The door on the dryer in our coach (yes, we have a washer and dryer) tends to swing closed when open. So I attached a couple of strong magnets to the cupboard and dryer doors to keep it open.
I do have magnets with self-adhesive backs, but they aren’t as powerful, and I need opposite polarities for each magnet so they stick together, so using the glue dots on the magnets works better:
Unusually for a Thousand Trails park, the staff knew what sites were actually available and we were able to select one at check-in. We wanted a 50 amp pull-through but unfortunately, all the 50A pull-throughs are buddy sites. I hate buddy sites. We were lucky enough to get one on the end so our living area wasn’t directly on top of someone else, but it did open up to the bathroom block. Scenic! The site was not at all level front-to-back and we had to maneuver a bit to find the most level location. The roads here are more pothole than road, so maneuvering our coach to avoid the worst of them was interesting. If we’d been planning to stay longer, I would definitely get one of the back-in sites tucked in the trees. We camped at Thousand Trails Lake Texoma in a Motorhome.
An interactive map of the park:
The map:
Our site:
Rather close to the neighbor:
Utilities; can’t get any better sewer placement:
The view out the buddy-side window wasn’t exciting:
We used the griddle and ate outside for several meals:
Time to add the Virgin Islands National Park sticker to the coach:
And Virgin Islands stickers and a pin on the board inside:
No, this isn’t another picture of our coach, but a neighboring Tiffin with a very similar paint scheme:
This is the 37AP floorplan, a bit smaller than ours:
On the other side of our site were bathrooms, but separated by some grass, so it wasn’t too bad:
Other RVs:
More buddy sites:
A murky but nice pond and island:
The activity center has a large covered area:
Activity pools:
Lodge:
Lodge pool:
Bridge:
A corner of Lake Texoma:
Sunset:
Not the fanciest campground, but not too bad. We’d probably opt for a back-in if we stay here again.
All good things come to an end eventually, and such it was with our USVI vacation.
Driving (on the left, as was the style at the time) our rental car to drop it off:
A couple of cruise ships:
The buses on the island are open air things like this colorful example:
Vodka:
Passing by the end of the airport runway:
Rental car return:
The tiny one-terminal airport:
Some lunch:
“Last sip in the Virgin Islands” on the back of a coffee shop:
Our plane arriving:
Boarding the plane was a bit of a snafu; they announced general boarding, and everyone rushed forward, but they turned people away for not boarding with their group. Then everyone was lined up outside while the plane was still being cleaned:
Boarding:
STT to MIA:
A plane selfie:
A view of the cockpit:
Takeoff:
In the air:
We splurged on business class for this leg. and enjoyed the snacks and beverage:
And dinner:
Miami:
Miami airport:
Skytrain:
We probably should have taken the skytrain, but weren’t sure where it went; we ended up walking the entire length of this terminal; fortunately we had some time to spare:
MIA to DFW:
Another plane selfie, this time in premium economoy:
In the air:
On arrival in Dallas, we caught a taxi back to the hotel:
Hotel room:
The next morning, breakfast at the hotel restaurant:
Then we checked out and picked up Paladin from his hotel:
Paladin:
He was very happy to see us:
It was a great vacation. We’d love to visit there again in the future (and the third of the main Virgin Islands, Saint Croix).
Our second boating excursion in the USVI was on a power boat, circumnavigating the island of Saint John, including a couple of snorkeling stops, and lunch at Lime Out, a floating taco bar.
This was a fantastic way to see St John, including snorkeling in the national park (sea turtles & stingrays!) and a unique lunch experience at Lime Out (shrimp tacos!). Our crew of Captain Brandon & Mate Lacey took great care of us and made it a highlight of our trip to the USVI. They were so accommodating and even had ways for non-snorkelers to enjoy the warm water, such as a floating mat attached to the boat, allowing everyone to get in on the fun.
This was one of the most unique and memorable dining experiences I’ve ever had. We took a day cruise around St. John specifically because it had a stop here for lunch. It’s expensive, but how many times are you going to be able to eat a taco on a floating pad while fish swim around your feet, eating any scraps you might drop? The drinks are strong and the tacos are pretty good, but it’s all about the experience.
Our boat:
Swag for purchase:
We sat on a floating circular seating, with a floating table ferried between the restaurant and seating to deliver the menus, drinks, food, and swag:
The menu:
Nobody was allowed on board; our server called out across the water:
Selfie:
Tacos:
There were lots of fish swimming below us, waiting for dropped crumbs:
A glimpse of the bar along the edge of the floating restaurant, and more floating seating:
Lacey in a fish taco costume:
On the way to the next spot:
An interesting house; something simple and isolated like that would suit us nicely:
The second snorkeling spot:
I wasn’t into snorkeling, so Lacey kindly put out a tethered float for me:
An underwater video I recorded of the fish under me:
Jenn:
She took my phone and captured some great shots, including this stingray:
Fish:
A turtle:
Continuing on, past the Annaberg sugar plantation (where we visited the previous day):
As previously mentioned, the US Virgin Islands consists of three main islands, and a bunch of minor ones. We were staying on Saint Thomas, but another highlight of this trip was to cross off another national park, in our goal to visit all of them. The nearby island of Saint John mostly consists of the Virgin Islands National Park.
It is possible to take a passenger ferry over to the island, and walk to the park visitor center, and explore the town of Cruz Bay (where the ferry docks), but we wanted to explore more of the park, which is best done by car. So we headed to the car ferry dock.
Here’s a car ferry loading; the cars all back on, to make it easier to drive off at the other side:
During our US Virgin Islands vacation we did two boating excursions. The first of which was on Jenn’s birthday: St John & Surrounding Cays Full-Day Sail and Snorkel Experience — a six-hour trip on a sailboat, with only six guests (including us), an open bar, lunch, and two snorkel sessions included.
We had a great time sailing with Captain Denby and Mate Rusty. The wind was a bit blustery the day we set out, but they knew all the best places to go to beat the weather and still enjoy our snorkeling. Lunch was delicious and we really loved being with a laidback smaller group.
Here’s the sailboat in the marina:
Leaving the slip:
Sails unfurled; so peacefully quiet when sailing without the engine:
Preparing to anchor in a bay for some snorkeling:
Jenn snorkeling:
The Big Red Barge car ferry (we were on that another day) and some fancy houses:
