Monday, May 08, 2006
May 7 and 8
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 pull 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.
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 pull 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.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Retirement trip has begun
Wednesday, May 3, 2006
RETIRMENT HAS BEGUN
Our first stop was Suwannee River State Park campground, off I-10, near Live Oak, FL. It was 290 mile from home. Cost of camping and day use of the park was $16.35. Campground is wooded and there is nice buffer of trees between campsites. We walked the dogs along the Suwannee River trail and found a spring that feeds into the river. No alligators in the stream so we let Gopher go for a swim.
Thanks to the NEXT EXIT Book, we found the cheapest gas available. Stopped for gas, $2.73/gallon. Cost to fill up the motor home with 44 gallons of gas was $121 at a Pilot station.
Thursday, May 4th: We headed farther west to Black Water River State Park near Holt, Fl not far from Pensacola. It boasts “one of the purest sand bottom rivers in the world”. Price of camping $13.14. We saw signs for canoe float trips. The outfitter takes you up river and then you paddle down and they pick you up at the end. The campers near us said it was a beautiful trip with lots of white sand bars to stop at if you want. The sand along the Black Water River is very fine and when you walk on it the sand, squeaks’ like the powered sugar sand at Destin and Pensacola. The water is clear and we found a place for Gopher to get wet. Gator warning signs are posted in several places. The wood footpaths were elevated over cypress swamps, which are home to gators and snakes. On our way back to I-10, we came across State Road #1. Built in 1921. Paved with brick.
Friday, May 5th: Left Florida at 8:52am. Entered Mississippi at 9:56am. We found a Circuit City and stopped to buy a “gadget” that plugs into the cassette player so the Sirius radio can play through the car radio speakers. Went to Hattiesburg MS, and stayed at the Paul B Johnson State Park. It’s on a large lake. Right now it’s home to about 50 FEMA trailers. People displaced by hurricane Wilma. We are in a new section that just open this morning. Not quite what we were hoping for.
Filled up with gas. $2.759/gallon, total was $96.76. Found a Wal-Mart on the way in and did some shopping. We had fried chicken fingers and honey barbecue nuggets with Cole slaw and potato salad. My kind of lunch, I bought so much we ate it for dinner too.
Saturday, May 6th: Left around 7:30am for Lake Chicot State Park near Lake Village, Arkansas. Stopped in Jackson, Ms for a rest break at the local high school. Found a great breakfast /bakery. The Do-Nut Shop & Bakery. They had a breakfast buffet for $5.99. Carol bought one buffet & a bagel & coffee for $8. Enough for both of us. Crossed the Mississippi River at 10:48am. Stopped at the Louisiana State Welcome Center for a rest & to pick up a map. Carol met a truck driver with a long hair black & brown daushund. Passed through Transylvania, MS. They had a bat painted on the town water tower. Drove next to the levy along the Mississippi river all the way to Lake Village, AR. Saw cotton & corn fields, pecan tree groves and cotton warehouses and lumber mills. Lots of very small towns. IGA grocery stores. Went into a bakery in Lake Providence, AR. There were three Amish ladies with black hair nets & long dresses sitting in front of the bakery having a snack. Didn’t get any bread. By this time of the day, 12:15pm, everything but the plain white bread was gone. Sonic Drive In’s are popular around here. Most towns have one. Rained most of the way from about Lake Providence until we got to Lake Chicot S.P. Arrived at Lake Chicot SP at 1:30pm. The weather forecast is for rain for the next two days so we decided to stay here for two days to avoid having to drive in the rain. This is a nice place. On an old oxbow of the Mississippi River that was cut off when the river changed its course many years ago. It’s “situated in a grove of majestic wild pecans ringed with cypress trees literally “up to their knees” in water along the nation’s largest natural oxbow remnant”. Our campsite has a beautiful view of the lake. Rained on & off all day. This reminds us of Okee-Tanti Campground in Okeechobee. Mostly fisherman.
Sunday, May 7:
Decided to move on. Right mow we’re at the Willow Beach Corps of Engineers campground outside of Little Rock, AR. On the Arkansas River.
