Wheelin Down the Road

Quartzfest 2012

2012-01-23T10:37:00.000-08:00

Here we are again in the middle of the desert at the annual gathering of Hams south of Quartzsite, AZ.

We finally got away from Mesa on Saturday morning. Normally we are here on Tuesday or Wednesday and have our choice of parking places. This year we had to take what we could get, so this year we are in the 3rd row of handicapped parking instead of the front row.

We were delayed waiting on a new power chair, which came in a week or so ago, but the cushion came in wrong size two times and the correct one did not come until Friday afternoon. We did not want to leave until we had everything as it would be some time before we would be back in the area.

The hamfest is going well, doing a little bit of work, other than what comes on the fax, but parking is all free except what fuel we burn running the generator. When the sun is out it is plenty warm, so we use the 1000w Honda, which powers most everything except the electric heaters and the microwave. It uses about 3/4 gallon of fuel a day. It also powers the engraver and vacuum when needed, so all works well.

Gordon West, WB6NOA is always here, last year he had to leave early due to Forrest fires near his home and he heads up a rescue group and was needed back home. This year he will be here all week, if all goes well back in CA.

We have not been given a count on the number of units here, but it is much larger than last year when there was over 200 registered hams.

Our photos are of some of the units and antennas. Gordon West travels in his van conversion which is parked close to the headquarters trailer/california room. In the distance you can see the multitude of units parked in the desert. This is looking north towards I10 which is about 7 miles away. There are literally thousands of RV's parked everywhere in this area.

The big RV tent is set up with lots of vendors as well as many dealers selling new and pre-owned units. Nothing is "used" these days, all pre-owned, if that makes a difference. Either way, they are not new. The following week will be the Rock & Gem show that will take over the area. Many of the RV's that are here are for both shows, of maybe just spending the winter. You can get a permit for $180.00 good from September to April for camping on BLM property, so a good deal if you like to boon dock that long, or even shorter period of time. It is good for any BLM area in the country.

Another year finished

2011-12-31T11:57:00.000-08:00

Another end to another year. In looking back over the many years, a lot of things have changed. From the way we live, eat and sleep as well as what we do.

I remember years of working, some times 7 days a week to retiring and working part time to going on the road and traveling this beautiful country.

Were still working part time at engraving and working as many hamfest as we can find that are on or near our travel path.

For the past two years we have worked our way west for the winter. We generally spend January and part of February in Mesa, AZ then going to Quartzsite and Yuma with a quick weekend trip to a hamfest in Palm Springs, CA. Then back to Yuma for the Gypsy Journal Rally in March and then work hamfests in Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Illinois and back to Indiana.

We did make a side trip to Taos, NM for a 3 day hamfest which was the first time we had done a convention of this type, but it worked out well. Next year they are planning on having it near Bryce Canyon in Utah. We will not be able to make it as we will be in the Eastern part of the country.

This year we will do about the same, except we will go to Mississippi for the Handicapped Travel Club rally and then back to Indiana for our round of Dr. appointments and then we plan to work our way back to Florida and do the hamfests in that area and spend the winter in that area.
All we have to do is decide on which hamfests we will work without driving all over the place and from one state to the other. Just a matter of sorting them out.

Last evening we went to the Organ Stop Pizza restaurant for a great pizza and great organ music from a huge organ, one of only a few in the country.

So, here's hoping you all have a safe New Year's eve as well as a great New Year.

2011-12-28T19:15:00.000-08:00

Here is a photo of Nancy and I and our "professor" mentioned in the blog. Sorry for the out of focus photo but it is the best we had of the old man.

2011-12-28T19:07:00.000-08:00

Christmas is over and we hope all had a very Merry Christmas and will have a happy and safe New Years celebration.

Not a lot going on here in Arizona. A bit cool at night but warms up nicely as soon as the sun comes up.

Today we took a ride on the Light Rail. It runs from Tempe all the way to the north west side of Phoenix, probably some 40 miles or so. It is propelled by two power units that are located between the three cars with a drivers position at both ends. When they get to the end of the line the driver pulls down the shades and goes to the other end for the trip back across town.

We rode to the end of the line, got off, had lunch and got back on and came back to where we started, got in the van and drove home.

They are planning on continuing it on to the east side of Mesa in the near future, so it will go a few miles farther to the east.

Shortly after we got on an old fellow got on with a back pack and an arm load of files and papers. Promptly sat down, cross legged, and proceeded to drop a bunch of papers on the floor. He picked them up and just stuffed them in a folder and proceeded to shuffle through all kinds of papers, all in disarray and shove them in somewhere else.

He proceeded to open up the backpack take out a set of headphones and hook them up to some device and seemed to talk into it as if making notes or something. He loosened his tie, rolled up his shirt sleeves and continued to shuffle papers from one place to another all the way to the ASU campus stop. He grabbed everything up and got off the train, and proceeded to roll down his sleeves, adjust his tie and pull up his pants and walk off.

We finally decided that maybe he was a Professor at the university. He appeared to be a very unorganized individual.

People were getting on with bicycles, baby carriages and all sorts of things. No one seemed to have a ticket and no one was checking for them, only the driver appeared to be an employee. People just seemed to come and go when ever it stopped.

An interesting day with quite a variety of individuals encountered.

2011-12-07T20:04:00.000-08:00

It was cold again this morning. I do not know how cold as the sun was up early and shining on the sensor for the thermometer and it said something ridiculous like 87 degrees and you know that is wrong with all the snow on the ground.

We talked with the park manager and she said that I10 was closed in both directions until the afternoon due to the snow and ice buildup. You can only imagine the mess of traffic that was backed up in both directions.

We got away about 9:30 and headed west. I saw a gas price of $2.99/gal and I pulled in and filled up. That is the cheapest we had paid for the motorhome.

The rest of the drive was uneventful and boring as is most interstate travel generally is. One big truck after another and speeding cars trying to get ahead of everyone.

We did see an interesting thing however, last night as we were approaching Deming, NM we passed a relatively slow moving vehicle with its emergency lights flashing. It really was two vehicles, one towing the other. They both were Honda Elements and the front one had been hit in the left rear and the rear one had been hit in the left front and down the side. Both were probably totaled and someone bought them and will put a rear clip on the front one and make one good car out of them. We ask each other how long they were going to drive like that? Well, this morning when we pulled in to get gas, there they were, just as we had seem them, the night before, getting fuel. Apparently they stayed in Deming somewhere and were headed west and to a new home.

The photos are of the snow in Deming, NM and a mountain in western New Mexico.
The Arizona sign and a photo of the Texas Canyon between Wilcox and Tucson, AZ.

We are currently in Mesa, AZ and will be here for 5 or 6 weeks until we go to Quartzsite and on th Palm Springs, CA and then to Yuma.

2011-12-06T19:27:00.000-08:00

It was cold this morning in Ft. Stockton, only 23 degrees and windy with just a skiff of snow on the ground. We got unhooked and on the road a little before nine and headed west on I10.

Shortly after we got on I10 and a few miles before it joins with I20 we came to a stand still in both lanes. We could see vehicles for miles just sitting and not moving. I turned on the CB radio and learned that a semi had spun out attempting to get up the grade (over the mountain) and was blocking both lanes. The amount of snow laying along the highway had been increasing and the pavement was wet and the bridges were beginning to get some slick spots, so driving was getting a bit dicey.

Before long a sand truck came along on the berm and up a ways he cut down over the side of the embankment and on to a frontage road and on up the hill to the next exit and came back and apparently they got the guy going again and things began to move, but only at a snails pace.

The sun had come out from under the clouds and was beginning to melt the snow and ice on the road. By the time we got closer to the hill the snow was much more evident and even after we got over the hill the traffic was moving at about 30mph for many miles and then things got back to normal. We only sat for about 45 minutes.

We stopped at Van Horn, TX for fuel and a Subway and then changed drivers and Evelyn drove about 90 miles to the next rest area while I took a quick nap or two. We changed drivers and headed for El Paso and took I10 through town rather than the Mountain Express, which we learned later had been closed by snow earlier in the day. Traffic was heavy but it moved pretty good without any big delays.

As we got near the west edge of town that the east bound traffic was backing up and finally stopped for some reason. Shortly after we got out of town we crossed into New Mexico and about 10 miles before Las Cruses there is an inspection station that is being refurbished and the right lane is closed for some road work as well. The traffic was backed up for 7 miles when we got in line and much farther back as we were in line for 1.5 hours before we finally got moving again. We finally made it to Deming, NM and the Dreamcatcher RV Park, our destination at 7:30. I had been behind the wheel for over 5 hours, not driving but just in the seat watching the semi in front of me.

