Maverick Inn Alpine

... didn't get back to the RV until midnight. Sylvia crawled up on the bed and we both went to sleep. We went to the twilight progam and the starlight program. I saw the Milky Way, the Swan Nebula, twin stars, the red giant! The red super giant was another star we saw. I saw a galaxy 3,000 light years away. I saw Saturn's biggest moon - Titan!

We went to Fort Davis, established in 1854. It is one of the nations best preseved frontier forts. We stopped at a snake place to see snakes. Mamaw did not come in. We went shopping. After that, we went to Marfia again and we saw more lights this time. The nights are darker here so I can see a lot more stars then back in Zanesville. I even saw the Milky Way!

... everything was fine. I bought a new spare from a little tire shop as I pulled into Marfa. I explored a little, and then stepped into the Hotel Paisano, which was absolutely beautifully restored. They let me look at a few rooms, and even though I hadn't been driving very long, I decided to stay the night. I'm glad I did. Marfa is known for its burgeoning art scene, and there were quite a few cool young people walking around. It was a Monday, which is ...

... teeth in the states, but a lot more common in Canada. I was jealous as he was getting over 30 MPG as compared to my measly 17 MPG. Paul is a true world traveler and has visited over 35 countries. He recently finished a job in Afghanistan working for the Canadian forces as a contract mechanic. He told me about a fantastic trip he took as crew on a 50' sailboat across the Pacific. He started in Panama and visited the ...

... the Big Bend Museum that houses dinosaur bones, Indian artifacts, Mexican history, Spanish influence and American memorabilia. Since this was our first stop in Texas, we decided to find a bar that called Longhorn, Long Branch, Lone Star, Gunslingers Saloon, Rustlers Bar (or something like that) and see a belly-up bar where everybody raises their elbows when the barkeep slides a bottle of whiskey towards you. It's gotta be a place where everyone dusts off their hats ...

... to take the "crows nest" room, up a private little staircase in the attic with its own private roof terrace to sit on and watch the stars. But we were sensible and picked one of the cheapest rooms, all of which were very nicely dressed and perfectly comfortable. We returned downstairs to sign in, then dropped our things in our room and sat down in the ground floor bar/restaurant to discover the third fabulous thing about our hotel. The food and drink was ...

... it back in the early 1900s. And the most important part was that we managed to get out of the rain after driving through a massive downpour on the way there! The one thing we didn't see was the Marfa Lights, which are an apparently unexplained phenomenon of strange lights on the horizon at night which predate headlights, so that's not the explanation. Bizarre. But we were too tired to drive out to the viewing area so we missed them. Oh well.

... For those of us who are not engineers, it is a marvel of mirrors, motors, degrees, computers, air foils and elevators all put together just to let one Astronomer at a time, take pictures of the heavens as they were a very long time ago (light years or something like that...see we can learn a little bit....very little). The pictures on the other hand are beautiful and make one feel very close to those things ...

... the Chisos Basin. This is the Alpine area I mentioned earlier. Emory Peak is at 7825 ft. Back in the days when they used to run Poncha Villa out of his own country, this was his hiding spot. You can set up camp in this basin with your camp fires going and the surrounding mountain peaks will keep anyone from seeing you. This is an incredably beautiful area, but if you want to camp up there, your camper cannot be more than ...

... s along the way. With Great memories, quite a few photos and some very sore feet from pulling the boat upstream we left big bend to stay at Marathon, the gateway town for a couple of nights R&R with a full hookup. We have slowed down a bit knowing we won't get to Mexico for Christmas, instead we will make sure we have some fun and see everything properly along the way. Until next time, Adios Muchachos,