On January 13th, we celebrated the three year anniversary of our full-timing lifestyle. We have seen an incredible amount of the country but there is so much more. Here’s our three years “by the numbers”.
How many different places have you stayed at? 151
How long did you stay at each location? An average of 1 week (shortest 1 night; longest just short of 5 months)
On a travel day, how far did you drive? An average of 143 miles (shortest 25 miles; longest 274 miles). We aren’t in a hurry!
How much did you pay for a campsite per night? An average of $22 (lowest $0 [when volunteering]; highest $101 [Florida Keys]). Without our volunteer stays, the average would have been $31/night.
How much did it cost to drive the motorhome? One dollar got us about 3.4 miles on down the road. If you include maintenance costs, one dollar got us 2.4 miles.
How fast did you drive the motorhome? On interstates we typically went about 60 mph. But the three year average is 40 mph (includes all types of roads, stoplights, etc.)
How many states have you stayed at least overnight in? 36
How many states have you driven through without staying overnight? 5
How many more states do you plan to put on your map in 2019? 5 (NC, MI, ND, ID, UT)
How many national parks have you visited over the three years? 11
Between the two of you, how much volunteer time have you contributed? 2250 hours (that’s equivalent to over 1 year of a full time job!)
How many places have you volunteered at? 3 – two state parks (AZ and FL) and an Army Corps of Engineers dam in WA
How many days have you regretted choosing this lifestyle? Zero!
Three Year Anniversary
Festival of Lights and Biscotti Baking Brings on the Holiday Spirit
This country is huge and there is so much we want to see that we don’t often retrace our steps or go back to places we’ve been, but we did just that on this trip through Florida. Stephen Foster Cultural Center and State Park is one place we’ll be happy to return to again and again. There on the banks of the Ol’ Suwanee River we know we are going to love our campsite and have a whole beautiful park to enjoy. And we were there at the perfect time of year – the Festival of Lights.
Our first day of walking around the park, we saw many of the light displays just being constructed, and then on our last day all the displays were up and lit – Charlie Brown, Dr. Seuss, alligators, trains, boats, snow people and reindeer all come to life and light every night of the holiday season.
Our last night at Stephen Foster was the debut night of the Festival of Lights – a special evening planned for the local sponsors… and lucky us. The lights are not spectacular. They are simple and nice – in perfect harmony with the folklore of the area and the simple renditions of Christmas Carols and Foster songs ringing from the carillon bell tower. Just a sweet way to start our holidays.
Carillion Tower all decorated
Once again, we said a reluctant good-bye to Stephen Foster State Park – grateful for a nice five night visit with just a little rain.
Next stop – Orlando Thousand Trails RV Park. We had a whole week at this park – also a return trip for us. It is a great place to enjoy the many tortoises wandering out of their burrows, the lovely graceful egrets and cranes, the great laundry facilities and easy access to shopping.
I started my holiday biscotti baking just in time to give some away to the friends we encountered in this area of Florida. Just by coincidence, our friends Crystal and Jase from Tucson happened to be at a conference nearby, so we met them for dinner at Fresco Italiano Cucina for a great dinner and conversation. The next day we had lunch with Lynn, a volunteer friend from Kartchner Caverns. We had a long pleasant lunch at Anise in Tampa. It was too cold and windy to do much exploration of Tampa but it was wonderful to catch up with Lynn.
Tampa River Walk – it was breezy and cold!
We made a one-night stop at John Dickinson State Park, which is a really nice park we hope to visit again. We had just enough time there to make more biscotti.
Then we arrived at our next volunteer job at Oleta River State Park on Friday, December 7th. We fought our way through heavy crazy traffic in the North Miami Beach area and then pulled into the park entrance. Only a short ride into the park and we were in a quiet tropical jungle. Palm trees and thick foliage in a protected mangrove forest. Quite a difference from the towering high rises and crowded roads we had passed.
Our site at Oleta River State Park
As we waited for the Assistant Park Manager to escort us to the site we would be living in for the next three months, a beautiful huge green iguana proudly walked across the dirt road next to us. It was a special moment for us. My brother Mike, who had lived for many years in Miami, had raised his prize iguana, Spike, here. Mike and Spike have passed now but I’m sure that the iguana in the park was a greeting from Mike and Spike – “Welcome to Miami!”
One of the park’s many iguanas
Georgia On Our Minds
Our stop in Georgia was at Forsyth KOA. This KOA was swampy after so much rain and the sites were small lakes (ours didn’t dry up after two days of no rain), but the management gave us three warm chocolate chip cookies when we got there. They also delivered pizza to us that night.
We had a purpose to be in this part of Georgia. About a year and a half ago, we had a steering stabilizing device installed on our RV. The reviews of this device were much better than what Doug experienced. After talking to a Safe-T-Plus representative at an RV show, Doug decided to take his advice and go back to have the factory check our unit. The end result is that we had the upgraded unit put in. The folks there – mechanics and office workers – were exceptionally wonderful to work with. They greeted us warmly, offering beverages and muffins, and made us feel welcome with their pleasant conversations. After a short time, Doug took a test drive while I enjoyed hanging out with the staff. The new unit was put in free of charge, including no fees for installation and extending our warranty. And we left with a canvas goody bag – a Safe-T-Plus cap, a key fob, mug cozy, and a really nice thermal drink holder. The new unit has improved Doug’s driving experience.
A few days later, we traveled on Route 75. In spite of cold rainy weather, it was nice to see all the wildflowers along the highway. We had a few hours of sun as we were driving to Hardeeville, South Carolina and then more rain! So we stayed in the RV once we landed and got a head start on some side dishes for our Thanksgiving Dinner. Doug made a delicious curry which rivals the Thai restaurants we’ve eaten in.
We stayed for a week in Camp Lake Jasper – a really beautiful RV park on a small fishing lake. South Carolina is our 36th state. Our Map of States is really getting filled in! We went to two travel centers to get info on both Savannah, Georgia and Hilton Head, South Carolina.
Our first day to be tourists took us to Savannah where we walked through the cobbled streets, enjoying the architecture of the homes and the green space in the squares. We managed to walk through twelve of the many squares adorning Savannah. We saw the Pirate House, lots of Spanish moss on the oak trees, the Waving Girl statue on the River Walk, and we wandered over the footbridges on Factors Walk. The large Christmas tree was being built and there were many red and gold bows decorating the buildings and light posts. We ate lunch at the Wright Street Café. It was such a nice day in Savannah!
