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Howdy Folks! Many miles have passed since we last checked in, but don't fear we're not hopelessly lost or strangling each other yet. The last several days have been filled with fun and adventure and this is starting to feel like a true vacation. After our minor brake repair in North Central Florida we parked it for a few days near Mantaee Springs, FL along the Suwanee River. We enjoyed a heap of peace and quiet along with a good amount of wildlife. We never got to see a gator, but we had nightly visits from an armadillo, a raccoon that liked to crawl around on the van (not profusely salivating thank god) and we finally got to see a manatee rolling around in the river just outside the spring. That was just the tip of the wildlife iceberg. We also encountered the deadly coral snake, a mud turtle, owls and hawks, various fish such as gar and mullets, lizards and as we headed to the coast along the Florida panhandle we spotted a wild cat, probably a bobcat, and were lucky enough to have dolphins off the shore as we relaxed on the beach. As if that wasn't enough we saw some wild hogs in Mississippi. Yeah, thats right Mississippi. We couldn't pass by Brett Favre's hometown of Kiln, Miss without stopping to watch a game at the Broke Spoke. It was almost as good as being at Lambeau. They fed us well with jambalaya, spicy sweet corn, barbeque chicken and pecan pie and the Pack won. We traveled west pretty quickly from there. Much of the damage from the hurricane could still be seen, we think, unless they're really a bunch of slobs down there. We stopped at a lovely sight in the Louisiana National Forest for one night and then traveled on to Austin, Texas where we encounted the first heavy rains of our trip. Our visit to Austin was brief, but we managed to see a couple bands at the Continental Club, and stock up on supplies at the largest most glorious Whole Foods in the U.S. This is one grocery store you want to be hungry to visit. We could have spent all day grazing there if it hadn't been fro the pre-Christmas crowds. I am drooling like a rabid raccoon just thinking about it. After we left Austin and headed into hill country it finally felt as if we were west. We celebrated Christmas in Lost Maples State Park by taking a hike in the hills amongst the gnarled hardwood trees, pinion pines and clear flowing waters of the Sabinal River and it's adjoining creeks. We cooked up a Texas style Christmas chili for our grub. Now it's off to Big Bend National Park for some remote desert relaxation. Happy New Year y'all!
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