8-4-17 (Day 4 Blackbird Bend Casino, Onawa, Iowa)

                                                                 Breakfast

I was so excited to have a breakfast date this morning.  Ferny Kat must have known.  She made sure Lauren didn't sleep late.  Once she got him up, and left me alone, I rested another hour.

We walked a couple of blocks and ate breakfast at Michelle's Place in downtown Mayview, Missouri, There is a fuel station, a cafe, and a campground in this small town with a population of 212. It has been over 40 years since the town has had a cafe. I must say, it was awesome.

The motorcycle traffic has definitely picked up.  A few Hell's Angels passed us on the interstate.  Wasn't long, we passed them, they were pulled over by 2 cops.  I hope it didn't spoil their trip.

We had all kinds of plans when we left this morning, didn't know where we would stop,  After 303 miles, we ended up at the Blackbird Bend Casino  RV park with free hookup.  It is us and another camper in this parking lot.  We are at the end where there are trees and grass.  It is nice and peaceful here.

Ferny Kat couldn't wait to go outside.  She looked like a cow grazing eating grass.  This mid west grass must be mighty good.  Another Ferny Kat approval in the books.

We donated a little bit of money at the casino to repay them for our free RV site then came back and enjoyed the beautiful cool night, watching the sunset, listening to the pheasants and killdeer, and having to go get a jacket cause it's cold.

Pictures are here:

8-3-17 (Day 3 Mayview Campground, Mayview, Missouri)

 If the trains came by last night, it didn’t wake us.  We slept good.  When we got up around 7 o’clock, I opened the door to the camper and heard a little bit of clanging, and then the train was upon us!  The engineer saw my enthusiasm and gave an extra honk on the horn as he passed by.  I bet our camper neighbors were not as enthusiastic as I was.

We must be getting closer to Sturgis because we have seen a lot more motorcycles today.  I bet the count goes up the closer we get.

We drove 325 miles to a very quaint, Mayview Campground.  It has full hookups in a gravel parking lot, and a nice view of the cornfields.  The owner met us a few blocks out and escorted us in.  He came back a few hours later with fresh corn.  You can’t beat this hospitality,

We are enjoying a nice cool night with the locust serenading us!  It is supposed to be in the mid 50’s tonight.  Bring it on!!

Da Pictures are here:

8-2-17 (Day 2 Trail of Tears Campground, Mississippi River)

                                                             Enid Lake Dam

We enjoyed our morning coffee overlooking Enid Lake, then traveled 272 miles north to the Trail of Tears Campground (site 5) in Jackson, Missouri.  Our campsite is overlooking the mighty Mississippi River.

We felt a hint of fall in the air and heard the rustle of the Maple leaves blowing in the wind. Awwh!

We watched several barges pass by, a few small boats, and one really fast train. The only downside is, the train track is right outside our back door, but we knew that coming in.

                                                            From the camper window

Fernykat came outside and gave a short approval,  then the rain rushed her in.  (She hates to get her hair wet). After the rain Lauren and I took a stroll, sat outside for a bit, and decided it was cool enough to either get a a light jacket or go in.  We just couldn't  pull out the jackets, so we went in.

It is so nice listening to the crickets as I type.  Just wondering when will the next train come!!

The Pictures:

8-1-17 (Day 1 Wallace Creek Campground, Enid Lake,)

We locked up the house, forwarded the mail, and are on the road to our next adventure!

It was a slow 267 miles due to a traffic standstill on Highway 49, but we aren't in a hurry.  The bumpy 6 mile stretch going a few miles an hour on Highway 49 was a lot less stressful than going full throttle.  We appreciate the little things!

We ate a great dinner at our picnic table overlooking the lake with Ferny Kat approval.  Life is fantastic!!!!

Pics:

2-26-17 - 35th Wedding Anniversary

We celebrated our 35th Wedding Anniversary and Clyde and Sherry's Marriage in Orange Beach, Alabama.  We stayed at The Enclave, a 3 bedroom, 3 bath condo with a fantastic view of the beach.

We arrived on Saturday.  I couldn't wait to get my feet in the sand.  Lauren and I walked the beach while Clyde and Sherry looked for treasures with his metal detector.  It was an absolutely beautiful day.  Who would have thought we would go to the beach with Clyde!!

Sunday was a much cooler day than Saturday.  We went to church at Flora Bama and cruised around town, ended up going round and round at go cart track. When we returned to the condo, we walked the beach again, only this time with jackets on.  It was still a beautiful day.

Clyde cooked a great breakfast each morning which we ate sitting on the balcony with a fabulous view of the beach.

Sherry and I took one last stroll on the beach before heading home on Monday.

It was a short, but very enjoyable get away with good food, lots of laughs and great memories.

Pictures:

11-1-16 Heat Escape - Day 82

                                                          Foggy start

We completed the last 285 miles of our heat escape today.  We avoided the interstates as much as possible and took the back country roads.  We had to wait for fog to lift before leaving this morning. This is the first fog we have seen in a long time. Welcome back to humidity, although the temperature was nice in the mid 80's.  So much better than when we left, but after all it is November.

Fernykat was a little bit fussy today. She wants alone time, something she hasn't been able to get much of in the last 4 days of driving home. She finally quietened down after about an hour.

                                                                 Complaining

When we got to the intersection in Bogalusa,  she woke up.  Might have been the smell of the mill, worse than we remembered.  She stood up looking and meowing, all excited that she was actually going home.

She enjoyed the big house while we started unloading the camper.  We grilled pork chops while she explored outside.  Everybody is happy.

Mileage on truck: 6709

Mileage on motorcycle: 5505

Number of pictures: 7050

Awesome heat escape!!!!!!!!!!!

Pictures: https://goo.gl/photos/JptN43VZdUFjEaNT6

10-31-16 - Heat Escape - Day 81

                                                    On the road, again

We decided we wanted to avoid Dallas and Houston on the way home.  We took the back roads. It was a nice country setting for the most part. We traveled 175 miles today to Nakatosh RV Park in Natchitoches, La.  We have a few more hours to go until we get to Crossroads tomorrow.

Pictures: https://goo.gl/photos/TKegYnQor58vHD2q7