One of the squares in Savannah
A Prohibition mural in Savannah
But the best day came on November 21st when we went to Hilton Head Island and spent the day on Coligny Beach. The lovely, warm sun was on us for hours as we sat on that beautiful beach watching the crazy people playing in the icy water! The sand was spotless and the waves were sparkling. I’m looking forward to more days like this in the sun on a beach!
We finally made it back to the beach!
And then we had a few more days of rain…. Thanksgiving was cool and overcast, but after getting four loads of laundry done in a nice laundry room, we sat down to a really great Thanksgiving Dinner. We gave thanks for our meal, our wonderful family and friends, and our journey (the journey is home).
We ventured out to the quaint little artist community of Bluffton – in more rain. We walked through the streets stopping at the Visitor Center which was in an historic home and in and out of art galleries and gift shops. The Red Piano Gallery had some amazing paintings that were really beautiful local scenes with skies filled with pastel clouds.
One of the old churches in Bluffton. SC
After a few more days of rain, I started to decorate our RV for the holidays and then we left for Florida. Our first stop in Florida is an old favorite – Stephen Foster Cultural Center and State Park. It is our fourth stay there. Hoping for some sunny days.
Filed under Georgia, South Carolina
Kentucky – Mammoth Cave; Alabama for Maintenance
October 30th got us to Diamond RV Park, a Thousand Trails park. We have a membership in Thousand Trails which gives us 30 free nights per year and then a $3 charge per night. We keep evaluating the benefit of this membership. So far, we have been able to make the investment in it work. This park was a really nice one (not all Thousand Trails are) so it was a pleasant stay for the nine days we camped there.
Our first full day in Kentucky was a trip to Campbellsville where we met our friends, Richard and Louise for a nice, long lunch at Colton’s Steakhouse. We met Richard and Louise last year at Las Cruces, NM. We spent a little bit of time there together and promised to keep in touch. While we were volunteering at Kartchner Caverns last winter, they were in nearby Tombstone. We saw them during their tour through the cave. When we realized that we would be fairly close to them in Kentucky, we arranged for this lunch. It was interesting to hear about their current situation – they are working at the huge Amazon Distribution Center. This is a first for them – working while on the road. They are making great money for this holiday season and getting into shape with the constant activity during their 10 hour work shift. They seem to be surviving well, even with four full 10 hour days plus mandatory overtime and working the overnight shift. It gave us something new to think about as we plan our future. It was great to hang out with them and look forward to the next time we meet – wherever that may be.
The cold weather is following us, but it is wonderful to see the lovely fall colors in these pretty Kentucky hills. On Friday, November 2, we went to Mammoth Caves. We have been excited about this cave for a long time. It is mammoth – incredibly large and still being explored. Right now, there are over 400 miles of mapped cave and one interpretive sign suggested that there could be 600 more miles unexplored!
Our first tour was the Historic Tour. The two-hour tour started in the natural entrance in a giant tunnel carved by a long-gone river. Even though the beginning of the tour showed a cave that was hardly untouched, it was fascinating to see the graffiti (now classified as historic writing) and the structures that were built inside the cave to support the mining processes of a century ago. Further along into the “mammoth” cave, we managed hundreds of stairs and long, very tight spaces to be close to the amazing features of limestone. The tour group was over 100 people but the stops at seating areas gave the guide time to explain what we were seeing and gave me time to rest my knees. Loved this tour!
There were some really tight passages on the tour!
It was difficult to take good pictures in the cave!
Climbing out of the cave at the end of the tour
We took a break from cave tours to go back to the history of Lincoln. We drove over to Hodgensville, the site of Lincoln’s birthplace. Inside a huge marble memorial building is a replica of the tiny log cabin, similar to the one Abe was born in. It was a striking contrast to see these two buildings in one spot – a contrast designed to show visitors the humble beginning that morphed into the grandeur of the White House. We have seen so much of Lincoln’s history and have really enjoyed this journey into the life of this president.
The Memorial Building at Lincoln/s Birthplace
Replica of the cabin Lincoln was born in
On Sunday, we went back to Mammoth Cave for the Domes and Dripstones Tour. By the way, tickets for the tours are about $17 for seniors. But with my America the Beautiful Senior Pass we got in for half price each. This is a true bargain for the marvels we got to see. This tour started through a tiny door in a tiny entrance that was dynamited into the sinkhole that formed there naturally. Once you get through the small man-made entrance you immediately go down a tight, spiral staircase of 280 steps, twisting and turning and bending. The stairs were installed within the natural hole – making the trip down breathtaking. The stairs eventually ended with long walks down larger tunnels. I loved this tour – and considering the physical toll it was taking on my body, I kept smiling with joy and wonder to be in this lovely place. We eventually got to part of the cave still dripping and creating beautiful decorations on the floors, walls and ceilings.
“Frozen Niagara” on our second tour
I’ve mentioned the bad weather we have been dealing with. Lots of rain and cold temperatures. But the really bad stuff was the tornado warning we had to deal with one night. We have a weather radio and were carefully watching the local station to determine how close we were to the danger zone. The tornado watch was a large expanse of the state, but the tornado warning seemed to skirt around us. But then suddenly we were in the warning zone. So, we closed the sides of our RV, grabbed our “go bag” with our important paperwork and walked over to the Clubhouse. It was a nice safe cinder block building with inside rooms away from the windows. We watched the storm go by us on television and only heard a few claps of thunder. We were joined in this space with 6 other folks and 3 dogs. I kept my eye on the dogs all of whom seemed pretty calm. I figured they would freak out first, so their complacency made me feel better. No tornado ever touched down that night, but some trees toppled a few miles away. I found myself wishing that I could have sheltered in the cave – the best place to be in tornadoes or earthquakes.
We had a few more days at the campground so we spent one of them in Bowling Green. There was really almost nothing to see or write about regarding this city. But we went to a branch of our bank to make a change to our account, ate at a Saladworks, and went to the Fruit of the Loom Outlet store to shore up our underwear supplies.
The weather continued to be cold and rainy, so we weren’t able to get out on the trails amidst the pretty trees and fallen leaves. We have spent lots of cozy days hanging out in our RV. The one nice day we had turned out to be Election Day. It was still pretty cold. I spent the daytime watching some really mediocre Hallmark Movies and then hunkered down all night to watch the election results.
