Denali National Park

Our trip yesterday into the park was awesome.  We were in a group of 37 folks on a 40 passenger bus with our driver, John of course.  John was very good at animal sightings and with his knowledge of this area of Alaska he kept us entertained over the 12 hour journey into the heart of Denali NP.  The day was off and on showers with a few minutes of nice sunshine so "The Great One" didn't make a photo op appearance.  While John said that it was a slow day for animal sightings we did see quite a variety.  We saw Moose, Caribou, Lynx (everyone but me), Grizzly, Red Fox (I saw him but not able to get a picture), Wolf, Dall Sheep, Ground Squirrels, Golden Eagles, Loons, and a Harrier Hawk.

The tour bus provided a sack lunch which was very nice.  Most tours only go 1/2 to 2/3 of the road and then turn back but our tour went to the end of the road.  There is only one road and personal autos are not permitted except for a few days at the end of the season.  The wilderness is kept pristine and the animals are accustomed to the buses and will walk right up to and use the road as a trail.  We did see another Grizzly but it was off so far in the distance that even with zoom it didn't show up.  The first Grizzly picture was way off also but I was able to zoom in for a shot.  Folks using binoculars said that she was sitting up nursing two cubs.  The fox that we saw was easily recognizable by eye sight but I lost him while trying to zoom in for a close-up.  Everyone tried to describe the location of the Lynx but I just could not find him.

It was a long but wonderful day that I would recommend to anyone.

Denali National Park

Denali Cabin Nite Dinner Theater

We enjoyed this dinner theater very much.  The food was good, ribs, salmon, and cobbler.  The entertainment was excellent with a general story of the history of Alaska told in comedy and song.

Denali Dinner Theater

to Denali

This morning after an early breakfast we boarded the Alaska RR for a train ride to Denali.  It was about a four hour ride through some very beautiful scenery.  It was a bit difficult to get good shots through the dome windows but I tried.  They did have an open deck area but it seemed to be always full of folks and beside it was windy and chilly out there.  We had lunch in the dining car and made it to our lodge a little before 2:00 pm.  We have reservations tonight for a dinner theater and are resting up a little bit this afternoon.  Tomorrow we have a full long day tour of Denali National Park.

Train ride

Riverboat Discovery tour

This morning we took a ride on a paddle wheel boat on the Chena River.  It was a fun excursion with much to see and do along the way.  We stopped at a replica Athabasca Indian village for some presentations by natives.  We also stopped at Susan Butcher's house and kennel for some demonstrations of dog sled pulling using a four wheel ATV minus it's engine.  The power was provided by ten dogs from her kennel some were offspring of Granite, her champion lead dog.  Susan's husband took the team on about a mile run and explained some of the training for puppies to make good sled dogs out of them.  A little later on the trip there was a bush pilot that did a couple of take offs and landings for our viewing.  There was a very good narrator on board that talked throughout the trip with lots of interesting information of the area.

Riverboat Discovery III

Our trip to Prudhoe Bay

Monday morning we left on a journey to the far North oil fields at Prudhoe Bay.  The group we were with were two couples from Columbus, Ohio and one fellow from New Zealand and our mode of travel was an eleven passenger E350 Ford van.  It took two long days of driving to get there and two hours of flight for the return.  The road started out a good blacktop surface and soon became mostly gravel surfaced with occasional patches of blacktop.  The route followed the oil pipeline and a major portion of the most northerly section was built to provide access to the construction of that pipeline.  There are very few roads in Alaska and only about 30% are paved.  The primary mode of transportation is small airplane.  Our first night's stay was in Cold Foot camp.  There aren't any residents that live there and the camp only provides services for construction workers and travelers.  Our second night was in Dead Horse camp with a similar story except that it is right in the oilfields and most of the folks that use it are oilfield personnel.  They are mostly contracted to work two weeks of 12 hour shifts and then two weeks off.  All of the area around the camp is dirt and they keep it watered for dust control which wasn't necessary while we were there as it showered off and on.  Due to the constant presence of mud everyone is required to remove their shoes/boots at the door and there were paper booties to cover our shoes if we didn't want to pull them off.  In both camps we slept in one building and ate in another which here in Dead Horse caused us to constantly have to deal with our shoes.  Wednesday morning we had a bus tour of the oilfield facilities with a stop at the Arctic Ocean for a chance to stick a finger in and check the temperature.  A little after noon we boarded a 10 passenger airplane for the quick trip back to Fairbanks.

Arctic Ocean tour

remote area

Since Sunday we have not been in any locations with internet connectivity possible.  Even here now the signal isn't good enough to upload our many pictures so hopefully that will be possible soon.

We had a great trip north to Dead horse camp and will put together more details as soon as I can.  We have a riverboat cruise this morning and we will see what the computer connection is like this afternoon.

Pioneer Park

After a very nice day of rest we went to this park nearby.  We walked around through the village which was mostly old log cabins that were from this area originally and moved here and re-erected.  In most of them local artists have set up their wares for sale and display.  There were a couple of museums of the pioneer life and it all is free admission.  Also connected with the park is a Salmon bake which we had reservations for.  It included the salmon grilled over an open fire pit along with Cod, Halibut, and prime rib.  That was along with veggies, salad fix-ens, and desert.  They had outside picnic tables where lots of folks sat plus an indoor seating area which was more comfortable for us.

