Berwick, LA

Once in our site we tried to put the tow-dolly back on the hitch, but because of the bike rack we couldn't. (Tip on last post tells about the bike rack) So Les had to take the bikes off and the bike rack, put the tow-dolly on and then the rack and bikes back on!! Yes, we were not happy campers. So what should have been an easy pull through site for one night tuned out to be an almost 2 hour set up.
With all of that the campground is pretty nice, the view of the lake from our site was very relaxing. The site was plenty long enough and level. There are a few permanent residents that are not kept up very well. The owners just recently purchased the campground and are trying to make improvements. We paid $40.00 with our Good Sam Discount. You can easily walk to a convenience store and a number of casinos.
Sulphur, LA
Nancy was sick with a cold so she never left the RV, Les did all the dog walking. We paid $40.00 with our Good Sam discount.
Crystal Beach, TX
January 20, 2019 we landed at the Bolivar Peninsula RV Park in Crystal Beach on the Bolivar Peninsula, just east of Galveston. We were here for a month and a half stay. The park is very well maintained.



We were entertained by the birds every day and enjoyed some beautiful sunsets at night. There were Spoonbills, Great-tailed Grackles and Muscovy Ducks. Along with Pelicans that proved to be very camera shy.

Walking the whole park is about a mile, which made Nancy very happy. There were also lots of picture opportunities of flowers, weeds and raindrops.
The beach was just a short walk away and we went there whenever the weather permitted.
You can also drive along the entire beach so of course we took advantage of that as well.

Both Nancy and Mielikki found lots of shells and seaweed. Most were left behind but a few came home with us.

The beach is lined with Crosses, most just plain white wood but some were more elaborate. The majority of them are for people who died in Hurricane Ike back in September 2008. We also came across these metal poles, they are what is left of a pier that used to be here.
Our first night here we were able to watch the Lunar Eclipse. We didn't get great pictures but it sure was cool to watch.


Fort Travis is a United States Army Coastal Artillery Facility. It is at the western end of the peninsula where the Intracoastal Waterway meets the Gulf.
Two of the batteries were built in 1898, with additional construction taking place over the following years up through 1941.
It is now a large park, with four of the batteries remaining and the foundations of a number of other buildings. Along with a playground and bird watching stands.
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Battery Davis |
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Gun Station |



At one end of the battery is a very steep staircase. Les and Mielikki ventured up while Nancy was taking pictures below. She decided to join them and once she got to the top of the stairs she realized that it was not a good idea. In fact during her slight panic attack she had somehow enable Siri on her phone and when she yelled out to Les that "this was a terrible idea", Siri picked up on that!
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They are very steep steps - and yes it was a terrible idea to climb them. |

Once at the top Nancy realized she couldn't go any farther, the narrow and slopping passage way was more than she could handle! The problem was she still had to get down. So very slowly she went down backwards one step at a time. She was able to snap a few pictures while at the top.
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Battery Ernst |
Battery Ernst was the second one built. It contained three small caliber "rapid fire" pedestal guns with searchlights. It is at the farthest end of the fort and it's purpose was to defend the harbor entrance. Top pictures are of the gun pedestal, or what's left of it and the location of it. There is a great view of the Gulf from here.
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Battery 236 was built in 1941, by this time the Coast artillery no longer named its smaller installations. It contained two long range six-inch guns connected by an earth and concrete casement which contained a power plant, magazines, fire control facilities and crew quarters.

Battery Kimble was started in 1917 and was completed in 1922. It had twelve inch guns that could be elevated to gain a range of 17-miles. Shortly after WWII the battery was made vulnerable by the advent of accurate aerial bombing. The circular gun platforms provided the perfect aiming point. The battery was then abandoned and its guns sold for scrap. This is the only surviving example of this type of battery, more than a dozen similar ones were built in the U.S. and the Philippines.

There is not much on Bolivar Peninsula so any shopping was done in Galveston and Port Arthur, which will be covered in Part Two.


The sign says "Please do not verbally abuse screeners or staff. Verbal abuse of screener may be cause for denial of boarding." Pretty sad when a sign like this is needed.
Along with shopping we of course did some sightseeing. We found a few Roadside Oddities.

This area has had its share of devastating Hurricanes, the last one, Hurricane Ike in 2008 destroyed much of the surrounding area. One of the deadliest hurricanes was in 1900. The death toll was 8,000, most of these occurred in the vicinity of Galveston. The water surge inundated the entire island with 8-12-feet of water. After the storm the shoreline of the island was raised by 17-feet and a 10 mile seawall was erected.

One of the touristy things along the seawall is the Galveston Pleasure Pier. Yep, that really is the name! We didn't actually go into the amusement park but the lights did give us pleasure!

In a park in Texas City there are two planes on display as it is claimed to be the "Birthplace of the U.S. Air Force." In 1913 the 2nd Division of the U.S. Army was deployed here to guard the Gulf Coast during the Mexican Revolution. Nearly half of the nations land military personnel were here. This also included the 1st Aero Division that had recently been created and later became the U.S. Air Force. The Wright Brothers trained dozens of soldiers as military pilots, hence their claim to fame. In August 1915 a hurricane completely demolished the base and the camp was moved to San Antonio.
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L: Anchor 2-miles away ~~ C: Propeller 1-mile away ~~ R: Anchor 1- mile away |
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Top: Miss you ~~ Grief Bottom: the grave numbers of 63 unidentified bodies from the blast ~~ Helping hands |
There is a Memorial Park in Texas City to remember those lost in the blast and those who have died in battle.
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War Memorial - each walkway is lined with quotes |
Part two will be posted when we leave here. You will hear about Port Arthur, the birthplace of Janis Joplin, more on Galveston and a Mardi Gras parade!
Till we meet again...
Happy Trails to You!
Tips and things we have learned along the way.
~ Tip will be on part two.