Saturday, October 21, 2006
Friday, October 20, 2006
Ed and Carol Lazy Daze Travels
Ed and Carol Lazy Daze Travels
ON THE ROAD AGAIN.
We left home on October 17th for a three week trip. Our first trip since my heart attack and stroke in Rock Springs, WY on June 13th of this year. At this point I can't walk well at all or use my right arm. Ed & I practiced at home getting into and out of the motorhome. I manage just fine. I have a small electric scooter I use to get around the campground. It works very well. On the 17th we spent the night at the Stephen Foster State Park near Live Oak, FL. On the 18th we met with 20 other people at a Lazy Daze rally at the F.D. Roosevelt State Park near Pine Mountain Georgia. Having just a wonderful time. It's wonderful to be out of the house and travelling again.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN.
We left home on October 17th for a three week trip. Our first trip since my heart attack and stroke in Rock Springs, WY on June 13th of this year. At this point I can't walk well at all or use my right arm. Ed & I practiced at home getting into and out of the motorhome. I manage just fine. I have a small electric scooter I use to get around the campground. It works very well. On the 17th we spent the night at the Stephen Foster State Park near Live Oak, FL. On the 18th we met with 20 other people at a Lazy Daze rally at the F.D. Roosevelt State Park near Pine Mountain Georgia. Having just a wonderful time. It's wonderful to be out of the house and travelling again.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Sept. 15, 2006
We are going out in moterhome in Oct. I'm recoved from a stoke
I HAD ON JUNE 13. I'll keep you posted. Carol
I HAD ON JUNE 13. I'll keep you posted. Carol
Monday, June 12, 2006
June 11 and 12 Ed and the Bear
Sunday, June 11, 2006
This morning was bright & sunny and for the first time in a few weeks, it stayed that way all day. Shorts weather. We took a leisurely drive to the Coulter Village campground in the Grand Teton National Park. It’s only about 35 miles from where we were in Yellowstone. The campground is within an easy walk of Jackson Lake. Gopher had a ball swimming and chasing a stick. Today was planned to be a day of rest. Mostly just hung out, walked here & there and read our books. We met another Lazy Daze owner. They are from Ohio. Steve ?.
Monday, June 12, 2006
We moved to the Signal Mountain Campground. Very rustic. Located on Jackson Lake. The BIG NEWS was the bear. I was in the water throwing a stick for Gopher to swim after. I turned around and there was a black bear about ten feet away sniffing at the wood picnic tables. Looking for food I suppose. I waved my arms and called to Gopher and the bear ambled away. There were two couples setting up their tents in the direction the bear was headed so I called out to warn them. They got in their cars. (It’s 8:30pm right now. We just walked the dogs. The two couples in the tents are no longer there. J ) The bear wandered past the tents, crossed the road and walked behind and around the other RV’s. By this time I had returned to our camper to tell Carol to stay inside until the bear was gone. The bear walked behind our camper then walked around the motorhome parked next to us. Got some good pictures. All “black” bears are not black. This one was tan. Probably 4’ high at the shoulder. Carol & I were talking to a man this evening. He & his wife were on a hike earlier today and turned the bend and there was a bear walking down the trail. They turned around and did not finish the hike.
This is a really beautiful campground. The view across Jackson Lake is the primary mountain range in the Grand Teton Park.
This morning was bright & sunny and for the first time in a few weeks, it stayed that way all day. Shorts weather. We took a leisurely drive to the Coulter Village campground in the Grand Teton National Park. It’s only about 35 miles from where we were in Yellowstone. The campground is within an easy walk of Jackson Lake. Gopher had a ball swimming and chasing a stick. Today was planned to be a day of rest. Mostly just hung out, walked here & there and read our books. We met another Lazy Daze owner. They are from Ohio. Steve ?.
Monday, June 12, 2006
We moved to the Signal Mountain Campground. Very rustic. Located on Jackson Lake. The BIG NEWS was the bear. I was in the water throwing a stick for Gopher to swim after. I turned around and there was a black bear about ten feet away sniffing at the wood picnic tables. Looking for food I suppose. I waved my arms and called to Gopher and the bear ambled away. There were two couples setting up their tents in the direction the bear was headed so I called out to warn them. They got in their cars. (It’s 8:30pm right now. We just walked the dogs. The two couples in the tents are no longer there. J ) The bear wandered past the tents, crossed the road and walked behind and around the other RV’s. By this time I had returned to our camper to tell Carol to stay inside until the bear was gone. The bear walked behind our camper then walked around the motorhome parked next to us. Got some good pictures. All “black” bears are not black. This one was tan. Probably 4’ high at the shoulder. Carol & I were talking to a man this evening. He & his wife were on a hike earlier today and turned the bend and there was a bear walking down the trail. They turned around and did not finish the hike.
This is a really beautiful campground. The view across Jackson Lake is the primary mountain range in the Grand Teton Park.
Sunday, June 11, 2006
June 11
Ed and I are now in the Grand Tetons. It has finally warmed up. This morning in Yellowstone canyon Campground is was 34 outside and 55 inside. I am posting a few more pictures while we have service. Carol
Saturday, June 10, 2006
June 6 to June 10
Tuesday, June 6, 2006
Clear & sunny. Warm actually. On the road by about 7am. Today was planned to mostly be a driving day. Heading for Longmont to see Suzanne. It’s about 1,200 miles from here. The plan was to stay overnight at the Beauty Creek campground in the Coeur d’Alene National Forest. Our reference book said “boating, fishing, etc”. False advertising. It was not far from the lake but hardly a convenient walk. Stopped, had lunch then kept on driving. We finally stopped about 3pm at the 10,000 Silver Dollar Bar & Casino near Haugan, MT on I-90. Not much to look at but we were very tired. The price was right. “Free” and that included electricity. Had a great dinner. I had a beef patty with mashed potatoes smothered in onion gravy. Carol had chicken fried steak. Good stick-to-your-ribs cooking. There is a dirt parking lot behind the bar/casino/restaurant where RV’s can park. There are seven other RV’s here. I spoke to our neighbor. He & his wife live in their motorhome full time. He used to own a gas station and drive a semi for a living. While he was on the road, his wife ran the station. They stop here at least twice a year. Interesting place. Interesting people.
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
Clear & sunny once again. Enjoyed our night in the back parking lot of the 1,000 Silver Dollar Bar. When we left there were eight RV’s of different types there. Headed out towards Yellowstone National Park. Spent the night at a Gallatin National Forest campground off Hwy 191 south of Bozeman, MT. Red Cliff. Very nice place. Our site is well wooded and backs to the Gallatin River. Met a man about my age who is riding his bike from Canon City, CO to meet a friend in Bozeman, MT. Quite a ride. I doubt there is 10 flat miles on that entire trip.
Thursday, Friday, Saturday, June 8-10
At Yellowstone National Park. Stopped at West Yellowstone, the West entrance to the park, on the way here. The Visitors Center had a free wi-fi connection. I found a really close place to park and we had internet access from the camper. Got caught up on the Blog, e-mail, etc. It was a cool & rainy day. Dodged raindrops as we poked around the town until late morning then drove into the Park. On the drive through the park to our campground we saw an eagle on a nest, dozens of buffalo grazing in the fields along the Yellowstone River and two young elk crossing the river. And that was within about 30 minutes. Stopped at a number of the spring & geyser viewing areas. We stayed at the Bridge Bay Campground on Thursday night. There is a resident bison/buffalo. He wanders all through the campground just grazing, napping and so on. Both bison & buffalo are correct. Zoologists use bison but buffalo is the more common term. On Friday we drove to the Old Faithful area. Carol & I took a great hike past dozens of geysers, mudpots, hot springs and fumaroles(a steam vent). We saw Old Faithful erupt twice and Castle Geyser once. Got lucky on Castle Geyser since it only erupts once a day. The colors of the water pools & streams covers the spectrum. Just amazing to see. We hope the dozens of photos we too do the colors justice. After Old Faithful we drove to the Firehole Lake area. Another area of concentrated hydrothermal features. The weather is nice & sunny until late afternoon then the thunderstorms start. It hailed on us during today’s afternoon storm. The low tonight is supposed to be about 40*. On Friday we moved to the Canyon Village campground; much nicer then Bridge Bay which wasn’t much more than a grass parking lot. The resident buffalo and elk did make it worth one lights stay. $9.15/night. That’s tough to beat although the Forest Service campgrounds generally cost us $6/night. The cheapest was the parking lot behind the 1,000 silver dollar bar. Free. So far this trip, we have not stayed at any private campgrounds.
SATURDAY: rainy & cold. The campground has a great laundry facility so we made the morning laundry time. After the laundry we drove the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone road. Stopped at all the view points and took some great walks to the falls on the Yellowstone River. It’s 2:30 pm right now and the rain has started again. We’re parked at Artist Point on the south rim of the Yellowstone Canyon.
Clear & sunny. Warm actually. On the road by about 7am. Today was planned to mostly be a driving day. Heading for Longmont to see Suzanne. It’s about 1,200 miles from here. The plan was to stay overnight at the Beauty Creek campground in the Coeur d’Alene National Forest. Our reference book said “boating, fishing, etc”. False advertising. It was not far from the lake but hardly a convenient walk. Stopped, had lunch then kept on driving. We finally stopped about 3pm at the 10,000 Silver Dollar Bar & Casino near Haugan, MT on I-90. Not much to look at but we were very tired. The price was right. “Free” and that included electricity. Had a great dinner. I had a beef patty with mashed potatoes smothered in onion gravy. Carol had chicken fried steak. Good stick-to-your-ribs cooking. There is a dirt parking lot behind the bar/casino/restaurant where RV’s can park. There are seven other RV’s here. I spoke to our neighbor. He & his wife live in their motorhome full time. He used to own a gas station and drive a semi for a living. While he was on the road, his wife ran the station. They stop here at least twice a year. Interesting place. Interesting people.
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
Clear & sunny once again. Enjoyed our night in the back parking lot of the 1,000 Silver Dollar Bar. When we left there were eight RV’s of different types there. Headed out towards Yellowstone National Park. Spent the night at a Gallatin National Forest campground off Hwy 191 south of Bozeman, MT. Red Cliff. Very nice place. Our site is well wooded and backs to the Gallatin River. Met a man about my age who is riding his bike from Canon City, CO to meet a friend in Bozeman, MT. Quite a ride. I doubt there is 10 flat miles on that entire trip.
