My Truck Driver Friends

After leaving Texas I had intended to travel to Fayetteville, AR but ran into a flooding Red River that seemingly shut down every state highway out of Texas into Arkansas.  I kept getting "pushed" further and further west in my attempt to find a dry route into Arkansas until I was actually in Oklahoma.  A final "Road closed in 27 miles.  Seek an alternate route" sign and I overnighted in Oklahoma's Murray Lake State Park.  I didn't review it because it was half under water with only a few sites open, maybe next time through it'll be in better condition.  Heading northeast the next day I entered Missouri and after a long drive decided to spend the evening in what was a virtually empty Missouri Visitor Welcome Center along I-44.  I parked in the deserted truck parking area and settled in for what I assumed would be a quiet evening.

Down right cozy!

About 2am I was woken by idling diesel truck engines that sounded like they were parked 3 feet from my pillow because.....they were.  After falling asleep the truck parking had maxed out and my new "buddies" really had no choice but park next to the Tank.

Next time I think I'll park in the car parking area, at least cars don't idle their engines all night.

Thanks for reading!   

Campground Review: Martin Creek Lake State Park Tatum, TX

About 3 miles to the southwest of the tiny town of Tatum, TX lies the 287 heavily treed acres of Martin Creek Lake State Park.  I stayed there overnight on my way north to western Chicago after departing soggy Houston following my Home Depot gig.  As Texas state parks go this one is on the smallish size with 61 campsites spread over two loops but the park appeared well maintained and the staff was very friendly and folksy.  The bathrooms were spotless.

Martin Creek Lake and a chair you can watch it from.

Here's the park data sheet:

Hookups:                                 20, 30, 50 amp and water

Fire ring:                                  Yes

Water Access:                         Yes

Fresh Water:                            Yes

Trash Service:                          Yes

Toilets:                                    Yes

Showers:                                 Yes

Dump station:                         Yes

WiFi:                                       No

Level sites:                              Yes

Laundry:                                  No

Store:                                      Souvenirs and small food items

Pool:                                        No

Shade:                                    Yes

Verizon reception:                   None (2 bars of 4G with signal boost)

Internet reception:                   None (3 bars of 4G with signal boost)

Cost:                                        $13 / night

Lake view from my site, which wasn't a "Lake View" site.

The park charges $5 extra for what it considers "Lakeside" sites and these are denoted with a special colored card on the campsite post.  As I drove through the loops to select my site I noticed a few Lakeside sites where access to the lake would be iffy, as in having to drag your kayak through a  hundred feet or so of trees and brush.  At the same time there were several non-Lakeside sites that almost had as good a view so for $5 less  I chose one of those.

Rental canoes are available for rent from the park office.

There is a 1.5 mile hiking trail through the thick trees along the lake and a 6.5 mountain bike trail at the park. not as much as at the bigger Texas state parks but Martin Creek Lake is one of the smaller parks.

The hiking path along the lake side.

One out-of-the-ordinary feature at the park was this small amphitheater with a movie screen where I guess you could show films if you had one of those HD projectors.

I wonder if the mosquitoes get a concession here?

 There is a lighted fishing pier and a wide boat launch path near a loop that contains about a dozen little cabins that you could rent if you were a car camper and RV-less.

The boat launch ramp and lighted fishing pier.

CAVEAT:  You can probably tell I enjoyed my stay but Martin Creek Lake State Park has a serious issue that they need to address because it (they) aren't going to go away by themselves.  That problem is ants.  Not Fire Ants (thankfully) but some other non-biting but very territorially aggressive (as in they want into YOUR territory) strain.  The ranger warns campers about the ants at check-in and I was advised to spray a circle of Raid on the ground around each of the Tank's four tires to keep the ants from climbing aboard.  I did that only to find the next morning that the ants had climbed up the Tank's electrical cord and were attempting ingress through the electrical socket.  I "Raided" hundreds but was still killing ants inside the camper two days after I left the park.  Some sort of campsite ant treatment program needs to be instituted quickly to keep this nice little park camping experience from being ruined.  You may want to call the park office prior to driving up and inquire about the current ant situation.

At $13 per night Martin Creek Lake State Park is one of the best values in the Texas State Park system and offers a varied recreation opportunity for almost everyone.  I really enjoyed the quiet and solitude to be had there.

Thanks for reading! 

Getting Out While the Getting Is Good

I outlasted the wettest May in Houston's history (or at least as long as they've kept records) and completed my temp work assignment at the Home Depot on the 31st.  I was a little sad to leave my co-worker friends I had made but let them know that Home Depot management refused to accept my resignation and insisted that if I return to west Houston I would be rehired "on the spot" which was pretty cool.  Speaking of anything but cool....

Note the Tank's internal temperature in the lower right corner!

I took the above picture of the Tank's chronometer two days before my last shift.  I really couldn't have stayed much longer in Houston, at least if I intended to keep urban camping without hookups to run the Tank's AC.  The record setting rain kept the skies cloudy a lot of the time too.  Normally May in Houston is four or five degrees warmer than it was this year.

So I should be posting more frequently now that I'll have more variety in subject matter as I first travel to the western Chicago suburbs to see my brother and his family, then continue north through Wisconsin and across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan before heading down to see the members of my family, including my Dad, in Midland, Michigan.  Really looking forward to sub-92 degree weather!

Thanks for reading!