Marianna Florida

We are at inlaw's outside Marianna. Hurricane Michael passed directly over their property, just 8 days after they moved here from Missouri. They sustained quite a lot of damage, but not nearly as much as so many others did. The 25 acre property had huge trees around the perimeter, many of which were snapped off or uprooted (we have been helping cut up and clear). A section of siding on an outbuilding was torn off and hurled across the fence, impaled by a tree! Picture 3rd from bottom shows the whole end of an outbuilding torn off - that's where our trailer is now parked.

If you have never seen hurricane devastation, it is impossible to comprehend - the destruction stretches well over 100 miles in every direction. Marianna is over 60 miles from the coast.

Destination Marianna Florida

Ahhh. Finally basking in the - - - ?frost?
We arrived at relatives' property outside Marianna yesterday afternoon. The hurricane devastation from October's Michael is mind-boggling. More on that later.
We keep hoping to encounter warmer weather, but that just has not happened yet. It has been historically cold and wet all through the Gulf Coast states.

A Request

If you visit my blog, I would love to know. Would you please either make a comment in the box at the bottom of each post or shoot me an email at jeanelainebatchelder@gmail.com ? I would really appreciate that. Thanks!

A Gypsy Winter #7

After 10 days enjoying the lovely Louisiana state parks, we moved on to Historic Blakeley State Park at Spanish Fort Alabama, arriving yesterday. This 2,000 acre park is the site of one of the last Civil War battles. The Union army defeated the Confederates and then captured Mobile. We are getting a strong dose of history here.

A Gypsy Winter #6

Next stop was Bogue Chitto State Park, about 65 miles north of New Orleans in Louisiana hill country. This park was fairly full, with lots of families enjoying the weekend.

A Gypsy Winter #5

After four days at Palmetto Island, we moved tomGrand Isle, right in/on the Gulf Coast. Another interesting place, very quiet now, but obviously a vacation destination. It was pretty cool to be parked so close to the ocean, but would not want to be ther when high tides cause flooding, or during hurricane season.

A Gypsy Winter #4

After two weeks in Texas, we moved farther south & east to Palmetto Island State Park Louisiana, about 160 miles due west of New Orleans. This is yet another exceptional park: huge & very private RV sites, inexpensive, and free laundry! It sits on an 'island', aka 'high ground' and is in the heart of sugar cane and rice fields. We saw our first armadillo in the wild, but never did see any of the alligators they warn about.

A Gypsy Winter #3

Last Texas stop: Huntsville State Park north of Houston about 70 miles. The 'lake' here borders on swamp, not terribly attractive - but they have warnings about alligators. The nearby town of Huntsville has one of the best barbecue restaurants we've ever enjoyed, a little back-street joint frequented by locals. We were  so lucky to discover it.

A Gypsy Winter #2

The second stop on our way east and south was Inks Lake State Park about 70 miles northwest of Austin Texas. We really like this place: the lake is beautiful and so is the park. There were many campers in this huge park, but there are several loops and the RV sites are fairly far apart.

A Gypsy Winter #1

I have been remiss in posting our travels, but trust me, we have been on the move.
We left Oliver Lee SP near Alamogordo New Mexico right after Christmas and right before a rather nasty winter storm hit the whole state.
We headed east into the Texas panhandle, spending a few days at Lake Colorado City State Park. It's another of those 'middle of nowhere' places we seem to discover routinely. There were very few RVs in the campground, but we understand that the place is packed during most of the year. We also discovered that Texas has really nice parks, with reasonable rates.

New Paintings

I'm donating these two little watercolors to the fundraiser Sixty-five Rose's for Cystic Fibrosis at the Independence Gallery in Loveland CO in February.

I call them "In the Octopuses Rose Garden #1 and #2".