The snow increased from the state line and it looks like there is 3 or 4 inches on the ground here.

I did hear on the CB that I10 had been closed this morning in New Mexico. Not sure just where but it could have been on most of the grades as there was still a lot of ice along the road and it appeared to have been plowed in some areas.

Hopefully tomorrow will be better, however it is 26 degrees as I write this. The sky was clear so maybe it will be sunny tomorrow and the roads clear.

Our photos are of some of the snow along the highway today. The antenna tower was most interesting as the frost was heaviest on the upper portion as you can see. The mountains were beautiful with the new fallen snow.

2011-12-05T18:24:00.000-08:00

We are back on the road. We left the Lone Star Corral this morning where it has been cool and rainy for the last few days. Tonight, we are in Fort Stockton, TX and at 8pm the temperature on our outside thermometer says 30.7 degrees and it is not very warm inside either, so it will be early to bed with the bed warmer and electric blanket on.

The trip across US90 was fairly good with a fairly strong wind from the north. It kept your attention staying on your side of the road.

we turned north on US285 at Sanderson, TX which was a nice two lane road with very little traffic but a headwind that would hardly let you stay in overdrive at nearly full throttle. So I do not expect the fuel mileage to be real great.

Tomorrow it is off to ElPaso and points west on our way to Mesa, AZ.

The photo is the mascot at the Lone Star Corral

2011-11-24T18:12:00.000-08:00

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all. I hope you all had a nice day an had a chance to thank God for all the blessings we enjoy here in the USA.

We have been enjoying our visit to the Lone Star Corral just west of Hondo, Texas. We have been here for nearly 3 weeks and will be here until the the 4th or 5th of December when we will head west to Mesa, AZ.

We have been resting, playing bridge, eating and enjoying the fellowship of others that are here. Lot owners are coming in every day to spend the winter here, away from the cold of their summer travels.

The park is about 80% full with owners and guests that are renting spaces that are available. There is always room for another, if even in the boon dock area with no facilities and only $5.00 per day, but they have full access to the facilities available to all members and guests.

The photos are of our parking space along the back of the park with a view of the club house. It has a nice concrete drive and a nice storage building. We do not have access to the building but do have use of the covered porch when needed.

Most all activities are held in the club house which is available 24 hours a day to anyone that needs it. The laundry is in the clubhouse with relatively new washers and driers.

We had nearly 100 members and guests for Thanksgiving dinner this afternoon. The cost was $4.00 each which included Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, dressing and cranberry sauce. Each table pitched in and brought all the other items as needed. An excellent meal for the price and great fellowship.

We have been enjoying some of the specials that the restaurants in Hondo offer on Tuesday afternoon. Places like Pizza Hut, Dairy Queen and others have specials for seniors. You can go to the senior Center and have a nice lunch for $3.00 each. So life is good and enjoyable with weather in the upper 70's and lower 80's.

2011-11-04T17:59:00.000-07:00

We got away from New Braunfels about 10am and headed south on I35 toward San Antonio. Picked up Loop 1604 which circles the city about 10 miles out. West and then south to US90 and west to Hondo, TX.

We did some shopping at Walmart and headed about 7 miles west to the Lone Star Corral where we will stay for a month or so before heading on west to Phoenix and Palm Springs, CA.

The photos are of the entrance to the Lone Star Corral as well as some cotton ready to be picked up and taken to the gin to be processed. The field had already been cultivated and replanted with the next crop, probably winter wheat.

Things are very dry here and not all crops do well in these conditions.

2011-11-02T16:37:00.000-07:00

Yesterday driving was a handful due to the wind. It was from the west and south and we were trying to go southwest and that goes for an exciting drive.

We covered a lot of miles and stopped south of Ft.Worth and as it was supposed to be windy today we decided to stay for two nights.

We are at the Whitney Lake VFW that had a fairly nice park. It is quite windy this afternoon and it is supposed to blow a lot for 3 or 4 hours tonight then clear off. Hopefully it will be nicer tomorrow and we can get on toward San Antonio.

We plan to be in Hondo, TX and the Lone Star RV park on Friday afternoon and settled for a month or so.

Our photos are from the drive through the Boston Mountains in Arkansas.

2011-10-31T19:06:00.000-07:00

We did not get away from our park very early today. Just seemed to be a lot of little things to get done, but we finally got away before noon.

We first stopped at Walmart to get fuel. We saved $0.10/gal. by using the Walmart card for a cost of $3.08 per gallon. We wanted to fill up in Missouri as it is a bit higher in Arkansas and Oklahoma.

We are at Lakeside RV park near Sallisaw, OK. less than 200 miles from where we started this morning. Tomorrow we will get an earlier start and hopefully make a lot more miles toward our destination.

Our photos are of the Boston Mountains in Western Arkansas. They are quite picturesque this time of year with all of the changing colors and the rolling terrain.

The weather is warmer and we have had sunshine the last two days, so maybe it will stay nice and the wind down for the rest of our trip.

2011-10-30T17:30:00.000-07:00

This is the office and our parking spot in Cuba, MO where we spent last night. They were really gearing up for Halloween with hay rides and all kinds of scary stuff.

We drove to Cuba after attending the hamfest near St. Louis. It was about a 70 mile drive. The hamfest was a bit discouraging as there were a lot of people but they kept their hands in their pockets. We sold several name badges but most were one and two line badges. Very few of the 3 line and those with emblems, etc. We about made expenses but not what we expected with an attendance that large.

We are currently in Carthage, MO where we have stayed several times, the Big Red Barn campground. The drive was quite windy and it was from the west and sometimes the southwest, Tomorrow we will be off toward Oklahoma and Texas and Hondo in the next few days.

2011-10-28T18:01:00.000-07:00

As you know our plans are set in jello and sometimes they get changed around.

On Wednesday night we spent the night at the KOA west of Springfield. That evening I received a reply to an e-mail I had sent while we were in Illinois regarding a hamfest in Kirkwood, MO. Their website stated that all tables were sold out but I knew it was a fairly large hamfest and really wanted to go.

They said they had a table for us if we were interested. They knew we were in Springfield, many miles away. We decided to go back and attend anyway. We traveled back east to Cuba, MO for last night and tonight we are at the hamfest site in Kirkwood, MO and are all set up to go to work at 6:30am in the morning.
They have 100+ tables and are expecting 1000+ in attendance. We have backtracked 1 tank of fuel but we will make that back in a short time in the morning. Then, it will be back west toward our destination of Hondo, Texas.

We could not get the baseball game last night and was surprised to hear that St. Louis won in 11 innings. Being in a surburb of St. Louis we have a good picture and are enjoying the game.

We may go back to Cuba tomorrow afternoon for the night.

Our photos are of the fall colors along I44 in Missouri.

2011-10-26T18:52:00.000-07:00

This morning it was off from the beautiful lake and back on US50. We traveled west toward St. Louis and the famous arch and I44.

The traffic in St. Louis was quite heavy and there were 3 highways to keep track of, all going basically different directions from the city. At one place the are 4 lanes that split, all going the same way and place. So it makes no difference if you take the two lanes to the left or two lanes to the right, they all come out the same place. A very strange situation, but the signs do say that all lanes (highways) go to the same place.

Some time after we left St. Louis the phone rang and it was our good friends Carol and Richard. They have been on a 3+ week vacation to the west coast and were on their way to Ozark, MO to eat at Lamberts restaurant, the home of 'throwed rolls'. They were to call us when they were ready to get back on the road and after some quick calculations we decided to meet at exit 88 on I44. We arrived first and found a TA travel plaza and gave them a call. They arrived a few minutes later and we had a nice visit with them. What a nice way to meet good friends way out in the middle of the country both going different directions.
They were on their way home and will be there tomorrow and we are just starting our winter journey to the southwest and warmer weather.

Tomorrow we will be off toward Oklahoma and more interesting country to see.

2011-10-25T18:55:00.000-07:00

We are still on the lake. The winds came up during the night and have continued all day. There are white caps on the water and the wind has been gusting to 20-30mph all day. It is supposed to bring in rain tonight. We may stay another day depending on the rain as well as the wind.

Today we took a tour of Carlyle, a nice little town that seems geared to the lake and tourism.

We will see what happens in the morning. we may hit the road or we may stay another day. We are not in a big hurry so another day or two will not make a difference. Camping here is only $9.00 per day, so it is not that expensive and you have to eat wherever you are.

