STE3 Hop 1
183 miles via TX 511, I-69E, US 77, TX 44, TX 358, I-37 and TX 35. Cumulative tow miles: 183. Truck miles: 298. Cumulative truck miles: 298.
This was a truly boring ride. At least coming south, via US 281, there was some farm activity. Going north on US 77 there was nothing to see because there were no farms, just scrub brush. At least the weather was sunny and warm. And very, very humid. We had to turn on the AC, which is rare in our truck.
Our 3 nights in Brownsville were at the Breeze Lake Campground. This was a fairly large (250 sites) campground with mostly park models and long-term residents. The number of transient sites was probably no more than 50.
First let me say that the campers we met there were friendly and helpful. Other than that, I have nothing good to say about this campground.
The negatives:
- The park management was terrible. First, they gave us a site that was occupied, then gave us incorrect directions to another site. The office was not open during the posted open hours. There was no place to leave the key card when we left. Stupid stuff. These people have no clue how to run a campground.
- The roads were in terrible condition. Big potholes, mud everywhere.
- The roads were so narrow that I could not turn into my “pull-thru” site – I had to go around to the other side and back in.
- The utility boxes at the sites were also in terrible shape. Defunct cable hanging on them (the cable service had been terminated), rusty electrical boxes.
- The sites were very poorly marked. I had to get out of the truck and walk along the row of pull-thrus to find my site. Again, stupid management? How much effort would it take to clearly mark the transient sites?
Bottom line: this was one of the worst parks we have ever visited. You would have to pay us to return here.
The additional truck miles were from two fairly long trips made to look for possible seasonal RV parks for next winter. We found one we liked: Llano Grande Resort and Country Club in Mercedes TX. There is just no question that this park offers great value: winter monthly rates under $700 ((we will be paying more than $1000 per month in Naples FL this year), with beautiful facilities, large sites (in some areas of the park) and an associated golf course with low rates. It is also just a few miles from Progreso Mexico where we could get cheap dental work done if necessary. So we will definitely consider it. The problem, we suspect, is that the sites that we would need for our large rig are going to be very popular. It is unlikely that we could get in. But we might try.