2020-07-20 Rallying in Rockport

 I left San Antonio about 9:00AM with my friend Mary Jane trailing along behind on our way to a Texas Ramblin' Roses Rally in Rockport TX.  It took us just a little longer than planned because we ran in to 7, yes that is seven, road construction zones on the backroads. Some were a block long with a stop/go light and most others were a little longer where you had to follow a pilot car. Fortunately the waits were not too long.

We arrived at Wilderness Oaks RV Resort in Rockport and were quickly checked in and led to our sites

I have hosted a number of rallies here and they always make you feel very welcome. Some of the group came as early as Tuesday just to relax. I was planning to stay several days after the rally before heading east to another rally. More on that later.

Mornings at our rallies usually start at 8:30AM for early risers who want to exercise. Joyce, in the white shorts always leads the exercise group. You would never guess but Joyce is 89 and in better shape than most 20 years younger. She does a lot of stretching exercises for the group. 

We ended up with 37 women at the rally. Rules were masks, social distancing, and lots of sanitizer. Some women enjoyed the salt water pool. Some didn't really come into the rally room or go out to eat but were just glad to be able to get out and wave at their friends while staying more isolated. That was just fine and we were glad they came.

We had quite a few new or new to members RVs that were christened and given a safe travels blessing by President Jimmie Andrews and her squirt gun filled with H2O champagne. This is Joyce's brand new Phoenix Cruiser she picked up at the factory this spring. Did I mention that Joyce is 89? She plans on lots more travel. She spends fall, winter, and spring in the Rio Grande Valley and the summer in New York driving her RV back and forth.

We had dinner on Thursday night at Old Fulton Seafood Cafe & Deli but I failed to get a picture there. The food was great. I have to admit that I had their special lazagna  instead of seafood but it was the best I have ever had......an old family recipe belonging to the owners mother I was told. They set us up on a separate room at several table.

Friday at lunch, we went to Paradise Key Dockside Bar and Grill. They also put us at several tables to comply with Texas requirements which we were happy to follow. The food there is also very good here.

A drive back to the RV park along the bay allows you to see all these unique trees. I don't know if they are running away from the wind or leaning protectively over the house, lol.

We had seven new members join our chapter. Cookie was anxious to hand out their bandanas and pins. We all put yellow bandanas on our rigs for a rally so we can all identify other group members.

Others were more anxious to get their bandanas.

Finally a better photo.

We had a chapter meeting on Saturday morning to conduct some official chapter business, then took our group photo. Saturday night was pizza and salad night rather than our usual pot luck just to be safe. Then Tropical Storm Beta started to worry some. Some left for home right after dinner.

I had planned to stay until Wednesday morning. They kept talking about the storm surge along the coast even though Beta was a ways from shore. I did a lot of checking weather and finally decided I should be safe head east as long as I got through Houston before it started flooding. Yes, Houston has a flooding problem. I left about 11:30AM and it started raining heavily about an hour before I hit Houston. It rained hard all the way through the city but fortunately, the traffic was not too bad. Hard to understand why people are too dumb to put on their lights when their windshield wipers are working hard. About a half hour past Houston, the rain quit and I was able to get set up in Beaumont without getting soaked. More on that next time.