We have some more photos of our parking spot on the water as well as the colors and the rough water we have seen all day.

Maybe tomorrow we can get back on the road.

2011-10-24T18:20:00.000-07:00

This was not necessarily a day of rest, but one for appreciating a beautiful day and a spectacular lake. The water is alive with fish. The shad were jumping all day almost everywhere you looked. The gulls were having a heyday feeding on all the fish.

The colors are really beautiful this time of year. There were several sail boats out today. I am sure there were a lot of them on the water over the weekend.

We enjoyed the day with a tour of the campground and the sun was out all day with a light breeze making for a very enjoyable afternoon.

Our photos are of the lake looking toward the dam, some beautiful colors and a shot toward the marina and all the sail boats.

It is off tomorrow for St.Louis and points west.

2011-10-23T17:09:00.000-07:00

We are back on the road again. Not that we have not been traveling, I just have not been blogging.

In the last 4 to 6 weeks we have been to South Carolina and back for some more Dr. appointments and now we are off to Texas and points west for the winter.

We got away from the Whiteriver RV park in Strawtown, IN about 9am, dumped the holding tanks, got gas at Meijer's and met Andrew to get the last of the mail, etc. and say good bye to him.

We were on the road about 11am and headed west from Indianapolis on I70 for a short ways then north to Plainfield and US40 as I70 is under construction between Indianapolis and Cloverdale or about 45 miles. US40 is dual lane and divided and really a nice road. Very little traffic and only a few towns with one stoplight in the center of town.

On west to Terre Haute and down US41 toward Vincennes and US50 and west into Illinois. We stopped at Carlyle, IL and are at the COE park on the lake for a couple of nights. We are parked about 50ft from the waters edge with lots of water to view. Lots of gulls, ducks, squirrels, etc. It was only $9.00 per night so we decided to stay two nights and will get back on the road on Tuesday.

Our photo is of the court house in Brazil, IN. Typical of many constructed of local limestone.

2011-10-05T17:26:00.000-07:00

This last week end was spent in South Carolina visiting with Evelyn's son, grand daughters and great grand children.

We met them at the Texas Roadhouse for dinner on Saturday and then Sunday afternoon they all came to the state park where we were located for a picnic.

A great time was had by all with plenty to eat including hamburgers, hot dogs and the traditional roasted marshmallows.

Monday, Evelyn went to town to meet with granddaughter Mandy to do some shopping.

Tuesday she went to the laundry and got everything washed up ready for a few days on the road.

This morning we broke camp and hooked up the van and traveled a short way to Albany, GA close to our next hamfest. We will be here a couple of nights and Friday morning we will go to the hamfest site and set up for the show on Saturday.

So, it will be relax and take it easy tomorrow getting rested up for Saturday.

The weather has been very nice, in the upper 70's and lower 80's and around 50 at night. A nice change from what we had in Wisconsin and then in the 100's in Kansas and Oklahoma.

Hopefully we can stay warm until we get out west where it will be more comfortable for us snow birds.

2011-09-29T18:14:00.000-07:00

We got away from the KY Horse Park a little later than we had wanted, stopped and filled up the fuel tank and hit the road.

It was down I75 through Kentucky into Tennessee picking up I40 and then south on I26. We are currently at Hendersonville, NC in the Apple Valley Travel Park. It was a real nice drive thru the mountains on the interstate highway. It is quick crooked and has a 50 mph limit in several areas.

As you would expect there was a lot of traffic, especially big trucks, many hauling logs from the surrounding areas to the saw mill. The mountains are beautiful, much different than the mountains out west. In a few weeks the mountains in this area will be beautiful with their fall colors in full dress.

Tomorrow we will head on south to South Carolina and our campground for a few days.

Our photos are from the HTC rally, Mens power chair races, Womens power chair races and a group enjoying some heat from the propane heaters in the shelter.

2011-09-28T17:05:00.000-07:00

We spent Sunday night near Brodhead, WI. It rained a lot during the night. Monday morning it was raining and blowing quite hard as a storm was passing through the area.

I fought the wind and rain all morning so we stayed on the big roads with at least two lanes going our way so I could stay in one lane or the other and sometime the middle as the wind was in the 30 to 50mph range, a real fight.

We finally got to White River Campground about 7pm after a really hard day of driving. Evelyn drove during the afternoon so I could rest.

Tuesday was spent getting things sorted out for a new power wheelchair. You would not believe all that is available that you have to choose from or eliminate as not needed in your particular situation. Hopefully it will be ready to finish up and pick up by the middle of October. Only time will tell.

We finally got away after noon today after doing the laundry, grocery shopping and other chores that needed to be done, Hooked up the van and headed south,

The weather was not good with showers off and on from about Shelbyville, IN to south of Cincinnati. We are currently at the Kentucky Horse Park just north of Lexington, KY. Tomorrow we will head on south toward S. Carolina.

The photos are of the rally attenders at the Saturday night dinner with the business meeting following.

HTC Rally

2011-09-25T17:57:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy week since we arrived at the Vista Royalle Campground. The Handicapped Travel Club national rally was not to start until Wednesday afternoon, however one member, Roland Winters needed to be in New Jersey for his 50th graduation party and celebration, so he came in on Sunday and left Tuesday morning.

We wanted to visit with Roland and his family before they headed on to New Jersey. They are from Surprise, AZ and are a long way from home.

The opening ceremonies were Wednesday afternoon and closing with a very nice dinner and the annual business meeting on Saturday evening. Coffee and donuts on Sunday morning and our final good byes was the final activity.

We did a few new things, one was a horse race where you have 6 jockeys and there are a number of squares for each horse. You place your bets on the horse and then someone rolls the dice. What ever numbers come up that horse advances one square until there is a winner and you cash in your winning chip for money. It was a fun event and hopefully we will get to do it again.

The photos are of the pavilion where we met as well as the motor homes and trailers that came from all over the country to be in attendance. There were units as far away as California and Oregon and as far south as Florida and as far east as Massachusetts and lots of places in between. We had a total of 16 units and 4 that were in motels. It was a very nice turnout for a rally in the central part of the country.

2011-09-18T19:57:00.000-07:00

This morning we traveled the short distance to Bancroft, WI and the Vista Royalle Campground. This is a really large campground with most of it being in a pine forest except the area where the units of the HTC will be located.

There are a few already here with others coming in tomorrow and Tuesday. All should be here by Wednesday.

Yesterday we toured the Circus World Museum in Barraboo, WI. It has photographs and billings from circuses all over the world. Over the years there have been many circuses of various sizes that toured all over the world at
one time or another.

Many went out of business or joined with another or several others over the years until there was only a few, the largest being the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus.

The Ringling brothers were five brothers of nine children that all worked in and with the circus. They each had definite jobs and all were good at what they did.

There are dozens of wagons with all of their elaborate decorations and beautiful paint. Hundreds of elaborate costumes that all were hand made for each individual performer.

The wagons vary in size and design depending on what animals they housed. Some have two compartments with doors on each end to let the animals pass from one area to another.

In the Big Top the cages were rolled in and the animals would be released into the ring and the trainer would do his thing with the animals and then they would return to their cage and it would be rolled away and another put in its place and the show would go on.

Tomorrow there will be more photos from the museum of the beautiful floats and wagons.

Devil's Lake State Park

2011-09-17T19:11:00.000-07:00

Did I mention that we did not bring the van with us on this trip. We are only going to attend the HTC rally and then back to Indiana. So, where ever we go we have to drive the motor home.

This morning we got things ready to travel about 1 mile to Devil's Lake state Park. This lake sits down in a hole surrounded by mountains of granite stone. It had been eroded over the eons by water and freezing weather breaking the stones into smaller stones, some as small as gravel and others are as large as a house. There are lots of hiking trails as well as good fishing in the lake.

We traveled most of the roads around the park and lake. some are quite steep and curvy but we made it. A much easier drive in the van, but it was not available.

Later we drove the short distance to Barraboo, WI, the circus capitol of the world. It was the home of the Ringling brothers as well as the winter home for the circus.

We got to tour many of the buildings on the campus and see a lot of the wagons and other equipment, some being refurbished in their facility that takes them back to the condition they were when used in the circus. During the summer months there is a circus you can attend daily at the facility. One of the photographs was of about 1000 employees that worked for and in the circus. The other 200+ were attending the animals and other things necessary for the daily operation. It took about 100 rail cars to haul the circus with 4 wagons to the train car.

It was a most interesting day with all that we were able to see and do.

Tomorrow we will be off to Bancroft and the rally.

