We left Kerrville November 3rd heading for Alpine, Texas. Look at the map above. Find San Antonio and travel west along Highway 10. Clicking on the map will enlarge it. You'll come to Kerrville, our home September through October. Keep going west on Highway 10. Watch how the communities become very sparse, as you get further into the Chihuahuan Desert and what is known as the last frontier. About 20 miles before Sonora a tire blew out on the camper! That was a scary few moments, as the trailer fishtailed back and forth! With our new western way of thinking, we checked the roadside grasses for a rattlesnake before Roy squatted down to work on replacing the tire! We stopped in Sonora to purchase a spare tire and paid a $50 mark-up! It was tempting not to get one, but we are so glad we did! When you get to Fort Stockton, you are 75 miles away from our destination of Alpine, a small community with a population of 5,000. On highway 10 at the Fort Stockton exit there is a truck stop and campground. It was getting dusk so we pulled into the truck stop lot for the night. The community of Fort Stockton can't be seen from the highway, but we have heard that it is large enough to have a Wal-Mart. It's the last Wal-Mart before leaving civilization! Prior to leaving Kerrville, we contemplated whether it's possible to survive a month without a Wal-Mart and so stocked up on a few supplies. One of our worries was prescription refills. The pharmacy tech at the Kerrville Wal-Mart was very understanding when we said we were going to Alpine and asked how to handle refills. Like most of our travel worries, the solution was simple. All you do is take your prescription bottle to a local pharmacy and have the doctor's prescription transferred. Upon returning to an area with a Wal-Mart, take the prescription bottle there for a prescription transfer. Good to know! As we traveled further west on Highway 10 from the Fort Stockton exit, we watched the desert flora diminish from scrub trees to sandy soil, minimal plant cover, and an increasing number of cacti. Just beyond Fort Stockton on the map, drop south, and you are within 35 miles of Alpine. At about that distance that morning another tire blew out on the camper! With two tires blown, the remaining two were definitely questionable! They didn't appear bad or we could have replaced them before the trip! Now we had the final 35 miles to go through desolate country without a spare! With driving slow, holding our breath, and saying a few prayers; we rolled into the very cute community of Alpine and our new home at B.C. Ranch R.V. Park November 4th!
