Goza's Wanderings and Wonderings: Wind, Mustang Island, and more Wind

Location: Mustang Island State Park, Port Aransas, Texas

(click pictures to enlarge)

Yesterday was moving day and traffic was surprisingly light. There were stretches of 3 lanes of interstate with only a few cars in sight. I was glad of that because the wind was steadily blowing around 15 mph with gusts up to near 30 mph. When the gusts would hit us broadside, Liberty would just shake her booty while doing a little fishtailing. I would let off on the gas a little and she would quit that showing off. This heavy wind and low temperatures are a result of a cold front coming through. The ladies at the check-in desk said another is coming behind this one. I'm due to stay here for 7 days. If the weather is bad the whole time, then I'll think about extending for another 7 days just to have a few nice days to walk on the beach and see what can be seen.

The landscape changed pretty quick to the coastal plains. It is very similar to the area around Galveston and the Bolivar Peninsula area.

Coastal Plain landscape started about 40 miles before reaching Mustang Island

This campground is just like the last one in that it is not much more than a parking lot with water and electric hook-ups. Although at this one, I have a picnic table with shade and a BBQ grill. Like I said last time, as long as I have at least electric and a water source close by I'm happy. I will have to keep a close eye on my waste tanks because 7 days is getting close to their limit. Liberty has four tanks. A 43 gallon fresh water tank, 38 gallon grey (shower and bathroom sink) tank, 38 gallon black (toilet) tank and a 38 gallon galley (kitchen sink) tank. I won't have to worry about fresh water because I have it available at the campsite. Some of the state parks in the north only had electric at the campsite and you would have to fill your fresh water tank up at a central location. I think that was to make it easier in the winter by only having to winterize one line. I use my water pump and fresh water tank all the time instead of using the city water connection. My water pump puts out 3 gallons per minute but my shower head is only rated at 2 1/2 gallons per minute. The calculation is simple: 38 gallon grey water tank divided by 7 days is 5.4 gallons per day. Round that down to 5 gallons per day means I can take a 2 minute shower per day. For those that haven't taken Navy showers before, that may seem small, but it is more than enough. I usually run about 1 1/2 minutes per shower unless it is the last day at a campsite and I have extra room in the tank, then I may splurge and go for 3 full minutes of extravagant, decadent, wasteful use of water. Since I use paper plates and plastic silverware there are very few dishes that need washing so the 38 gallon galley tank is rarely ever filled. That means if I need more room in the grey tank, I can catch the water from the shower head in a bucket as the water is warming up and use it the kitchen sink. This may sound a little complicated but it becomes second nature after a while. Most of the time I don't even think about it, therefore I don't write about it. That is why comments are important because ya'll have a different outlook to what I'm doing. So if there are questions, please ask.

While setting up Liberty, I got a little worried. I had already unhitched Freedom when I noticed how close the big slide was to the power pole.

The potential problem is the slide coming out and hitting the post before it gets fully extended. I took this picture before un-hitching and it was at this point that I should have noticed it. But my mind must have been somewhere else, because by the time I did notice it I was already unhitched. When I saw it I said "Golly gee wiz, I may not have enough room". Of course I paraphrased what I actually said.

I have a white plastic "tattle-tell" about the length of the slide extension but I didn't use it here because I thought I stopped before the slide would interfere. It was that last 1 or 2 foot of extra backing up that caused it and I didn't think to measure the slide. If there isn't enough room, then I have to hitch back up and pull forward about 2 feet. I got my "tattle-tell" and measured but it was showing that the slide would be just hitting the power pole. I knew there was a little margin of error in the length of the "tattle-tell" but I wasn't sure the exact amount. I bungee corded the "tattle-tell" to the power pole so I could see if it moved through the window as I extended the slide. I started the slide out, and with about 1 foot to go I went outside to look. About a foot of clearance left and about a foot to go. I went back in and extended another 6 inches and went back outside. Same deal, it was going to be nip and tuck, but I thought I had the room so I went in and fully extended it. I didn't hear any scraping so I thought I was good. I went out to see how close. Just barely made it. It was my lucky day.

A little too close for comfort but I think it will do. I'll have to keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't rub as the wind rocks Liberty. In this picture you can see the assortment of campers here. Next door is a family in a "pop-up" and across the way is a couple in an "A-liner". Down the row are some more fifth wheels and big Class A's.

Before heading to Walmart to stock up on supplies, I stopped off at the beach to see how it looked. The temperature was chilly and the wind was blowing strong, but the angry surf and sky looked good to me. One thing I know for sure is that where ever I finally stop moving there has to be a body of water close by.