Summer Vacation 2014--Day 4

When my niece and nephew were tiny, my brother and sister-in-law took them to the Fort Davis area on a rare family vacation that did not include Mom and me.  We did a little research, figured out how far it was, and decided to go for a weekend.  We hit the highway by 8:00 am and headed west.

We made it to Fort Stockton for a late lunch.  FYI:  They do not have anything gluten free at Pizza Hut except salad.  That just is not enough when you have gone that long without a snack.

When making this drive, you must get gas whenever you are in civilization b/c the towns are few and very far between.  Also, make sure you have snacks and water on all trips and blankets/coats during the winter.

We decided to drive straight to Balmorhea State Park to swim.  It is a spring with fish and turtles.  The water seems really cold when you are getting in, but once your body is in, you don't notice the cold at all.  I wish there was more shade around the swimming area.

When we finished swimming, we decided to go find our Value Lodge in Alpine.  I got a really good deal on this motel, and the pics looked decent for a family on a budget.  We weren't quite prepared for the dilapidated bathroom, but overall, the stay was fine.  You can tell the couple is working to fix up the place.  If you are used to fine hotels, this one is not for you.

We did a little research on places to eat.  We finally settled on a little Mexican food place.  When we arrived, we found it to be a house, and we noticed a sign saying they only took cash.  We made sure we had cash.  When we entered, we were greeted with "Do you have a reservation?"  We did not and had no idea we needed one.  Needless to say, we left.  We drove around town and saw a few saloons, but other than a McDonald's, we didn't see any place to eat that interested us or that looked kid friendly.  We decided to drive to Marfa to eat and then we could see the mysterious Marfa Lights on our way back.  We drove around Marfa and found even less than Alpine.  We finally found a restaurant, so we got out and went in.  Again, we were greeted with "Do you have a reservation?" Of course not! The waitress gave us a restaurant suggestion.  On our way out, a nice gentleman sitting at a table outside gave us the same suggestion.  Thank goodness for kind people!  We went to their suggestion--a Mexican food place.  We got out and went in.  This time we were not greeted with "Do you have a reservation?" but we did have to wait for them to clear a table.  The food was good, service was slow, and everyone in the place knew one another.

On our way back to the motel, we stopped at the Marfa Lights viewing area.  It was neat standing out in the cool summer wind watching the lights blink on and off making our own predictions.