After another few days of cold and rain and a quick trip to replenish our food supply, we left Mammoth to get to Huntsville. We stayed in a beautiful state park called Monte Sano. Our main purpose in Huntsville was to tour the U.S. Space Center. We spent all of Friday, November 9th, wandering through the exhibits in the giant halls of the center. We both have great interest in this country’s space program. Seeing the rockets, missiles and aircraft on display here added to what we learned at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. We had lunch in the Mars Café and saw an IMAX movie on Extreme Weather. All together a great day – in spite of more rain!
The Pathfinder shuttle orbiter and external fuel tank along with the two solid rocket boosters
We got to Red Bay, Alabama on Saturday. Doug had researched the best times to get to the Tiffin Service Center. His planning paid off. We only had a few things to be looked at. Norris (the key person to get you into the service schedule) visited us early on Monday morning and within a few hours we were called into Bay 10 for Express Service (maximum time is 3 hours). We were done and back in our spot in just under 3 hours – all items taken care of. The service at Tiffin is great and Doug likes being able to stay in the RV and watch the repairs. It gives him information and techniques to keep our RV in tip top shape. I went over to the lounge to check it out and get out of the RV for a few hours. The weather was still too chilly and wet to be outside much.
Since we were lucky to get everything done so quickly, I took advantage of the nice laundry on site to get our clothes in order. I really like this laundry room. Every time I’ve been there, I go through the magazines, brochures, books and CDs. I love reorganizing everything. It makes me feel good to see it all nice and neat when I’m done, and it gives me something to do while the clothes are getting done. There is always someone nice to talk to, lots of reading material, a TV, and really inexpensive washers and dryers. I picked the right time to go and walked the clean clothes back to the RV during the brief time it wasn’t raining.
We left Red Bay – didn’t have enough time there to get out and do anything. Since this was our third visit, the only thing we really wanted to do was check out Muscle Shoals – lots of music history there. But the one day we had available was the rainiest day yet. We couldn’t see sloshing through puddles and getting wet and cold. We know we will be back in Red Bay, so Muscle Shoals will be something to look forward to.
Now we are in Anniston, Alabama in Campground of Oxford, next to Camping World. It’s almost lunch time and we are still trying to decide if we want to go out in the icy cold weather to walk to Camping World. We don’t really need anything, but we like to see their merchandise and sales. It’s so nice to have the option of not having to go out in the cold if we don’t have to! [We did venture out when the rain let up only to have a real downpour as we left the store to walk back. I think this is the first time we’ve used the umbrellas we carry around with us in the car. Other than wet feet, we stayed dry and then spent a warm cozy night in our home with our fireplace “roaring” and warm slippers on our feet.] We leave early tomorrow morning for Forsyth, Georgia.
We are hoping for nicer weather as we head to Georgia tomorrow.
Discoveries in History – More of Illinois and St. Louis
We’ve been traveling along the route taken by the Corps of Discovery in 1805-1806. While we haven’t traveled it in the same order that Lewis and Clark did, their history has been part of our experience. We saw where Sergeant Floyd died from appendicitis. We touched William Clark’s signature etched in the stone of Pompey’s Pillar. We spent a day at Traveler’s Rest in Montana where we walked along the Bitterroot River and saw the campsite the Corps camped in exactly 200 years before our visit. We recently were at Brennan’s Wave on the Clark Fork in Missoula, saw a memorial bridge across the Missouri River in Chamberlain, South Dakota. And, of course, we lived this past summer on the banks of the Snake River close to the city of Pasco where Lewis and Clark first saw the confluence of the Snake and Columbia Rivers.
And now, we saw the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri. The Arch was built to commemorate the westward expansion of the United States made possible by Lewis and Clark.
We were technically still in Illinois – staying as close to St. Louis as we could get in our RV. And our first full day in Granite City, Illinois, we drove a few miles to see the Departure Point. This was the campsite of Lewis and Clark at River Dubois. There is a great museum there complete with a life-size replica of the “keeled” boat as well as the piroques used by the Corps for the first part of their river journey.
We went on a guided ranger tour to see a replica of the fort on the river – the rebuilt rustic buildings formed a small but efficient military-style post where the expedition gathered as a unit before departure.
While in that area, we took a guided tour of the Melvin Price Locks and Dam, built by the Army Corps of Engineers. We can’t help but compare all locks and dams to OUR Ice Harbor Lock and Dam. This dam is on the muddy Mississippi and the barge and ship traffic is much heavier then on the Snake River. But “our” dam stands a proud 100 feet high and traffic through that lock navigate the full 100 feet while the Melvin Price lock is only a few feet high – actually only 8 inches while we were there. But it was a thrill to see a tug push fifteen barges through the lock all at once.
A 15 barge tow entering the lock
It barely fits!
We didn’t waste any more time getting to the Arch. The next day, Monday, October 22, we drove to a Metro Link station to commute into the city. After a short ride, we walked to the Arch where we bought tickets for the movie, depicting the construction and history of the Arch, and tickets for the tram ride to the top. We didn’t get tickets for the boat ride on the Mississippi River right below the Arch – we saved that for another time. The movie was really interesting and was a good start to our visit. The tram ride was great! It is a very well organized attraction, obviously ready for huge crowds. So while we waited for our tram, we took the time to wander through the museum. It was also well organized – with separate halls showing us the construction, the history of St. Louis, and lots more.
The Gateway Arch on the Mississippi River
For the architects and mathematicians!
Then it was time for our tram. We waited at our station for only a few minutes before a guide led us into the pretty tight space we all had to maneuver to enter the tram cars. For those with walking issues beware – there are lots of narrow steps (which you share with many others) and then you walk a bit of a distance. Then there is the tram car. Picture a ferris wheel car – only it is completely enclosed. The only “window” is the tiny glass elevator door through which you enter. This door is 4 feet high. So you walk up a little step, bend down and squeeze into the car which you are sharing with four other people. The best way to handle this is to smile at each other and not mind that all ten of your knees are touching and if you are an adult your head is probably hitting the curved ceiling of the car. You only get to look out of the car for part of the upward journey and then all you see are the endless narrow winding stairs you will have to walk down if the tram mechanism fails. Otherwise there is nothing to see. Until you get to the top. Then you have to get out of the cramped car and squish past everyone waiting to get back on the car while you share the very narrow stair case up more steps to the viewing room. We were there on a day without the usual crowds – only one tram was operating, but we were still shoulder to shoulder with plenty of other tourists. Even so the viewing area was pretty pleasant and in a minute or so you could get next to a window to see the spectacular views. The Mississippi River side is just as amazing as the St. Louis city side. You could stay up there as long as you wanted – and we made sure we got our fill of a view we might not see again. After understanding the construction and being told that a little sway in the arch is common, we thoroughly enjoyed our time in the world’s tallest arch at 630 feet high and the tallest human-made monument in the Western Hemisphere. Another item to check off our bucket list!
View of St. Louis from the top of the arch
We walked through the downtown area of St. Louis to get to Sen, our destination for a Thai lunch – excellent! And then cut through City Garden to see the sculptures as we walked back to our Metro Link stop. A great day in St. Louis!
One of the sculptures in the City Park
Cahokia Mounds in Illinois, not far from our campground, was a step back into history – way before Lewis and Clark. This site was amazing. In 1250 CE, Cahokia was larger than London was at that time. It was one of the greatest cities of the world covering (now) about 3.5 square miles with about 80 mounds. The pre-Columbian Native Americans lived in the plazas amidst the giant mounds – peacefully tending crops and existing in family units. At the height of its population, there were between 10,200 and 15,300 people living in this beautiful place.
The mounds are huge, especially when you consider that the earth was moved from nearby pits in woven baskets and then piled onto the massive platforms. The largest of the mounds, Monks Mound, has four terraces and is ten stories high and is bigger than the largest pyramid in Egypt. A few of the mounds are burial tombs but most of them are simply earthen ceremonial embankments. This is truly a sight to see and now we want to visit other mounds around the country.
Monk’s Mound
We couldn’t resist one more day exploring St. Louis. After a very good vegetarian lunch at Frida’s, we headed to Delmar Loop. As we walked the main street we read the embedded stars in the Walk of Fame, noting the many famous people who call St. Louis home. We took our photos with the statue of Chuck Berry. We gave in to our cravings and stopped at Piccione Pastry Shop. Doug’s ricotta cheesecake and my chocolate chip cannolli were worth every calorie!
Hanging out with Chuck Berry
We had another day to be explorers so we drove over to the Anheuser-Busch Brewery for one of their tours. We took the General Tour since we weren’t interested in becoming brewers ourselves and it was free. We weren’t prepared for the big crowds and almost had to wait 2.5 hours for the tour. But then this nice woman gave us 2 extra tickets for the next tour. Doug wasn’t very complimentary about this tour. It was mostly walking outside between the massive, old red brick buildings in a group of about 40 people. The tour guide spoke quickly into a microphone with no real interest in interacting with her audience. In between the long walks (in the cold rain) we stopped at a few places to hear some information that was garbled into the mike. So Doug’s comments are well taken, but I enjoyed the tour – the buildings were beautiful; we got to see a Clydesdale Horse getting a bath!; the interior of the brewery was beautiful with creamy ivory-colored intricate wrought iron and large portraits under grand chandeliers. At one of the stops you are offered a sample (Bud or Bud Light). Neither of us drink any more and Doug’s gluten issue is not compatible with beer, but I always liked the first sip or two of a nice cold beer so while Doug didn’t take any, I asked for a small “sip”. Everyone else got a filled-to-the-top 4 oz. glass of beer. I got a 3.5 oz glass – of which I took 3 sips. As we passed through to the next stop, my almost-filled cup was one of only a couple that had any liquid left in it. At the end of the tour, we were invited to turn in our stamped tickets to get another sample. I found the lady who gave us her extra tickets and gave her our tickets for two samples. She and her husband were happy to get them. Everyone (crowds and crowds) were walking through the exhibits and gift shop with large glasses of beer. I guess we are truly out of touch.
A Clydesdale getting a bath
I took some time to take advantage of a good laundry at our St. Louis KOA and we spent a few quiet days in the RV, while the damp, cold fall weather rolled around us outside. We checked the forecast and found that a windstorm was heading our way on the Sunday we were planning to leave Granite City. We changed plans and just stayed put that day. Leaving one day late was fine with us and we didn’t have to struggle with high winds on the highway. That left us only spending one night at Lincoln City State Park in Indiana.
This was a beautiful park – with lots of trees in fall colors and a pretty site. It had the added attraction of being right next to Lincoln’s Boyhood Home Memorial Park. We barely parked the rig before we headed over to the memorial park. We were too late for the visitor center and museum but it was the perfect time of day to wander through the forest, crunching on yellow leaves and walking the Trail of Stones. Along this pretty half-mile path are stones from homes and sites from Lincoln’s life. We saw the rebuilt wooden cabin and farm buildings as well as the acres where crops grew during the time Thomas Lincoln made this farm his family home.
Site of the Lincoln Boyhood Home
We got up early the next day to see the visitor center and its museum exhibits. We feel like we have gotten to know the man Abraham Lincoln was rather than the legend. Seeing his humble beginnings, learning about his love of reading and his family values, we now have a truer picture of his greatness. We hope to get to his birthplace in Kentucky.
The Lincoln Museum in Indiana
But our main reason for our next stop is Mammoth Caves! The largest cave system – and one we have been wanting to see. Kentucky – Land of the Unbridled Spirit – here we come! Another new state for us!
New States – Minnesota and Wisconsin; Plus the Land of Lincoln
We only spent one night in Minnesota but it was special for us since it marks the 33rd state we’ve overnighted in. It has been almost exactly one year since we last visited a new state on our trip. Last October we stayed in New Mexico for the first time as full time RVers.
After our quick stay in Minnesota, we arrived in Wisconsin – State number 34! We pulled into Stand Rock Campground and then realized we were in for bad, bad weather. Rain, hail, ferocious wind, and a tornado warning less than 10 miles from us! It was scary, but we made it through the night safely. We kept an eye on the nearby rivers which were at record highs. We learned that some of the folks in our campground were there because their homes had been flooded and the campground hosts were letting them stay there at very reduced rates. Again – nice to know that people help each other.
It was cold and rainy, but we wanted to venture out to the waterpark capital of the world – Wisconsin Dells. It’s kind of like Branson, MO – huge resorts with even huger water features and all kinds of family-style attractions to go along with them. We were off season so no crowds and free parking.
We were in Wisconsin – had to buy cheese! And the cheese did not disappoint, especially the aged cheddar – yum! We had lunch at Mac’s where Doug got a skillet of potatoes prepared like mac and cheese and I had a creamy traditional mac and cheese with chipotle chicken – a delight! After a very cheesy and filling lunch, we went to another cheese store and bought more cheese.
On Friday, October 12th, the weather improved so we went back to Wisconsin Dells for Moosejaw Pizza – they make their own gluten free crust and brew their own root beer. We wandered through an antique and craft mall, went to a second-hand store to donate a few items and shop for new shirts, and then did some food shopping.
Enjoying Craft Root Beer at Moosejaw Pizza
On Saturday, we dropped stuff off at the Post Office for the grandkids for Halloween, went back to Wisconsin Dells for another trip to a cheese store for, yes, more cheese and even a little candy. The campground had a good laundry, so I even caught up there.
After leaving Wisconsin, we spent one night in the La Salle/Peru KOA in North Utica, Illinois.
On October 15th, we got to Double J Campground in Springfield – the capitol of Illinois. I came down with a stomach bug and lost two days of my life confined to bed, but Springfield and Abraham Lincoln sites await!
I did recover and enjoyed our days in the Land of Lincoln. We stopped at the Visitor’s Center which turned out to be a good first stop. With a good city map and a helpful guide, we plotted out our days of checking out the many Lincoln sites. Plus, the guide gave us a guest pass to park any where in the city for free. It is a good city to walk around and the weather was cold but sunny. So, we had a busy schedule – first stop – The Lincoln Presidential Museum. It was amazing! Worth every bit of the $12 entry fee we paid. It is an extensive look at Lincoln’s life – starting at a reproduction of the log cabin he was born in and lived in as a child. One guide mentioned that Disney contributed to the design of the museum and you could feel that in the excellence, imagination and technology throughout.
At the Lincoln Presidential Museum
Walking into the first section of the museum, we heard Obama’s voice. It was a special presentation that highlighted the four Illinois presidents – Lincoln, Grant, Reagan and Obama. Reagan and Obama’s taped speeches were broadcasted while you read the Lincoln and Grant speeches.
There was another section – the White House – with a beautiful display of Mary Todd Lincoln’s and her friends’ gowns. So lovely! It was really fascinating to sit in a small theater section and watch Tim Russert (now deceased) on a simulated TV news broadcast relating the election of 1860 – with descriptions of each of the four candidates’ platforms and bios. Very cool!
At the Lincoln Presidential Museum in Springfield, Illinois
There was a corridor filled with strangely-framed political cartoons showing how harsh were the criticisms of Lincoln. A guide told us that after the Museum was dedicated, President George W. Bush toured through it and liked this display the best – reveling in the fact that the press treated Lincoln with more disdain than they treated him.
The movie – Through the Eyes of Lincoln – was a portrayal of the small and major events that formed the life Lincoln lived through. It was moving, personal and new insight into his life and personality. Walking through a long corridor with holographic images of men and women yelling their diatribes about the Emancipation Proclamation, made you aware of the difficult road Lincoln’s vision had to go through.
We ate lunch at Café Moxo – gluten free mac and cheese with beans for Doug and a wonderful chicken salad sandwich with pasta salad for me. We saw the art displays in the Lincoln Library and then visited the Old State Capitol building. It was a good day of lots of walking and seeing interesting stuff.
Old Capitol in Springfield
Senate Chamber in the Old Capitol
On Thursday, we toured the Lincoln Home – the one he lived in for 17 years with Mary Todd and his sons. Springfield was supportive of his law practice and the children and his wife had a good life there. The home is lovingly preserved and the tour itself was great with the added advantage that the original neighborhood has been refurbished too so we walked along the streets checking out the other homes also.
Lincoln Home
We made sure to see the inside of the new State Capitol Building. The outside dome is beautiful – silvery – which turns out to be zinc. We immediately were happy we stopped in – the first floor with its intricate, French-inspired décor takes your breath away and looking up at the magnificent stained glass inside the zinc dome was incredible. We toured with a very informative guide, Cassy. She took us up and around the rotunda on the upper floors and gave us details about the construction of the building as well as the business that happens within it. While walking through one of the side halls, we were unexpectedly met by a small contingent of official-looking men. One of them was Jesse White, the current Secretary of State. He greeted the 3 of us on the tour, asked where we were from and then invited us into his office – the largest, most ornate office we have ever seen – and the largest office in the building. Secretary White is quite a character – took over the tour (which astounded Cassy) and showed us walls and walls of memorabilia of his very active life. He showed us his photos of when he was an airman and jumped from planes, his career in baseball, his political life and his current passion – a charity aerobic team. He showed us the art work in his office – spectacular! – and was just amazingly hospitable to us. We thanked him for his time and service and walked past his many secretaries and body guards who were not too sure what had just happened. We thought Secretary White was by far the highlight of our day!
New State Capitol
Looking up at the Dome
We stopped at Lincoln’s Tomb – a beautiful monument to him. Walking through the tomb and then through the cemetery on such a nice fall day was just perfect!
The Lincoln Tomb
Lincoln’s Final Resting Place
Our last day in Springfield was spent touring the Dana-Thomas House built by Frank Lloyd Wright. We’ve seen a few of Wright’s homes but this one was bigger and more elaborate than some of the others. It had 16 levels with over 40 separate “spaces” (not really rooms) and the features had touches of oriental influences combined with Wright’s nature-centric designs. The tour was free (donation suggested) and lasted about 40 minutes. This is one Wright house not to be missed.
Dana-Thomas House designed by Frank Lloyd Wright
We will still be in Illinois technically for the next week – but we will be touring through St. Louis, Missouri. I’ve never seen the Arch or been in St. Louis so there is much to look forward to!
Return to South Dakota
We returned to South Dakota, to a nice campground we had been to before – Heartland RV Resort in Hermosa. At this campground the hosts gave us ice cream sandwiches! A first in over 130 campgrounds. So nice!
We spent our first day in Hermosa watching the Senate Judiciary Hearing. It was a difficult day. In the late afternoon we made a quick trip to stock up on food and I used the convenient laundry at the campground. Life goes on.
On Friday, we went to Wind Cave. Our tour guide greeted us and we were pleasantly surprised to find that it was Ranger Ben from Kartchner Caverns. Ben gives a great tour – entertaining and filled with info. We caught up with him over lunch. Ben’s on his way to Kartchner Caverns for the winter where he will bring our greetings to all our friends there.
Deep in the cave!
Wind Cave is known for its box work cave formations
After our great tour of Wind Cave which took us deep into a huge cave by way of over 700 steps, we visited Mammoth Site. This site has hundreds of mammoth bones – both Columbian and Wooly mammoth species. These big guys wandered into a muddy pool once upon a time and then couldn’t climb over the slippery edges so their remains remain intact there. Many of the bones are perfectly preserved in almost full skeletal bodies. Incredible!
Mammoth Skeleton
We couldn’t pass up a chance to revisit Custer State Park. Our plan was get up at dawn and see the annual Buffalo Round Up. In this event, ranchers herd the bison into corrals. Since the herds are doing well, in order to keep them healthy and thriving, the ranchers cull them. They remove the old and sick bison who are then auctioned off – yes, to make bison burgers.
Well, we never really saw dawn that morning. A quick peek out our bedroom window showed us rain and the low temperatures convinced is to stay in bed. We did drive the Wildlife Loop later in the day and saw the bison up close in the corrals. We went to the Arts Festival in the Park and met up with the Democrats at their booth. We talked to them and they gave us information on voting for our State and Local candidates. We mailed in our ballots a few days later.
Bison inside the corral
I’m a little ashamed to state that I chose this opportunity to try my first bison burger at the festival. It was pretty much like any cheeseburger I’ve eaten.
October started with a fun but busy day for us. We went to the D.C. Historic Fish Hatchery in Spearfish Canyon, where we would love to volunteer one summer. We enjoyed the interpretive guides the last time we were here and this time we met with the Volunteer Coordinator, who answered our questions and interviewed us for the positions. We did our best to impress her and her staff and we’re hoping this gig works out in our future. We saw the really nice camping sites along the Spearfish River in the Volunteer Village of the nearby city campground. Looks like a great place to spend the summer!
Fish Viewing Window at DC Booth Fish Hatchery
We ate another great Mexican lunch at Barbacosa’s and explored Downtown Spearfish. Then we went on a beautiful two mile hike to Roughlock Falls. The weather was perfect – just a little cool but sunny.
Roughlock Falls in Spearfish Canyon
We made a little detour to Belle Fourche, SD. This is the designated center of the United States. Of course to be the center you have to include Alaska and Hawaii. There is an impressive monument where you can stand in the center and of course, take a photo in what seems to be the center of the country, but this monument is about 20 miles south of the actual center, which is inaccessible because it is on private property. We met a couple there from Pittsburgh and they took our photo and we took theirs. The Tri-State Museum (SD, MT, WY) on the property was closed so we will visit it another time.
Standing at the geographic center of the US
It was a good stay in Hermosa but we heard that a wind storm was coming our way. So we left extra early on Wednesday morning. The winds were increasing but Doug was managing on the highway. We stopped for just a few minutes at a rest stop. The wind storm caught up with us. I almost couldn’t walk back to the RV and in minutes after we got back on the highway, we heard a loud slapping sound along our driver’s side roof.
There was no way to stop along the highway. Luckily there wasn’t much traffic. We crawled along the shoulder at ten miles per hour to the first turn off. We pulled into a KOA campground and I spoke to the owner. He was closing down the campground for the season and was busy trying to get the few remaining campers out of the park so he could leave too. He directed us to a large dirt parking area not too far away.
We limped into the dirt lot where a cattle car, another big truck and a small Class C were already huddled there. The wind was crazy – bad enough to rock our RV. Doug could see that the problem was the slide topper – a flap of awning material that serves as a cover to protect our slides when they are opened out. The arm that prevents it from unrolling in the wind must have come unscrewed in the wind.
Doug called Tiffin (our RV manufacturer) for advice and together they came up with a repair with a wire coat hanger that we thought would work. But no way could he climb up to the roof or use a ladder in that wind. So we hunkered down in the 1880 Town Parking Lot. We were just across the street from a local historic attraction with a gas station and convenience store.
Just to complicate things a bit, our tire sensor beeped us a message that our car’s tire was leaking. We probably picked up a nail riding along the highway shoulder. Doug walked to the convenience store where he got directions to a place in the next town where he could get the tire changed. The wind and rain had mercifully died down just enough for us to unhitch and put the spare on. So Doug drove off to the town of Murdo. I stayed in the rocking RV trying to quell my anxiety by crocheting.
When he came back with a fixed tire we re-hitched in the rain and walked over to the convenience store. We spoke to the really nice owner who graciously told us not to worry about the No Overnight Parking – You Will Be Towed signs. He invited us to stay the night – free. We do meet the nicest people! We bought some snacks in the store, went back into the RV without opening the sides, ate junk food and spent a safe, cozy night in the dirt lot.
By morning, all the other RVs and trucks were gone and so was most of the wind and rain. I held the ladder; Doug made a secure repair and we were soon on our way again. We never made it to our reserved site in Kennebec but were instead on our way to Sioux Falls.
We traveled to Sioux Falls along I-90. Before we got there, we stopped at a rest stop in Chamberlain to see the Statue of Dignity – Of Earth and Sky. It is a beautiful fifty foot stainless steel sculpture by Dale Lamphere to honor the cultures of the Lakotas and Dakotas. It serves as a symbol of respect and promise for the future. It was installed to celebrate the 125th anniversary of South Dakota’s statehood in 2016. It is beautiful, impressive and even has colored LED lights at night. Along the view of the Missouri River right behind Dignity is a Lewis and Clark marker detailing the construction of the Memorial Bridge spanning the river. Needless to say, it was one of the best rest stops we have been in.
Statue of Dignity
Sioux Falls is our city of residence. It’s where we get our mail and do our banking. So we made a quick trip to Falls Park. Our plan was to eat soup and bread in the café overlooking the falls. We remembered our last delicious lunch there. We also remembered the bitter cold there. Alas, the café was closed for a private party and we had to settle for lunch somewhere else. The falls are certainly worth seeing but hopefully next time we will be there when we can enjoy a nice walk without shivering. The rock formations which create the falls through the Big Sioux River are Sioux Quartzite. It’s silica-cemented sandstone – the oldest exposed rocks in South Dakota. The rocks are all squared-cornered which is unusual for rocks pounded by a fast flowing river. The Big Sioux River has flowed over these rocks for over 10,000 years but the rocks show little signs of erosion.