Thursday, Friday, Saturday, June 8-10
At Yellowstone National Park. Stopped at West Yellowstone, the West entrance to the park, on the way here. The Visitors Center had a free wi-fi connection. I found a really close place to park and we had internet access from the camper. Got caught up on the Blog, e-mail, etc. It was a cool & rainy day. Dodged raindrops as we poked around the town until late morning then drove into the Park. On the drive through the park to our campground we saw an eagle on a nest, dozens of buffalo grazing in the fields along the Yellowstone River and two young elk crossing the river. And that was within about 30 minutes. Stopped at a number of the spring & geyser viewing areas. We stayed at the Bridge Bay Campground on Thursday night. There is a resident bison/buffalo. He wanders all through the campground just grazing, napping and so on. Both bison & buffalo are correct. Zoologists use bison but buffalo is the more common term. On Friday we drove to the Old Faithful area. Carol & I took a great hike past dozens of geysers, mudpots, hot springs and fumaroles(a steam vent). We saw Old Faithful erupt twice and Castle Geyser once. Got lucky on Castle Geyser since it only erupts once a day. The colors of the water pools & streams covers the spectrum. Just amazing to see. We hope the dozens of photos we too do the colors justice. After Old Faithful we drove to the Firehole Lake area. Another area of concentrated hydrothermal features. The weather is nice & sunny until late afternoon then the thunderstorms start. It hailed on us during today’s afternoon storm. The low tonight is supposed to be about 40*. On Friday we moved to the Canyon Village campground; much nicer then Bridge Bay which wasn’t much more than a grass parking lot. The resident buffalo and elk did make it worth one lights stay. $9.15/night. That’s tough to beat although the Forest Service campgrounds generally cost us $6/night. The cheapest was the parking lot behind the 1,000 silver dollar bar. Free. So far this trip, we have not stayed at any private campgrounds.
SATURDAY: rainy & cold. The campground has a great laundry facility so we made the morning laundry time. After the laundry we drove the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone road. Stopped at all the view points and took some great walks to the falls on the Yellowstone River. It’s 2:30 pm right now and the rain has started again. We’re parked at Artist Point on the south rim of the Yellowstone Canyon.
Monday, June 05, 2006
May 25 to June 5 Canada and back
Thursday, May 25, 2006
On the road early as always. Dogs fed, two cups of coffee. Stopped at a historical marker along the way to Glacier and had breakfast. Only one campground in Glacier was opened; St. Mary’s. Tomorrow another opens. This is very early in the season. Going to the Sun Road won’t be plowed and opened for another few weeks. Saw a black bear today. Got lots of good pictures. Went down to Saint Mary Lake. It’s a beautiful shade of green and as cold as ice. Even Gopher wasn’t interested in swimming. Glacier is pretty but not dramatically different than the Rocky Mountain National Park. Of the two, we would probably chose the RMNP.
Friday, May 26, 2006
Not a very nice day today. Cold & rainy. A cold front is moving through. Stopped by the visitor center about 8am. Bought an Audubon bird identification book. Inquired if the customs station between Glacier & Waterton was opened. It opened in mid-May. Walked around for a while between the rain drops then headed for Waterton Lakes National Park of Canada. It was only a 45 minute drive. Went through customs with no problems. Carol had made a photo ID for each dog. Took a picture of the dog then copied it onto the Vets certificate of vaccination. The customs officer thought that was just a great idea. It provided the required positive identification of each dog coming into Canada. On the way to our campground, we stopped by the very famous Prince of Wales Hotel. The campground we stayed in is called the Waterton Townsite Campground. It’s right next to the very cute downtown area. Easy walk to shops, restaurants, etc. This is the first time this trip we have not been in the woods somewhere. A pleasant change after three weeks. This is Carol’s type of camping. J The campground and town of Waterton are located right on Upper Waterton Lake. An incredibly beautiful lake framed on three sides by huge mountains. The view from the campground is the very best so far. Took lots of walks. Gopher tiptoed into the water. It’s just a few degrees above freezing. Carol & I walked to the Cameron Creek Waterfall then downtown and ordered a pizza to go. Gopher was with us so we couldn’t eat inside. This was our first meal “out” since we left home. We really like this area. Canadian National Parks don’t have the dog restrictions found in American National Parks. Tomorrow Gopher & I are going hiking. Deer are walking through the campground all the time. There are signs warning they will aggressively defend a fawn so keep your distance.
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Started raining late last night. Never did stop. Finally I put on my raincoat and took Gopher for a walk. No hiking today as planned. It’s 40* and raining. On the walk, I found a laundry in town. We drove to the laundry and did five loads of wash. Clothes, bedding, blankets, etc. That was today’s major event. About 3 pm, we got tired of sitting & reading so dressed for the weather and walked to town. Carol bought some warm clothes. Tomorrow we head further north towards Banff & Jasper. It’s supposed to stay cold and maybe rainy for the next few days. This is the first full rain day we have had so far. This is a great place. There are several trailheads in the campground plus you can take a shuttle boat that will drop you off at different trailheads around the lake. If we’re ever in this part of the country again, we’ll be back.
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Still raining with no end in sight. It snowed a few hundred feet higher. The mountains are covered with new snow. Very pretty. We decided to move on to Banff since it was supposed to rain all day. On the way we saw some huge windmills. Three blades, very, very tall. It rained on & off for the drive. Stopped in Calgary at The Real Canadian Superstore. A Wal-Mart type store but a quality more like Target. Ran into a very unusual cart system. You had to go into the parking lot and “rent” a cart for one Loonie (A Canadian silver dollar). Carol saw a man about to put his cart away and thought she would save him the trip and offered to take his cart. NO WAY!! That cart cost him a Loonie and he needed to properly return the cart to get his money back. He was kind enough to show Carol the system. Each cart had a chain lock that attached to a special place. You inserted a Loonie in a box to unlock the cart. When you properly returned the cart you got your money back. That man was NOT going to give Carol a cart worth one dollar. Another weird thing about the store. When you checked out, the cashier asked how many of those cheap plastic bags you wanted. We didn’t know why she was asking but she handed us the three bags we asked for and charged us 4 cents each. Can you imagine that!!!. A store charging for plastic shopping bags. In Canmore, we stopped at a Safeway for a few things we forgot. No deposit required to use a cart and free plastic bags. Carol bought lunchmeat. The lady asked her how much did she want? It was sold by the gram. There are deposits charged on canned things like Coke and a “levy/recycle” fee of 2 cents on the carton my Soy Milk came in. Plus, almost all purchases in Canada are subject to a “GST” which is a national sales tax, of 7%. All the extras add up fast. When we checked out, the cashier also let us use a courtesy Safeway discount card. Saved $2.25. Bought gas in Canmore. $1.055 per liter (that’s $4.80/gallon). Finally arrived in Banff about 5pm. Long drive but worth it. The next few days are “off road” days. The weather is supposed to start clearing tomorrow. Let’s hope. The Canadian national parks are very expensive compared to US national parks. At Glacier admission was free because of our Golden Age Passport. In Canada it cost us $18/day. At Glacier the cost of a nights camping was $15, we pay $7.50 with our Golden Age Passport, but there was no electrical service. In Canada the cost is $33/night with full hookups. So, Canada national parks cost us $51/day versus $7.50 in the US. Plus gas is in the $5/gallon range and food is more expensive. Not an economical vacation place. Right now the US dollar is only 10 cents more valuable than the Canadian dollar. Not nearly enough to offset the high costs of everything else. Oh well, it’s a beautiful place and were having fun in spite of the rain. That’s what counts.
Monday, May 29, 2006
Finally, a mostly sunny day. Partly cloudy but no rain. We hiked from the campground to the hoodoos. Hoodoos are natural stone pillars that result from erosion of soft rock. After that we walked into Banff. The campground book said it was 1.2 km. but that must have been to the City limits. It was much further than that. At any rate, it was a cool, sunny day just made for a walk. Took the city bus back to the campground since the way back was almost all uphill. It cost a tooney each. A tooney is two loonies. We inquired at the Visitors Center about internet access and was directed to the Banff Public Library. 30 minutes of use for a Loonie. A great deal. Asked the librarian about a good restaurant. She directed us to Coyote’s. We had a great lunch for $30 for both of us. Rachel Ray would have been proud of us; ask a local and keep on the $40/day budget. Banff is a very pretty town. Very pricey like resort towns tend to be, but fun to walk around. Ran into two Gators. Amazing this far from home. The couple camping next to us is from Holland. They are touring Canada for a month. There are perhaps 50 Korean teenagers here touring Canada in rented RV’s. Met a couple from Texas heading towards Alaska and a couple from near Sarasota doing the same. One of the beauties of RV travel is the diversity of the people you meet. From people in very modest pickups, like the folks we met in Beaver Creek, to people in ½ million dollar motorhomes.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Sunrise is very early around here. Don’t know exactly when but it’s in the 5am range. Makes it hard to sleep much past 6 am or so. Left for Lake Louise via the Bow Valley Parkway; a beautiful drive. Stopped at Johnson Canyon and walked to the falls. There are a series of falls. Access to the falls is via narrow catwalks attached to the face of the canyon wall. Gopher crossed the first two but refused to cross any more so I turned back. There was something about them she didn’t like. Perhaps the height, the narrowness, the smell?? At any rate, I turned around. If we ever get this way again, I’ll do the hike by myself. Arrived at Lake Louise about noon time. Very nice campground. The tent/pop-up camper section is fenced with a permanent electric fence. “The fence helps keep bears wild and alive, and people safer”. The brochure goes on to say “However, bears trying to skirt around the Townsite will continue to pass near the RV campground area”. They tell you to not walk around after dark. We drove up to Lake Louise. The lake is the most amazing shade of blue and surrounded by snow capped mountains. We were going to hike from one end of the lake to the other but a park ranger was on the trail advising people that a grizzly bear was also on the trail. So much for that hike. On the way back to the campground, we stopped at the town shopping center & information building. Bought a bag of cookies & pastries and a loaf of fresh bread. The campground is right on the Bow River. On the other side of the river is a stand of tall fir trees with the mountains behind them. A beautiful view. There is a great path that runs all along the river. No grizzly bears, no catwalks. Took a nice long walk.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Finally, a clear, sunny day. It was 37* this morning but not a cloud in the sky. First day like that in about a week. First thing we drove up to Moraine Lake so we could get a good parking place. Pretty much had the place to ourselves at 8:30am. We think Moraine Lake is even more beautiful than Lake Louise or Upper Waterton Lake. The water is turquoise and still about 2/3 covered with ice. Surrounded by huge mountains. We walked along the Rockpile Trail and the Lakeshore Trail. No grizzly bear closures, no narrow catwalks, no rain. An absolutely perfect hike. Probably took 50 pictures. The shore of the lake is rocks ranging from pebbles to small boulders ; the remains of the glacier that formed the lake. There is still snow on the ground and on the surrounding mountains. Gopher had a great time romping in the snow and swimming. She would walk on the thin ice until it broke then in she went. It made us cold just watching her. Balou & Bagera wanted nothing to do with the water or snow. Smart dogs. We stayed there until early afternoon then went into town for a late lunch and another visit to the Interpretative Center. Carol spent the rest of the afternoon downloading and sorting pictures. By this afternoon, it had warmed up to perhaps the 60’s. We’re enjoying it while we can. The forecast for the weekend is cloudy with a good chance of rain. Can’t find out the official time of sunrise/sunset but it was still light outside when we went to bed at 10:30 last night. Right now it’s 8pm and as bright as can be. Our neighbors, from Germany, just set out on a hike. At the campground in Banff, our neighbors were from Holland. In each Canadian campground we have been in, I’d guess 2/3 of the RV’s were rentals. Apparently that is a very popular way to “holiday” in Canada.
