Jan 12th - Sanderson, TX

Flat Texas terrain outside of Del Rio

Changing terrain going west

Border Patrol "dragging"  the ground near the borders to detect footprints

Dirt "roads" on each side of Hwy for Border Patrol checks

Sanderson, TX RV Park (home for the night)

We have once again found ourselves in Sanderson, TX in the same campground we stayed last year but much has changed or perhaps, continued to decline here.  Sanderson is between Del Rio to the east and Big Bend National Park to the south and Alpine, TX to the west along highway 90.    Richard took a walk through this little village and almost every one of the business establishments are closed.  There is a gas station on the east end of town, this RV park which caters to mostly permanent oil field workers, and little else.  There is a school in town that must pull in its student body from very rural areas. 

The big difference that is noted as one drives from the far south east of Texas to this area that is moving on up north and west is that the terrain is getting hilly.  Altitude has gone from 112 feet back in Zapata to 2,200 feet just outside of Sanderson.  Also the presence of the Border Patrol is heavily felt as the border runs very close throughout the area from Del Rio to just east of here where we moved on north of it.  We went through two Border check points today and they are serious about their work.  Dogs at each stop that sniff all around each vehicle as it stops at the check point.  The officer at the stop asks where we have been, where we are going, if we are US citizens.  We have not been asked to exit the vehicle for an interior check of the camper as yet.  Guess we don't fit the profile!

We had so hoped for warmer weather as we continued our travels across Texas but it just isn't to be.  This cold front has the whole US in its grip.  Once again it will drop down to about 20 degrees  here tonight which means we will get up frequently (read - Richard :)  bless his heart;  to run water to keep the lines open.  Checking out the US weather map it doesn't look like there is much warm weather to be had anywhere except southern California and the very tip of Florida down near the Keys.  The sun continues to come up each morning and it does shine now and then.  Life is good!