2011-09-16T18:05:00.000-07:00

Another good day of travel. We left our campground about 10 this morning and headed up I39 to Madison, WI and took sr 19 west and picked up US 12. I39 was pretty rough but they were working on it in several spots so it can be blacktopped which is a much better road than concrete.

We are at the Wheeler campground about 1 mile from Devils Lake state park. We will be here tonight and tomorrow night as we can not get into our space at the rally campground until Sunday. Then we will be set for the rally.

On the way up we were beginning to see some of the corn being harvested as well as some soy beans. Many fields are still green but they will ripen quickly with the shorter cooler days and nights.

We will go visit Devils Lake state park tomorrow and maybe go to Barraboo to see the Circus Museum as that is the circus capitol of the world. Winter headquarters of the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Baily circus.

The photo is of a Bobcat that cousin John killed in his back yard after it had killed a wild goose that was feeding.

Back on the road

2011-09-15T16:46:00.000-07:00

Well, we are back on the road. we left the White River campground about 9:30 this morning. Headed west to Cicero and then south on sr19 to Noblesville.

At the south edge of Cicero we were stopped for road construction. They were doing a chip and seal on the highway. They had finished the north bound lane and had oiled the south bound lane and had it closed from Cicero to the light at 206th street. So, we had to wait for the traffic north bound to come the 2.5 miles before we could go south on the wrong side of the road. We had to wait about 15 minutes before we could get under way.

We finally got to Noblesville and headed west on sr32 thru Westfield and on to Lebanon. It is interesting to see that it is all built up with various business, etc. from Noblesville to Westfield. Mostly farm fields from Westfield to Lebanon. On across sr 32 to I74 and west to Danville, IL and on to Bloomington where we are at a nice campground.

Normally we would boondock at a local Wal-mart but as usual, it is supposed to get down to 40 degrees tonight, a bit cool without electricity for some heat.

All summer it was to hot to go without electricity and a/c, so we made good use of our Passport America membership and usually only pay $10 to $15 a night which is not to bad for a nice place to park with electricity.

The photos are from our trip to Kentucky, the narrow bridge across the Ohio river and some barge traffic on the river. The bridge is just wide enough to pass a semi or another rv without knocking off any mirrors. Really a driving challenge.

It is on north toward Wisconsin tomorrow.

2011-09-06T17:17:00.000-07:00

It has been some time since I wrote a blog. We have been busy with traveling, a couple of hamfests and lots of visiting.

One of our hamfests was in Joplin, MO. We took one afternoon to tour the part of the town that was destroyed by a tornado.

The photos are of only a small portion of the devestation from this huge storm. Much of the major debris has been removed, but there were bus loads of volunteers that were picking up small pieces of debris and hauling it to the curb in wheelborrows to be picked up and disposed of.

It is obvious that many of the homes were just blown away leaving only the foundations. Many of the trees only have the trunk and large limbs remaining and they are beginnning to leaf out again.

We traveled to Northeast Arkansas for a visit and then on to western Kentucky for a visit with cousins and then to Cloverdale, IN for a visit with our only remaining aunt and then to Indianapolis for a reunion with family.

We then traveled to Strawtown, IN and the White River campground for a couple of weeks before leaving for the Handicapped Travel Club national rally in Bancroft , WI.

We will be having some work done on the motor home, change oil and lube and new spark plugs and treat the roof, just normal maintenance items that need to be done.

Then, after returning to Indiana for a day or two, we will be off to South Carolina to visit Evelyn's son, grand daughters and great grand children.

We then will head west for the winter.

2011-08-23T18:24:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning we left our spot at Lakeside Family Resort just south of Salina, KS. It is actually about 15 miles south near the town of Assaria, KS. It is a really nice park with a swimming lake and nice sand beach as well as several large grassy areas and a nice campground.

However, if appears to be suffering from the economy as we were there over the week end and we only saw a few people using the swiming area.

The hamfest was a small one and it only ran from 8am to the main prize drawing at 1pm. Most of the people were gone by that time and some of the vendors were beginning to pack up in preparation to going home. I was one of the lucky ones and won a $25.00 gift certificate from the ARRL, so I will probably buy a new Repeater Directory as I have not had a new one for several years.

After spending Sunday night at the park we headed down I135 and then east over to US54 and are currently in the town of Iola, KS. We will be here until Thursday morning and then it is off to the hamfest in Joplin, MO on Saturday. That will give us time to take a tour of the damaged area of town and see how they are coming with the cleanup and reconstruction process.

2011-08-18T18:15:00.000-07:00

While we were out yesterday we toured the town of Larned, KS. As usual they had a beautiful court house that was well manicured. The town was as nice and clean as the courthouse square.

We stopped at the local Subway for lunch but they did not have pizza so we settled for a foot long.

It was hot again today, near 110 degrees and they had the power off for a while as they changed some wiring for a new circuit. We started the generator and stayed fairly comfortable until they got the power back on.

Tomorrow we are off to get ready for the hamfest in Sedalia, KS, so it will be up early Sunday morning so we can get to the facility and set up and ready to work by 8am. we will be staying about 20 miles out of town so it will take a while to get there.

Then it is off toward Joplin, MO for the next weekend.

2011-08-17T19:02:00.000-07:00

A trip to the nearby Fort Larned National Historic Site was an interesting outing.

The fort was built in 1859 and stood for 19 years. It and several other forts were built to protect those that traveled the Santa Fe Trail.

An African-American regiment, nicknamed buffalo soldiers" by the Native Americans served here. So named because their hair was similar to that of buffalo hair.

In 1883 Fort Larned military reservation was transferred from the war Department to the General Land Office, U.S. Department of the Interior.

In 1884 the buildings and land were sold at public auction. For the next 80 years the property remained privately owned. The buildings
were not destroyed however some were converted to house animals as well as store hay.

In 1964 Fort Larned became a national historic site and part of the National Park System. It has been restored to its prior condition and the Barracks have been converted to the Visitors Center and museum with a short film on the facility.

The grounds are in very nice condition and well groomed. I am sure that those many soldiers that served here would be proud to know it has been preserved in such a fine way.

You can tour all of the buildings but it was too hot for us to do that, however we did spend a lot of time in the museum and watched the film. the Visitors Center is
air conditioned and was quite comfortable.

The photos are of some of the buildings that are built in a square around the parade grounds with the flat in the center.

2011-08-16T19:12:00.001-07:00

Today we toured the town of Kinsley, which really did not take long. It is only a few blocks in either direction but a very neat and clean little town.

Small towns have to put their best foot forward to make an impression on tourists as they drive through. Here they have a nice park with several farm implements from the past. A steam engine from the AT&Santa Fe. A very nicely styled park. Beside the steam engine is a Case thrashing machine probably from the early days of mechanized farming.

Many of the buildings are built out of local sandstone and have been standing for many years. Some have been restored but many appear to be original and still in good condition.

Most small towns grow around a railroad siding and a large grain storage facility. It seems every town is on a railroad with a large grain elevator.

The main crops appear to be hay, silage and some Milo. Feed lots are plentiful and it appears the agriculture is geared toward the feed lot operations.

We are at the Four Aces RV Park. A nice park with level concrete pads with full hookups for $15.00 per night. A good price for a nice place to spend a few days. We are only a block of two from the main street and highway US50 and US56 goes north east from here toward McPherson, KS.

We will tour the Fort Larned National Historic Site and report on that tomorrow.

2011-08-15T19:46:00.000-07:00

We left our nice RV park in Lamar, CO this morning and stopped at Love's to get fuel. The cost is still down, at least compared to some places, only $3.49.

We traveled east on US50 and are currently in the town of Kinsley, KS. Not really a lot of difference between southeastern Colorado and western Kansas. Pretty much flat to rolling terrain with lots of hay and some corn, but the corn is short and does not look like it will mature into much. There are a lot of feed lots with thousands of head of cows, so maybe they cut it green and feed it to the cows to fatten them up for market.

When we came through Dodge City, we found lots of feed lots and again, hundreds of head of cows being fed up for market.

US50 is a pretty good road with some areas 4 lane divided and others a wide blacktop. We did find some construction today and a stretch of one lane road but it will be nice when they get done with it. Not a lot of traffic and not too many trucks, mostly hauling grain.

US50 follows along the Santa Fe Trail and joins up with the Cimmeron Trail at Dodge City. There are viewing areas where you can still see the ruts of the trails of years ago. This was really a part of the wild west at one time.

We are currently at the 4 Acres RV Park and will be here until Friday morning when we will head toward Salina and the next hamfest on Sunday.