Pioneer Park

Tomorrow we head on a three day trek to the Arctic Ocean.  I don't know what kind of computer signal I will find in these remote areas but will post again when we get back to Fairbanks.  This lodge had a very good signal at our cabin this morning but this afternoon it was imposable and I had to bring my laptop to the lobby for a decent connection.  I will post again whenever I can.

We're here

It was quite a long trip up but so far we are happy.  This morning when we finally got up for breakfast at 8:00 it was 58° nice.

We left John at STL a little after 3:00 pm Missouri time and we arrived in Seattle near 8:00 pm pdt, still daylight.  When we left Seattle a bit after 9:00 pm pdt it was already dark.  After a while the sky looked liked a sundown with an orange glow on the horizon and the further north we got the sky continued to lighten until it was bright and we were looking down on the white clouds.  It was around 12:30 am adt (5:30 am Missouri time) when we got our checked bag at the terminal.  I called our hotel for a transportation shuttle and was informed that at that hour we would need to just catch a taxi and the motel would pay the cabbie.  The only problem was that there were several folks waiting for cabs but not many were there.  We had to wait nearly an hour and it was almost 2:00 am when we finally got to bed.

Today is mostly a day of rest from the traveling but we do have reservations for this evening for a Salmon bake located at a park with other museum attractions so should be fun.  I plan to get out a bit later and get some pictures around our resort which is camera worthy.  I  will post some photos later.

Here are a few pictures that I took this morning around the Lodge.  There are many individual cabins and all with a hanging basket of live pretty flowers at each one.  There also is a connected campground.

Rivers Edge Resort

disaster averted

Jo has decided to not take her camera as it is just something else to pack and hang on to while we travel.  This morning I went to the truck to get my camera and when I looked into the case, nothing was there, oh where could it be?  While we travel with the truck and trailer our camera cases hang over the back of our seats from the head rests.  If they are not there then they have been taken into the trailer for transferring the files to the computer.  After the files have been transferred the cameras are hung on a cabinet door close to the trailer door so they can be carried back out the the truck where they belong.  I have searched (2 and 3 times) the truck, the trailer, and the house and can't find my camera anywhere.  This is not something that needs to happen just before we head to one of the most photogenic states of the US.

A trip to Best Buy produced a new Nikon Cool Pix L810 with 16.1 Mp and 28X zoom.  Best Buy beat Wall-Mart by $10.  I have it set up and took a few shots here in the house for practice and I believe that we will be okay and this is a nice improvement over my last setup.

Jo has started the packing and we are feeling like this anticipated trip is actually going to happen, Big Grin!  Now we just need to make sure that the large checked bag doesn't exceed 50 lbs.

getting closer

Yes, it's getting closer to our trip to Alaska.  We fly out of Saint Louis next Saturday afternoon and will return two weeks later on the 28th.  We are so looking forward to getting back to this great and beautiful State and the excursions that we have planned.

The good news is that brother John has agreed to be our driver to and from St. Louis so we will not have to leave our car in a parking lot for those two weeks, thank you brother.

Now packing is our next concern.  We had hoped to be able to pack light and only use two carry-on bags.  We will see how conservatively we can pack before we decide on a checked $$ bag.  I'm beginning to think that one large checked bag with two lighter carry-on ones will make our life on the trip that much easier and with less worry.

back at Martin Manor

It was a little before 11:00 am when we backed into our back yard trailer pad.  We have unloaded the necessities but will wait for some cooler temperatures in the morning to unload the dirty clothes and linens.  The trailer will sit for a few weeks as our next outing will be our flight to Alaska that begins on July 14.

This was a very nice trip that included the family reunion with a visit from Phyllis and then some relaxing time on the banks of the Pomme De Terre lake.  My father, Ellis Martin, was born near the town of Polk, MO and in his youth fished the Pomme De Terre river well before the lake was formed.  It is a beautiful small lake with great fishing possibilities.

Check back on or after the 14th of July for postings of our Alaska adventure.

weekend on the lake

The weekend has arrived.  Our campsite is still nice but we do have lots of company.  Yesterday afternoon and on into the night folks filled up all available spots, some came in after my bedtime.

This morning I drove out to find a good cell phone signal because we had a voice mail message that made us wonder.  While we do have a minimal data signal apparently the voice signal isn't strong enough to use.  It turned out that the call wasn't any emergency but still needed to check it out.  I didn't have to drive very many miles so not a big problem.

On the way out I could see that there were probably more than a hundred pickup trucks with boat trailers parked in the parking lot and spilling out over the grassy areas.  The weekend fishermen are out and hopefully filling their stringers.  This looks like a great spot to spend some time in a boat wetting a line.  I have been away from fishing for so many years that all of my tackle is junk and if I wanted to try again I would need to make a trip to the tackle shop and that would involve much more stuff to find a place to store in the trailer.

afternoon visitors

This gaggle swam by our front yard this afternoon. The group in these pics is only a fraction of the total.

