We started the day in a beautiful Corps of Engineers Park just outside Temple or Benton Texas, depending on what literature you read. The Live Oak Ridge Campground was just that. Beautiful open fields with live Oaks just sprouting their new 2026 leaves. It was difficult to leave, as the morning was a beautiful spring morning. Clear skies, 65° with a gentle breeze. It turned out to be the best part of the entire day.

Our destination was Mary Ellen‘s house in Yukon, Oklahoma, so there was no concern about the arrival hour or the park being open, etc. We both knew we would get there before sunset, which was good. Mary Ellen is a fan of Taco Cabana, and she doesn’t get it very often, so we made a stop. The food was good.

That’s where the day got off the rails. We had planned on taking I35 north, directly to Oklahoma City. Within 20 minutes of getting on I35, there was construction, Google reported three wrecks, the GPS advised us to get off the highway to miss a 20-minute delay twice, and I35 was a mess. In five hours, we made 175 miles. It was obvious that we would not get to OKC until well after dark, and I was done with the continuous bumper to bumper traffic, so we both started looking for an RV park for the night.

I’m a big fan of Corps of Engineer sites, City and County Parks. Mary Ellen is more pragmatic and was looking for any place that was near. It’s Spring Break in Texas. Anyone who has the opportunity to get out in camp is at a public campground. There were none of my favorite places available to make a reservation. It was hot enough that we wanted air conditioning, so staying at a rest stop was out. There were no Elks Clubs in the area that provided camping.

Mary Ellen, being the wonderful researcher she is, found a private campground, Lone Star Station RV Ranch in Denton, Texas. She called and made a reservation, with electricity! For the same amount of money I would’ve paid for any of the City or County Parks!

Before we left Corpus Christi, we picked up some fresh shrimp for scampi. The drive yesterday blew me out, so we didn’t eat them then, so I decided the night was scampi night.

I’ve never cooked shrimp with the heads on before. The woman in the store indicated the heads on would make the dish taste much more delicious. She was correct. We had a lovely dinner. Tomorrow we’re off to Oklahoma City, and it should be a short drive and hopefully, no traffic. 

We’re starting to change our travel.  In the past, I would have pushed on. It is a great evening and traveling this way is much nicer.