The photos are of the RV park in Lamar, CO. It appears relatively new, only a few years old and it has a lot of nice things, a small putting green, a stage where they have held several weddings, a covered area where they can have group gatherings and BBQs as well as fund raisers. He has 8 motel rooms and probably 25 RV spaces. A really nice facility all things considered.

2011-08-14T20:12:00.000-07:00

We have been out of touch for several days in Blanca, CO. We did have phone service but very poor air card service. I could get my e-mails but not send anything of size and no photos.

We are now in Lamar, CO with good phone and air card service. We are in a nice RV/Motel complex that is relatively new. When we came in and Evelyn went in to register the owner asked what kind of engraving we did. As a result I worked most of yesterday making key tags and signage for the motel rooms, etc. Needless to say it was a money making stay for a change.

Tomorrow it is off east on US50 to the town of of Kinsley, KS. We will be there a day or two making plans to attend the hamfest in Selina, KS. We had a nice time there last year and I hope we do as much business.

The photos are of some homes/ranches in the Colorado countryside. This is really a pretty part of the country.

We did visit the Cumbres & Toltec RR station in Antonito, CO. This is a narrow gage rail road that still takes trips to and from Cumbres, NM. It crosses the state line 11 times on its way. You can take a ride from one end to the other and then you take a bus back to your starting point.

You have to make a two day advance notice for a wheelchair ride on the train and the bus. They do have handicapped facilities but on a limited basis.

We watched the workers work on the train cars and learned how they turn the train around for the trip back. Some railroads use a wye but the Cumbres & Toltec RR used a loop around a large area to turn their trains around.

While we were there we bought a couple of DVD,s, one on the Cumbres & Toltec RR and the other on the Durango to Silverton, CO. Both are quite interesting and it looks like a great trip on either narrow gage railroad. The scenery is beautiful.

Enchanted Circle tour

2011-08-08T20:26:00.000-07:00

Today we took the Enchanted Circle tour that goes from Taos to Questa, Red River Ski area, Enchanted Forrest Ski area, over Bob Cat pass and on to Eagles Nest and Angel Fire.

It was a really beautiful trip over some pretty good roads with the usual construction areas, but all in all pretty good roads for mountain roads.

The town of Taos is really an interesting area. What might be considered as a tourist trap with all kinds of shops and places to eat as well as hotels, motels and B&B's. Many little trinket shops that have most anything you can imagine. Some are locally made and others are from China I am sure.

Taos is near the 7000ft level and the ski areas and the Bob Cat Pass is at almost 9300ft. The towns of Red River and the Enchanted Forrest ski area are near the 8500 to 9000ft altitude.

The trees are beautiful and vary in size depending on the elevation. There are some mountains that do not have any trees on the top. One is called Old Baldy and there does not appear to be much there, maybe some vegetation but not of any size.

We considered coming thru Eagles Nest on our way to Taos as it would save a lot of miles over I40 and coming up from Santa Fe. The narrow and windy mountain roads thru the area of Eagles Nest was relatively hard and slow driving in the van and I would not want to do it in the motor home.

Tomorrow we will be leaving Taos and heading north into Colorado but I do not think we will have too many mountains to contend with, we will just wait and see.

Hard Weekend

2011-08-07T19:48:00.000-07:00

It is late on Sunday evening after a hard weekend at work.

We are in Taos, NM for an amateur radio convention for the 4 state area. There were hams from all over. One guy was from Wyoming and he said it was a nice drive, only 300 miles across Colorado and he did not live too far from the state line. People do not talk in miles, they talk in hours, something is only 3 or 4 hours away. It is hard to realize that 100 miles does not get you very far in this wide open country with deserts and mountains. Of course they are talking about driving at least the speed limit which is 75mph on most major roads. On 2 lane roads they cut you back to 65 or if in the mountains 55 with 25 or 30 mph curves. But that is not for us in a motor home towing a full sized van.

This is a beautiful area which has been inhabited continuously for over 1000 years. There is a lot of history here, even a Civil War battle fought locally. I did not realize the Civil War got into this area.

The old part of town is not very big. The streets are narrow and all of the buildings are stucco, as is most of the buildings in the area. There are lots of murals depicting some beautiful scenes of the area.

The photos are of the Convention Center as well as a mural from downtown and an old Australian military vehicle that has been converted into a portable radio station for emergency use by the local amateur radio club.

Our week end was very successful but tiring as we worked a lot of hours, 10:30 to 6 on Friday, 8 to 6 on Saturday and 8 til noon on Sunday.

All in all, we had a good time, met a lot of very nice people from all over the area.

It is off on a day trip tomorrow to see the sights in the surrounding area.

2011-08-04T21:27:00.000-07:00

We spent last night in Espanola, NM. We were only about 45 miles from Taos but I had already driven a little over 200 miles and I did not want to take on a 2 lane mountain road for the rest of the trip.

We stopped at Walmart, just a few blocks from our campground, and went shopping. We were low on groceries and wanted to fill the refrigerator before we got to Taos and settled in at the campground for the rest of the week.

We arrived at the Taos Valley RV Park a little after 1pm. Got settled in and I had accumulated a few engraving jobs yesterday and this morning, so I got busy and started to work on them while Evelyn went to the laundry to wash clothes that had accumulated for over a week. By the time she got back I had finished the jobs and had billed them out, so we got them ready for the mail and headed to town to the post office.

The trip from Espanola on sr68 is a nice drive. The road is a little rough but not too bad. It follows the Rio Grande River all the way. It is not very big at this point but I am sure it really gets big when it rains. We did hit a little shower as we came into Espanola, just enough to wet the motor home and cause the wet dirt and dust to run down the sides and the back. It really looks bad now, so I guess we will have to have it washed if we do not have any more rain.

There are a lot of outfits that have inflatable rafts that float the river. We saw a lot of them but could not get any good photos of them. It sure looked like fun as the water is rough in some areas.

We saw several vineyards along the river and many wine shops. One would not think of vinyards in a remote dry area as this, but apparently there is enough water to make things grow.

Evelyn met a lady in the laundry that works at the hospital and they live in the park year round in their rv. She said it gets cold here, as much as a -20 degrees in the winter. The elevation is about 7000ft and we are in a valley.

So tomorrow it is off to the hamfest for Friday afternoon, all day Saturday and Sunday morning. Hope all goes good as far as business is concerned.

The photos are of the road and the Rio Grande River between Espanola and Taos, NM.

2011-08-02T17:18:00.000-07:00

We spent the last couple of days at a campground at exit 1 on I40 in the town of Texoma, OK. There is really not much to the town as we could find. There was a gas station with a small grocery that sold mostly cold beer and drinks and a restaurant that was only open part time and we did not see much business there at all.

It is still hot, over 100 degrees so we just stayed inside and kept as cool as possible with the one air conditioner. We have two but have to run the generator to use them both at the same time. So, it is either one or the other on 30A electricity.

We gained altitude as we traveled west on I 40. At one time we exceeded 4000ft. But, if really did not seem to help with the heat.

We are currently in Tucumcari, NM at the Catcus RV Park. It is located on US66, which is main street. The motel is pretty much as it was, when it was built in 1939, only deteriorated due to the elements. At one time they put awnings over the windows to keep out the morning sun. There even appear to have been garages for each motel room. Something you do not find today.
There are a lot of businesses that are closed up. Many you see along I40 that front on the frontage road, probably old US66, that are just falling down due to the passing of time. Old filling stations, restaurants, curio shops, etc. All gone and mostly forgotten.

Tomorrow we are off to Espanola, NM for the night and then on to Taos for the weekend.

Hopefully we will find some cooler weather at the higher altitudes. We have seen lots of clouds today as you can see in the photos, but nothing that really looks like rain.

2011-07-30T19:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we set up about noon at the hotel. The hamfest was to be open from 4 to 8pm to the public. Business was fairly slow as there was not very many people there, probably due to the heat as it was over 100 degrees outside but nice and cool inside.

This morning the public was in at 8am and business was better but not what we were used to at a gathering of this type. We were busy at times but not really rushed as usual.

We did pretty good for not being real busy, made expenses and enough to buy gas to the next show in Taos, NM.

Somewhere in the last day or two I lost the stinger on the screwdriver antenna on the back of the motor home. I can see it whipping around in the wind turbulence, in the backup camera, that occurs at the back of the coach. Evelyn noticed it gone when she hooked up the van on Thursday morning. I really doubt it was stolen as they would take more than just the stinger.