Sioux Falls
After a pretty but cold walk by the falls, we ran some errands. We picked up our mail at Dakota Post, giving us a chance to thank the staff there for the excellent mail service they provide to us. We went to our Sioux Falls Credit Union to make some changes to our account, visited Democratic Headquarters, found a well-stocked kitchen store for a few supplies and then did some food shopping.
Just a note – most places like banks in South Dakota don’t celebrate Columbus Day. They instead celebrate Native American Day.
It was a short but productive trip to Sioux Falls and we said good-bye to South Dakota on Monday, October 8.
Filed under South Dakota
Montana and Wyoming – Mountains, History, Big Sky
We love Montana! Coming into it from the West you first go through the mountains – the Purcell Mountains and then as you get to the eastern part of the state it is the wide expanses of grassy plains. The air is clear; the sky is as big as “they” say it is and you see more cattle than buildings.
Our first stop was in Missoula – a favorite city of mine. We stayed at Jim and Mary’s RV Park again. It’s one of the prettiest campgrounds we’ve been in. In between the sites are beautifully groomed flowers in antique pieces. Our fellow volunteers at Kartchner Caverns, Bill and Terri, get some of the credit for this pretty RV Park since they work camp there.
Missoula has a great downtown area and this time we checked out the Montana Natural History Museum where we saw displays of wildlife taxidermy and an excellent movie on the Cataclysmic Ice Age Floods and the geological history of the prehistoric Lake Missoula. This museum was along the River Walk in Cara’s Park. We checked out the Lewis and Clark markers next to Brennan’s Wave, a small waterfall on the Clark Fork (of the Columbia River).
Brennan’s Wave
Mural in downtown Missoula
We also went to Elk Country to learn about the conservation programs that keep the elk herd healthy. We are not hunters and as long-time vegetarians and animal rights people our opinions of the “sport” of hunting seems diametrically opposite but it was good for us to learn how hunting contributes significantly to conservation and protection efforts. Elk Country has beautiful displays, great information and all the proceeds from its gift shop go towards its goal of conservation.
Inside the Elk Country museum
We followed up this attraction with a walk around downtown Missoula. We stopped in the Jeannette Rankin Peace Center and Olive Branch Fair Trade Store. Jeannette Rankin is one of my heroes. She was a force for peace and women’s rights and showed enormous courage both times she served in the Senate. It’s very comforting to stand at least for a few minutes in a place that honors peace.
Jeannette Rankin
We hung out for a while, checking out other shops, and then stopped at the Tuesday evening Farmers Market on Higgins Street, looking for huckleberries and Candy Girl melons. We loved the neat displays of local growers and picked up tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, scallions and a sweet cantaloupe. Unfortunately, no huckleberries or Candy Girl melons in sight.
After Missoula, we traveled to Bozeman, another city with a nice downtown area. Bozeman is the largest city in Montana but still seems quiet and more a typical University town. We made sure to visit the Museum of the Rockies on the University of Montana Campus – in our opinion, the best dinosaur exhibits we have ever seen. This museum is responsible for some landmark discoveries, especially in the nearby areas where geological events have exposed acres of dinosaur bones. We also went to the planetarium show on Dark Matter – giving us an all new perspective as we gaze upward.
Museum of the Rockies
One more stop in Montana – Garryowen!
Garryowen is a truly unique town with a population of 2. It has one building which is a town hall, a post office, the Custer Battlefield Museum and gift shop, and a gas station with a Subway shop. When it was put up for sale in 2012 no one bid on it, but it is somehow still thriving today.
Quite a strange name – Garryowen. It turns out that the 7th Calvary of the Civil War had a favorite marching song – the Irish ballad called “Garryowen.” One other strange fact about Garryowen is that it is the site of the skeletal remains of a Calvary soldier, who eerily has no head. They recovered buttons and bullets that document him a bit. On the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Little Bighorn, his body was re interred in a burying ceremony. He was buried with a hatchet peace pipe and tomahawk – hence the phrase “burying the hatchet”.
We didn’t have time to see The Center Pole, a straw bale earth lodge, on Buffalo Indian Trustland on the Crow Reservation (Crows in this area are also known as the Apsaalooke), But we did learn that a famous resident of Garryowen was Henry Real Bird – the Poet Laureate of Montana.
We stayed at 7th Ranch Campground. By climbing up a small hill near our site, you could view Little Bighorn Battlefield. At the top of this hill was a flag with painted rocks around the base. I like to paint rocks so we left one with our names to mingle with the others.
On Saturday, we went to Little Bighorn Battlefield. We had been there on our first visit to Montana, but it is a place that is certainly worth visiting more than once. The interpretive guides are impressive – with extensive knowledge combined with a sense of drama that makes for a vivid portrayal of this epic battle. On the short ride home, we stopped at the Garryowen gift store and bought some postcards.
Memorial at the Little Bighorn Battlefield
That was our last stop in Montana. Our travels brought us to All Seasons Campground where Oslen the owner stopped by to give us visitor information and help us with our stay. Oslen told us all about the war between the sheep ranchers and the cattle ranchers. And he talked about an historic gun that was part of his family heritage. This was a really small campground – instead of numbers, the sites were marked with letters and they only got part way through the alphabet. This campground was in another little town – Rozet. Wyoming. This town had a population of 25, Wyoming’s least populous town.
It was good to be in Wyoming again – the Equality State with the motto “Equal Rights”. The scenery is western wheat-grass prairie – with as big a sky as Montana. Rozet is near a much bigger city – Gillette. We had already been to Devil’s Tower so on our one day in Wyoming we checked out downtown Gillette. We had a good lunch at Las Margaritas (you can find good Mexican food anywhere in this country!) We visited the Rockpile Museum. There we spoke with the woman at the front desk. Her personal history of her work in the quarry as a young girl was amazing and gave us even more insight into the interesting historic displays.
The Rockpile Museum namesake
It was a quick stop in Wyoming this time. We left Wyoming on Wednesday to return to our home state of South Dakota.
On the Road Again
Our good-bye to Charbonneau Park on Friday, September 14th, took a little bit longer than expected. Doug noticed what he thought was a leak by the oil filter as we were about to pull out of our site. So we took a quick detour to Jim’s where the oil filter had recently been replaced. While our rig was being checked out, we ate lunch at Pizza Hut where Doug can get a good Udi’s gluten free pizza. When all was well again, we headed to Spokane – a relatively short distance for our first trip in four months.
