Huntsville was our first 2 night stop of the trip. We checked in on a Sunday night and we were the only people in the tent loop. Huntsville is in the piney woods so the trees are beautiful tall pine and oaks. We saw lots of wildlife here, especially birds. A hawk landed n a log right next to our site. Huntsville SP has a lake for fishing and swimming, boat rentals, hiking trails and horseback riding. We chose a spot by the lake and near the bathrooms. We had plenty of firewood and the kids had a great time playing in the sandy dirt with bamboo sticks and pine cones. We finally got everything setup and got dinner ready. The mosquitoes were pretty bad, but we had purchased repellant lotion so we didn't get bit. However, there was no breeze at all and it was very very hot. I will admit this was the closest I came to having a hissy fit about the heat and bugs and crying to go to the Holiday Inn. But I sucked it up (because after all this whole trip was my idea) and after a shower I felt much better. We settled into the tent and were lulled to sleep by 473,982 frogs chirping and croaking in unison. It cooled down at night and even with no breeze it was ok. During the night we heard the "who-cooks-for-you" of a barred owl and found a feather in the morning. Monday morning, I went on a hike while the kids and Shawn went fishing. The park is known for its woodpeckers, particularly the Pilated Woodpecker. They modeled Woody after this particular bird because it is the largest, the size of a crow. That morning we saw 4 different kinds of woodpeckers: pilated, downy, hairy, and red-bellied. We were hoping to rent a canoe, but they changed the hours for summer and were closed on Mondays. The beach area was also closed due to an alligator near the swimming area. That was ok because I would not have swam in that lake if you paid me. But it was disappointing to see that the camp store and the nature center were also closed. That afternoon, to escape the heat, we went into town to see the statue of Sam Houston and have ice cream. We also made a stop at Walmart to get more mosquito stuff and buy a battery powered fan. No owl sounds the second night, but our frogs and the coyotes sang us to sleep. In the morning we hurried to break down camp so that Natalie and I could go horseback riding at 10. The boys planned to fish while we were gone. But the gate to the stables was closed and when I called the number, they told me despite having a reservation they were closed on Tuesdays. Long story short, I took a shower while Shawn fished with both kids and don't ever make reservations with 2E Stables.
We decided that this is probably a gorgeous park in the fall and winter. Unfortunately communication does not seem to be their forte. Had we have known that everything was closed we would have either chosen a different park or stayed a second night in Galveston.
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