Tomorrow we head further north to Jasper via the Columbia Icefields Parkway.
Thursday, June 1, 2006
Left about 8am. Cloudy & cool. The drive from Lake Louise to Jasper was just beautiful. There are pull-offs every few miles. Most afford an opportunity for a nice walk. Stopped at Bow Pass and hiked to the Bow Lake. Another of those beautiful turquoise glacial lakes. We stopped at the Icefield Centre . A wonderful display explaining about the Columbia Icefield and the glaciers. I took Gopher and we hiked to the edge of the Athabasca Glacier. There were ropes keeping you on a path to avoid the crevasses. Now and then someone leaves the safe path and falls into a crevasse. A sign said the last three rescue attempts have been unsuccessful. People die of hypothermia before they can be pulled from the crevasse. In spite of all the warning signs and the story of a little boy who died in 2001, you could still see foot prints in the snow where people had set out across the glacier. The Icefield Parkway passes within viewing distance of seven Icefields (large upland glaciers) and about 25 smaller glaciers. After stopping a few more times, we arrived at the Whistler’s Campground in Jasper about 3pm. Met some really nice people in the campground. A couple from Florida, Jim & Karen, and a man from Edmonton, AB. About 5pm, a coyote came prancing by just outside our campsite. It’s 9:30 pm right now and three elk are grazing in our campsite!! There are warnings to stay far away from them because they sometimes strike out with no provocation. We took pictures through an open window. Carol worked with our photos tonight creating a series of collages to add to the blog.
Friday, June 2, 2006
A beautiful, warm sunny morning. About 70*. First thing we drove to downtown Jasper to do some laundry, grocery shopping & check e-mail. Got lucky. The laundry had internet service. A Toonie for 15 minutes. Signed up for 30 minutes. There was a grocery store in the same block so we were able to care of everything with one stop. After that we went to Pyramid Lake. A beautiful, crystal clear lake with a sandy beach area. Had the whole place to ourselves. Gopher had a great time playing with an old soccer ball we found. Carol put on her bathing suit to play with the dog. Drove back into Jasper to walk around a bit. We ran into our friends from the campground, Jim & Karen, and had lunch together. The sunny day didn’t last too long. By 2pm it was cloudy & sprinkling once again. The weather forecast for the weekend is partly cloudy with a good chance of showers. This is such a beautiful area we decided to stay another day in spite of the weather. If we were ever in the neighborhood, we would come back to Jasper.
Saturday, June 3, 2006
Cool & cloudy. Some sun, some light showers. Went exploring today. Drove to Edith Lake and Annette Lake. Hiked around Annette Lake. Another clear, turquoise lake. Just beautiful. After that we drove to Lac Beauvert. Had lunch, went walking. Did a little grocery shopping in Jasper and got gas for tomorrow’s trip. $4.84/gallon. Canada is very, very expensive. The exchange rate today was $1.06 Canadian to one dollar US. Our friends, Jim & Karen, invited us over for a visit tonight. They said if we get to Wisconsin to give them a call. They would be at their summer lake house by mid-August. Right now they are on their way to Alaska. They meet the ferry in Prince Rupert, BC for transportation up to Alaska then drive back home from there.
Sunday, June 4, 2006
Clear & cool. 38*. Left about 8am. The original plan was to make two more stops in Canada before going to Washington. We decided to drive longer today and just stop once. Drove to Kamloops, BC then to the Lac Le Jeune Privincial Park. This is a nice park. Mostly it seems to attract fisherman. The drive was very long; too long. No more six hour drives on narrow mountain roads. Today is mostly a driving then rest day. Tomorrow it’s back to our three to four hour driving day limit.
Monday, June 05, 2006
I woke up at 5am. Sunrise is so early around here. Had my coffee & walked Gopher. Carol slept in until all of 6am. On the road by 7am. This part of Canada is totally different than the mountains. Rolling hills, farms, vineyards, cattle & such. Oliver, B.C. is the wine making capital of Canada. It was nice and warm. Shorts weather. As we went through US customs, they were confiscating all meat products purchased in Canada as well as eggs. They were searching RV’s, and looking in the refrigerator, freezer, closets, bathroom, etc. We surrendered a part of a sausage we had bought. Another couple lost a dozen eggs plus a large, unopened sausage. The Customs people are probably planning a breakfast buffer soon. Our hoard of canned dog food was Ok because it was American made. Had it been Canadian made, it would have been confiscated as well. We were planning on driving to the Grand Coulee Dam area. When we got to Omak, WA we did our Wal-Mart shopping. The first time since we entered Canada when we could get food at a reasonable price. On the way out of town, we noticed a small sign about a City RV park. Sure enough, the City of Omak, Washington has a municipal campground. Full hookups for $16/night. Plus, we have an excellent Verizon signal. Carol has been getting caught up with all her calls. Our Canadian visit was just wonderful but we are glad to be back in the States.
On the road early as always. Dogs fed, two cups of coffee. Stopped at a historical marker along the way to Glacier and had breakfast. Only one campground in Glacier was opened; St. Mary’s. Tomorrow another opens. This is very early in the season. Going to the Sun Road won’t be plowed and opened for another few weeks. Saw a black bear today. Got lots of good pictures. Went down to Saint Mary Lake. It’s a beautiful shade of green and as cold as ice. Even Gopher wasn’t interested in swimming. Glacier is pretty but not dramatically different than the Rocky Mountain National Park. Of the two, we would probably chose the RMNP.
Friday, May 26, 2006
Not a very nice day today. Cold & rainy. A cold front is moving through. Stopped by the visitor center about 8am. Bought an Audubon bird identification book. Inquired if the customs station between Glacier & Waterton was opened. It opened in mid-May. Walked around for a while between the rain drops then headed for Waterton Lakes National Park of Canada. It was only a 45 minute drive. Went through customs with no problems. Carol had made a photo ID for each dog. Took a picture of the dog then copied it onto the Vets certificate of vaccination. The customs officer thought that was just a great idea. It provided the required positive identification of each dog coming into Canada. On the way to our campground, we stopped by the very famous Prince of Wales Hotel. The campground we stayed in is called the Waterton Townsite Campground. It’s right next to the very cute downtown area. Easy walk to shops, restaurants, etc. This is the first time this trip we have not been in the woods somewhere. A pleasant change after three weeks. This is Carol’s type of camping. J The campground and town of Waterton are located right on Upper Waterton Lake. An incredibly beautiful lake framed on three sides by huge mountains. The view from the campground is the very best so far. Took lots of walks. Gopher tiptoed into the water. It’s just a few degrees above freezing. Carol & I walked to the Cameron Creek Waterfall then downtown and ordered a pizza to go. Gopher was with us so we couldn’t eat inside. This was our first meal “out” since we left home. We really like this area. Canadian National Parks don’t have the dog restrictions found in American National Parks. Tomorrow Gopher & I are going hiking. Deer are walking through the campground all the time. There are signs warning they will aggressively defend a fawn so keep your distance.
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Started raining late last night. Never did stop. Finally I put on my raincoat and took Gopher for a walk. No hiking today as planned. It’s 40* and raining. On the walk, I found a laundry in town. We drove to the laundry and did five loads of wash. Clothes, bedding, blankets, etc. That was today’s major event. About 3 pm, we got tired of sitting & reading so dressed for the weather and walked to town. Carol bought some warm clothes. Tomorrow we head further north towards Banff & Jasper. It’s supposed to stay cold and maybe rainy for the next few days. This is the first full rain day we have had so far. This is a great place. There are several trailheads in the campground plus you can take a shuttle boat that will drop you off at different trailheads around the lake. If we’re ever in this part of the country again, we’ll be back.