Beautiful small lake

We got out this morning and drove around the area to get a few pictures of this lake.  We drove through the State Park campground and are thankful we are in a COE facility.  The State campground would have been near impossible for us to even drive through as they apparently have been built for less than 30' trailers and the roads around the loops would not allow for ours to make turns around the trees.

Tuesday afternoon when we drove into this campground we had a welcoming committee of one doe and two fawns grazing at the side of the entrance road.  Today as we came back from our outing they were there again and since I had my camera out for the pictures of the lake it was handy to point and shoot through the windshield.

The second fawn is in the picture but you have to look close as it is right in front of the triple trunk clump to the right of the large tree where fawn #1 is standing.

Here are the remaining pics of the day.

 Pomme De Terre Dam and buzzard roost

 without wind today like a mirror

our check in story

Tuesday when we arrived at the campground the check in booth was closed.  The sign told us to get set up in our site if reserved or any open non-reserved site and then return at 4:00 to register.  We had site 25 reserved for Wednesday through Saturday nights and I had checked the on-line registration page before we left Chanute and found that it was still unreserved for Tuesday so therefore it was available and we then backed in and set up camp.

A lot of State and Federal campgrounds use "work campers" for a lot of campground functions and they are usually retired RV folks that get a campsite for free in exchange for some part time service.

At 4:00 I went back to the booth and a Jed Clampet type character came to help me get registered.  They had only one reservation that they were expecting for Tuesday night and that was for site 20.  He assumed when I walked up that #20 was what I was going to be checking in for and even when I told him who I was and what I wanted (to slide my four night registration ahead one day to end on Friday night) he still was trying to sign me up for #20.  I retold my story and assured him that I wasn't his #20 so he said that he needed to get his expert with the computer to handle my check-in.  He went to their trailer sitting right behind the booth and out came his wife, Mrs. Clampet, and she sat down at the computer and punched a few keys.  I told my story again and she said that they would probably have to get a park ranger to handle that move of a reservation and cancel our Saturday night but it would take some time to have one there.  I told her that I would just pay for Tuesday night as a walk-in and then would be good for five nights instead of four.  He said, "if you have the old farts card you can have #20 for only $10."  I told them again that I was in #25 and yes I did have the Golden Age Passport which allowed me to make our advanced reservation for that price per night and if they wanted to see it I could get it out of my wallet.  Mrs. Clampet then said that she now found me registered for #25 and there was my Passport number so all was good.  I gave them $10 and was finally legal for five nights.

I shouldn't have tried to make fun of our camp hosts but thought it was a funny story. 

Lightfoot Landing COE campground

We backed into our spot a bit after noontime yesterday and just relaxed for the afternoon.  I got out this morning and took a few pictures around our site and of the lake from this viewpoint.

 

 The view from our front door

 

A truthful sign

work done and back in Missouri

We were at the service door at 7 am this morning and sat in their customer lounge while the work was going on.  About 9:30 they came to tell us that all was done and gave me a demonstration of the new system that was installed.  Our trailer has an automatic leveling system but the control panel didn't allow me to tweak the setup.  The new control panel is awesome and I now have full control including a remote key fob.

We left Chanute and headed for our reserved campsite on the Pomme De Terre Lake and got here a little after lunch time.  It is a nice site in the trees with an opening for our satellite so we have a TV connection.  Our Verizon signal is weak but works for both voice and data.  The view from our front door is an arm of the lake so we will see what other views we can picture in these next few days.  It may be just a nice restful few days. ;-)

Land of Oz

This morning we hitched up and pulled the trailer to Chanute, KS with an appointment at the factory service shop at 7 am in the morning.  Jo isn't too happy with that time schedule.

The trip was a bit unusual as there were two construction sites that altered our route. The first was our major east/west route in KS and by the time we saw the closure we were already past the marked detour.  I knew we were south of Chanute and knowing that most routes in this part of KS are either N/S or E/W figured we could just continue north and Ms Navi would pick up another E/W route to take.  After trying to get me to do a U-turn for some time she finally decided our route should be going north all the way to Rte 54, which would have worked.  We saw a KS route marking sign that pointed to Chanute so took it and Ms Navi soon decided that we were on the right path.  When we arrived in Chanute and got to the city street we were to turn on for our route to the campground, I had my left turn signal on and began my turn when I saw the barricades and the street totally dug up under reconstruction.  I adjusted to a right turn, drove around the block and then maneuvered around the construction area and we were back on track.  There is a tree directly in the satellite's path so our TV for this evening is a few channels over the air from Pittsburgh, KS, we'll make do. ;-)

Happy Father's day

We want to wish all Father's a great day.  It has been so nice to have our daughter, Phyllis, with us these past few days and to be able to get a hug from her this morning before she headed back to Baltimore.

The Martin family reunion went very well yesterday with most of the clan there.  If you haven't already, you can visit the martin-reunion.blogspot.com/ for pictures. 

