tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-254008202024-02-20T22:40:40.296-06:00 fredandjo-onthegoUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger907125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-91851374100140105212019-06-19T14:41:00.001-05:002019-06-19T14:41:44.591-05:00meanwhile back at the ranchMade it back to the Manor around 2 pm and now unpacking and resting. This was a very good trip with a delightful weekend visit with daughter(s) and granddaughter.<br />
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The trip was uneventful except for the road construction, which is always going on somewhere along this route, and traffic congestion in areas where it is to be expected. Now it's back to the usual for these old folks. Back to Mall walking and doctors visits and an occasional trip to the grocery.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-18690716861116501102019-06-18T16:10:00.001-05:002019-06-18T16:10:44.137-05:00on the return tripThis morning we left Catonsville, MD around 8 am heading back westward toward the Manor. There have been no problems and the traffic has not been too much of a hassle so we are now in our Best Western motel in Frankfort, KY which is just a few miles west of Lexington so in the morning we won't have that cities morning rush traffic to contend with.<br />
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Tomorrow, our trip will be 444 miles which is 100 miles less than today's trip. My plan was to do a few more miles the first day while we are fresh and then the second day won't be so tiring.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-88844027259939898692019-06-17T19:43:00.001-05:002019-06-17T19:43:46.563-05:00baby timeFirst I want to show another of Bella's artwork. The girl definitely does have some talent, I believe. This piece of her work is hanging on the wall in Phyllis' guest (cat's) bedroom.<br />
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This afternoon we went to Tammy's house for a visit. Tammy is one of Phyllis' best friends and she claims to be our number 1 daughter and that Phyllis is number 2. Tammy has two daughters and the eldest just got married last year. Today JoAnn was able to hold Tammy's grandson Axle. He is about 7 weeks old. She held him for quite awhile and then it was feeding time so she got that pleasure also. He was so sweet and didn't mind a substitute grandma holding him. Tammy was babysitting while his mother Megan was at work.</div>
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Tomorrow morning we turn the wheels back westward and head toward the Martin Manor.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-75484127337894657582019-06-16T19:14:00.001-05:002019-06-16T19:14:55.880-05:00Happy Birthday BellaThis morning we had a nice time with Phyllis and a second game of Hand and Foot, the card game. This time it looked like I had the game won until the last hand when Jo came on like gangbusters and beat me for the win.<br />
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Yesterday I posted pictures of Phyllis' kitties and now here are pictures of her fish tanks.<br />
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her koi, she has plans for a much larger tank in the near future</div>
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her betta</div>
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I regret that I didn't think to take a couple of pictures while we were visiting with Bella and her mother but she gave us this picture to display back at home and think of her. Her only family she has now is her mother so she calls us grandma and grandpa, which we are happy for, Phyllis is her aunt. She is now seven years old with a birthday coming up in three weeks. She let us celebrate an early birthday today with Jo giving her an afghan that she crocheted this past winter plus a rag doll that Jo had made some time ago. Also with Phyllis' help we gave her an android tablet. She was extremely happy with all, especially the tablet. Jo had also made a larger afghan for her mother Toni.</div>
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Phyllis met Toni as a server at the diner she often used. Toni now has changed jobs to a local Cracker Barrel but remains friends plus she helps Phyllis with care and cleaning of her house while Phyllis is Bella's babysitter at times.</div>
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sweet Bella</div>
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These are some of Bella's art work that she gave us. She made the drawings and then had them reduced and mounted on refrigerator magnets.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-545707144119583382019-06-15T19:26:00.000-05:002019-06-15T19:26:58.686-05:00our grandkitsHad a very nice day with Phyllis and her two kitties, our grandkits.<br />
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This is the eldest Rosie</div>
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and this is Ouisa the youngest</div>
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Ouisa in the cat tree</div>
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The two are not pals so this is a standoff where right after this pic was taken there was an abrupt parting of the ways. They put up with each other.</div>