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Still raining with no end in sight. It snowed a few hundred feet higher. The mountains are covered with new snow. Very pretty. We decided to move on to Banff since it was supposed to rain all day. On the way we saw some huge windmills. Three blades, very, very tall. It rained on & off for the drive. Stopped in Calgary at The Real Canadian Superstore. A Wal-Mart type store but a quality more like Target. Ran into a very unusual cart system. You had to go into the parking lot and “rent” a cart for one Loonie (A Canadian silver dollar). Carol saw a man about to put his cart away and thought she would save him the trip and offered to take his cart. NO WAY!! That cart cost him a Loonie and he needed to properly return the cart to get his money back. He was kind enough to show Carol the system. Each cart had a chain lock that attached to a special place. You inserted a Loonie in a box to unlock the cart. When you properly returned the cart you got your money back. That man was NOT going to give Carol a cart worth one dollar. Another weird thing about the store. When you checked out, the cashier asked how many of those cheap plastic bags you wanted. We didn’t know why she was asking but she handed us the three bags we asked for and charged us 4 cents each. Can you imagine that!!!. A store charging for plastic shopping bags. In Canmore, we stopped at a Safeway for a few things we forgot. No deposit required to use a cart and free plastic bags. Carol bought lunchmeat. The lady asked her how much did she want? It was sold by the gram. There are deposits charged on canned things like Coke and a “levy/recycle” fee of 2 cents on the carton my Soy Milk came in. Plus, almost all purchases in Canada are subject to a “GST” which is a national sales tax, of 7%. All the extras add up fast. When we checked out, the cashier also let us use a courtesy Safeway discount card. Saved $2.25. Bought gas in Canmore. $1.055 per liter (that’s $4.80/gallon). Finally arrived in Banff about 5pm. Long drive but worth it. The next few days are “off road” days. The weather is supposed to start clearing tomorrow. Let’s hope. The Canadian national parks are very expensive compared to US national parks. At Glacier admission was free because of our Golden Age Passport. In Canada it cost us $18/day. At Glacier the cost of a nights camping was $15, we pay $7.50 with our Golden Age Passport, but there was no electrical service. In Canada the cost is $33/night with full hookups. So, Canada national parks cost us $51/day versus $7.50 in the US. Plus gas is in the $5/gallon range and food is more expensive. Not an economical vacation place. Right now the US dollar is only 10 cents more valuable than the Canadian dollar. Not nearly enough to offset the high costs of everything else. Oh well, it’s a beautiful place and were having fun in spite of the rain. That’s what counts.
Monday, May 29, 2006
Finally, a mostly sunny day. Partly cloudy but no rain. We hiked from the campground to the hoodoos. Hoodoos are natural stone pillars that result from erosion of soft rock. After that we walked into Banff. The campground book said it was 1.2 km. but that must have been to the City limits. It was much further than that. At any rate, it was a cool, sunny day just made for a walk. Took the city bus back to the campground since the way back was almost all uphill. It cost a tooney each. A tooney is two loonies. We inquired at the Visitors Center about internet access and was directed to the Banff Public Library. 30 minutes of use for a Loonie. A great deal. Asked the librarian about a good restaurant. She directed us to Coyote’s. We had a great lunch for $30 for both of us. Rachel Ray would have been proud of us; ask a local and keep on the $40/day budget. Banff is a very pretty town. Very pricey like resort towns tend to be, but fun to walk around. Ran into two Gators. Amazing this far from home. The couple camping next to us is from Holland. They are touring Canada for a month. There are perhaps 50 Korean teenagers here touring Canada in rented RV’s. Met a couple from Texas heading towards Alaska and a couple from near Sarasota doing the same. One of the beauties of RV travel is the diversity of the people you meet. From people in very modest pickups, like the folks we met in Beaver Creek, to people in ½ million dollar motorhomes.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Sunrise is very early around here. Don’t know exactly when but it’s in the 5am range. Makes it hard to sleep much past 6 am or so. Left for Lake Louise via the Bow Valley Parkway; a beautiful drive. Stopped at Johnson Canyon and walked to the falls. There are a series of falls. Access to the falls is via narrow catwalks attached to the face of the canyon wall. Gopher crossed the first two but refused to cross any more so I turned back. There was something about them she didn’t like. Perhaps the height, the narrowness, the smell?? At any rate, I turned around. If we ever get this way again, I’ll do the hike by myself. Arrived at Lake Louise about noon time. Very nice campground. The tent/pop-up camper section is fenced with a permanent electric fence. “The fence helps keep bears wild and alive, and people safer”. The brochure goes on to say “However, bears trying to skirt around the Townsite will continue to pass near the RV campground area”. They tell you to not walk around after dark. We drove up to Lake Louise. The lake is the most amazing shade of blue and surrounded by snow capped mountains. We were going to hike from one end of the lake to the other but a park ranger was on the trail advising people that a grizzly bear was also on the trail. So much for that hike. On the way back to the campground, we stopped at the town shopping center & information building. Bought a bag of cookies & pastries and a loaf of fresh bread. The campground is right on the Bow River. On the other side of the river is a stand of tall fir trees with the mountains behind them. A beautiful view. There is a great path that runs all along the river. No grizzly bears, no catwalks. Took a nice long walk.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Finally, a clear, sunny day. It was 37* this morning but not a cloud in the sky. First day like that in about a week. First thing we drove up to Moraine Lake so we could get a good parking place. Pretty much had the place to ourselves at 8:30am. We think Moraine Lake is even more beautiful than Lake Louise or Upper Waterton Lake. The water is turquoise and still about 2/3 covered with ice. Surrounded by huge mountains. We walked along the Rockpile Trail and the Lakeshore Trail. No grizzly bear closures, no narrow catwalks, no rain. An absolutely perfect hike. Probably took 50 pictures. The shore of the lake is rocks ranging from pebbles to small boulders ; the remains of the glacier that formed the lake. There is still snow on the ground and on the surrounding mountains. Gopher had a great time romping in the snow and swimming. She would walk on the thin ice until it broke then in she went. It made us cold just watching her. Balou & Bagera wanted nothing to do with the water or snow. Smart dogs. We stayed there until early afternoon then went into town for a late lunch and another visit to the Interpretative Center. Carol spent the rest of the afternoon downloading and sorting pictures. By this afternoon, it had warmed up to perhaps the 60’s. We’re enjoying it while we can. The forecast for the weekend is cloudy with a good chance of rain. Can’t find out the official time of sunrise/sunset but it was still light outside when we went to bed at 10:30 last night. Right now it’s 8pm and as bright as can be. Our neighbors, from Germany, just set out on a hike. At the campground in Banff, our neighbors were from Holland. In each Canadian campground we have been in, I’d guess 2/3 of the RV’s were rentals. Apparently that is a very popular way to “holiday” in Canada.
Tomorrow we head further north to Jasper via the Columbia Icefields Parkway.
Thursday, June 1, 2006
Left about 8am. Cloudy & cool. The drive from Lake Louise to Jasper was just beautiful. There are pull-offs every few miles. Most afford an opportunity for a nice walk. Stopped at Bow Pass and hiked to the Bow Lake. Another of those beautiful turquoise glacial lakes. We stopped at the Icefield Centre . A wonderful display explaining about the Columbia Icefield and the glaciers. I took Gopher and we hiked to the edge of the Athabasca Glacier. There were ropes keeping you on a path to avoid the crevasses. Now and then someone leaves the safe path and falls into a crevasse. A sign said the last three rescue attempts have been unsuccessful. People die of hypothermia before they can be pulled from the crevasse. In spite of all the warning signs and the story of a little boy who died in 2001, you could still see foot prints in the snow where people had set out across the glacier. The Icefield Parkway passes within viewing distance of seven Icefields (large upland glaciers) and about 25 smaller glaciers. After stopping a few more times, we arrived at the Whistler’s Campground in Jasper about 3pm. Met some really nice people in the campground. A couple from Florida, Jim & Karen, and a man from Edmonton, AB. About 5pm, a coyote came prancing by just outside our campsite. It’s 9:30 pm right now and three elk are grazing in our campsite!! There are warnings to stay far away from them because they sometimes strike out with no provocation. We took pictures through an open window. Carol worked with our photos tonight creating a series of collages to add to the blog.
Friday, June 2, 2006
A beautiful, warm sunny morning. About 70*. First thing we drove to downtown Jasper to do some laundry, grocery shopping & check e-mail. Got lucky. The laundry had internet service. A Toonie for 15 minutes. Signed up for 30 minutes. There was a grocery store in the same block so we were able to care of everything with one stop. After that we went to Pyramid Lake. A beautiful, crystal clear lake with a sandy beach area. Had the whole place to ourselves. Gopher had a great time playing with an old soccer ball we found. Carol put on her bathing suit to play with the dog. Drove back into Jasper to walk around a bit. We ran into our friends from the campground, Jim & Karen, and had lunch together. The sunny day didn’t last too long. By 2pm it was cloudy & sprinkling once again. The weather forecast for the weekend is partly cloudy with a good chance of showers. This is such a beautiful area we decided to stay another day in spite of the weather. If we were ever in the neighborhood, we would come back to Jasper.
Saturday, June 3, 2006
Cool & cloudy. Some sun, some light showers. Went exploring today. Drove to Edith Lake and Annette Lake. Hiked around Annette Lake. Another clear, turquoise lake. Just beautiful. After that we drove to Lac Beauvert. Had lunch, went walking. Did a little grocery shopping in Jasper and got gas for tomorrow’s trip. $4.84/gallon. Canada is very, very expensive. The exchange rate today was $1.06 Canadian to one dollar US. Our friends, Jim & Karen, invited us over for a visit tonight. They said if we get to Wisconsin to give them a call. They would be at their summer lake house by mid-August. Right now they are on their way to Alaska. They meet the ferry in Prince Rupert, BC for transportation up to Alaska then drive back home from there.
Sunday, June 4, 2006
Clear & cool. 38*. Left about 8am. The original plan was to make two more stops in Canada before going to Washington. We decided to drive longer today and just stop once. Drove to Kamloops, BC then to the Lac Le Jeune Privincial Park. This is a nice park. Mostly it seems to attract fisherman. The drive was very long; too long. No more six hour drives on narrow mountain roads. Today is mostly a driving then rest day. Tomorrow it’s back to our three to four hour driving day limit.
Monday, June 05, 2006
I woke up at 5am. Sunrise is so early around here. Had my coffee & walked Gopher. Carol slept in until all of 6am. On the road by 7am. This part of Canada is totally different than the mountains. Rolling hills, farms, vineyards, cattle & such. Oliver, B.C. is the wine making capital of Canada. It was nice and warm. Shorts weather. As we went through US customs, they were confiscating all meat products purchased in Canada as well as eggs. They were searching RV’s, and looking in the refrigerator, freezer, closets, bathroom, etc. We surrendered a part of a sausage we had bought. Another couple lost a dozen eggs plus a large, unopened sausage. The Customs people are probably planning a breakfast buffer soon. Our hoard of canned dog food was Ok because it was American made. Had it been Canadian made, it would have been confiscated as well. We were planning on driving to the Grand Coulee Dam area. When we got to Omak, WA we did our Wal-Mart shopping. The first time since we entered Canada when we could get food at a reasonable price. On the way out of town, we noticed a small sign about a City RV park. Sure enough, the City of Omak, Washington has a municipal campground. Full hookups for $16/night. Plus, we have an excellent Verizon signal. Carol has been getting caught up with all her calls. Our Canadian visit was just wonderful but we are glad to be back in the States.