We stopped at the Sprague Lake Rest Stop on I-90 E for a walk, a beautiful view and a snack. We knew we were getting close to the Spokane KOA when we recognized the Sikh Temple on Baker Road. It’s a beautiful white building with bright yellow trim and the message “God is One”.
View from the Sprague Lake rest stop
On Saturday, we had a great lunch at Central Food in Spokane with Megan, Jodi and Evan. It gave us time to catch up, meet Evan for the first time and enjoy good food and good company. As we said good-bye to the three of them we realized that for our next few months it will be just the two of us.
So now it’s Sunday morning and Johnny and Willie are singing in my head:
Here we go, on the road again
Like a band of Gypsies
We go down the highway.
We’re the best of friends
Insisting that the world
Keeps turning our way…
Going places that I’ve never been
Seeing things that I may never
See again
And I can’t wait to get on the road again!
As we pass into the panhandle of Idaho, with lovely Lake Coeur d’Alene on my right, large purple mountains ahead of me and months of long roads to travel, I mused a bit on those words.
First, I am not sure I want to use the word Gypsies any more – what might have felt okay to say in 1980 doesn’t feel right any more. But the other words fit us so well. Due to the size of our motor home, we mostly travel on highways – it’s safer for us. We leave exploring the bucolic back roads for our day trips in our car. And that’s not saying that our highways aren’t beautiful. I have a ring-side seat to the unending magnificence of our country. I-90 is a treasure, especially the stretch in Montana where we followed the Clark Fork River as it curved and meandered through the mountains and passes.
Doug and I are best friends. Living like this you have to be. With only rare moments apart, we live our lives synced together. It’s a loving, intimate, ultimate friendship kind of arrangement. It’s a lifestyle that we’ve grown into – melded together – that brings us joy and peace every day.
We often reflect on the fact that the people we meet on the road are genuinely happy – and why not? They are doing what they want to do too and if they’ve been on the road together for a while they most likely started out as best friends too.
And the world does seem to be turning our way whether we insist on it or not. We are grateful every day for the opportunity to turn this dream of ours into reality. The only hard part is missing our family. But given that they are located all across the country from each other, we would always be missing someone. At least this way, when we do meet we usually have long, quality times together.
So going places that we’ve never been and realizing that we may not come back again makes our journey a mindful experience of focusing on the present and celebrating our moments with genuine fullness.
That’s why my heart is smiling as we get on the road again!
Filed under Idaho, Washington
Last Blog Post from Ice Harbor Lock and Dam
It’s September 7th and we have exactly one week left at Ice Harbor Lock and Dam in the Tri-Cities area of Washington.
Ice Harbor Lock and Dam
Our tours at the Dam have been a great experience for us. We have met people from all over the world and learned so much from them – the fish they see at home, the dams they’ve visited, the travel adventures they have had. Doug and I have perfected our presentations, added new information as we learned it and found new ways to share it. We definitely enjoy the interpretive side of volunteering.
The temperature here stayed at Tucson, AZ levels for June, July and August – 100+ degrees many days and dry. No rain since the little sprinkle in May. But we like that kind of summer. It was the weeks of smoke and haze that hung over the Columbia River Basin through most of August that kept us indoors as much as possible. The smoke brought air quality to dangerous and very dangerous for days.
You can’t blame the Tri-Cities area and Charbonneau Park for rampant wildfires – some of the smoke drifted our way from over 500 fires burning in British Columbia, some from California, Oregon and some were local.
Our campsite at Charbonneau Park
But nothing was as bad as the spiders! We were annoyed the first month or two by the small spiders and their webs which were all over our RV and car and picnic table. Annoyed, but still able to sit outside in our lovely campsite with a view of the beautiful Snake River.
Then by August, those tiny spiders grew to a size that made outdoor life intolerable for me. And, to keep me sane, Doug has spent many hours brushing off webs so I can exit and enter the RV, walking in front of me as we go into the Visitor Center through Gauntlet of Spiders, and keeping a vigilant eye on the sanctity of our motor home.
We haven’t enjoyed the outdoors in six weeks. I got 2 wasp stings at a movie night three weeks ago and somehow, 2 nights ago, one large black spider appeared on my leg while I was sitting at our table. I really freaked out!
Today, after Doug destroyed 2 wasp nests in our RV side mirrors and brushed a path through spiders and their webs, I could sit outside writing this. Still not really relaxed, but I needed some Vitamin D!
This spider infestation apparently happens every year. So in spite of the other good things about our summer, we will not be returning here during any summer months in our future.
We had a good time when Bev and Barry came to visit us. We loved their brand new trailer and truck. Wishing them many happy and safe travels and looking forward to more camping with them soon.
Our son-in-law’s grandparents, JoAnn and Larry from Wanatchee, came to visit us for a day. And after we leave here, we visit his sister, Megan (who is a daughter-in-heart to us) in Spokane.
We had a wonderful five day trip to Portland to visit our children and grandchildren and other family, especially Doug’s dad, Creighton, whose 96th birthday all 21 of us celebrated at the Old Spaghetti Factory. It was a treat to spend time with Doug’s brother Nelson and his wife Lydia from W. Bloomfield, Michigan. We lived vicariously through them by seeing the CDs of their amazing National Geographic trip to Antarctica and Easter Island. Penguins! Icebergs! Huge iconic stone statues! Wow!
96 years young!
My dad with some of his great-grandkids
This part of our journey has included 4 friends and 9 family members visiting with us and the 19 family members we visited in Portland. Such good times!
We will work three more days in the Visitor Center – our Saturday Movie Nights at Hood Park are over. We have a dinner planned with our co-volunteers at Sterling’s in Kennewick and a lunch get-together with the Rangers and Volunteers next Wednesday. We have some cleaning and packing up to do for getting back on the road.
We have already started planning our excursion across the country – to Florida by way of Chicago. Doug has made reservations through the rest of September, most of October, November and December. We have left some days/weeks open for whatever might happen. I have added to my ever-growing data base of places to see. Sharing adventure stories with the folks we meet usually means adding new ideas to this data base.
There is a whole country out there and we are determined to see it!
“The journey is the reward.” An old Chinese proverb.
Filed under Washington