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We had the grand tour of how Phyllis has improved her home arrangement of rooms and new wall decorations. She has had the help of a good friend Toni to make the improvements happen. Toni is planning to fix dinner for us tomorrow and we will get a chance to visit with her and her daughter Bella (our adopted granddaughter) for a little while. Granddaughter Bella will have her 8th birthday in a few weeks so we will celebrate that with her tomorrow.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-49285245139293087002019-06-15T07:56:00.000-05:002019-06-15T07:56:09.049-05:00not a lake viewHere is a picture out our seventh floor window, definitely not a lake view.<br />
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We are on our way to Phyllis' house for the day.</div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-57153814173229986732019-06-14T18:45:00.003-05:002019-06-14T18:45:58.216-05:00Now in the Baltimore areaMade it to our motel around 4 o'clock this afternoon. The drive over the past two days was fairly uneventful. Yesterday we made it to Morehead, KY where we had a very nice dinner at Reno's Roadhouse before checking into the Best Western. For the total trip of approx 1000 miles Lexington, KY is close to half way and I like to make it past that point so our following morning start doesn't have the Lexington morning rush time traffic to contend with. On the return trip we have plans to stop just on the west side of Lexington in Frankfort, KY.<br />
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Our motel here in Catonsville is a Holiday Inn Express which is very nice. We called Phyllis when we arrived and she came over to our room for a visit before we all went out for dinner. Tomorrow we will go to her house and have the whole day to enjoy her company.<br />
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One big difference from making this trip with the camper vs the car is the fuel mileage. Yesterday's drive through Illinois, Indiana, and mid-Kentucky was the first tank full for this trip and our actual hand calculated miles per gallon was 29.2, wow, the best economy I have ever received from any of our vehicles. Much better that the 9-10 mpg that we would get with the truck and camper. Today's fuel economy was not as good as yesterday because of the mountains in western Kentucky, West Virginia, and western Maryland. Still today's tank full was with a calculated rate of 25.9. Our average around home, city driving, is a 23.5 mpg.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-6520693771956636042019-06-12T20:57:00.000-05:002019-06-12T20:57:55.421-05:00A different form of travelWe're off again tomorrow morning but this time not with the camper. We have made the decision to sell our truck and camper and from now on we will make our trips in our car using motels.<br />
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Tomorrow we make a well known drive on our way to visit with daughter Phyllis near Baltimore. When making this same trip in the camper it was a three days drive with two nights in campgrounds along the way. This time by auto it will be a two day drive with one motel about halfway.<br />
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The purpose of this trip is to visit with Phyllis and her Baltimore family of friends. Also I will be able to get some father's day hugs from my daughter.<br />
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I will continue to post along the way whenever possible and with motel WiFi it should be easier than with iffy WiFi in the woods around a campground. There just won't be nice pictures of a lake out our front door.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-59378149539218528912018-11-01T14:42:00.000-05:002018-11-01T14:42:23.535-05:00Back in Martin ManorPulled in right at noon time today. We used windshield wipers on intermittent all the way. It was raining quite hard with strong gusts of wind when I got up this morning but a little later it eased off and a check of Weather.com showed that while not totally clear there was a calm break in the action so I pulled Jo's toes and said lets take advantage of this break in the weather. We were able to dump our holding tanks and put away all hoses, get the inside all buckled up for travel and were on the road around 9 am.<br />
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Even with the heavy cloud cover and no direct sunlight there were some really good tree color sightings on the way home. Here is the beauty that was waiting for us at home. The one picture was taken the day we left and the other on our return, today.<br />
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We set this maple out a few years ago and I am so happy for this color as it reminds me of the maples in front to the E. Loren house.<br />
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That's it for our travels with the camper for 2018. Now I will winterize the plumbing, unload all freezable items, and close the camper up until spring.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-6585256883112626502018-10-31T14:35:00.001-05:002018-10-31T14:38:58.622-05:00between showersThe forecast for 100% rain just means that it's a sure thing it will rain, and it has, and it will again. We took advantage of a break in the showers for our daily walk around the campground. The temperature was a very nice 55 degrees with 110% humidity. It felt like being in a mist but we didn't get wet. 15 minutes after getting back into the camper we are now having a good soaking rain, lucked out again.<br />
