We headed out around 11 AM today, taking the ferry to Aransas Pass, heading to Fulton Texas. Fulton was the 1st landfall from Harvey and there is still quite a bit of destruction around the town. Mostly fishing piers, but also several buildings. Our 1st destination was Fulton Mansion, a Historic Restored Mansion built in 1876 by George Fulton. He built the home on the coastal gulf waters for his retirement home at age 65. We walked thru the History/Welcome Center and read that George Fulton was very active in his young adult life with all kinds of inventions. The most interesting to us was that he built the structural stones holding up the Covington-Cincinnati Bridge that we travel over back and forth from Ohio to Kentucky!
We talked a bit with the very friendly host of the visitors center and she directed us to walk thru the garden of the mansion and enter the basement. She explained that Harvey had hit the mansion and torn the roof off and left quite a bit of water damage. The mansion is being restored once again and tours are available but the furniture is in storage to keep safe until it is back to it's full glory in another year or so.
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| THE FULTON MANSION |
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| ONE OF THE HUNDREDS OF BUTTERFLIES |
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| BUTTERFLY WEED/BUSH |
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| BEAUTIFUL BROWN EYED SUSAN DAISY |
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LIVE OAK GROWN SO LARGE, 2 LIMBS ARE SUPPORTED TO KEEP FROM BREAKING OFF
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As you can see, there are several flowers blooming in January in Fulton and the butterflies were flitting about enjoying the sunshine and nectar.
We entered the basement door and checked out the many rooms down there. George Fulton was ahead of the time and had a whole house heating system, hot & cold running water and indoor toilet facilities. The kitchen was located in the basement with a dumb waiter to elevate the dishes/food up to the dining room.
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| KITCHEN |
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BUTLER PANTRY. DUMB WAITER ON LEFT
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We toured the rooms and went back outside to enter the main floor.
We were greeted at the door by one of the volunteers who explained that it was a self guided tour and that we were lucky to see the mansion in the "hard hat" state as we were allowed to actually go into the rooms and feel the mantels, woodwork etc. instead of standing at the doorways and look at the furniture the way it was back in the day. She did suggest that we come back next year and see it restored back to it's full glory.
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| THE SUN WAS SHINING BRIGHTLY OUTSIDE SO THE PLASTER SCROLL WORK AND BEAUTIFUL WOOD WORK IS NOT SHOWING AS WELL AS I HAD HOPED. IT WAS GORGEOUS IN PERSON! |
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| AGAIN THE LIGHTING WAS NOT THE BEST, BUT THE SCROLL WORK ABOVE THE DINING ROOM CHANDELIER WAS BEAUTIFUL. |
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| THERE WERE POSTERS IN EACH ROOM EXPLAINING THE ROOMS USE AND A PICTURE OF WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE WITH FURNITURE AND THAT IT WILL LOOK LIKE THAT AGAIN! |
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| EACH BEDROOM HAD A WORKING SINK. THE MASTER BEDROOM AND 1 OF THE 3 GUEST BEDROOMS HAD NOT ONLY RUNNING COLD WATER, BUT HOT TOO! |
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| EACH BEDROOM HAD A FIREPLACE, EACH ROOM A DIFFERENT COLOR AND DESIGN |
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A BATHTUB BIG ENOUGH TO SOAK IN FOR SURE!
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We headed outside to continue our exploring. Walking back thru the garden and the butterflies.
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STEPPING STONES FROM THE GARDEN TO THE PARKING LOT!
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Our next destination was Lamar Texas, about 15 miles from Fulton. We checked out The Big Tree near Goose Island State Park. The Live Oak Tree is over 1,000 years old and quite a sight to see!
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| HEADING TOWARDS THE TREE |
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| THE FACT PLAQUE |
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| THE BIG TREE |
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| TRUNK OF THE BIG TREE |
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| ACORNS FROM THE LIVE OAKS |
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| LIVE OAK ACORN CLOSE UP! |
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THE WIND SHAPES THE LIVE OAKS. NO PRUNING NECESSARY!
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We were told there was a nearby pond that 3 Whooping Cranes called home. We found the pond, saw 2 of the Whooping Cranes, but they were too far away to actually see very well and definitely too far for a picture. Whooping Cranes are an endangered species. Only 800 left right now, but they are coming back. We felt lucky to see them from a far, but wished it had been closer or that they had flown...
We headed back to Port Aransas via the Ferry. I saw a dolphin bobbing around while waiting to the ferry to leave the dock. It was like the Whooping Cranes. Too far away for a pic or video. Maybe another day since we take the ferry when we need groceries!
