April 30, 2010

Friday – April 30, 2010
Today we got a late start on the road because it was such a pretty morning at the campsite. We just hung out until the heat of the day started at about 11am. Then we headed south and west on Farm Road 170 (not FM as I had thought) through Big Bend Ranch State Park. Access to the state park is only on Rt 170 along the Rio Grande with overlooks and places for camping and trails. It was a very windy road with a 15 percent grade in a few places. We were glad we left our trailer at the campground. The scenery was spectacular, and we stopped at an old movie set that looks more like a ghost town then the one in Terlingua. Most of the buildings are thrown together with minimal structure, strand board for walls, and a thin layer of plaster instead of stucco. They look like real, ruined, once usable dwellings from a distance. Also, there are 2 or 3 buildings that are fairly solid but there was no way to tell if those were built for the movie(s). Quite a few movies were filmed there, but none we remember. One we will rent is The Streets of Laredo. I read the book, but I don't remember the movie. The fake village is right on the banks of the Rio Grande. I put my finger in the river there, Charlie had put his toe in yesterday, and Joey might have tasted it today. Tomorrow we will head to Alpine for supplies and maybe spend the night at an RV park there. Or we may make it a little further north to Fort Davis State Park. Charlie took a lot of pictures today, so look for them in Album 4. It is very windy tonight so we are staying inside our cozy little camper.