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Even with the overcast skies these dogwood shrubs are really showing their pretty color. Most dogwood in the woods are a dark red color and not as bright as these, especially against the young yellow maples.<br />
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I believe that this is the best State Park campground that we have ever been in, including other states. One State Park in Minnesota was so bad we went to a KOA and the same for one in Iowa. Of course it is fairly new but also the sites are well spaced out, paved, and mostly level. Our loop 2 has full hookups, electric, water, and sewer. Loop 3 is electric only which we can use quite nicely. I'm not sure about other loops but we will definitely come back here again, perhaps next Oct.<br />
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Missouri State parks also have reasonable rates. In most other state's parks the camping fee is reasonable but they also have a daily use fee that when combined adds up to more than most commercial campgrounds.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-69746153858503105802018-10-31T08:52:00.000-05:002018-10-31T08:52:48.929-05:00Elephant RocksYesterday afternoon we visited this State Park near the town appropriately named Granite, MO. It is only 15 miles north of our campsite and it was another beautiful day in the Saint Francis Mountains of MO. Our goal of seeing fall tree color has been met as we are here in peak season.<br />
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The entrance to a braille trail through and around these huge boulders of granite</div>
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beauty along the way</div>
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on top of a massive boulder</div>
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from the top, the horizon is far off</div>
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"fat man's passage" yes we fit through it</div>
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The quarry where stones were mined for buildings and streets in St. Louis.</div>
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The water supposedly 40 foot deep</div>
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On the way back to camp we stopped at a roadside pile of firewood for sale and got a large pile of kindling for a campfire. We didn't have any marshmallows or hot dogs to roast but it was fun just to sit around the fire and remember the times we had with the kids and grandparents in past times.<br />
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The wood was pine so it started easy but burned rather fast.</div>
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Oak or hickory would have lasted much longer but this met our needs for the day.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-55932620895686798012018-10-30T07:18:00.001-05:002018-10-30T08:12:54.064-05:00The flood of 2005Built by Union Electric, now Ameren Missouri, this peak needs electricity generation system and it's destructive flood of 2005 is described in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taum_Sauk_Hydroelectric_Power_Station" target="_blank">This Wiki article</a>.<br />
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This is a 2014 Google Earth image showing the path of destruction. The lake in the lower right is the rebuilt reservoir on top of Mt Proffit. The lower end of the path of the treeless flow is the Shut-Ins park where the boulders came to rest on the old campground. Our campground, the new one, is in the upper left of this photo. Out of the view of this capture and below the picture is the lower lake on the East Fork of the Black River which flows through the shut-ins and is the other end of the re-circulation of water for electricity generation.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-57989739892328042492018-10-29T16:46:00.002-05:002018-10-29T16:48:04.967-05:00The Shut-InsIt started out quite a bit chilly this morning. My indoor/outdoor thermometer isn't reading the outside sensor but I have the weather channel on my laptop and found the weather for Black, MO which is real close by. That reading was 38 degrees this morning but I think here in the valley it was a bit lower than that. When daylight started the ground and low grass were all white with frost. Once the sun popped up over the trees to our east it warmed up quickly and this afternoon was a beautiful time to visit the shut-ins and near 70 degree temps.<br />
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First here are a couple of pictures around our campsite.<br />
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Our view from our dinette window</div>
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Our campsite with full hookups</div>
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This sign describes the flood that destroyed this park in 2005 caused by a rupture in the man made reservoir on the top of Mt Proffit.</div>
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This boulder is the one beside the sign and the following picture is other boulders strewn across the valley floor.</div>
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Then we take the path to the shut-ins</div>
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Tree color at it's peak</div>
