Summer ‘22 Trip Part 1

The Summer ‘22 Trip was suppose to happen Summer of ‘21 but if you have read the blog you’ll know why it didn’t happen.  Anyway, we left home on June 20 headed north towards Winterset, Iowa

First stop, Crowder State Park, Trenton, MO.  We spent the night there to add a stop to you Missouri Parks patch goal.  This was a wonderful stop and one I wish we had planned to stay a little longer.  This place has fishing, tennis courts, playground, hiking, and more that I did not check into.  It appears that they are also  renovating the campsites with new concrete pads.

On to Winterset, IA and the John Wayne Museum.  We stayed at the city park for 2-days this time and enjoyed our stay.

John Wayne had a coffee mug made for every movie and gave them to the people who were in and worked on the movie.

Stay at Neligh Park in West Point, NE.  This was a very nice stop.  We had the whole 17-site park to ourselves.  All sites have electric and water with a dump station available.  It is location in a city park with  a new trail, ballfield, fairgrounds and other attractions.  There was a swimming pool as well but we did not use so I can not give any additional information.

We traveled to Ainsworth, NE and stayed overnight at the city park.  It seems like every small town in Nebraska has a city park with a campground with at a minimum electric hookup.  We found it quite nice traveling across Nebraska as these are first come first serve sites.  We were surprised the next morning when numerous cars started showing up.  They put out a banner that read “Class of 72 Reunion”!  We obliged them and got out if their way and onto our next destination….Fort Robinson State Park!  Come wander with us on the next part later.

Trip to Arrow Rock

May 2022

It was a birthday trip for me and number two on our way to five stays in Missouri State Parks to get our patch.  When we arrived at our reserved site 28, it had rained hard the days before and site 28 was flooded and a mess.  We got with the campground host and he said he figure we might want a different site.  He said he had a site that was perfect and had a cancellation and to go look at site 40.  It was perfect and level and DRY!

We walked around the town in near perfect weather on my birthday.  Kristin found this old mailbox at the post office still in use.

We love sitting around camp and enjoying each other’s company

Arrow Rock is a big part of the westward expansion in American history.  It has two historic trails, the Lewis & Clark as well as the Santa Fe Trail which both runs through Arrow Rock.

Arrow Rock is also known for the Lyceum Theater.  They have live plays during the summer months.

Thanks for wandering with us!

Trip to Austin

April 2022

I had planned a trip last year to visit my son in Austin once I retired in January.  One thing happened and then another and before I knew it, it was April.  Kristin and I finally went on a trip to Austin, TX to see my son. It was our first extended trip since I retired in January.  We traveled in our 2022 Winnebago Travato which we purchased to travel in during our retirement last July.

Our first stop was the Stage Stop Campground in Neosho, MO.  I forgot to take any pictures for the trip.  I’m still getting use to this documentation thing.

Our second stop was the Burns Run East Campground on Lake Texoma near Cartwright, TX.  It was a windy day and night.  So windy in fact it kept us up most of the night worrying about if it was a serve storm blowing in!  

           

Next stop was a two night stay at Copperas Creek Campground at Proctor Lake near Comanche, TX.  It was a wonderful place to stay as the RV sites were spacious and well kept. 

We finally made it to Austin to see my son.  The traffic in Austin is some of the worst I’ve seen.  We came in from the northwest side because we were staying at Sun Outdoors at Lake Travis (previously LaHacienda RV Park) for 3 nights.  We visited McKinney State Park in Austin and walked the trails while in Austin.  When I return for the next visit, I will definitely try to stay in this state park as it was very nice.

We left Austin and headed west toward Fredricksburg.  We stopped at a pull off in Johnson City and while eating a sandwich notice a National Park Sign saying next right.  Talk about dumb luck, it was LBJ boyhood home National Park in Johnson City.  We decided to explore the place since we collect NPS passport stamps.  At the visitor’s center they explained the LBJ Ranch was just down the road as well.

So we stopped at NPS LBJ Ranch and the Texas LBJ Ranch State Park as well.  We had a wonderful experience at both places.

It was getting late that day so we stopped for the day at Vineyards of Fredericksburg RV Park on the north side of Fredericksburg, TX. (No pictures of RV park).  I hate it when I forget to take a picture!

Next day we headed up to near Wichita Falls, TX at Arrowhead Lake State Park and spent the night.  This oil well is in the middle of the park and makes considerable noise so I would not get a site next to it.  It was a very nice park and would go back if I’m in the area.

