San Augustine, Nacogdoches & Hemphill, TX 3/16/2014

On the road again Sunday March 16. It seemed to rain all night or it could have been the rain dripping off the huge trees we are camped under.

We attended Mass at San Augustine Mission in Saint Augustine.  After Mass we chatted with the Irish priest. He's assigned at Stephen Austin University in Nacogdoches. Also talked with his Mom who is visiting him for three weeks.  

Beautiful stained glass windows.

 Beautiful camellias at Gayla Mize Garden in Nacogdoches.

 Walking around the garden gave me my flower fix.  The camellias were beautiful.

 Dainty magnolia.

 
 On this one you see see how the wind permanently turn one petal aside.

 Interesting art using tires.

 In the Visitors Center in Nacagdoches, TX

This town was the gateway to the west.

Old Stone Fort built in 1779

Current downtown.

 It was interesting to learn of the Red River Great Raft...a log raft jam which was described at possibly the continent's largest log jam.  In some places 25 feet deep.  165 miles of driftwood of separate jams.

 Patricia Huffman Smith NASA Museum 
in Hemphill

Mission Commander, Astronaut Rick Husband.

The crew of Columbia STS 107.

The projects the astronauts worked on.

Suits cost $250,000 a piece.  Weigh 80 pounds

We were able to try on the gloves the astronauts wear when they work outside the shuttle.
The fingertips are concave but the astronauts say they work really great.

Feb. 1, 2003 on reentry the Columbia disintegrated over East Texas.  We watched a very moving video about the recovery efforts.  

This small town of 1,200 hosted 25,000 volunteers who worked on recovery.

 No one was hit by flying debris as the craft broke apart. (part in front of car.)

 Recovery pieces.

Local people feed 3 meals a day for 16 days.  The would cook 200 dozen eggs in the morning.  Cook 30 chicken.  People would drop off food for the volunteers.

 Many items were retrieved.

 Sadly a helicopter crashed while working on recovery.

 Tiles like these were the cause of the disintegration.

 The curator Becca was so knowledge.  What an interesting visit.
We also enjoyed meeting her daughter and nephew.

 Very touching experience.

We stayed overnight at Walmart in Jasper, TX.  Look what's for sale in a cooler near the front door. It's fishing country!!!!