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The swimming hole at the end is usually deeper but the stream flow is low.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-5993741452730591192018-10-28T16:30:00.000-05:002018-10-28T16:30:39.712-05:00Travel dayMoved a few miles from Sam A Baker SP to Johnson's Shut-Ins SP. We made a long drive out of the move by needing a grocery store for a few items. We found a major business center in the edge of Farmington, MO which satisfied our needs. I had also found that there was another Dexter BBQ in that same area and had my mouth all set on another plate of ribs. When we got there we found that they were not open on Sundays so we crossed the street to an Applebee's which was a good lunch stop.<br />
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The drive today was the best for tree color viewing. It won't last long now as this morning we had a pitter patter on our roof which wasn't rain but instead falling leaves. It was a bit windy today and the leave were blowing around.<br />
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Obviously, by this post, we do have an internet connection here in the park which I was worried that we might not. We do not have a single bar of cellphone signal so our only communication until we leave here is by computer.<br />
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The campground here is about a mile and a half from the actual shut-ins area so it will be a longer than usual walk for us at least one of the days we are here. By not unloading our camper from the truck we would have to buckle everything up like for travel in order to take the truck to the shut-ins. We have been to the shut-ins several times and that isn't the reason we are here but it would be a shame to be this close and not see them at all.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-17011120334844536472018-10-27T16:00:00.003-05:002018-10-27T16:00:39.491-05:00Sam A Baker day 3Here on a weekend the campground is mostly full. When we came in on Wednesday our loop of 39 spaces only had one other unit beside ours. Now they are all occupied. There are two separate campgrounds in this State Park and we are in number one with a total of over 200 campsites. Campground number two is about a mile north of us and has just under 200 sites.<br />
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On our walk this afternoon we had to be watchful of kiddos on bicycles, from teens down to just out of training wheels. It is such a beautiful day, sunny and 65 degrees, that it is great for them to get their exercise.<br />
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This picture of Big Creek was taken at an equestrian picnic area along their riding trail.</div>
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We leave here tomorrow morning and head for Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park. It will be a surprise if we have any cellphone signal or internet connection for the four days that we will be there. I hope we do have but if not this blog will not have a post until we get back home on the first of November. I will catch up with the happenings in between, then.</div>
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On the drive tomorrow I have found another Dexter BBQ place so will have another chance to gnaw on a few bones. ;-)</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-42491424238467022242018-10-26T14:23:00.001-05:002018-10-26T14:23:57.658-05:00Sam A Baker day 2It rained most of the night last night, not hard but steady. The pitter-patter on the roof is not so bad with the roof just a couple of feet over our heads. With our campsite right under some trees the raindrops that collected on the leaves and fell as BIG drops on our fiberglass dome over our shower made big popping noises. 😉<br />
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On this trip we have been taking walks around the campgrounds every day, a habit we hope to continue at home. Today's temperature is staying in the low 50s which made today's walk very pleasant and our loop took us out for a little over a half hour.<br />
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This State Park is gearing up for some Halloween celebrations tomorrow evening but it mostly takes place at the headquarters which is about a mile and a half away from our camp and we don't intend to partake anyway, old fuddy-duddies that we are. They are having a campsite decoration contest and one of the pictures below shows one such campsite.<br />
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This campsite is right across the road from us. A family with several kids having fun.</div>
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This is our campsite showing all our decorations.</div>
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This tree is right outside our door and I took this through our dinette window. Apparently some critter is trying to make itself a winter den in the hollow core of this tree.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-55703941475209670432018-10-25T14:38:00.000-05:002018-10-25T14:38:56.856-05:00Sam A Baker State ParkOn our drive from Sutton's Bluff we stopped in Poplar Bluff, MO for a few items from the grocery store. We were there around lunch time so we stopped into Dexter Barbecue for some ribs, YUM. I wish this place was much closer to home.<br />
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My plate before I got my fingers messy.</div>
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Had a very good night and this morning we had a few sprinkles with some more forecast for this afternoon and tonight. We did get out this morning for our daily walk and here are a couple of pictures from that stroll.<br />