So today I purchased another and installed it this evening after the sun went down and it cooled a bit, about 90 degrees or so.

Tomorrow it is off across I40, if it is a good road, if not we will find one of those red roads that go cross country on our way toward Taos, NM.

The photos are of US65 north of Branson, MO showing the general terrain of the area. It is 75 mph down the hill and 35 mph on the other side. Not really good for fuel mileage, but you take what you get and do the best you can. Great scenery but not good fuel mileage.

2011-07-27T16:01:00.000-07:00

This is our last day on lake Oogolah. It has been a nice few days even if it was hot. We will leave in the morning for Oklahoma City for a show this week end.

We will go to the campground and then on Friday we can set up at noon and then the show will be open 4-8pm and then again on Saturday from 8-2.

We will then have a week to work our way to Taos, MN for another show. This is an amateur radio comvention and will run for 3 days.

Hopefully it will be cooler in Taos, at least we will be high in elevation so that should at least make it cooler. Then we will have some time to enjoy the mountains and go north into Colorado and then east into Kansas.

The photos are of the large Post Office that serves the small community of Oogolah. There is another large Post Office in Claremore that serves that area. No wonder the Postal Service is wanting to close facilities.

The second photo is a model replica of the Will Rogers home place. A very nice copy of the original.

2011-07-25T19:23:00.000-07:00

Today we toured the town of Oogolah, the birthplace of Will Rogers. There is really not much to the town, a few blocks along the highway. The main street is very clean and the sculpture of Will Rogers and his horse is at the center of town in the center of a round a bout.

We then went to Clearmore to visit the J.M Davis Arms Museum. This is a fascinating place with all types of guns from all over the world. There is also many other artifacts from the area around Clearmore. One is a stage backdrop depicting all of the sponsors of the facility. Most only had the name of the business while others had a phone number like 46 or maybe 134.

The gun cases were difficult to photograph due to the reflections from other displays. They have thousands of guns from large cannons to the smallest hand guns only a few inches long. There are many guns made in Germany as well as a lot of copies made in Italy.

The guns were separated by style, pistols, shot guns, rifles and a nice selection of swords and other weapons. Then they were separated by manufacturer such as Colt, Winchester, Browning, Stevens, etc. They even have a nice display of Daisy BB guns from over the years.

There are many other displays, one being the actual surrey with a fringe on top from the movie Oklahoma based on a book by Lynn Riggs "Green grow the Lilacs"

This is a museum you could spend hours just reading about the different pieces as well as the general information about the different manufacturers and their involvement in many of the conflicts over the years.

We concluded the day with a treat at Billy Sims BBQ for some delicious BBQ and all the trimmings.

2011-07-23T19:42:00.000-07:00

This is our home on Lake Oolagah near Claremore, OK. We would have liked to have been closer to the water but the spaces are outlined with rail road ties and many are flat enough but I can not get the lift down to ground level, only to the top of the ties or about 8 inches off of the ground and that will just not work.

We have shade most of the time but there is always some sunshine on us. The air conditioner keeps the coach fairly cool but it gets up in the mid to upper 80's when it is 105 or
so outside. It does keep the humidity down in the 20's percent.

The campground is not crowded as you might expect as it is just too hot. There are boats out on the water early in the morning and late in the afternoon and evening.

There are several units here but not more than 25 or 30% full.

We do not go out any more than necessary due to the heat. They do not expect any change next week.

2011-07-21T18:29:00.000-07:00

Today we took a short trip to visit the birthplace of Will Rogers near Oologah, OK. It was originally on a 60,000 acre ranch but most of it is under water, a part of Lake Oologah.
The house was moved and reassembled on the top of a hill overlooking the lake.

The house is basically a log house as you can see in the attached photos. The large yard is surrounded with a white picket fence complete with a well in the yard and an outhouse behind the house. there are several Bantam chickens in the yard as well as some goats and a couple of Burros in the outside yard.
There are several RV sites along the fence with electricity that are available for $15.00 per night. Across the fence is a large field that is in hay and it is a landing strip that is used for training by a local school.

The house is beautiful inside as you can see in the photos. The furnishings are either original to the house or similar to the period.

The upstairs of the house is not available to the public due to weakness of the floors due to age but I am sure it is beautiful as is the downstairs.

You can click on the photos to enlarge them for more detail.

2011-07-20T17:10:00.000-07:00

We got on the road about 9:30 after getting the LP tank filled and headed south toward Joplin, MO. As we got closer to town there was a flashing sign that stated that Tornado volunteers should use a certain exit into town. We only saw some trees that were damaged by the storm from the highway.

We took highway 166 west from I44 and west across the southern part of Kansas to the town of Coffeyville. It is in Kansas but South Coffeyville is in Oklahoma. There was a relatively new Wal-mart at the intersection of 166 and 169 which went south from Coffeyville. We needed some groceries so we did some shopping, ate some lunch and of course a little nap and hit the road.

Shortly after we left South Coffeyville we were detoured to the west on sr10 apparently due to a bad accident just ahead that had the road closed. Most of the traffic was taking a gravel road south to get around the wreck. We saw some 18 wheelers coming down the gravel road in a cloud of dust and we did not want to go that way. The semi ahead of us stopped to talk to one of the safety men and he went on west on sr10, so we followed him and the semi behind us did as well. As we passed the gravel road it only looked about one and a half lanes wide and it would have been difficult to pass anything as well as contend with all of the dust and dirt.

We continued west to US75 and then south to US60 and then back east to 169, a detour of maybe 40 miles, but better than all of that dust and dirt.

We continued south on 169 until we got to sr88 and then east a couple of miles to the Hawthorn Bluff campground on Oologah Lake. This is quite a large lake with lots of camping spots with water and electricity as well as lots of shade trees, What a welcome site to see lots of shade to help with this sweltering heat. We will be here for a week or so before we move to Oklahoma City for our next show on the 29th and 30th of the month.

Hopefully we can keep fairly cool here in the woods.

The photograph is of the swimming pool at Lake Paradise. They say it is the largest pool in the state. It sure looked inviting on a hot summers day.

2011-07-19T19:11:00.000-07:00

Another really hot day in Missouri. Still near 100 degrees with no relief in sight.

Tomorrow we will be off to a COE campground on lake Oologah north of Tulsa. Surely we can find some shade and we can stay up to 14 days at $10.00 per night with electricity.
We will stay off of I44 as it is a toll road and generally they are rougher and more heavily traveled than the US highways that you can take. We will go cross country, actually the southern part of Kansas and then south into Oklahoma and the park.

From there we can visit Norma, a sister in law, that lives just south of the lake as well as the Will Rogers museum at Claremore, MO.

Our photos are of the Big Red Barn campground where we have been the past couple of days. One of our neighbors is a gal in the little Teardrop trailer. It looks like it would be hot at night, but there she is all by herself. She was gone most of the day doing something, but I hope she was keeping cool.

2011-07-18T19:31:00.000-07:00

We left the Lake Paradise campground about 10am this morning. We intended to go west on US50 to sr7 and then south to the town of Harrisonville. However, we missed our turn due to road construction so we went on west to sr291 and took it south.

I had checked on Gasbuddy and found some really cheap gas in Harrisonville but sr7 took us into the middle of town and therefore we would miss about half of the stations with good prices.

Just as we got into town on 291 I saw a Wal-mart with fuel at a cost of $3.42/gallon. If you buy with a Wal-mart card you get another $0.10 per gallon for a cost of $3.32. We filled up with 50.1 gallons for a savings of $5.00, enough to buy a Subway for lunch.

We then drove south to Lamar, MO where we stopped for lunch and a short nap. After which, we proceeded south on US71 to the town of Carthage and the Big Red Barn campground where we will be for a couple of days before we head west toward the Will Rogers Memorial and on toward Tulsa.

The photos are of the back waters of the Missouri River. When we crossed the Mississippi it was in its banks while the Missouri was muddy and spread out over hundreds of acres of bottom lands from the rains up in the Dakotas. It will take some time for the Missouri to get back to its normal pool level.

2011-07-17T18:17:00.000-07:00

Well, it is still very hot here in Missouri. We do not know which direction we will be going from here but it looks like it will be warm where ever we go.

I hope to hear something tomorrow so we can make some decisions which way to go. I would like to find a cool spot or just maybe a spot with some shade to help the air conditioning unit a bit. It is really not doing a great job but better than nothing.

The thermometer says 115 outside and 89 inside, so I guess it is not doing too bad. They say a 20 degree difference is about all you can expect of an air conditioning unit. The 115 degrees is under the awning so it may be more out in the sun.