We had a long day of driving to get to Coon Creek Campground at Kaw Lake.  The roads leading up to the  lake were awful but the campground area was well maintained and we had a site right on the lake.  It was an enjoyable evening after a long day traveling the Chisholm Trail across Oklahoma.

The reason for the long drive across Oklahoma was for my wife to visit the Pioneer Woman Mercantile in Pawhuska, OK.  She enjoyed it very much and even ordered some items once we got back home.  We got there around 9:00 and she went inside and got us some coffee and a cinnamon roll.  Yummy!

Last stop on this trip before we got back home was Big Red Barn RV Park in Carthage, MO.  Very nice park and we made an early start to get back home by noon.

We enjoyed the first trip out of state with our new travel vehicle and it was a pleasant trip.  Except for the cinnamon roll, we never ate out.  We both loved the fact we could just fix a meal in the middle of no where and never felt rushed.  

Thanks for wandering with us.

Trip to Babler Memorial State Park

March 2022

Kristin read about Missouri Department of Natural Resources offering a patch if you camp in five state parks in a calendar year.  So that’s what we are trying to do this year.  So in March we camped two nights in Babler Memorial State Park in Wildwood, MO.  It was cold and kinda rainy but we check off the first of many state park stays planned for this year.

Thanks for wandering with us.

 

Ruby’s Shakedown - Echo Bluff’s State Park

August 24,  we head out to Echo Bluff State Park for three days of Ruby’s shakedown adventure.  

Our first stop was to Reliable RV in Springfield to have an LP smell checked out.  Sure enough the relief valve and one other item was leaking propane.  I asked if it was okay to camp in and got the go ahead as they needed to order the parts.

On to Echo Bluffs.  It was extremely hot those three days in August but we enjoyed them none the same.  Ruby’s AC perform admirably with the temps in the 90’s and nothing seemed to be an issue with her.  We enjoyed sitting in the stream watching Maple(dog) play in the water for the first time.  We also enjoyed the ice cream from the gift shop at the lodge.  We’ll be back here this fall sometime as this is a great spot!

All in all a successful shakedown.

The Purchase of Ruby

 

In June of 2021 I had announced my intention to retire January 2022 from the City of Columbia and my wife and I was planning to take a two week vacation.  My life long goal was to use our 5th wheel trailer to travel in and see the country.  We had owned a 5ver since 2014 and I had traded for a smaller 5ver a few years before because I never was comfortable pulling a trailer.  We had camped many times here in Missouri where we could get to where we were going in a few hours.  This trip was to be an out of state trip to Iowa and Nebraska as our foray into retirement mode.  Well, lets just say things didn’t go as planned.

So on June 24 we headed out.  Destination, Winterset, Iowa.  Home of John Wayne my favorite movie star.  All was going well.  I pull into a Hy-Vee in Chillicothe, MO for a gas fill-up and stretch for the dog(Maple).  I was pulling out and watching to make sure I clear this car and I rubbed the 5ver’s tires on a curb on the other side(I say to myself…You have to watch both sides!).  No harm, so on down the road we go.  We get to just outside of Winterset and my wife says she needs to stop.  So I pull into a Pilot truck stop to fill-up and stretch the dog.  Feeling good we are a almost to our destination I begin to pull out of a big truck stop when this happened……I clip a gas pump protector!  Well lets just say the day is ruined.

                                            

We get to our camping spot in Winterset, I take pictures and use good ole black duct tape to protect the area from the elements of the trip.  As I sit inside our 5ver the accident keeps gnawing at me.  To the point my wife asks what’s wrong?  I tell her I am scared to pull the thing any farther!  So we talk the rest of the day and decide just to pull it back home and do something different for the next two weeks.  This was a relief to me and we get up the next morning, my wife reassuring me everything will be fine.  We head back to Columbia and she was right, it all went well.  No more misshapes and I back the 5ver into the barn. 

As we discussed my feelings about traveling and pulling a 5ver,  I come to the realization that I have never been comfortable pulling a trailer.  I did however get the nerve to take the trailer to get an estimate of $1000 to fix the damage.  

With that out of the way we shifted 180 degrees and headed to Crystal Bridges Art Museum in Bentonville to get away and have a small vacation.  We stayed there for three days and then went to Eureka Springs for a couple of days there.  As we vacationed the discussion always turned to what to do with the 5ver.  Fix it or trade the entire setup for something else?  We finally realized our way of camping is to “camp to travel”.  We do not see ourselves as ever being fulltimers but we like what the flexibility that camping  gives us as we travel.