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Along the hiking and biking trail, smooth surface for walking.</div>
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Big Creek along the East side of the campground just before it empties into the St. Francis River.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-15289084485987207862018-10-24T16:20:00.000-05:002018-10-24T16:20:24.664-05:00Sutton's Bluff<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New";"><b>Had lunch a
little early and got away from Martin Manor around noon time last Sunday, Oct. 21st.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Having spent the
past three months in a Subaru it took me a little while to get back in the
groove and </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">remember how The
Beast operated.</span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">After that it felt good
to be back on the road with the camper.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">There was very
little tree color along the drive but with clear blue skies and bright sunlight
occasionally there </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">was a showing. </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">I did get a
couple of pictures before we left home. The first one is of our golden Maple
that is just </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">beginning to show
a little bit of change and then one of our neighbor’s trees.</span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtXC16Il9HLX786TwyUQt2JNouTLQfI6VTiFl7CY0UXL4fzUjp6nXR1z1sBJFOetIpk2EmWoysU-7SrStZ8Mh0jXSPH1zXh-sTEX7tShvHruH_rKWYWX_MmUMHrIG9kJ3zkVSA/s1600/20181021_10471402.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtXC16Il9HLX786TwyUQt2JNouTLQfI6VTiFl7CY0UXL4fzUjp6nXR1z1sBJFOetIpk2EmWoysU-7SrStZ8Mh0jXSPH1zXh-sTEX7tShvHruH_rKWYWX_MmUMHrIG9kJ3zkVSA/s320/20181021_10471402.jpg" width="240" /></b></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">At the campground
a lot of the weekend folks were still in some spaces, but we found a very nice
one </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">that was
perfectly level.</span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Then I found that the
internet had totally lied to me. I found that we do have </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">one or two bars
of Verizon signal but nothing of AT&T so that is why from Sunday to now there have been no postings. We are now in Sam A Baker State Park and have 2 bars of VZW and at least a little slow WiFi signal from AT&T.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New";"><b>The three days at Sutton's Bluff were very nice. After the weekenders left there were only three other campers beside ourselves in the whole campground. The weather couldn't have been any better, clear blue skies with chilly mornings and cool afternoons.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New";"><b>I did walk the campground loop road each day and here are a few pictures taken while on those walks.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New";"><b>Our campsite with Sutton's Bluff in the background. The West Fork of the Black River is across the campground at the base of the bluff.</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiea4RqPVxDAkSf_liCp_KiOZH2gyUGvIp2hZR_7hOC0g6Ufc9-I2q2mFOkP2GL5dXHNlLPXovDovgisIPMlMZhvd8Oi-b0pjpEqBpQZQSDjbJGjJYSOImYzPEAmQxRWiZ1gOQw/s1600/20181022_13443803.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiea4RqPVxDAkSf_liCp_KiOZH2gyUGvIp2hZR_7hOC0g6Ufc9-I2q2mFOkP2GL5dXHNlLPXovDovgisIPMlMZhvd8Oi-b0pjpEqBpQZQSDjbJGjJYSOImYzPEAmQxRWiZ1gOQw/s320/20181022_13443803.jpg" width="320" /></b></a></div>
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<b> a few splashes of color on my walk</b></div>
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<b>We plan to be here in this State Park until next Sunday when we move to the Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park. I may wait to post about this stay until then.</b></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-48944696960843480472018-10-21T08:13:00.001-05:002018-10-21T08:16:22.105-05:00into the woodsThis afternoon we will load up and head to south central Missouri for a few days of R&R for the final trip of this season. Our first stop is in Sutton Bluff Recreation Area which is a National Forest Service campground in Reynolds County. When we lived in Rolla this was one of our favorite places to weekend camp away from the telephone and work. It will be nice to go back for a few days.<br />
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Our cellphone is on the Verizon Wireless network which we have found to be the best coverage throughout the US in our travels. That is not the case with this trip. I have just checked the coverage maps for both Verizon and AT&T (which is our WiFi connection) and AT&T wins in this part of Missouri.<br />
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Here is the AT&T map that covers our whole trip.</div>
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and here is one showing the Sutton Bluff campground, the loop in the center</div>