To Springfield

On our way to the Martin Family reunion on tap for Saturday we pulled the trailer to an RV park in Ozark, MO, arriving a little past 2pm and tomorrow we will visit with Jo's mom and sis.

decoration weekend 2012 day 2

This morning we had breakfast at the motel and then headed north toward Humansville.  We had a good nights rest and glad that we decided to make this a two day event.  Our first stop was the Plum Grove cemetery where we always brought mom to visit the grave of her brother Merton Stone and then it was on to the Humansville cemetery.  After that stop we headed for Hopewell but on the way we drove into Flemington past where Uncle Jay and Aunt Nellie used to spread out the big dinner for those that came to the cemetery on decoration day.  I didn't recognize the house on their plot and there was a bunch of junk scattered around so I didn't take a picture.  There was a barn or two that I believe was Uncle Jay's.  We haven't been to Hopewell in the past several years but since it is really on our way from Humansville to home we will probably make it a regular stop in future decoration day trips.  After visiting the Riverside cemetery here in Jefferson City we still had time to stop by the supermarket and still made it home right at noon, time for lunch.

For today's pictures click on yesterdays photo link as I just added those taken today to the same album.  I deliberately took all the photos before any decorations as I wanted this album to be the markers only where we could go back any time and recall dates if needed.  After decoration all of the cemeteries appeared to be in full color, well maintained, and beautiful.  The peonies at several grave sites had long since finished blooming but there were yuccas at some and as we drove through the countryside this weekend the yucca was in full bloom and pretty everywhere.

We are so glad that we made this trip and by splitting it into two parts we are home early and can relax while the masses fight the traffic lanes on their way home later today.  Our travels were with very little traffic and in some areas we were all alone.  That was until today when we got back to Camdenton it was both lanes nearly full all the way from there to Jefferson City.

We do hope that all of our family have had a safe and wonderful holiday weekend.

decoration weekend 2012 day 1

Jo and I first thought we would make a long days outing and try to visit all grave sites of our kin.  We had planned to make that trip on Monday the 28 and if we started early the trip was possible but we would be getting home late that evening.  Yesterday we decided to stretch the trip to two days and so we left the house this morning and headed for the Bethlehem Cemetery which is on the Shannon/Oregon county line near Thomasville where Jo was raised.  Both sets of her grandparents, Ledgerwood and Ledbetter, are here along with a few of her uncles and aunts.  We took pictures of each marker and have posted them in our webshots albums.

Bethlehem and Greenlawn

Since we have made this a two day event that gave us some additional time to explore today.  Starting around 1967, I believe, we began an annual tradition of joining Jo's folks at a forest service campground near Willow Springs for the memorial weekend camp out.  From the campground Jo and her folks could then go visit the graves at Bethlehem cemetery and for several years Jo, the kids, and I also got to visit with Neva in West Plains.  During this weekend is where both Kenneth and Phyllis learned to fish and the rule that "the one that catches them is the one that cleans them.  Their grandmother was the one that taught them to clean the little sun perch and bluegill that they caught.  Each year the keepers kept getting a little bit bigger but even the small ones seasoned the campfire skillet quite well.  The fish were always hungry and it seemed like there wasn't even any need to bait the hook, but grandpa always made sure that we had a good supply of worms.  Both kiddos learned that beside cleaning their catches they also had to be able to thread a worm onto the hook..  This campground was called Noblett Lake and the dam with facilities was built by the CCC many years ago.  There was one of the camp sites that we tried to get each year but it was first come first served so it was not always possible.  That preferred site was near the creek below the dam plus there was always a wild strawberry patch nearby that made for sweet pick'ns.  Today when we left the cemetery we headed back to Noblett lake to revisit those memories.  We were disappointed that the campground road was closed so we couldn't drive through or stop to hunt for wild strawberries.  There still was a picnic area along the upper body of the small lake and today several folks were making use of the picnic tables under the shade trees along the banks.

After our visit to Noblett lake we then headed for Springfield and a visit with Lola, Jo's mom.  After that visit we picked up Wilma and took her with us to the Greenlawn cemetery in North Springfield to visit the graves of Jo's dad and Wilma's husband.  Then the three of us had a nice dinner out before taking Wilma home.  Jo and I are now settled in to our motel room and will head north to Humansville tomorrow morning.

Jury duty

Dirty clothes are washed and repacked in the trailer but now it will have to sit until mid June.  We had a trip planned to visit Kentucky and Tennessee for two weeks in mid May but my jury duty summons has me on standby for those same two weeks.  In June we plan to take the trailer to Springfield/Ozark for a Martin Family Reunion and then over to Chanute, KS where the factory will upgrade our leveling system.

Since we will not be on any extended road trips for awhile Jo went to the flower shop yesterday and got several annuals to plant in some of her planters around the house.  She just can't keep her fingers out of the dirt.

Jo's welcoming committee

These are a few examples of what she found in the yard at Martin Manor RV Park.  Now since Jury duty will cause our May trip plans to not happen she will be here to enjoy these beauties for a couple of months.

All fixed

We had our trailer to the factory at 8:00 this morning and a little before 11:00 all was good as new.  There was a problem with something in the motor that operated that slide and they replaced it and made sure all was aligned and smooth operating.

Since we had a lot of the day left we decided to head to Springfield for a visit with Jo's mom and will then make it back to the Martin Manor tomorrow morning.  This problem has altered our original plans a little bit but not enough to keep it from being a very pleasant outing.  These bumps in the road are always a big part of this RV traveling life and we just adjust and go on.