The photos are out our dining room window overlooking Lake Paradise. We have been watching this bird for some time now and he is looking for something to eat. The photo of the bird was taken at 40X zoom with our Canon SX120is camera. Not too bad for a small camera, however I did have it on a tripod as at 40X it is hard to hold still enough to get a focus on the subject.

So, it is off to an unknown destination tomorrow. I guess we will know when we get there.

2011-07-16T19:09:00.000-07:00

Friday we drove to the Johnson County Fairgrounds in Missouri, the location of our hamfest. It was quite hot all day, in the upper 90's but we stayed cool enough with just the engine air on in the motor home. But, as soon as you stopped the heat really took over. We ran the generator and both ac's after we got parked. We were able to set up later in the afternoon and got permission to hook up to a 30A outlet but the voltage was not very high but it ran the one ac but that was all. We stayed comfortable all night. We had to unhook this morning as the Red Cross van had to use the outlet to run their unit.

We had a good day at the hamfest and got packed up and ready to go by early afternoon. with the generator and both ac's running we finally got it cooled down and took a nap and headed out for the Lake Paradise Campground near Lone Jack, MO, really out in the boonies. We will be here for a couple of days while we decide if we are going to Leavenworth, KS for an amateur radio gathering or kill another week and go on to Oklahoma City the following Saturday. I need to talk with the people in Leavenworth to see if we can get in.

The temperatures are supposed to be near 100 the next week, so we may just find a shady spot and take it easy.

The photos are of the I70 bridge over the Missouri river and the large casino on the other side. The Mississippi river was about normal, but the Missouri was full and running over. The low lands were flooded and the water was very muddy. They told us that if the water came up 3 more inches in Leavenworth that they would have to move that show to another facility, however the Corps of Engineers said they had it under control and they did not expect it to rise any further. Time will tell about that.

2011-07-14T16:12:00.000-07:00

We left our summer campground on the White River in Strawtown, IN, this morning. We had to make a stop at the tire store to have them work on the right front tire that had a slow leak. Slow, to the tune of losing about 1 lb per day. We had them look at it a few days ago and they said it had a bad valve stem, so they replaced it, but it was still leaking. Today, they changed the valve stem and sealed around the tire so it would seal to the rim. That is supposed to take care of the problem. We will see now that we are over 300 miles away.

We are currently in Wentzville, MO at camp Walmart. Again, fuel in MO is more expensive than IL or IN at $3.68/gal. But that is the way it goes.

This is our first trip after having a Banks Power Pack installed. It is a free flowing intake and exhaust headers and muffler system. It is supposed to increase power as well as get better fuel mileage.
Our first tank of fuel resulted in 8.4 mpg, much better than our prior 7.0mpg, however we had a tail wind, which is most unusual, so that has to be taken into consideration as well. We will know better when we get back from this trip out west and can average things out.

Our photos are of our neighbors at the Whiteriver Camp Ground. They have a beautiful Prevost coach and pull an enclosed trailer with their beautiful Goldwing motorcycle that the use to tour the area while they are in camp.

Looks like a really rough way to live, however I did notice that no shoes were allowed inside but sat close to the steps.

It is off to our next hamfest tomorrow to set up for the show on Saturday.

2011-06-07T17:07:00.000-07:00

Well, I am back to the blog from a long period of not really having much to write about.

We were unable to get into the White River Campground due to high water and we stayed on the street in Fishers near a friends house. It was raining and we could not get the electric hooked up so we just boondocked it for the night.

Monday morning we called White River CG and got no answer and left a message to call us. We had called River Bend campground and they were open. We knew it would be wet and muddy there, but better than nothing. So off we went north to River Bend, Just as we turned into the campground we got a call from White River and they said they were open to come on up. So we turned around and headed north another 2 or three miles and found a nice campground ready for us. The river was still up to the top of the banks and the bottom ground on the east side of the river was flooded but our side was above the water level and the water was going down.

This is a County owned and supported park and you can only stay 14 days and then you have to be out for 2 days and then you can come back for another 14 days. This eliminates people from moving in and setting up all kinds of things and staying all summer.

Visitors to the park are few during the week. Maybe a dozen or so units, but by Thursday afternoon things are picking up and by Friday night things are pretty full with the tent area filling up with all kinds of tents and kids everywhere.
Most of the regular people just stay inside and watch all that is going on with the kids as well as the adults. Sometimes the adults provide the most interesting people watching as they get their rigs parked. It is obvious that they do not do this very often and some look like it is their first attempt, however you know it is not. Just the fact that some never get it figured out.

We have been busy with doctor appointments, having x-rays done, scans and CT scans. We are about done with all of that, just a couple to go. Had our eyes checked and all is well there, no new glasses needed this time.

Really getting a case of hitch itch, as we have been here over a month and that is a long time for us to sit still. It will be a while before we hit the road, maybe the gas will be down below $4.00 before we leave.

The photos that I hope are included are of Turkey Creek CG in Branson, MO. It is on the banks of Turkey Creek that joins lake Tanicomo that runs between the two big lakes.

2011-04-29T18:17:00.000-07:00

We finally had to give up our parking place in the middle of the woods at Wildwood Association. We were a bit disappointed that we did not see any wildlife other than one hen turkey and several grey squirrels and some fox squirrels.

We drove to Godfrey, IL and are currently at a new Walmart, store #4695, just about a mile from the Lewis and Clark College where the hamfest is tomorrow. There is really not much available at the college to park the rv, so we will leave it here at Walmart, with permission of course. After the hamfest we will come back, hook up, get some rest and head east toward Indiana.

Fuel in Illinois is really high. Unleaded is $4.099 with mid grade at $4.249 and premium at $4.399. We filled up in MO at Flying J for $3.739. Hopefully this will get us back to Fishers and we can hunt some cheaper fuel.

Hopefully there is not too much water in White River that we can not get in the campground Sunday afternoon.

2011-04-26T17:39:00.000-07:00

Here we are settled in the Wildwood Assocition located in rural Missouri between Fulton and Readsville. This is a very hilly area with several lakes and 12,000 acres in area.

Those of you that are familiar with Cherokee Village, AR, it is similar but CV has 15,000 acres, but similar in layout and terrain.

Wildwood consists mostly of mobile, park models and RV's, mostly travel trailers and 5th wheels and class A motor homes. Some are very nice and many are old and junky in appearance, some have been setting so long that they are green with mold not having been cleaned for a long time.

It is located about 100 miles from St. Louis and a little farther from Kansas City, maybe 150 miles or so. It was developed as a retreat or summer area to visit and spend weekends, vacations, etc. It is heavily wooded with lots of wild game and fishing areas. We saw some wild turkeys yesterday on our tour of the area. We took our usual tour, taking a right turn where ever possible and we toured maybe 70% of the area in about 2 hours. There are many circles and cultesacs that only go a few lots then turn around and back out. Eventually taking every right turn available will bring you back to your starting place without missing much if anything.

It rained yesterday while we were out touring and it rained off and on all night. We took the other route out to I70 than we came in on, from the west. It is not quite as good of a road, but it is closer and puts up about 15 miles farther east when we get to I70. That is how we will go Friday when we head for Godfrey, IL.

Today, the sky cleared and the sun was out by noon and resulted in a quite nice day. I think tomorrow we will go to Kingdom City and see what is there.

2011-04-23T18:06:00.000-07:00

We are in Independence, MO in the process of recovering from the day working the Ararat Hamfest. It was a really busy day. The public was in at 8am but we got started about 7:30 and worked constantly until 12:30. They had the mail prize drawing at noon and we were still behind at that time but caught up as people were leaving.

We traveled from Branson to the town of Tightwad, MO to the Hickory Hollow Resort located on an arm of land in the Truman Reservoir. This is a winding body of water that winds around the hills and valleys of this part of the state.

We set up at the hamfest on Friday afternoon. They have a very nice facility at the Shrine temple that has their own radio club and station. They are located on a hill above a lot of the surrounding city, a great place for a tower and antennas.

Tomorrow, we will work our way east in preparation for our next hamfest in Godfrey, IL, a little town north of St. Louis.

2011-04-20T18:15:00.000-07:00

After spending more than a week in Hardy, AR in the city RV park next to the Spring River we left yesterday morning.

We have been having trouble with our house batteries running down overnight when boondocking. So, we stopped by the local Walmart to have them checked. They both checked good according to their checker. Not sure what the problem is, but will have to do some further checking.