Friday, May 26, 2006
Thursday, May 25, 2006
May 24 and 25
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Up by 6am. On the road by 7:30. We had no special destination today. Had breakfast at a rest area near Glaskow. On the way, we passed a house where a guy made huge metal sculptures. The roadside was lined with dinosaurs, bears, eagles & such. Another interesting habit is for the farmers and ranchers to leave their worn out equipment sitting on their property right next to the road. It’s fun looking at the old tractors, wagons, harvesters, etc. Like a drive-thru museum. One of our favorite camping reference books is Don Wright’s Guide to Free Campgrounds. Not all “free” but very low priced. We found a County campground just south of Harve. The Beaver Creek County Park. There are 2 lakes on 10,000 acres. What a super find. As I type this, we’re camped about 10’ from the edge of a beautiful, clear lake. Just us and two other groups. One is a guy named Ted and his wife. Probably 70+ years. . Born & raised around here but now they live in Great Falls. They come back here every year to visit the cemetery where their family is buried. By appearances, I thing he built the travel trailer they pull behind their old Ford truck. Ted, his wife and their two dogs. Tomorrow we head towards Glacier National Park. Ready for some mountains after two weeks on the plains.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
On the road early as always. Dogs fed, two cups of coffee. Stopped at a historical marker along the way to Glacier and had breakfast. Only one campground in Glacier was opened; St. Mary’s. Tomorrow another opens. This is very early in the season. Going to the Sun Road won’t be plowed and opened for another few weeks. Saw a black bear today. Got lots of good pictures. Went down to Saint Mary Lake. It’s a beautiful shade of green and as cold as ice. Even Gopher wasn’t interested in swimming. Glacier is pretty but not dramatically different than the Rocky Mountain National Park. Of the two, we would probably chose the RMNP.
Up by 6am. On the road by 7:30. We had no special destination today. Had breakfast at a rest area near Glaskow. On the way, we passed a house where a guy made huge metal sculptures. The roadside was lined with dinosaurs, bears, eagles & such. Another interesting habit is for the farmers and ranchers to leave their worn out equipment sitting on their property right next to the road. It’s fun looking at the old tractors, wagons, harvesters, etc. Like a drive-thru museum. One of our favorite camping reference books is Don Wright’s Guide to Free Campgrounds. Not all “free” but very low priced. We found a County campground just south of Harve. The Beaver Creek County Park. There are 2 lakes on 10,000 acres. What a super find. As I type this, we’re camped about 10’ from the edge of a beautiful, clear lake. Just us and two other groups. One is a guy named Ted and his wife. Probably 70+ years. . Born & raised around here but now they live in Great Falls. They come back here every year to visit the cemetery where their family is buried. By appearances, I thing he built the travel trailer they pull behind their old Ford truck. Ted, his wife and their two dogs. Tomorrow we head towards Glacier National Park. Ready for some mountains after two weeks on the plains.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
On the road early as always. Dogs fed, two cups of coffee. Stopped at a historical marker along the way to Glacier and had breakfast. Only one campground in Glacier was opened; St. Mary’s. Tomorrow another opens. This is very early in the season. Going to the Sun Road won’t be plowed and opened for another few weeks. Saw a black bear today. Got lots of good pictures. Went down to Saint Mary Lake. It’s a beautiful shade of green and as cold as ice. Even Gopher wasn’t interested in swimming. Glacier is pretty but not dramatically different than the Rocky Mountain National Park. Of the two, we would probably chose the RMNP.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
May 21 to 24
Saturday, May 21, 2006
At 8:00 we walked to the Visitor Center to join in a guided hike in the French Creek Wilderness Area. Conducted by a very knowledgeable young woman. Learned the names of lots of birds, plants & flowers. Saw deer but no more buffalo. Later that day we drove to the Sylvan Lake area and camped there. Ed & Gopher took a beautiful hike around Sylvan Lake. Beautiful, clear, cold water. As always, Gopher went swimming. That evening it rained. Thunder at times.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Up at 6am. Still not used to this time zone. We all walked around Sylvan Lake then drove past the Crazy Horse monument on the way to Mount Rushmore. Mt. Rushmore was impressive but very commercialized. Ice cream store, restaurant, gift shops, etc. Not quite what we had envisioned. Went to Rapid City to do laundry. The first laundry stop since we did was at Johnnies house. Did food shopping at Wal-Mart then continued to the Devils Tower National Monument in far eastern Wyoming. The Devils Tower was the mountain that was the site of the alien landing in the movie Close Encounters of the First Kind. Arrived about 5pm. There is a large colony of black-tailed prairie dogs, a herd white-tailed deer, and lots of rabbits. It was a long day so mostly we sat around & read the Sunday paper.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Up early. We hiked around the base of Devils Tower on the Tower Trail. Had the place all to ourselves at 7:30am. A very beautiful hike. The Indians hold sacred ceremonies on the mountain. We photographed some of the “prayer bundles” the Indians tie to the trees. The prayer bundles are simply pieces of cloth wrapped around different meaningful items then tied to a tree and left there as an offering. Headed out for Fort Peck Dam & Lake near Fort Peck, Montana. The plan was to break this eight hour drive in half. We arrived at Miles City, MT around 2pm with the intent of camping at the Twelve Mile Dam Tongue River State Fishing Access Site. Not what we had expected at all. The water was all mud and about a foot deep. We stopped at a City park in Miles, had lunch, walked the dogs and decided to finish the long drive to Fort Peck. The part of Montana from the Wyoming boarder north to Fort Peck is the most barren and desolate place we have been on this trip. Low, barren hills, areas of badlands, mile after mile of monotony on narrow, winding roads. Not a fun type drive. On the other hand, this is true cowboy country. Huge ranches. Horses & cattle everywhere you look. Interesting to see. Arrived at the Corps of Engineers Downstream Campground about 5:30. Glad to be here. Such a beautiful place. Worth the long drive. There is a long nature trail leading to the Interpretative Center, and of course a HUGE lake, 246,000 acres with 1,520 miles of shoreline. 1,520 miles; not a typo. We have a campsite right on the clear, cold lake. The lake was formed by damming the Missouri River. Took a good long walk. We and the dogs are glad to be outside after an eight hour drive. Gopher is having a ball swimming in the lake. During our walk she spotted two white-tail deer. Good thing I was holding on, she about pulled my arm off wishing she could chase the deer. Staying here for a few days to explore this part of Montana before heading towards Glacier National Park.
Tuesday, May 24, 2006
The campground had a wonderful, paved nature trail. Runs for a few miles. We all enjoyed several nice walks. We walked to the Interpretative Center, a.k.a. museum. It has several displays concerning the building of the dam as well as fossils found during the dredging. Well worth the trip. Late in the afternoon, the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm and flash floor warning for the area. We have a weather radio so whenever the sky looks threatening, we turn it on. They were predicting a possibility of quarter sized hail. About 5pm or so, the storm rolled in. We got lucky; lots of rain but no hail. Had a wonderful time here in spite of the storm.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Up by 6am. On the road by 7:30. We had no special destination today. Had breakfast at a rest area near Glaskow. On the way, we passed a house where a guy made huge metal sculptures. The roadside was lined with dinosaurs, bears, eagles & such. Another interesting habit is for the farmers and ranchers to leave their worn out equipment sitting on their property right next to the road. It’s fun looking at the old tractors, wagons, harvesters, etc. Like a drive-thru museum. One of our favorite camping reference books is Don Wright’s Guide to Free Campgrounds. Not all “free” but very low priced. We found a County campground just south of Harve. The Beaver Creek County Park. There are 2 lakes on 10,000 acres. What a super find. As I type this, we’re camped about 10’ from the edge of a beautiful, clear lake. Just us and two other groups. One is a guy named Ted and his wife. Probably 70+ years. . Born & raised around here but now they live in Great Falls. They come back here every year to visit the cemetery where their family is buried. By appearances, I thing he built the travel trailer they pull behind their old Ford truck. Ted, his wife and their two dogs. Tomorrow we head towards Glacier National Park. Ready for some mountains after two weeks on the plains.
At 8:00 we walked to the Visitor Center to join in a guided hike in the French Creek Wilderness Area. Conducted by a very knowledgeable young woman. Learned the names of lots of birds, plants & flowers. Saw deer but no more buffalo. Later that day we drove to the Sylvan Lake area and camped there. Ed & Gopher took a beautiful hike around Sylvan Lake. Beautiful, clear, cold water. As always, Gopher went swimming. That evening it rained. Thunder at times.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Up at 6am. Still not used to this time zone. We all walked around Sylvan Lake then drove past the Crazy Horse monument on the way to Mount Rushmore. Mt. Rushmore was impressive but very commercialized. Ice cream store, restaurant, gift shops, etc. Not quite what we had envisioned. Went to Rapid City to do laundry. The first laundry stop since we did was at Johnnies house. Did food shopping at Wal-Mart then continued to the Devils Tower National Monument in far eastern Wyoming. The Devils Tower was the mountain that was the site of the alien landing in the movie Close Encounters of the First Kind. Arrived about 5pm. There is a large colony of black-tailed prairie dogs, a herd white-tailed deer, and lots of rabbits. It was a long day so mostly we sat around & read the Sunday paper.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Up early. We hiked around the base of Devils Tower on the Tower Trail. Had the place all to ourselves at 7:30am. A very beautiful hike. The Indians hold sacred ceremonies on the mountain. We photographed some of the “prayer bundles” the Indians tie to the trees. The prayer bundles are simply pieces of cloth wrapped around different meaningful items then tied to a tree and left there as an offering. Headed out for Fort Peck Dam & Lake near Fort Peck, Montana. The plan was to break this eight hour drive in half. We arrived at Miles City, MT around 2pm with the intent of camping at the Twelve Mile Dam Tongue River State Fishing Access Site. Not what we had expected at all. The water was all mud and about a foot deep. We stopped at a City park in Miles, had lunch, walked the dogs and decided to finish the long drive to Fort Peck. The part of Montana from the Wyoming boarder north to Fort Peck is the most barren and desolate place we have been on this trip. Low, barren hills, areas of badlands, mile after mile of monotony on narrow, winding roads. Not a fun type drive. On the other hand, this is true cowboy country. Huge ranches. Horses & cattle everywhere you look. Interesting to see. Arrived at the Corps of Engineers Downstream Campground about 5:30. Glad to be here. Such a beautiful place. Worth the long drive. There is a long nature trail leading to the Interpretative Center, and of course a HUGE lake, 246,000 acres with 1,520 miles of shoreline. 1,520 miles; not a typo. We have a campsite right on the clear, cold lake. The lake was formed by damming the Missouri River. Took a good long walk. We and the dogs are glad to be outside after an eight hour drive. Gopher is having a ball swimming in the lake. During our walk she spotted two white-tail deer. Good thing I was holding on, she about pulled my arm off wishing she could chase the deer. Staying here for a few days to explore this part of Montana before heading towards Glacier National Park.