Chanute, Kansas

We pulled in a bit after lunch time and backed into a very nice spot in this city campground.  I think I have mentioned before but this park is only a couple of city blocks away from the NuWa factory and the first two nights are free.  After the two nights then it's only ten bucks a night for 30 amp electric and water with a dump station for use on the way out.  It is mostly used by NuWa customers either stopping for service or shopping for a new one.  NuWa has only a few dealers around the US and most of their sales are through the factory sales staff.  The trade-ins that they receive are put through re-conditioning by factory trained technicians and when they go to their used RV lot they are probably better then new.

We will need to be at the factory at 8:00 in the morning and hope that our problem won't take too long to fix.

out of Texas

We left Texas a little before noon today and are now in Oklahoma City.  Tomorrow we head to Chanute, KS and then on Tuesday we will get our slide-out problem fixed at the factory by the same folks that put it together in the first place.

The route from Abilene north to Wichita Falls was very nice, mostly four lane divided, and almost isolated but a nice smooth road.  In that two and a half hour drive I think we could have counted the other vehicles that we saw (either direction) on two maybe three hands worth of fingers.  After entering Oklahoma we began to see more bluebonnets than we had seen in TX.  Along the right-of-way there was widespread Indian paint brush and scattered bluebonnets, very pretty.

Buffalo Gap

This afternoon we visited the Buffalo Gap Historical Village.  Buffalo Gap, TX is just a few miles SW of Abilene and an easy drive.  The day is bright sunshine and temps in the upper 70s to low 80s so a good trip.  Our plans are to pig out this evening on BBQ and then fuel up for tomorrow's drive to OK City.

Buffalo Gap

nice day

We had a very brief, light shower this morning and then the skies cleared up.  The wind has kept the temps down to mid 70s which is fine but the wind has been gusty.

We did get out today to the grocery store for a few necessities.  We haven't found any attraction in this area that seems to be in need of our attendance.  There are several museums and a large zoo but we think that with today's shopping we will get out tomorrow evening for some Texas BBQ and full up our fuel tank for the Sunday's trip to OK city.

Abilene

Today's drive took us out of the hill country into more of a mesquite, prickly pear, and yucca landscape.  It was an easy drive and most of Texas roads that we have found have been very good.  Jo made an identification of the yellow wildflowers that have been plentiful most of the way.  Beside the few bluebonnets that we have seen there have been Indian blanket, and Indian paint brush she named the yellow ones as engelmann's daisy and greenthread.  For most of today's drive the right-of-way was filled with this colorful blanket.

Since our appointment at the factory isn't until next Tuesday we have a couple of days to explore around here, so stay tuned.  Since we are away from the gulf seafood we just might have to try some Texas BBQ.

Hill Country of Texas

This evening we are in Kerrville, Texas in the heart of the area of TX known as the hill country.  Our drive today was right through the heart of both Houston and San Antonio but with only some very slow traffic in the commute into Houston.  On the way between Houston and San Antonio we did see a few patches of blue bonnets but not enough to be showy for a picture.  We didn't see any more blue bonnets until right before we pulled into our campground for the night.  There were lots of other wild flowers including Indian Paint Brush and something yellow that is widespread.  Jo couldn't identify these yellow flowers as we were passing by at 60 mph.

Driving along today I kept thinking about all the cities in Texas that have songs written about them.  I couldn't think of any other state with more cities in song.  Missouri has Kansas City and St. Louis songs but I couldn't think of any other.  In Texas Glen Campbell sang about Galveston, the Gatlin Brothers sang Houston, Marty Robbins sang of El Paso and Abilene, there is the oldie about the San Antonio Rose.  There is Big D, Amarillo, and of course Waylon Jenning's Lukenbach.  There are probably others but it was fun just to think about these few.

We enjoyed a day in this area a couple of years ago and had planned to look around some more on this trip but our plans have changed due to our need to be in Chanute, KS next Tuesday so this will be an overnight stay before we move on to Abilene.  We will have a couple of days in Abilene before the two day trip from there through Oklahoma City to Chanute.  If the factory repair of our slide out mechanism can be completed in one day then we will make it home a few days early.  Until we know the length of the repair time we can't say for sure when we will be back to Martin Manor.

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge

This morning we drove to this refuge and enjoyed a bit of walking through some of their trails and a slow drive around a wildlife loop where we saw several gators and many birds.  Not too many pictures of birds as they were mostly on the move and not posing for their portraits.  With the temperature in the upper 60s I wondered if it might be a bit too cool for the gators to be out but the few we saw I believe were trying to soak up all the sun that they could find.

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge

changed from wind to rain

Last night the wind did calm down a lot but then the rain began with loud rolls of thunder, the potato wagon turning over kind.  Here is what it looks like at this time, 10:30 am.

You will notice that to the southwest there is more on schedule to arrive as we are right in the center of this picture.  It is forecast to be clear for our departure here on Wednesday.  With the rain today and not wanting to get my two hairs wet we are staying put.

