Date Visited: 5/1/2018
When we were about to leave Bottomless Lakes we checked the weather and discovered that there was a heatwave headed toward Texas. We decided that staying in a hotel might be a better option for the night. We booked at the Marriot in Abilene and started east. Originally, we had planned to camp at the Abilene State Park. We had the extra time and so decided to check it out.
Okay, I’m going to rant about the Garmin GPS for a second, because Judy Garmin (the name we gave our GPS) has gotten us lost again! Thank goodness google maps came preloaded on our smart phones.
You know how when you “arrive at your destination” you expect to see the place you were aiming for? Well – Not this time! We ended up in the parking lot of a very popular local steak house called Perini Ranch Steakhouse – A unique restaurant inside a converted barn. Unfortunately they weren’t open. Which was a shame because we were now craving an authentic Texas steak!.
We reprogrammed the GPS thinking I had done something wrong. But again, it directed us back to the same exact place. With our cell signal spotty we drove around until we were able to download an accurate map from google. (Mental note made: Always have a paper map!)
Finally we made it to Abilene State Park. It’s a beautiful place. We hope to stay there some time in the future. We picked out our preferred campsite and made note of it before heading to the hotel.
Now hungry for steaks we headed to Outback Steak House. Authentic Texas steak? Not really, but a steak non-the-less. We also had our first Samuel Adams Summer Ale this night, which has become our summer go to when we want beer.
Dinner was great, but our night at the hotel – not so much!
Our room was on the second floor right next to the elevator.
As we all know it has become common practice for hotels to have a bar downstairs. When I traveled to Houston frequently on business, I much appreciated this convenience.
However, not all bar patrons are business class nor created their equal. All night long the same group of (drunk) young girls kept riding the elevator back and forth between our floor and the bar downstairs. They were loud, very drunk, and obnoxious. It was at this point we decided we were done with hotels whenever possible. We’d been spoiled by the peace our little SUV afforded us. Not to mention that this single night at the Marriot cost as much as the total camp fees for our entire trip. Definitely not worth it!
(I’ll post a detail of our trip itinerary and expenses later on.)
So this turned out to be a very disappointing day all around, but our next stop would be where I found my happy place and that made this unfortunate day worth it all. More about that next week.
Until then…
Who we are, What we do, How we got started and How you can help
If you are new here and you would enjoy hearing about our journeys and learning along with us, please consider subscribing and if you want to know how it all began read our first post.
As always, if you want to help support this site please like, click, share, all that stuff! Or, you can make a donation or buy merchandise HERE. Donations will be acknowledged publicly the following week, so if you wish to remain anonymous please let us know.
When you click other links on our website and make purchases we may earn a small commission. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. By using the links on this website you help to support us without any additional cost to you.
FREE THE MCGEES 
Leave a Reply