Tuesday, May 24, 2006
The campground had a wonderful, paved nature trail. Runs for a few miles. We all enjoyed several nice walks. We walked to the Interpretative Center, a.k.a. museum. It has several displays concerning the building of the dam as well as fossils found during the dredging. Well worth the trip. Late in the afternoon, the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm and flash floor warning for the area. We have a weather radio so whenever the sky looks threatening, we turn it on. They were predicting a possibility of quarter sized hail. About 5pm or so, the storm rolled in. We got lucky; lots of rain but no hail. Had a wonderful time here in spite of the storm.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Up by 6am. On the road by 7:30. We had no special destination today. Had breakfast at a rest area near Glaskow. On the way, we passed a house where a guy made huge metal sculptures. The roadside was lined with dinosaurs, bears, eagles & such. Another interesting habit is for the farmers and ranchers to leave their worn out equipment sitting on their property right next to the road. It’s fun looking at the old tractors, wagons, harvesters, etc. Like a drive-thru museum. One of our favorite camping reference books is Don Wright’s Guide to Free Campgrounds. Not all “free” but very low priced. We found a County campground just south of Harve. The Beaver Creek County Park. There are 2 lakes on 10,000 acres. What a super find. As I type this, we’re camped about 10’ from the edge of a beautiful, clear lake. Just us and two other groups. One is a guy named Ted and his wife. Probably 70+ years. . Born & raised around here but now they live in Great Falls. They come back here every year to visit the cemetery where their family is buried. By appearances, I thing he built the travel trailer they pull behind their old Ford truck. Ted, his wife and their two dogs. Tomorrow we head towards Glacier National Park. Ready for some mountains after two weeks on the plains.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
May 15 to 20
Monday, May 15, 2006
Left about 9am. Destination Summit Lake State Recreation Area near Tekamah, NE. Took I-29 through Iowa then Omaha, NE. Mostly farm land. Corn. Saw a corn ethanol making plant. Summit Lake is a large spring fed lake. Access was via a mile long washboard road. Lots of ducks, geese and other water birds. We were the only campers there. It was a beautiful place. Ate lunch and walked around. Gopher played in the very tall grass. She would crouch down then charge out like she was a lion. About 2:30 we decided to checkout the City RV park in Tekamah. It was part of a very nice park. Ball fields, playgrounds and such. Continued our drive north to Decatur, NE. Decatur has a beautiful City campground on the banks of the Missouri River. Very well maintained. Beautiful river view. Once again, it was just us. The park gets a lot of use from the residents for walking. The sun came out today. One of the few mostly sunny days we have had on the trip so far. The weather forecast is for warm & sunny the rest of this week.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Set out for Yankton, SD about 8am. This is a beautiful part of Nebraska. Rolling hills, corn fields & cattle ranches. The grass is a green as can be making for a striking contrast with the newly plowed fields. Got gas in Winnebago, NE, at an Omaha Indian reservation gas station. About 10 cents less than non-reservation stations. $131.41 for a 48.689 gallon fill up. Ouch!! So far, the cost of gas exceeds all other costs combined. We both agree it beats sitting at home every day. Went shopping in Yankton. Around here, the HyVee grocery stores are the best. A combination of a good Publix and a Whole Foods. Then to Wal-Mart for the other things we needed. Yankton is the only major city we will be around for several days so we stocked up. Camped at the COE campground, Cottonwood. A beautiful campground right on Lake Yankton which ,during the Lewis & Clark expedition, was the main river channel. Drove across the top of the Gavins Point Dam to visit the wonderful COE visitors’ center. Picked up a bunch of really informative literature. Met some other Florida people in the campground. They live in a small town in the Panhandle; don’t recall the name.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Up early. Used my new percolator coffee pot instead of instant coffee. Johnnie’s idea. Makes very good coffee. Clear & cool. Our destination today is the Snake Creek Recreation area near Wagner, SD. Got gas at a reservation station run by the Yankton Sioux tribe. $2.69/gallon compared to $2.81. They had a few RV spaces with electricity by the casino. Stopped at the Fort Randall Military Post near Pickstown, SD. Spent about an hour exploring the remains of the fort. The fort was established on June 26, 1856 to protect settlers and emigrants from the Sioux Indians. Fort Randall was just one of dozens of forts built in the new west territories. Continued on to Snake Creek. Our campsite backs to the Missouri river. The water is very clear now. Perhaps 2’ visibility as opposed to the very muddy waters to the south. The “Mighty Missouri/Big Muddy” is the longest river in North America. It starts in Montana and joins the Mississippi River just north of St. Louis, MO. Gopher took a good swim today. Should have been a lab. Today was the warmest day so far. The suns finally shining. Probably about 80* today with a very strong wind. This is prime tornado country. There is a sign on the bath house designating it as a shelter. The park staff will drive around and tell everyone if severe weather alerts or tornado warnings are issued. Tomorrow we continue north & west towards the Badlands National Park just south of Wall, SD. Had another very nice day. Carol retired two weeks ago today.
Thursday, May 19, 2006
Set out for the Badlands National Park National Park. Saw a pheasant along the road. More farms & ranches. Rolling hills all through southern South Dakota. Very pretty. On the way to the campground, we visited the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site. It was a deactivated Minuteman II silo and control complex from the days of the Cold War. This site was deactivated as the result of the START treaty signed by Presidents Bush & Gorbachev in 1991. There are still 500 such sites that are still deployed, a reminder that peace still evades us. Camped in the Cedar Pass Campground in The Badlands National Park. $5/night. No utilities. By evening it was about half filled. The Badlands were described by conservation writer Freeman Tilden as “peaks & valleys of delicately banded colors-colors that shift in the sunshine…and a thousand tints that color charts do not show. In the early morning and evening, when the shadows are cast upon the infinite peaks or on a bright moon lit night when the whole region seems a part of another world, the Badlands will be an experience not easily forgotten”. It reminds us of the Grand Canyon in some ways with all the different bands of color in the cliffs & valleys. Very desolate place. When we walked the dogs we had to watch for cactus and prairie rattlers. Both the Lakota Indians and early explorers avoided the area. It was hot today; in the 90’s. Toured the new visitors center.
Friday, May 20, 2006
Got up at 6am. The plan was to drive the Badlands Loop Road as early as possible. Stopped at the scenic overlooks. Saw several bighorn sheep and a prairie dog town. One of the walks has several fossil exhibits. Very interesting. Continued to our destination for the day; Custer State Park south of Rapid City, SD. Along the way we stopped at the famous Wall Drugs in Wall, SD. Mom & Dad were there during their travels years ago. Went grocery shopping at Wal-Mart then on to Custer SP. Got lucky. This weekend is the Open House Weekend. Free admission, lots of interesting events scheduled. There were two buffalo wandering around the campground area. This is the first time we recall seeing wild buffalo. There is a heard of buffalo here in the 1,500 range. Each year the herd is thinned to 1,000 because that’s all the area can support during the harsh winter months. Our campsite is right on a small mountain stream. Gopher had a grand time splashing in the water. The weather is nicer here; in the mid-70’s.
Saturday, May 21, 2006
At 8:00 we walked to the Visitor Center to join in a guided hike in the French Creek Wilderness Area. Conducted by a very knowledgeable young woman. Learned the names of lots of birds, plants & flowers. Saw deer but no more buffalo. Later that day we drove to the Sylvan Lake area and camped there. Ed & Gopher took a beautiful hike around Sylvan Lake. Beautiful, clear, cold water. As always, Gopher went swimming. That evening it rained. Thunder at times.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Up at 6am. Still not used to this time zone. We all walked around Sylvan Lake then drove past the Crazy Horse monument on the way to Mount Rushmore. Mt. Rushmore was impressive but very commercialized. Ice cream store, restaurant, gift shops, etc. Not quite what we had envisioned. Went to Rapid City to do laundry. The first laundry stop since we dis was at Johnnies house.
