Our Mission is to see Mission Tejas

It's a travel day, and we are blessed with beautiful blue skies. Our final destination is a 2.5-hour drive away. But we often make a stop to break up a long trip like that. We had thought about camping at Mission Tejas State Park, but we decided a stop-by visit would be better. Mark checked to be sure they had RV parking at the visitor center, and we unhooked the pickup so we could drive it around the park when we arrived. Our mission today is to see the Mission Tejas. While we are accustomed to the rock and white stucco missions of south Texas, this one used the most plentiful resource of this area--wood.

This is actually a re-creation of the original Mission Tejas that was built here in the 1690s. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) used the old building techniques when they built this replacement in 1934. We probably wouldn't have made the stop just to stand in front of a new copy of an old building. We're here because we read that they also have some good hiking in the forest that surrounds it. 

When we asked the ranger if we could ride our bikes on the trails, she chuckled and said "this park has some crazy topography." That's ranger-speak for "you'd be crazy to try to ride a bike up and down the steep hills around here."

She wasn't kidding! Our four-mile hike today had us going up and down the hills of this very hilly state park.

Armed with the state park map, we were checking off the "points of interest" noted on the park literature. We were disappointed with the ''CCC bathtubs" stop, so we took no pictures. After we climbed the hill to the "fire tower" we found that all that was left was the cement base of the tower, so no pictures. When we found the "Sentry Pine" we at least took a picture. It has been standing sentry here for over 100 years, and it was bigger than the other big trees around it. 

Probably the best "point of interest" is the El Camino Real. This is the historic route that traders and Native Americans and settlers took through these woods. Built by the Spanish in the 1690s, we could follow this road and get to Natchitoches, Louisiana in just 151 miles. In fact, the El Camino Real road goes all the 1103 miles to Mexico City.

Mark is standing in the ruts made from years of travelers making their way from Mexico City to Louisiana, and all points between.

After a full year of Covid-closures, we're glad to see a park visitor center that is open. The new center at this state park includes well-done displays. But Denisa enjoyed the "Travel El Camino Real" pin- ball machine the most. Try as she could, she always ended up "rattlesnake bit" or "stuck in the mud" or "lost in the woods." Mark was the only pin-baller who successfully completed the journey on the El Camino Real Road.

It's a good thing he's the one driving the motor home to get us to our destination today. If Denisa was driving, we'd probably get "stuck in the mud" or worse! Now that we have completed our mission to experience the Mission Tejas State Park, we are ready to get back on the road again. It was a nice side-trip on another day of wandering God's wonders.