Balcones Canyonlands NWR arrival

I was able to get everything packed and hitched up by 9:30 this morning, so I pulled out about a half hour behind Pam and Stan. While they are headed back to the cold of Chicago, I'm heading mostly west to Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge for a three month volunteering stint.

While the total trip was only 128 miles, it took me about four hours. On the way out of the campground, I had to dump the tanks and then I went into Somerville to fill my propane tank. That little side trip added about eight miles and forty-five minutes to the journey. I also filled up on gas along the way and stopped for lunch at a roadside picnic area. By the time I made it to the Refuge Headquarters it was 1:30 and the temps had risen into the seventies under sunny skies. Dub, one of the local volunteers, led me to my campsite which is up the hill behind the main offices. I thought I was going to be at a different location, but another volunteer couple arrived before me today and they were placed up at the ranch.

It turns out that my site is pleasant and isolated, but doesn't have the vistas that I heard of at the ranch sites. A new shed has been built that has a washer and dryer, so at least I won't have to drive ten miles to do the laundry. After getting the basic set up chores done, I started some laundry and then started to work on setting up the DISH satellite. I was able to hone in on the satellites at Lake Somerville SP in less than five minutes, but it wasn't to be at this site. After four hours, I gave up and switched to my antennae for the night. At least I'll get some local channels from Austin. I haven't had this much trouble with the DISH in over a year, so I am very frustrated to say the least. I'll give it another go tomorrow.

Since my cell phone reception was poor, at best, I also set up the trucker's antennae once I gave up on the DISH. The reception with the Wilson's Amplifier shows full bars, but my air card reception is still spotty. I'm not sure I'll ever be able to post pictures at this location. We'll have to see what happens as time goes by.

I'm tired tonight after all the messing with the satellite dish and the packing and unpacking. Tomorrow, one of the other volunteers is picking me up to show me some of the trails in the refuge. I need to go to town in the afternoon to find a grocery store. I'm just about out of milk.

Thanks for stopping by....talk to you later, Judy