Not believing him, however, we tried our luck by driving down I-20 to the next exit, but again found only gas stations. Went to one, and they had pretty crappy food. Bought two bear-claw turnover things, some OJ, coffee, a cookie with interesting pink frosting, and some milk for the coffee because they only had evil non-dairy creamer. Headed back to Shiloh campgrounds to the same spot, and I realized I forget to take yesterday's OdLoc (Odometer/Location reading), so yesterday's odometer is off by a few miles.
Some older short-haired ex-marine looking man was mowing the lawns, and yelled at me as he mowed past because I parked on the grass, so I moved to a gravel patch. It was weird, because this guy also had an RV set up along with the other customers, why was he mowing the lawns? Went and paid the $10 for our stay, we showered, then left.
We decided to take Rt. 165 right through the heart of Louisiana, to get the feeling for bayou territory. I was hoping to get a good picture of a swamp with trees draped with Spanish Moss, but along the road, the landscape was mostly tall pines and deciduious(sp) trees. Rt 165 went pretty quickly and we stpped for lunch just past Alexandria at a Texan-stty BBQ place, complete with real wood paneling inside, and all the other rancher kitch. I got a BBQ beef plate, with beans and fried okra, Hillary got a stuffed potato totally crammed with the BBQ fixings.
it the road again, and sooner than we knew it, we were on Rt. 10. We were almost to Texas! That's when I realized I drove quite a ways, Texas always seemed far enough away from NJ for a worthwhile roadtrip, so now I could look back and see the forest for the trees, as the distance I've gone so far. Hillary and I were lookng for a place to get some coffee, and hit the last Louisiana rest stop, which had no food available, or even drinks in vending machines. They did have some Spanish Moss-cradled trees, but not in the swampy waters I was looking for. Oh well, can't win 'em all. Here's a picture of the Spanish Moss I'm ever so interested in.
We got into Texas, and hit a Waffle House. Got coffee, pecan pie, and some iced-tea to go. Drove awhile, and then came to Houston about an hour before sunset. The sun was close to the horizon, directly in front of the direction we were travelling, and it was very difficult to see the road or the streetsigns. Especially with the zounds of dead insects baked on my windshield from driving through Mississippi and Arkansas the night before. Looped around Houston in I-610, and after much confusion, made it to Rt. 290, headed straight to Austin.
Finally the Houston outskirts died down, so we were back in the rural land. We got to Brenham, the first real town that showed any promise of having a motel. Stayed at a Ramada Inn there for $50. At 10:30 PM we tried to find food, and the lady behind the desk said the only place she knew of that would still be open was Applebee's, so we wandered over there. I got a chicken breast with melted cheese, Hillary got a Mexican-style salad with chicken strips. We got a little lost getting back to the Hotel, confusing 290 with 290 business. Finally made it back and fell asleep once again in the nice air conditioning.
| Location | Brenham, TX |
| Odometer | 131,937.7 Miles Total 3,184.0 Miles On Trip 416.5 Miles Today |
| Coordinates | 30° 08.992' N 96° 23.155' W |