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Here is the Verizon map of the area</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSoY8HNbtS1UOLV0fib2biO1p175UtjkhXreaCXBI6p0s-w851zTKZBRrai6SvfQjfkzyVhyphenhyphenWwCh7Qc5o34YPQdE5-EBizIidpzt4xsCizytrg0nMBAB4a9ptXpGJErkfZMs5y/s1600/vzw+map04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="402" data-original-width="640" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSoY8HNbtS1UOLV0fib2biO1p175UtjkhXreaCXBI6p0s-w851zTKZBRrai6SvfQjfkzyVhyphenhyphenWwCh7Qc5o34YPQdE5-EBizIidpzt4xsCizytrg0nMBAB4a9ptXpGJErkfZMs5y/s320/vzw+map04.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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and this is the Sutton Bluff area</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4aRUfIRRyf0LPHO_hQHe3UEbzZq84Npcz8rnPzKWN0aSiEugQnTna66U0wq14JCQjgimf60X1r8tHMUNs7IZM-ES1e-nn6V4syc-LrBFz_pxv5RPFdfAOQGv7_5wveBSM-JWW/s1600/vzw+sutton+blugg05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="363" data-original-width="640" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4aRUfIRRyf0LPHO_hQHe3UEbzZq84Npcz8rnPzKWN0aSiEugQnTna66U0wq14JCQjgimf60X1r8tHMUNs7IZM-ES1e-nn6V4syc-LrBFz_pxv5RPFdfAOQGv7_5wveBSM-JWW/s320/vzw+sutton+blugg05.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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After Sutton Bluff we then head into Wayne County and spend a few days in the Sam A Baker Missouri State Park. We have never camped here before however we have driven through and thought it would be a good place to relax on this trip. The AT&T map is fairly uniform for our whole trip and in this location so is Verizon.</div>
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The upper loops are the campground for this State Park</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEBfu1CZXZ-UKteQ70aqmJvUGo_wIrEEfksbjmPfQhmbUBJziaIt6YwtAroPOLGBTSgFvxsVHmU8GRmtKAAW-DhHPpJnMie9kvNSt73Y8Ns58qTlBmOXYRbdemi1TFr2GNq36l/s1600/sab+sp03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="430" data-original-width="640" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEBfu1CZXZ-UKteQ70aqmJvUGo_wIrEEfksbjmPfQhmbUBJziaIt6YwtAroPOLGBTSgFvxsVHmU8GRmtKAAW-DhHPpJnMie9kvNSt73Y8Ns58qTlBmOXYRbdemi1TFr2GNq36l/s320/sab+sp03.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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After Sam A Baker we then will move to the Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park which is back in Reynolds County. Again AT&T seems to be okay but Verizon is going to be iffy.</div>
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In this map the campground looks to be in a white (non coverage) area but with red spots around the area we will just have to see when we get there.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjTpQ02Xtn-SyS3PbfOizbroJkdXqTe-a-CJX0HV3rw2HHxuHL1p0VO2L5slFOxrbeHEMZSUm1gbGoCIaw7_wD1iYvaCR2jriomzeFuEl0EvaJ5TdNaZqugu8QfH-FUvDP81GQ/s1600/jsins+sp02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="357" data-original-width="640" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjTpQ02Xtn-SyS3PbfOizbroJkdXqTe-a-CJX0HV3rw2HHxuHL1p0VO2L5slFOxrbeHEMZSUm1gbGoCIaw7_wD1iYvaCR2jriomzeFuEl0EvaJ5TdNaZqugu8QfH-FUvDP81GQ/s320/jsins+sp02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It looks like I should be able to post to this blog for most of the trip and will just have to read voice mail whenever I can.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-12938234102847153262018-09-15T18:06:00.003-05:002018-09-15T18:06:54.423-05:00Back at the ManorWe got on the road a little past 8:00 this morning and the weather was nice all day. Made it home a little past 4 pm. A few traffic snarls but all in all the drive was good. Even our timing for St Louis which was right at 2:30 pm and one hour later would have been hectic.<br />
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Now we lick our wounds and plan for another day. Right now our next outing is the latter part of October when we plan a camping trip to southern Missouri.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-57386033032112264632018-09-14T20:28:00.000-05:002018-09-14T20:28:32.468-05:00A Great Big OOPSI guess we didn't really want to see Spain and Portugal?????<br />
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Today we were all ready for a shuttle van from the airport to pick us up at Phyllis' house. I gave Phyllis her travel documents since the travel company sent all that information to me as the owner of the account. I told JoAnn that she would need to keep her passport in her purse and handy to show when required. I pulled our passports out of my carry-on bag and before I handed hers to her I opened it up and found that what we had were our old expired passports which meant that our good up-to-date ones were back in Missouri. OOOPS No Spain Trip. By the time we could get our passports from Missouri and then re-book our flights the tour in Spain would be half over and not really worth trying.<br />
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We decided that we would just drive back home, Phyllis will go back to work and cancel her vacation time saving it for another day.<br />
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Jo and I stopped a little West of Charleston, WV for a bite to eat and then drove a little further west to find a motel. Tonight we are in a Best Western just a little bit east of the Kentucky line. We will drive all the way to home tomorrow.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-59469353332343571132018-09-13T19:18:00.000-05:002018-09-13T19:18:07.148-05:00Now in BaltimoreWe made it to Baltimore a little before 4 this afternoon. Had a brief visit with Phyllis before our friend Tammy came by and we went out for a nice dinner.Tomorrow a little past lunch time we have a shuttle arranged to pick us up at Phyllis' house to get us and all our cases to the airport BWI. Our departure is scheduled for 4 PM tomorrow afternoon and we will land in Madrid Spain at 9:30 Saturday Morning. That is why there probably will not be a posting tomorrow as it will be a busy day of manipulating through airports and then getting settled in our hotel in Madrid. I will post when I have a chance.<br />