I have always been on Reliable RV email list and I received an email saying they had a new 2022 Winnebago Travato 59K on the lot.  I showed my wife and her first reaction was to not jump in just yet and don’t over react to the situation.  So a week goes by and I email the salesman to see if the 59K is still available, He answers yes it is.  So I send him pictures of my rig(Truck and 5ver) and he gives my a trade price.   So I talk my wife into going down and giving it a look.  Now she is not enthused about this but willing to take a road trip.  On our way down there she is starting to warm up to the idea of trading and getting a different vehicle for our travels.

So before we even step out of the truck my wife says “Are you planning on buying this today?”  To which I say, “lets just give it a look and see where it takes us”.  We look it over, and like it so much my wife says to me, “if this is what you want then I’m all in. I think you will be less stressed while driving and I can help drive if needed”.  So we make the deal to pick up the Travato in a week.  And so a new adventure begins. 😁

Our First Rving Vacation in our 5ver!

We purchased our first 5ver last summer.  We did a couple of weekend trips getting to know our Montana Mountaineer (Oatmeal) and how the F350 (Brown Sugar) was going to handle the pull.  Those went ok but I still had the jitters about towing something that weighs twice as much as my truck.

This year we chose to go to Washington D.C. on my daughters spring break and stay in Missouri for our summer vacation.  Our first week was at the Lake of the Ozarks where we stayed at the Osage Beach RV Park.  We had a great time and the park was an easy on easy off the highway.  Kristin and I are very familiar with the Lake area having worked for the state DOT for the central region.  We spent most of the time watching our daughter Katelin swim and eating out.

Our second week was spent at Johnson's Shut-In State Park campground.  This park is in a remote area of Missouri where the closest cell service is a mile away and the camp store has the only wifi service in the campground.  There are numerous trails including the Ozark Trail connection and places to play in the river.  We also visited Elephant Rocks State Park which is within a few miles of the campground.  Kristin and I have memories from when we were kids of our parents taking us to climb over the huge granite rocks.

We had a wonderful time on this vacation.  Most of the jitters of pulling Oatmeal have past.  It truly is a learning experience and my wife and I enjoyed the trip.  See you down the road.

Maiden Voyage

Well, we have finally christened Oatmeal on her maiden voyage. We pulled her a whole 10 miles from home to check her out and to see if we forgot anything which we might need on a longer trip.  We hooked up on Friday morning at 11:00 and was setup at Cottonwoods RV Park in Columbia, Mo by 12:30.   Yes we did forget some things and down right did know we needed some thing's but we just drove back to the house and picked them up.  Whew!  We'll be here until Monday and we are really enjoying our time away.

Wishing you a wonderful Labor Day Weekend!

That time of Year...

We start thinking of our yearly vacation.  This year we are headed to Texas to see my son and visit Kristin's grandma who turns 100.  I know its the wrong time of year for Texas but anywhere is a good place to vacation in my book.  We'll head to Austin, San Antonio, then over to Corpus and back up the Gulf to home.  I'll try to do better on posting this year as we plan on ordering a new 5th wheel.

Some Summer Vacation Pics

Just before we went on Vacation our Miniature Schnauzer, Cinder who was 13 years old started acting sick.  We took her to the vet and she was terminal and we lost her.  It broke our hearts.

My DW and DD at Park City, UT

Then  it was down to the Moab, UT area for some warmth.  108 degrees!

Having a little fun at Arches N.P. Visitors Center

It was a little smoky at Monument Valley

Got a great tip to eat at Baked in Telluride while visiting there.

The famous Dallas Divide near Ralph Lauren's Ranch

Last stop was Garden of the Gods.  Anytime we go west, we make this our last stop before heading home.

Back home for the 4th of July

I am posting this on Thanksgiving Day to give thanks to our Cinder.  For whom we miss very much. 

We surely do miss our little Cinder!

Oh how we love to Dance!

Our daughter loves to Dance!

We spend our weeks taking her to classes and we stop at the coffee shop while she practices her craft.

We figure this is getting us in shape for a slower pace.

Milestone Day

As you can tell from my countdown calculator to the right I have 2000 days to go until retirement.  While that might seem to be a long time,  I am always planning ahead.

WoooooWhoooo!

Olympic Park, UT

June 24

We spent the day at Olympic Park which for the most is free.  There are paid tours but you can walk around on your own if your up to it.

This was at the on site museum, Katelin and Kristin had dreams of Curling but they could not pick up the stone to make it go.

Katelin was exhausted from all the walking but managed to muster the strength to step on the the gold pedistal to receive her accolades.  Way to go Katy! 

Ever wonder how ski jumpers practice off season?  Well they jump into swimming pools.  They actually have summer camps for students and wanna-be jumpers here at the park.

Until  tomorrow!