Left about 9am. Destination Summit Lake State Recreation Area near Tekamah, NE. Took I-29 through Iowa then Omaha, NE. Mostly farm land. Corn. Saw a corn ethanol making plant. Summit Lake is a large spring fed lake. Access was via a mile long washboard road. Lots of ducks, geese and other water birds. We were the only campers there. It was a beautiful place. Ate lunch and walked around. Gopher played in the very tall grass. She would crouch down then charge out like she was a lion. About 2:30 we decided to checkout the City RV park in Tekamah. It was part of a very nice park. Ball fields, playgrounds and such. Continued our drive north to Decatur, NE. Decatur has a beautiful City campground on the banks of the Missouri River. Very well maintained. Beautiful river view. Once again, it was just us. The park gets a lot of use from the residents for walking. The sun came out today. One of the few mostly sunny days we have had on the trip so far. The weather forecast is for warm & sunny the rest of this week.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Set out for Yankton, SD about 8am. This is a beautiful part of Nebraska. Rolling hills, corn fields & cattle ranches. The grass is a green as can be making for a striking contrast with the newly plowed fields. Got gas in Winnebago, NE, at an Omaha Indian reservation gas station. About 10 cents less than non-reservation stations. $131.41 for a 48.689 gallon fill up. Ouch!! So far, the cost of gas exceeds all other costs combined. We both agree it beats sitting at home every day. Went shopping in Yankton. Around here, the HyVee grocery stores are the best. A combination of a good Publix and a Whole Foods. Then to Wal-Mart for the other things we needed. Yankton is the only major city we will be around for several days so we stocked up. Camped at the COE campground, Cottonwood. A beautiful campground right on Lake Yankton which ,during the Lewis & Clark expedition, was the main river channel. Drove across the top of the Gavins Point Dam to visit the wonderful COE visitors’ center. Picked up a bunch of really informative literature. Met some other Florida people in the campground. They live in a small town in the Panhandle; don’t recall the name.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Up early. Used my new percolator coffee pot instead of instant coffee. Johnnie’s idea. Makes very good coffee. Clear & cool. Our destination today is the Snake Creek Recreation area near Wagner, SD. Got gas at a reservation station run by the Yankton Sioux tribe. $2.69/gallon compared to $2.81. They had a few RV spaces with electricity by the casino. Stopped at the Fort Randall Military Post near Pickstown, SD. Spent about an hour exploring the remains of the fort. The fort was established on June 26, 1856 to protect settlers and emigrants from the Sioux Indians. Fort Randall was just one of dozens of forts built in the new west territories. Continued on to Snake Creek. Our campsite backs to the Missouri river. The water is very clear now. Perhaps 2’ visibility as opposed to the very muddy waters to the south. The “Mighty Missouri/Big Muddy” is the longest river in North America. It starts in Montana and joins the Mississippi River just north of St. Louis, MO. Gopher took a good swim today. Should have been a lab. Today was the warmest day so far. The suns finally shining. Probably about 80* today with a very strong wind. This is prime tornado country. There is a sign on the bath house designating it as a shelter. The park staff will drive around and tell everyone if severe weather alerts or tornado warnings are issued. Tomorrow we continue north & west towards the Badlands National Park just south of Wall, SD. Had another very nice day. Carol retired two weeks ago today.
Thursday, May 19, 2006
Set out for the Badlands National Park National Park. Saw a pheasant along the road. More farms & ranches. Rolling hills all through southern South Dakota. Very pretty. On the way to the campground, we visited the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site. It was a deactivated Minuteman II silo and control complex from the days of the Cold War. This site was deactivated as the result of the START treaty signed by Presidents Bush & Gorbachev in 1991. There are still 500 such sites that are still deployed, a reminder that peace still evades us. Camped in the Cedar Pass Campground in The Badlands National Park. $5/night. No utilities. By evening it was about half filled. The Badlands were described by conservation writer Freeman Tilden as “peaks & valleys of delicately banded colors-colors that shift in the sunshine…and a thousand tints that color charts do not show. In the early morning and evening, when the shadows are cast upon the infinite peaks or on a bright moon lit night when the whole region seems a part of another world, the Badlands will be an experience not easily forgotten”. It reminds us of the Grand Canyon in some ways with all the different bands of color in the cliffs & valleys. Very desolate place. When we walked the dogs we had to watch for cactus and prairie rattlers. Both the Lakota Indians and early explorers avoided the area. It was hot today; in the 90’s. Toured the new visitors center.
Friday, May 20, 2006
Got up at 6am. The plan was to drive the Badlands Loop Road as early as possible. Stopped at the scenic overlooks. Saw several bighorn sheep and a prairie dog town. One of the walks has several fossil exhibits. Very interesting. Continued to our destination for the day; Custer State Park south of Rapid City, SD. Along the way we stopped at the famous Wall Drugs in Wall, SD. Mom & Dad were there during their travels years ago. Went grocery shopping at Wal-Mart then on to Custer SP. Got lucky. This weekend is the Open House Weekend. Free admission, lots of interesting events scheduled. There were two buffalo wandering around the campground area. This is the first time we recall seeing wild buffalo. There is a heard of buffalo here in the 1,500 range. Each year the herd is thinned to 1,000 because that’s all the area can support during the harsh winter months. Our campsite is right on a small mountain stream. Gopher had a grand time splashing in the water. The weather is nicer here; in the mid-70’s.
Saturday, May 21, 2006
At 8:00 we walked to the Visitor Center to join in a guided hike in the French Creek Wilderness Area. Conducted by a very knowledgeable young woman. Learned the names of lots of birds, plants & flowers. Saw deer but no more buffalo. Later that day we drove to the Sylvan Lake area and camped there. Ed & Gopher took a beautiful hike around Sylvan Lake. Beautiful, clear, cold water. As always, Gopher went swimming. That evening it rained. Thunder at times.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Up at 6am. Still not used to this time zone. We all walked around Sylvan Lake then drove past the Crazy Horse monument on the way to Mount Rushmore. Mt. Rushmore was impressive but very commercialized. Ice cream store, restaurant, gift shops, etc. Not quite what we had envisioned. Went to Rapid City to do laundry. The first laundry stop since we dis was at Johnnies house.
Monday, May 15, 2006
May 11 to 15
http://edandcarol.shutterfly.com/action/pictures?a=67b0de21b33ba6594532
Go to this website for pictues . Carol
Sunday, May 7:
Decided to move on. Stopped in Pine Bluff, AR with the intent of spending the night in a City RV park. Not what we had hoped for so we continued on to the Little Rock area. Stayed at the Willow Beach Park, a Corps of Engineers Park on the Missouri River. Very nice. Our site has a great view of the river in front and a pond in back. Plus, we have Verizon internet service and it’s Sunday. Carol got caught up on her Blog. We both checked e-mail. Called Mom. Had Jambalaya for dinner. An easy, one pot meal. For lunches we have been taking canned soup and adding veggies, or rice, or serving with pasta.
Monday, May 08
Went grocery shopping today. First stopped at Harvest Foods in North Little Rock. The main display when you walked in was Hamburger Helper, Vienna Sausages & Mac & Cheese. We left. Used the GPS unit to locate other grocery stores in the area. Went to a Kroger. A very basic store, but better than Harvest Foods. The GPS unit can find stores, restaurants, gas stations, on & on, then lead you right to them. What a wonderful device.
Back to the campground. Ed & Gopher went walking around a lake. It was full of water moccasins. Ed counted three in maybe a five minute walk on the waters edge. All tolled, between us, we counted about ten for the day.
We meet the most interesting people at campgrounds. This morning Carol talked to a lady who lives in their 5th wheel full time. Her husband’s hobby is to buy the contents of storage units that people abandon. Some times they make money by selling the stuff, once it was $4,000. The lady said they check every pocket and envelope looking for stuff. Some times the contents are just trash that get throw away. This lady loves to play Bingo but Arkansas , Utah , and Hawaii don’t allow gambling, so can’t play ‘till they leave Arkansas. A couple pulls in next to us this afternoon. They are from Utah and traveled here to visit their grandkids. They travel with a 20 year old deaf cat who was walking outside driving Gopher nuts . We also had a turtle under the motorhome. Gopher kept sniffing at it , but then it walked under the lawn chair Balou and Bagera were sitting in. They went nuts, it took some heavy pulling by Carol to keep them from following the turtle into the water. Once Carol saw the snake slide by in the water the dogs were dragged to higher ground. Further south it was alligators in the water; now it’s water moccasins. Once we get further north, the waters should be free of dangerous creatures.
Tuesday, May 9
Drove to Branson, MO. The plan was to stay in the Branson City RV Park. What a disappointment that place was. Dirty, no privacy between sites, lots of transients. Instead, we headed for Table Rock State Park. A wonderful place. The campground is located on Table Lake. Clear, cool water. Overall, about the nicest campground yet. There is a really big storm headed this way. Tornado warnings, flash flood warnings, destructive winds & hail. Turned on both of our weather alert radios. We are just across from the bath house. Out tornado plan is the bathhouse. As it turned out, the worst of the storm was to the north & south of us. It rained from about midnight on.
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
The morning weather was partly cloudy & cooler. The high today is supposed to be in the low 60’s with the low tonight in the 40’s. Rained on & off. We went into Branson. Looks just like International Drive in Orlando, Gatlinburg, TN or any other really tourist place. Did some grocery shopping, mailed Moms Mothers Day card and left. Stopped at the Table Rock Dam then back to the campground. We switched camp spots to one right on the lake. A beautiful view. Ed & Gopher took a nice walk along the lakeside trail. Carol cleaned the camper and enjoyed her book.
Carol had called Johnny yesterday about a dentist appointment. Ed has had a sore tooth. Johnny called back and we made an appointment for 2pm Monday. We’ll see how the tooth is doing then.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Up by 7am. Clear, cool (55)& windy day. We all took a nice walk on the Lakeside Trail then had breakfast. Oatmeal. Ed’s tooth is feeling just fine. Cancelled the dentist. Left for Cedar Ridge, C.O.E. park on Stockton Lake near Stockton, MO. Pretty drive.. We shop at the Pro Bass store in Springfield, their largest store. We walked in and it is huge they have a zooquarium and lots of shops but we walked right out when Ed found out they didn’t sell propane for the motorhome. The side trip did take us by a Panera Bread store in Springfield, where Carol bought their biggest loaf of whole grain bread, chocolate chip cookies and trail mix bagels.
Ed made great toasted cheese and ham sandwiches with the bread. Cedar Ridge is really in the boonies. If it wasn’t for the GPS & the Camping with the Corps book we have, we never would have found it. No directional signs at all. Nice campground. Wooded, right on the lake. $6/night with our Golden Age Passport.
We are low on propane, which runs the hot water heater and stove. Carol wanted a shower so she walked up to the new bathhouse. Her comment was” Good thing, I know scary movies are fiction. The only thing between me and the open door was a flimsy shower curtain. The water pressure was great and lots of hot water. I didn’t care how much water I used. The need to be clean over rode scenes from Psycho.
Friday, May 14, 2006
Left early to head towards KC. A pretty drive. Saw some Amish people driving carts. Arrived at John/Marge’s house shortly after noon. The dogs really are enjoying running in the back yard, chasing the ball and such. Johnnie cooked a great dinner for us.
Saturday, May 14, 2006
Went to the local Green Market for fresh fruits & veggies. Stopped at Panera Bread for bagels, lemon cakes, bread for dinner and coffee. Johnnie had bought a bunch of lobster as part of a school fund raiser. Johnnies friend George & his wife came over for dinner. Karen’s 2 children were over while Karen had her husband Andy admitted to the hospitasl. Andy has pneumonia . We had 13 lobsters to share , it was a feast. Karen came by about 9pm ate a little and toke the children home.
