At 9 a.m. I was on the road again, past Houston where for what must have been 100 miles you’re in 3-6 lane traffic, half of it semi-trucks transporting all kinds of goods from the gulf. I-10 here is maddening, nothing but warehouses and billboards, and Texans with oversized tires on their pickup trucks, supporting the local refinery business by getting even worse gas mileage, despite the lack of snow in Texas and therefore legitimate need of said tires (although off-roading is a thing, I think most were for show).
All along the highway nearing San Antonio I began seeing ditches and fields of beautiful wildflowers called Indian Paintbrushes–bright orange and red, and yellow and blue flowers as well. It made up for the billboards.
With 100 miles to go to San Antonio, I hit 4,000 miles for my trip. I’ve spent 48 nights in my camper, at an average of $38 per night. I’ve spent about $900 on gas. So basically 3 grand for 7 weeks, with over half of it oceanside, on or near the beach at campsites that were $60 a night. Not too bad. Gas mileage wise, I’d hoped to do better. I bought a light trailer and the most fuel efficient full-size truck they made in 2019, but towing is a whole other beast, and the trailer has dragged my highway mileage down from 23 to 12.
Today marks the start of a break from the camper, and possibly writing daily. I’m staying with my friend Joel for a while and entered a house today for the first time in well over a month. Tonight is St. Patrick’s Day and they dye the famous San Antonio River Walk green here. Hopefully I don’t end up floating in it later.
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