Category: Texas

In transition

We had to leave Jason and Kristle’s house by 8 a.m. and wouldn’t be at our host’s house until lunchtime, so we looked for a “hanging out” kind of spot where we could park the bikes and trailers, keep an eye on them, and still be out of the sun.

We found ourselves ensconced in the outdoor patio of Starbucks, right across from the Galveston wharf and cruise ship terminal, enjoying a gourmet snack of Jaimie Snoddy’s venison and chicken jerky, accompanied by melba toast and Power Bar harvest grain bars.
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Jason and Kristle were our new couchsurfing hosts. Jason is in school in Galveston, but is now changing majors to meteorology, which requires a transfer to another university in another part of Texas. It’s only a three-hour drive away, but it’ll mean big changes for them both.

Jason loves birding, and currently has a job with the Audubon Society at the bird sanctuaries in High Island, along with other tasks they set for him.

Kristle is a full-time teacher, teaching English and social studies to seventh graders. It keeps her plenty busy.
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After settling comfortably in our chairs after dinner was cleaned up and making phone calls to let everyone know we’d made it okay, I headed off to use the facilities across the park. As I returned a few minutes later, I saw that Chelsea had a visitor. Radiating energy, attired in spandex bike shorts, with a huge golden retriever by his side, our visitor and Chelsea were deep in discussion.

Introducing himself as Rick, he told us he’d recently gotten seriously into cycling – in fact, he’d ridden today in his first pair of bike shorts. We chatted for quite a while, then Rick pulled out a half bottle of wine, and we stayed up chatting even longer. Finally we started tying down our rain fly and getting ready to finish the nightly tasks while we talked.
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We can’t believe our good luck. We’ve been in Winnie for several days now, really enjoying the company of our hosts, Rick and Liz, never mind the delicious meals and air conditioning and wonderful animals they have. We’ll be heading out tomorrow for the Galveston Ferry, and we’ll stay in Galveston for at least four days if we can find accommodations.

So how did we end up in a home with such a nice family, instead of staying at the campground? Let me back up a bit.
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