There have been some major changes in this trip from here to home.  When we were in Shreveport one of our slide-outs wasn't working right.  We have been working with it in a crippled mode since then.  This morning I called the factory in Chanute, Kansas and made an appointment for Tuesday the 24th to have it fixed.  That will modify the remainder of our trip slightly so stay tuned for more details.

still windy

We didn't get out today as the wind was still very gusty.  With a forecast of thunder storms this evening at least the wind is supposed to lay down a bit tomorrow.  This evening we tried out the seafood restaurant that the campground host recommended and that recommendation was right on good.  We both had grilled red snapper and shrimp both fresh from the gulf and it was well prepared.  The dinner came with a salad, dirty rice, and a bowl of crayfish etouffee, yum.  We will probably make it back again before we leave this area.  The fresh seafood market wasn't open today being Sunday.

Just had a phone call to alert us that Callaway County is under a tornado watch until midnight tonight.  We are glad that we are able to transfer our home phone to our cell while we travel.  That way we don't miss important calls.

Windy

I'm sure that the wind probably blows all the time here on the banks of the Galveston Bay.  It sure has been strong all the time we have been here.  Strong enough that when we open the door it is against the winds force and hard to hold open long enough to get in or out.

We took a drive today in a circle from our campground to Galveston Island and then across the ferry to Bolivar peninsula and up to I-10 and back to the campground after a stop at Krogers on the way back.

On the Bolivar peninsula we were driving right along the gulf coast beach line.  The gulf waters were very rough with the winds causing some major waves.  There were only a few places where people were on the beach.  At point 4 on the above map we stopped for a very nice lunch at a Cajun Restaurant and both enjoyed a dish of very good crayfish etouffee.

Happy Friday the 13th

Another pleasant drive today south from Shreveport, LA to Baytown, TX.  Our campsite is backed up to the waters of Galveston Bay.  The hex of this day did jump up to cause us a bit of a change in our route.  That is the hex of the day combined with my lack of memory.  About midway Ms Navi wanted us to exit the route we were on with a left turn.  I was sure that she was making a mistake so I turned her off and kept driving the way I thought was the way we needed to go.  When we stopped at a Flying J truck stop for a parking place to have lunch I took a look at the map to find out that I should have listened to and needed to apologize to Ms Navi because she was right and we had gone much too close to Houston for a direct route to our campground.  When I put Ms Navi back on the job after my apology she then found the most direct route to our campground and we arrived still in early afternoon and no worse for wear.

Now we need to find some mischievousness to get into while we are here for a few days.

scenic drive

Since leaving Joplin yesterday around noontime we have been traveling Rte. 71 through Arkansas.  This mornings portion of that route particularly from Ft. Smith to Texarkana was a typical Arkansas two lane mountain road with many tight curves and grades through the Quachita Mountains and Quachita National Forest.

At Mena, AR we had memories of a trip many years ago that we took with Jo's mom and dad.  That trip was the four of us and using their pop-up tent camper we had traveled from Springfield, MO through Texas to Carlsbad Caverns and then on to the Big Bend National Park along the Rio Grande river.  Then we cut across southern Texas to Texarkana and up Rte. 71 toward home.  We stopped for the night near Mena, AR at the Queen Wilhelmena State Park which is on top of one of the tallest mountain in Arkansas.  The campground had a petting zoo and our alarm clock the next morning was the braying of a couple of donkeys.

Tonight we are in Shreveport, LA and tomorrow will get us to Galveston Bay, TX and then we will sit still for a few days and enjoy the area.

Wednesday April 11

First day out on our April venture toward the Texas gulf.  Our GWF is still with us except that she forgot to warm up the morning and it was a bit chilly out when we left.  It didn't get as cold as forecast and only down to upper30s instead of the upper 20s that had been predicted.  It did start out with clear skies and full sunshine but the further along we got the clouds began to gather.  From Joplin down it became mostly cloudy that kept the afternoon temperatures in the mid 60s.

We had a big laugh in Pineville, MO when we pulled off to a "Welcome Center" for a lunch break.  The signs kept pointing us toward the center of town and then all of a sudden there were no more signs and we were on a county road heading out of town with no place to turn around.  I finally came to a crossroad that was wide enough for a back-up turn around and we headed back the way we came.  As we passed back through the center of town we saw the Welcome Center sign on city hall but there weren't any places to park our rig.  Heading back out toward Rte. 71 we found a nearly empty strip mall parking lot where we enjoyed our lunch and then it was back on track for Alma, AR.  Alma is just a few miles East and North of Fort Smith and we had used this campground a couple of other times and it works well for us.

Here we go

With the high temperatures recently we were beginning to question if we should head further south with this trip.  Then mother nature comes along and gives us near freezing morning lows both this morning and forecast for tomorrow morning so yes, we are ready.  Most of our time will be along the Texas gulf near Galveston so at least we are hoping for some gulf breezes.  At least with this trailer we now have two air conditioners which should be a big help for those full summer days temperatures.

home again

We made it back to the Martin Manor RV park around noon time today.  Now it's laundry time and get ready for our next outing.