RETIRMENT HAS BEGUN
Our first stop was Suwannee River State Park campground, off I-10, near Live Oak, FL. It was 290 mile from home. Cost of camping and day use of the park was $16.35. Campground is wooded and there is nice buffer of trees between campsites. We walked the dogs along the Suwannee River trail and found a spring that feeds into the river. No alligators in the stream so we let Gopher go for a swim.
Thanks to the NEXT EXIT Book, we found the cheapest gas available. Stopped for gas, $2.73/gallon. Cost to fill up the motor home with 44 gallons of gas was $121 at a Pilot station.
Thursday, May 4th: We headed farther west to Black Water River State Park near Holt, Fl not far from Pensacola. It boasts “one of the purest sand bottom rivers in the world”. Price of camping $13.14. We saw signs for canoe float trips. The outfitter takes you up river and then you paddle down and they pick you up at the end. The campers near us said it was a beautiful trip with lots of white sand bars to stop at if you want. The sand along the Black Water River is very fine and when you walk on it the sand, squeaks’ like the powered sugar sand at Destin and Pensacola. The water is clear and we found a place for Gopher to get wet. Gator warning signs are posted in several places. The wood footpaths were elevated over cypress swamps, which are home to gators and snakes. On our way back to I-10, we came across State Road #1. Built in 1921. Paved with brick.
Friday, May 5th: Left Florida at 8:52am. Entered Mississippi at 9:56am. We found a Circuit City and stopped to buy a “gadget” that plugs into the cassette player so the Sirius radio can play through the car radio speakers. Went to Hattiesburg MS, and stayed at the Paul B Johnson State Park. It’s on a large lake. Right now it’s home to about 50 FEMA trailers. People displaced by hurricane Wilma. We are in a new section that just open this morning. Not quite what we were hoping for.
Filled up with gas. $2.759/gallon, total was $96.76. Found a Wal-Mart on the way in and did some shopping. We had fried chicken fingers and honey barbecue nuggets with Cole slaw and potato salad. My kind of lunch, I bought so much we ate it for dinner too.
Saturday, May 6th: Left around 7:30am for Lake Chicot State Park near Lake Village, Arkansas. Stopped in Jackson, Ms for a rest break at the local high school. Found a great breakfast /bakery. The Do-Nut Shop & Bakery. They had a breakfast buffet for $5.99. Carol bought one buffet & a bagel & coffee for $8. Enough for both of us. Crossed the Mississippi River at 10:48am. Stopped at the Louisiana State Welcome Center for a rest & to pick up a map. Carol met a truck driver with a long hair black & brown daushund. Passed through Transylvania, MS. They had a bat painted on the town water tower. Drove next to the levy along the Mississippi river all the way to Lake Village, AR. Saw cotton & corn fields, pecan tree groves and cotton warehouses and lumber mills. Lots of very small towns. IGA grocery stores. Went into a bakery in Lake Providence, AR. There were three Amish ladies with black hair nets & long dresses sitting in front of the bakery having a snack. Didn’t get any bread. By this time of the day, 12:15pm, everything but the plain white bread was gone. Sonic Drive In’s are popular around here. Most towns have one. Rained most of the way from about Lake Providence until we got to Lake Chicot S.P. Arrived at Lake Chicot SP at 1:30pm. The weather forecast is for rain for the next two days so we decided to stay here for two days to avoid having to drive in the rain. This is a nice place. On an old oxbow of the Mississippi River that was cut off when the river changed its course many years ago. It’s “situated in a grove of majestic wild pecans ringed with cypress trees literally “up to their knees” in water along the nation’s largest natural oxbow remnant”. Our campsite has a beautiful view of the lake. Rained on & off all day. This reminds us of Okee-Tanti Campground in Okeechobee. Mostly fisherman.
Sunday, May 7:
Decided to move on. Right mow we’re at the Willow Beach Corps of Engineers campground outside of Little Rock, AR. On the Arkansas River.
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