Sunday, May 14, 2006
Clear & cool. 50* when we woke up. Johnnie had a dog sweater from when they had a dog. Balou is wearing it. He gets very cold. Bagera shivers some because of his thyroid condition. Gopher, with her heavy coat loves this cool weather. Carol, Marge & Johnnie went to church in the morning. Had another of Johnnies great breakfasts. Omelets & hash browns. If you’re ever in the KC area, be sure to stay at the Wagner B & B. It’s a five star joint. Left about noon time. Stopped at Target & a grocery store on the way out of KC. Arrived at Big Lake State Park near Fortescue, MO/Rulo, NE about 3 pm. Cloudy, windy & cool. The “Big Lake” is an oxbow of the Missouri River. Very nice park. There is a small store & restaurant, a few motel rooms and cabins. Lewis & Clark camped here in 1806 on their return trip to St. Louis, MO. Not in this campground actually, but on the other side of the “Big Lake” when the Lake was the main channel of the Missouri River.
Monday, May 15, 2006
It was 52 degrees and windy this morning. The dogs and I were warm and comfy under our electric blanket. If we don’t have electic , I open up a Thermacare and sleep on it to keep warm.
Left about 9am. Destination Summit Lake State Recreation Area near Tekamah, NE. Took I-29 through Iowa then Omaha, NE. Mostly farm land. Corn. Saw a corn ethanol making plant. Summit Lake is a large spring fed lake. Access was via a mile long washboard road. Lots of ducks, geese and other water birds. We were the only campers there. It was a beautiful place. Ate lunch and walked around. Gopher played in the very tall grass. She would crouch down then charge out like she was a lion. About 2:30 we decided to checkout the City RV park in Tekamah. It was part of a very nice park. Ball fields, playgrounds and such. Continued our drive north to Decatur, NE. Decatur has a beautiful City campground on the banks of the Missouri River. The cost is $14 a day for electric and water. And we have internet access. Very well maintained. Beautiful river view. Once again, it was just us. The park gets a lot of use from the residents for walking. The sun came out today. One of the few mostly sunny days we have had on the trip so far. The weather forecast is for warm & sunny the rest of this week.The fun part of this trip is never knowing what type of camp ground we’ll end up in. All have been nice some better than others. Also, since we travel the back roads we go through little towns with populations of 300, 500, or a big place or 1,500 people. We are in the Heartlands, clean well keep little towns all celebrating the 200 anniversary of the Lewis and
Go to this website for pictues . Carol
Sunday, May 7:
Decided to move on. Stopped in Pine Bluff, AR with the intent of spending the night in a City RV park. Not what we had hoped for so we continued on to the Little Rock area. Stayed at the Willow Beach Park, a Corps of Engineers Park on the Missouri River. Very nice. Our site has a great view of the river in front and a pond in back. Plus, we have Verizon internet service and it’s Sunday. Carol got caught up on her Blog. We both checked e-mail. Called Mom. Had Jambalaya for dinner. An easy, one pot meal. For lunches we have been taking canned soup and adding veggies, or rice, or serving with pasta.
Monday, May 08
Went grocery shopping today. First stopped at Harvest Foods in North Little Rock. The main display when you walked in was Hamburger Helper, Vienna Sausages & Mac & Cheese. We left. Used the GPS unit to locate other grocery stores in the area. Went to a Kroger. A very basic store, but better than Harvest Foods. The GPS unit can find stores, restaurants, gas stations, on & on, then lead you right to them. What a wonderful device.
Back to the campground. Ed & Gopher went walking around a lake. It was full of water moccasins. Ed counted three in maybe a five minute walk on the waters edge. All tolled, between us, we counted about ten for the day.
We meet the most interesting people at campgrounds. This morning Carol talked to a lady who lives in their 5th wheel full time. Her husband’s hobby is to buy the contents of storage units that people abandon. Some times they make money by selling the stuff, once it was $4,000. The lady said they check every pocket and envelope looking for stuff. Some times the contents are just trash that get throw away. This lady loves to play Bingo but Arkansas , Utah , and Hawaii don’t allow gambling, so can’t play ‘till they leave Arkansas. A couple pulls in next to us this afternoon. They are from Utah and traveled here to visit their grandkids. They travel with a 20 year old deaf cat who was walking outside driving Gopher nuts . We also had a turtle under the motorhome. Gopher kept sniffing at it , but then it walked under the lawn chair Balou and Bagera were sitting in. They went nuts, it took some heavy pulling by Carol to keep them from following the turtle into the water. Once Carol saw the snake slide by in the water the dogs were dragged to higher ground. Further south it was alligators in the water; now it’s water moccasins. Once we get further north, the waters should be free of dangerous creatures.
Tuesday, May 9
Drove to Branson, MO. The plan was to stay in the Branson City RV Park. What a disappointment that place was. Dirty, no privacy between sites, lots of transients. Instead, we headed for Table Rock State Park. A wonderful place. The campground is located on Table Lake. Clear, cool water. Overall, about the nicest campground yet. There is a really big storm headed this way. Tornado warnings, flash flood warnings, destructive winds & hail. Turned on both of our weather alert radios. We are just across from the bath house. Out tornado plan is the bathhouse. As it turned out, the worst of the storm was to the north & south of us. It rained from about midnight on.
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
The morning weather was partly cloudy & cooler. The high today is supposed to be in the low 60’s with the low tonight in the 40’s. Rained on & off. We went into Branson. Looks just like International Drive in Orlando, Gatlinburg, TN or any other really tourist place. Did some grocery shopping, mailed Moms Mothers Day card and left. Stopped at the Table Rock Dam then back to the campground. We switched camp spots to one right on the lake. A beautiful view. Ed & Gopher took a nice walk along the lakeside trail. Carol cleaned the camper and enjoyed her book.
Carol had called Johnny yesterday about a dentist appointment. Ed has had a sore tooth. Johnny called back and we made an appointment for 2pm Monday. We’ll see how the tooth is doing then.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Up by 7am. Clear, cool (55)& windy day. We all took a nice walk on the Lakeside Trail then had breakfast. Oatmeal. Ed’s tooth is feeling just fine. Cancelled the dentist. Left for Cedar Ridge, C.O.E. park on Stockton Lake near Stockton, MO. Pretty drive.. We shop at the Pro Bass store in Springfield, their largest store. We walked in and it is huge they have a zooquarium and lots of shops but we walked right out when Ed found out they didn’t sell propane for the motorhome. The side trip did take us by a Panera Bread store in Springfield, where Carol bought their biggest loaf of whole grain bread, chocolate chip cookies and trail mix bagels.
Ed made great toasted cheese and ham sandwiches with the bread. Cedar Ridge is really in the boonies. If it wasn’t for the GPS & the Camping with the Corps book we have, we never would have found it. No directional signs at all. Nice campground. Wooded, right on the lake. $6/night with our Golden Age Passport.
We are low on propane, which runs the hot water heater and stove. Carol wanted a shower so she walked up to the new bathhouse. Her comment was” Good thing, I know scary movies are fiction. The only thing between me and the open door was a flimsy shower curtain. The water pressure was great and lots of hot water. I didn’t care how much water I used. The need to be clean over rode scenes from Psycho.
Friday, May 14, 2006
Left early to head towards KC. A pretty drive. Saw some Amish people driving carts. Arrived at John/Marge’s house shortly after noon. The dogs really are enjoying running in the back yard, chasing the ball and such. Johnnie cooked a great dinner for us.
Saturday, May 14, 2006
Went to the local Green Market for fresh fruits & veggies. Stopped at Panera Bread for bagels, lemon cakes, bread for dinner and coffee. Johnnie had bought a bunch of lobster as part of a school fund raiser. Johnnies friend George & his wife came over for dinner. Karen’s 2 children were over while Karen had her husband Andy admitted to the hospitasl. Andy has pneumonia . We had 13 lobsters to share , it was a feast. Karen came by about 9pm ate a little and toke the children home.
Sunday, May 14, 2006
Clear & cool. 50* when we woke up. Johnnie had a dog sweater from when they had a dog. Balou is wearing it. He gets very cold. Bagera shivers some because of his thyroid condition. Gopher, with her heavy coat loves this cool weather. Carol, Marge & Johnnie went to church in the morning. Had another of Johnnies great breakfasts. Omelets & hash browns. If you’re ever in the KC area, be sure to stay at the Wagner B & B. It’s a five star joint. Left about noon time. Stopped at Target & a grocery store on the way out of KC. Arrived at Big Lake State Park near Fortescue, MO/Rulo, NE about 3 pm. Cloudy, windy & cool. The “Big Lake” is an oxbow of the Missouri River. Very nice park. There is a small store & restaurant, a few motel rooms and cabins. Lewis & Clark camped here in 1806 on their return trip to St. Louis, MO. Not in this campground actually, but on the other side of the “Big Lake” when the Lake was the main channel of the Missouri River.
Monday, May 15, 2006
It was 52 degrees and windy this morning. The dogs and I were warm and comfy under our electric blanket. If we don’t have electic , I open up a Thermacare and sleep on it to keep warm.
Left about 9am. Destination Summit Lake State Recreation Area near Tekamah, NE. Took I-29 through Iowa then Omaha, NE. Mostly farm land. Corn. Saw a corn ethanol making plant. Summit Lake is a large spring fed lake. Access was via a mile long washboard road. Lots of ducks, geese and other water birds. We were the only campers there. It was a beautiful place. Ate lunch and walked around. Gopher played in the very tall grass. She would crouch down then charge out like she was a lion. About 2:30 we decided to checkout the City RV park in Tekamah. It was part of a very nice park. Ball fields, playgrounds and such. Continued our drive north to Decatur, NE. Decatur has a beautiful City campground on the banks of the Missouri River. The cost is $14 a day for electric and water. And we have internet access. Very well maintained. Beautiful river view. Once again, it was just us. The park gets a lot of use from the residents for walking. The sun came out today. One of the few mostly sunny days we have had on the trip so far. The weather forecast is for warm & sunny the rest of this week.The fun part of this trip is never knowing what type of camp ground we’ll end up in. All have been nice some better than others. Also, since we travel the back roads we go through little towns with populations of 300, 500, or a big place or 1,500 people. We are in the Heartlands, clean well keep little towns all celebrating the 200 anniversary of the Lewis and
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