The following are Jo's welcome home - birthday presents;

Our crab tree

white bleeding heart

 pink bleeding heart

both lilacs

yellow thorn-less Texas rose

our goldfish had babies

a few years ago when our goldfish pond went kaput and we had it filled in, we found these two larger fish were in the pond area when we got back from a trip.  Our good neighbor that looks after our place in our absence used to feed the fish and seemed to enjoy them as much as we did so he made the two larger ones to take their place.  During this current trip apparently the size of our fish school has doubled, we love it.

beautiful

Both the weather and the views have been beautiful today.  Our GWF has outdone herself with plentiful sunshine and pleasant temperatures.  Today the dogwood and redbud have been the most plentiful and in their full bloom glory, as in ooh and aah time.  Tonight we are in Benton, IL near Rend Lake so tomorrow's drive will be relatively short getting us home a little past noon.

homeward bound

After our brief restful stay in Columbia, SC we are now in eastern Tennessee.  We have enjoyed the drive today as we moved through NC into eastern TN back into some higher elevations of the Smokies and into dogwood and redbud country in full bloom, beautiful.

Tomorrow our stop is near Rend Lake in IL which is an easy trip home from there.  Since installing the 50 gal fuel tank it is easy to avoid having to purchase fuel in IL, but that's a personal peeve.

Shopping at the Pig

Just got back from the Piggly Wiggly.  It really was within walking distance but I don't imagine they would have appreciated us pushing one of their carts back to the trailer.  This store was huge with everything that we had on our list, and then some.  We stopped at another Piggly Wiggly in Chattahoochee earlier on this trip and they catered to only the local desires with very limited selections but this one was extra nice.  We are all stocked up now for the trip homeward and then some.  With another trip in the plans within a couple of weeks we will not turn off the fridge and leave all but the immediate use items there for future use.

We have one glitch in our plans for the next few trips.  I have been put on jury notice for the next quarter (April - June) so when my two weeks are scheduled I will have to be close by and check the docket for "need to show" at the courthouse.  They said that I would be notified a couple of weeks before my 2 week duty so we will just have to make adjustments as necessary.  Jo has been on call several times and actually served on a sequestered jury (major case) a few years ago but I have never served.

a restful day

We have enjoyed a quiet and restful day today.  There isn't any attraction in this area that we feel is a "must do" so we have just loafed.  The weather forecast has been for a good percentage (30% to 50%) for rain while we are here in Columbia but that hasn't happened yet.  We drove through several showers yesterday but our GWF is still with us and let the sun shine while setting up this campsite.  The weather map shows some showers headed this way within the next hour so I guess the 30% chance is likely to happen.  We were out and about most of the time while in St. Augustine so this slow down feels good.

Out of Florida

After a very nice stay on Anastasia Island and our good times in Saint Augustine we pulled out this morning and headed north by northwest and have now arrived in Columbia, SC.  As we drove northward the flora changed and we are now seeing dogwood, azaleas and wisteria in full bloom, very nice.  In the wild along the roadway the wisteria has taken over clumps of trees in mass and made them beautiful all the way to the top including some pine.  We are here for a couple of days and will see if there is something to tour or just sit and enjoy the calm before the three day trip back to Missouri.

gator time

This morning we went to the alligator farm and zoo here on Anastasia Island just a mile from our campground.  Beside all the gators and crocks from many locations around the world they also have other unusual animals and birds.  They also have a zip line that you can pay to slide over the gator ponds, just don't drag your feet.

Alligator Farm

 

another visit to Saint Augustine

We again utilized the shuttle for a trip back to Saint Augustine and a couple more museum tours.  The first we visited was the "Old Store" which was a replica of a WalMart from years ago with all the newest inventions and anything else folks in that era might need.  Then we toured the "Old Jail" that was in the original building from years ago with many period furnishings along with prisoner conditions from those years.

The biggest problem with using the shuttle and trolley service was that we were tied to their schedule.  When ever we got off at an attraction we then had to wait for the next trolley to continue.  While the trolley service schedule was at a fifteen or twenty minute interval we had to ride around the total route to get back to a stop that we wanted to see.


Saint Augustine

give me a bit of time

We have some pictures from today but had a bit of problem getting connected to the web so wait a bit for full upload and comment.

another day in St. Augustine

This is our campsite picture that I took while waiting for the shuttle.

 We hopped on board the shuttle again this morning to check out a few more sites in town.  It turned out that the tour of the oldest house took quite a bit more time than we thought so after that and a trolley ride around town it was time for lunch.  We ate in the Scarlett O'Hara restaurant which was fun and then caught the shuttle back to the campground.  We have tickets for two more museum attractions that are in the plans for tomorrow and also want to visit the alligator farm zoo.

Oldest House

Nice Sunday

The corned beef turned out great, as expected, along with the Guinness.

This morning we caught a shuttle bus from our campground that took us to downtown Saint Augustine where we connected with the "old town trolley" for a "get on - get off" tour of the oldest town in North America.  There were many points of interest but our ticket is good for three days and we will do some different sites in the next couple of days.


Saint Augustine on Sunday

The first major stop that we spent some time and took pictures was the Castillo De San Marco, a fort that protected this area from pirates and other foes.  Another stop was the fountain of youth.  We both drank from the spring but didn't feel any relief from any aches and pains.  In our next venture back on the tour we plan to see the "oldest house" and want to visit the Alligator farm zoo, stay tuned.