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Our drive today was uneventful but different from yesterday as yesterday it was mainly through the flat lands of Illinois, Indiana, and eastern Kentucky. Today was mostly up hill and down hill through the mountains of Eastern Kentucky, West Virginia, and Maryland so our fuel economy didn't get better today as it did yesterday. At least the average reading has stayed the same so apparently we had an equal amount of ups and downs.<br />
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This is what we found in Phyllis' back yard shortly after our arrival. This is part of the herd that resides in the woods not far from her yard. We have seen urban deer in her yard before and she says she sees them often.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-91289728990224469882018-09-12T19:18:00.000-05:002018-09-12T19:18:00.428-05:00New ventureWe left home this morning to begin our anniversary celebration venture. We are driving to Baltimore where we will grab hold of Phyllis and take her with us on a 10 day bus tour of Spain and Portugal.<br />
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We have been closely watching hurricane Florence heading toward the mid Atlantic but the latest estimates show it turning a bit further south so shouldn't cause our Friday afternoon flight out of BWI to have any problems.<br />
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When we got up on I-70 heading toward St. Louis Jo said that "boy this highway is smooth." I told her that she was now riding in a very nice Subaru and not in "The Beast", our truck with camper loaded. In the truck with the camper all bumps are felt because it's like riding in a truck. ;-) We are also noticing a big difference in the consumption of fuel. In the truck our average mileage is around 9 to 10 mpg. In the Subaru as we left home the computer was saying we were averaging 24.6 mpg with most of our trips just between home and town. Now with the good highway miles tonight it reads as 26.0 mpg and I'm sure it will go a little bit higher as we continue this trip.<br />
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While on our bus tour we will have WiFi and also in our hotels so should be able to post to this blog daily and will when I can.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-27780576148861126842018-07-23T14:26:00.000-05:002018-07-23T14:26:15.237-05:00Back in the Martin Manor RV ParkArrived back at the Manor a little past noon time and got the necessities unloaded. It's 87 degrees outside so the minor items can wait until morning or another day.<br />
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This was an extremely enjoyable trip, we both had a great while leisurely time. The scenery from the minor roads had much of the same fields of corn or grain but there were also vista of great beauty. We also found the cooler temperatures that we were looking for.<br />
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This will close our blog for awhile as our next plans for travel will begin on September 11 when we start our adventure to Spain and Portugal. I will take my laptop with me and the tour bus should have wifi on board so posting shouldn't be too much of a problem.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25400820.post-27376988023372142272018-07-22T14:29:00.001-05:002018-07-22T14:29:30.079-05:00Breathing home state airTonight we are settled into the Big Lake State Park near Mound City, MO. This is the same park we stayed in on our way back from Idaho last month, nice park. Last month our site was out in the open sun but tonight's site is under a couple of big cottonwood trees, still need the AC which is working well.<br />
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We enjoyed a day of leisure yesterday in a nice comfortable park before heading back south this morning.<br />
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On our trek following US Hwy 50 across the continent we found that we really enjoyed being on lesser routes instead of following the Interstate highways. Driving 60 mph with speed sometimes down to 30 mph through small towns is much more relaxing than battling the semis on the Interstate at 70 mph. Also we see more of the local scenery. The little slower speed also helps our fuel economy.<br />
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This trip we have deliberately avoided the Interstates as much as we could. Last Friday from MN to IA we stayed on the east side of the Big Sioux river on US 75 while our GPS kept trying to put us over on I-29. Today we again followed US 75 most of the way this time in Nebraska to the west of I-29 and the Missouri river. Again our GPS kept trying to take us over to I-29 but I kept arguing with her and held our course. Even through the middle of Omaha US 75 is on an expressway and very easy travels through this big city, of course it was Sunday morning so traffic was fairly light. Tomorrow we will use I-29 from here down to st Joe but there really isn't a good alternative. Then its US 36 to Macon and US 63 south toward the Manor.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0