The Fatherland (5/7/11-5/8)

Presidio


waiting in line

north towards Marfa

I'm so happy to be driving across the bridge, I don't even notice the river below. Just on the other side are two lanes of vehicles waiting to go through US customs. After 15-20 minutes it's my turn. The officer asks for my passport and scans it, then asks a few harmless questions - do I have anything to declare, what's that thing on the roof, what was I doing in Mexico - and waves me through. It's official. After 220 days and 11644 miles, I'm back in. What can I say?, it feels good.



Lincoln's Profile

The town itself holds no attraction for me, so it's back to driving north through more of the same kind of country. Maybe 10 miles up the road there is one of those little blue signs to indicate a point of interest, and it says "Lincoln's Profile" with an arrow pointing left. I look over and damn if it aint the President hisself justa lying there. I had to stop and take this photo of the ridge in the distance...uncanny.


Fort Davis



my all-American meal

the fountain area

Some 80 miles north of Presidio is Fort Davis, the highest town in Texas at 5050'. The air is dry here and at night it drops into the 50's. It's a real small town, peaceful, neat as a pin, and I park on the main street across from the drugstore. This is an old-fashioned drugstore with a soda fountain and restaurant and it's about 4 o'clock and I'm starving. I can't resist ordering up a root beer float (with chocolate ice cream) with a 1/2 lb. Texas-size hamburger and fries. Hot damn, it's tastes great!!

 

to Fort Davis, Texas



The campground is only a block from the drugstore and I'm the only camper for my two nights here. The caretaker, Jim, tells me some of the history around here. The town and the county are named for Jefferson Davis and Lily Langtry and Judge Roy Bean used to hang out here. Not much else to do except reflect on the biggest trip of my life. It seems like it was no big deal now, just a nice long drive. I'm probably proudest of the fact that I not only survived, but that I thrived. And so many good people along the way, I'm trying to remember their names. I guess that's what the blog is really for. This blog will keep going until I pull back into Golden, CO. I'm off to Carlsbad next.