Erin go bragh

And a very happy Saint Patty's day to all.

While we were out yesterday I made sure to pick up some Guinness for today's celebration of the patron saint of the engineers.  Jo usually does a corned beef brisket in the crock pot but since she didn't bring the crock pot she is going to try to make use of the convection oven.  It will be an experience but I'm sure it will work out well. We don't plan to do much running around today so she can babysit the slow cooking process in a device that was designed to be much faster than regular ovens.

beach and lighthouse

This morning we took a short drive to the coast and beach area near our campground.  There was no direct access to the beach from where we parked but we did get a few pictures.  The sand was clean and packed so walking or biking didn't leave any prints.  There were several sun-bathers and a few trying to surfboard but there weren't any large waves.

Then we went to the lighthouse.  It was quite a climb so Jo stayed on the ground while I huffed and puffed my way to the top.  Jo did get some flower pictures around the grounds.



Saint Augustine Beach

The Ides of March

Enjoy (not beware) the Ides of March.  It was a very pleasant day's drive today across northern Florida and we are now set for this next week in St. Augustine Beach.  We set up this trip to get to some warmer temperatures than March in Missouri.  When I checked the weather this morning it was 3 degrees warmer in Holts Summit than it was in Chattahoochee where we were.  Oh well, Holts Summit doesn't have palm trees and Spanish moss.

We don't have big plans for exploring this area except for a couple of seafood dinners where it is really fresh from the sea.  St. Augustine claims to be the oldest city in the US so I'm sure there will be other points of interest so stay tuned.

Wednesday 3/14/12

Another calm day before we head to the East Coast of Fla. and our stay for the next week.

Yesterday I tried to update the software on my MiFi internet connection and had problems.  After a call to the Verizon 800 help line it was decided that I needed a new SIM card so this morning we headed to Tallahassee and a Verizon Wireless store.  It was only a 30 mile each way run so an easy "back by noon" outing.  After installing the new SIM card I was able to check the software to find that I have the latest version and no upgrade is necessary.

a calm day

Today was a very calm or lazy day.  This morning we needed to find a grocery so we took miss Navi's (her last name is gator) advice  and headed out.  The first grocery we found was an IGA and when we got there it was no longer operating so we headed to the next on the list, a Piggly Wiggly and there we started our shopping for the list.  We couldn't find all that we wanted in that store and settled for a bit less than we wanted and then went in search for a dollar general store.  Following the GPS on the way to the Family Dollar we passed a Winn Dixie so pulled in and found that it was a much larger store with all of the items that were on our list including the beef brisket for St. Patty's day.  Jo found what she wanted at the Family Dollar and then we were back to the trailer for lunch.

This afternoon I tried to update the software on my new internet connection MiFi but soon became frustrated.  I called Verizon help line and spent quite some time with their assistance without any resolution.  Tomorrow I will find a local VZW store and see what I can do to help with our internet connection.

No pictures but we saw a lot of nice / beautiful azaleas, dogwood, and wisteria in lawns along the way.

Arrived in Florida

We're set up now for a couple of days of rest after three days of driving.  I'm sorry that there wasn't a post yesterday but apparently we didn't have a strong enough data signal from Verizon so I didn't have a computer connection.  We had voice signal enough for the phone to work with just enough data signal to get connected but not for anything to work. ;-(

We have sure enjoyed the drive all the way from home to here for the flowers that we saw advancing the  further south we came.  From West Plains  to Memphis there were fruit trees like wild plum, wild cherry, and then apple, pear, and peach in yards along the way.  From Memphis to Birmingham there were redbuds in bloom.  Between Birmingham and Montgomery we began to see dogwood and azaleas.  South of Montgomery there have been many azaleas and some wisteria.

We have been accumulating a shopping list these past couple of days so here in Chattahoochee we will find a grocery and take care of those few items that we didn't think about before departure.

First day out for this year of travel

It felt good to be back in the saddle again.  There were no problems making the drive but during the set-up at the campground it seemed like we were having to learn all over again what needed to be done and get back in the groove.  I'm sure that we will figure it all out before the summer is over.

We found out that our bedroom clock had decided to not function this year.  It was supposed to set itself automatically but wouldn't allow us to even set it manually.  I hadn't planned on unhitching but it wasn't any problem to unhook and make a run to the nearby WalMart.  While we were out I fueled up so don't have that to take care of in the morning.

Tomorrow we head southeastward to our campground just south of Birmingham, AL.

Here We Go

I still want to adopt that dog from the Bud Lite commercials.

Basically we are all re-stocked and ready to roll.  We just have the after-breakfast stuff to load in the fridge and we are off.  Tomorrow we head to Marion, AR which is just a bit NW of Memphis along I-55.  We are looking forward to getting back on the road with several planned outings for this year, stay tuned.

de-winterizing

With the last few days of mild temperatures we have opened up the trailer and begun the process of getting it ready for next Saturday and the beginning of this season of travels.  On Saturday the 10th we are on our way toward the east coast of Florida at St. Augustine Beach.

Stay tuned to this blog for details and pictures.