the floors to let the water out...rot...and they were told....their RV's were livable...there was no money for them....
All the RV's in this park were flooded....most did not have flood insurance and next to none received any assistance at all from FEMA....so they had nothing else to do but try to repair the damage...remove what they could and just live...and try rebuild.
And this lady Tony...started to choke up...she said it's been hard since her husband of 38 years died about 3 years ago or so...so she has been doing it on her own...she says she now knows how it feels to have PTSD.....(just like her son who has been in the Military) and when it rains....it all comes back...every feeling she felt through Harvey and through the Hurricanes before....
We went for a walk around the park and there was this guy who was polishing this vehicle up and we stopped to talk...the car he was polishing was Tony's car...he said she helped him out years ago when he first came to the park...he feels so grateful...so he polishes her vehicle for her...
And we realize.... we pulled into this rough looking RV park.... thinking the place looked run down....was it safe?...would they rob us blind?... would we leave our RV's here ? and then we feel guilty for pre-judging them......and it makes us think these people have been through so much....and they survived...and now kids play in the park....and people make this place home...they go to work...they continue on.....and this is part of travelling....having these experiences....feeling these feelings...
Our campsite was pretty nice. Looks like most who are staying here work in the area in the oil fields/refineries...but served the purpose . We left after 10 and not a soul around...it is Sunday....and most are working here not holidaying...so we kinda get that.
Texas Oil....I guess that's what it's all about. We saw so many Chemical Plants/Oil refineries along the way...it was mind-boggling...Have never seen that before. Last time we were this far South in the USA we did not make it to the Texas coast.
Good thing I brought myself a travel pillow!!! Oh we love our Poogle!!
And more oil refineries...
....as far as the eye can see...
....we see the ocean...
...then we see more refineries...
Up and over the first weird/high bridge on our travels...there will be many...some quite scary..
and the ocean at last....
We love the houses here....the beautiful sea-side colours....
Not a fan of the new ocean-side styles......tan.......
Finally found a place to pull over on the beach...and Gracie always drinks before she smells...and gets herself a big mouthful of salt water....and then runs back to try to figure it out...next time she will give it a "sniff" first...
It did get busier as we headed East down the Gulf Coast....but not too bad...it's a Sunday and Spring Break down here...so it's to be expected.
Our first place to stop for the night was Bass & Bay RV Park...we called ahead...they asked how old our RV's were...had that before...we assured them they were only a few years old...this usually means they are particular about what is in the park...that's promising...the pics looked great....little fishing lake in the middle....$15 a night....sounded awesome...we strolled in.....and ran out.... START THE CAR!!!! START THE CAR!!! there was NO WAY we were staying in that park!!! and no way I was leaving Gracie in the RV while we went back to town!!! freaking scary!!!
The pic in this Bumper Sticker ....he was so far from who was living in this park....
Back on the road....checking out the second place....drove in...... it was almost 4:30 now...time to find a place to stay for the night...decided to keep an open mind...
.......this little ol' gal came out (100 lbs soaking wet and about 4 foot nothing)... bit of a spit-fire...there was a lifetime of stories in those lines on her face .....she showed the guys what she had......we parked...and after a bit...we had a chat with Tony.......who we think may be the owner or is she...we don't know for sure, maybe just a worker.
....she started to explain that the pole for the Wifi had to be replaced recently as it was under 3-4 feet of water...from Harvey....Hurricane Harvey last August...only 8 months ago!!! The entire RV park was under 3-4 feet of water.......by the time they got the Evacuation Notice....there was nowhere to go....nobody could get their RV's out...they would not be allowed on the road.......so they stayed put in the Texas Beer Refinery (Brew Pub/Restaurant) beside the RV park....Tony used to a Bartender there years before.
A neighbour kept telling her she needed to get out...and she said she couldn't ....she had her 2 dogs...she also felt responsible to help the people in the park...she would wait it out...finally at 4 a.m. when things were getting really serious... he came...when his own house was flooding...to move her and her dogs to higher ground.....to the Brewery/Restaurant...where others from the area would also wait it out...and it rained and it rained and it rained...and they had no idea whether the building they were in would be enough...
Luckily it was....and then the clean up started...there was no help for most...FEMA...which was supposed to be there to help people like them...didn't...they assessed RV's that had mold....holes in the floors to let the water out...rot...and they were told....their RV's were livable...there was no money for them....
All the RV's in this park were flooded....most did not have flood insurance and next to none received any assistance at all from FEMA....so they had nothing else to do but try to repair the damage...remove what they could and just live...and try rebuild.
And this lady Tony...started to choke up...she said it's been hard since her husband of 38 years died about 3 years ago or so...so she has been doing it on her own...she says she now knows how it feels to have PTSD.....(just like her son who has been in the Military) and when it rains....it all comes back...every feeling she felt through Harvey and through the Hurricanes before....
We went for a walk around the park and there was this guy who was polishing this vehicle up and we stopped to talk...the car he was polishing was Tony's car...he said she helped him out years ago when he first came to the park...he feels so grateful...so he polishes her vehicle for her...
And we realize.... we pulled into this rough looking RV park.... thinking the place looked run down....was it safe?...would they rob us blind?... would we leave our RV's here ? and then we feel guilty for pre-judging them......and it makes us think these people have been through so much....and they survived...and now kids play in the park....and people make this place home...they go to work...they continue on.....and this is part of travelling....having these experiences....feeling these feelings...
Hey, what happened to camping at Walmart? Crazy weather down there huh. Did you hear your neighbours house sold for $459,000, $10,000 over the asking price. The leaves are starting to come out here now, where as Calgary has 20 cm of snow coming today. Stay safe and keep an eye on that weather. Oh yeah, had a panic attack, thought we had put George's license in the recycling... whew!
ReplyDeleteNo more Walmart camping for a while....hopefully again soon....OMG that would have been a panic attack
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