We headed north toward our next hamfest in Kansas City, MO. We stopped in Branson for a couple of nights at the Escapees park, Turkey Creek RV Park. It is located on Turkey Creek very near to where it empties into Lake Tanycomo.

Today we toured the old town of Branson. It is still a lot like other small towns in the area, built on the side of a hill with nothing level or very convenient. However, what can you expect when you settle in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. The newer part of Branson is still a bit rough in terrain but it is saturated with many theaters and restaurants as well as all kinds of entertainment opportunities. It is very much a tourist attraction with many stars having their own theater as well as eating establishments. Traffic was not very bad today as the tourist season has not yet started.

We enjoyed our tour with a stop at the dam that created lake Table Rock. It is quite a large dam and is used for flood protection on the White River which used to flood regularly and cause lots of damage downstream.

We will leave tomorrow and spend the night somewhere between here and Kansas City and them go to the hamfest site on Friday and set up in the afternoon. After the hamfest is over on Saturday afternoon we will head toward Godfey, IL for the next week end.

2011-04-10T19:12:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Memphis was uneventful and we had a good show at the Hamfest. We had an opportunity to set up on Friday afternoon, so all we had to do the next morning was to uncover and hook up the computer and go to work. We went back to the Sams club to spend Saturday night as it was quiet and there were no campgrounds in the area. Sunday we got under way about 10:30 and headed for Hardy, AR, our next destination. We are at the City park/campground on the Spring river. The park has recently re-opened after the flood a couple of years ago. The Volunteer Fire Department has taken on the care of the park and apparently will receive the proceeds for the maintenance of the area. The cost is usually $20.00/night but when we asked for a weekly rate, the fellow made a phone call and then said for a week or more it would be $15.00/night. We will be here until a week from tomorrow which will let us get some things done and then head for Kansas City, MO on Tuesday. We will probably stop in Branson, MO at the Escapees park for a couple of days to check it out. Our photos were taken on the trip from Memphis to Hardy in the high wind conditions. I would estimate the wind at 30+ mph with gusts near 40mph. It was certainly a challenging drive, only about 140 miles, but a tiring drive. The photo of the bridge is across the Mississippi at Memphis. The other two are of a train we passed loaded with coal and you can see the coal being blown out of the cars by the high wind. Not sure how fine the coal was, but they were losing a lot of it along the way.

2011-04-06T16:34:00.000-07:00

We are currently in Poinsett State Park near Harrisburg, AR. We arrived yesterday afternoon and will be here until Friday morning when we will go to Memphis, TN for the Amateur Radio gathering (Hamfest). We will set up on Friday afternoon for the show on Saturday. Sunday we will be off toward Kansas City, MO for a hamfest next Saturday. Our good friends Jim and Polly West came by for a visit and we decided to go out to dinner at a new restaurant here in Harrisburg. It is a small town and Polly was born and raised here until she graduated from High School. We had a very nice meal and some more visiting. It had been two years since we had seen them. It was getting late and we did not have our visit out so we decided to have lunch today at another of the fine restaurants here in town. I had some delicious fish with all the trimmings and I think we finally got our visiting done, at least it settled down to a light roar with a promise to be back next year for another visit if we do the same show circuit. It is always nice to visit with old friends and keep up on their comin's and goins' as they say here in the south.

2011-04-06T16:28:00.000-07:00

Here are the photos for a prior blog of the campground for sale. Sorry, but I have been having problems getting the photos with the proper blog.

2011-04-03T19:38:00.000-07:00

We are back on the road again. We had a slow day at the Hanging Judge Hamfest, but we made the usual amount, just a lot of time waiting on some business. All in all, a pretty good day. We spent Friday night and Saturday night in the parking lot at the KofC where the hamfest was held. Today, we moved to Conway, AR for the night. The road, I40 was in pretty good condition but the wind was a bit to handle and stay in one lane. Tomorrow it is on toward Kinsett, AR for the night and then on to Lake Poinsette State Park on Tuesday night and dinner with friends from Cherokee Village. The photos are of the Lakeside RV park which is for sale for only $249,000. Looks like a good buy to me, but we are not ready to settle down for a commitment like that. Things are warming up in this part of the country. It was in the 80's today and it is supposed to be windy tonight, maybe some storms. The weather radio says it will be near freezing on Monday night in the north east part of the state. Sounds like spring weather to me. I am doing better and back to driving without any difficulty, just not able to do the 3 and 4 hour stretches of days gone by but able to handle the job.

2011-03-29T18:47:00.000-07:00

This is the photo of the phone booth for the blog.

2011-03-29T18:24:00.001-07:00

We have moved a little farther north in Oklahoma to just north of the Arkansas River. This is quite a large stream in this area with lots of river traffic as well locks and dams, etc. We are about 40 miles from our hamfest location in Ft. Smith, AR. It has been cool and rainy but little wind to contend with. Last night we were down in the mountains next to a river with little internet service and no phone service. Our drive today was mostly in the mountains until we got closer to the river where there are miles of flat pasture lands and lots of cattle. There were several long horn cows scattered in with the black Angus and other kinds of cows. We are currently at the Lake Side campground and will be here until Friday morning when we will move and set up in the late afternoon. Shortly after we got into New Mexico before we got to the Guadalupe Mountain National Park, we went through a small town and caught sight of a phone booth, the first we had seen in years. Of course, there was a satellite dish nearby to represent the current day trends. It appeared to be operational as there was a phone hanging in the corner. It is raining lightly as I write this but the weatherman says it will be warmer and clearing tomorrow and increasing in temperatures through the weekend. Looking for the upper 70's on Saturday.

2011-03-27T18:36:00.000-07:00

We spent the last night in Decatur, TX at the local Walmart. It was a bit cold and we wished we had some electricity to plug into. We survived by using the generator in the morning to warm things up. We traveled cross country first north and then east and find ourselves in the K River Campground in the country just north of Hugo, OK near a smaller town of Moyers. This is quite remote, out in the woods near the river. The cell phone signal is not good and the air card signal is little better. Slow, but working. We are in the foothills of the Jack Fork Mountains and not very far from the Kiamichi mountains. We will spend two nights here and then travel north east through the mountains to Poteau, OK which is only about 40 miles from Ft. Smith, AR, the location of our next hamfest on Saturday. We will probably spend a couple of nights in the Poteau area so we can stay away from the big town of Fort Smith, AR. The photo is of the Bryan County Courthouse in Durant, OK. I think this is the front and side view. It is a beautiful structure.

2011-03-24T18:55:00.000-07:00

We are still in Rogers, TX for tonight and then we will go to Wetherford, TX to set up for the hamfest on Saturday.

Still not feeling well but better and will be able to work the hamfest without any difficulty. We can set up tomorrow after 4pm, so we will have time to get there, only 50 or 60 miles and a good parking spot.

The photos are of the second unit we encountered. There is another tractor following with some items on the back. I wonder if it is to help pull or maybe hold back on the down grades.

You can see a huge diesel engine on this unit but I can not tell what it is to do with the tanks on both sides. But the engine is huge. I could not tell how many cylinders, but maybe a V12 or V16 engine.

Again, I would loved to have had the time to follow along and watch all that takes place on the trip across the back roads and over the mountains on its way to California and its final location.

I am watching the NCAA but do not get TNT, so do not get to see the Butler game from New Orleans. But, will enjoy the two games that will be on.

2011-03-23T17:52:00.000-07:00

Sorry I have not written in a few days but I have not been well, but seem to be on the mends.

This is one of the big rigs we encountered shortly after leaving the Guadalupe Mountain National Park. We were stopped by the local Sheriff and told that there were two units coming that were over 200ft long. Just sit tight until they passed as they took most of the road.

I would estimate that the units were probably 25ft wide and you can see how far they hang over the side. After the second unit came up behind this one I had a chance to talk with the tail escort and ask where they were going and he said California. I ask if they could take the interstate and he said no, they were to wide and to slow. I would estimate they were traveling at about 20 to 25 mph.

I have no idea how long it would take to get to California as they were in Texas and would have to cross New Mexico as well as Arizona to get to where they were going.

There is a fairly long grade up the mountain, maybe 3 or 4 miles long and maybe a 5% grade. On the other side is a shorter grade, maybe 2 or 4 miles long, but some at 7 and 8% grade. I would not be concerned about going up, but down would be another story.

As you can see in the photo there are 6 axles behind the load with 8 wheel on each axle, for a total of 48. The same on the front with a tri-axle tractor pulling the whole rig.

The load is cantilevered on top of the various units to spread the weight as you can only have so many thousand pounds on each axle. These axles are remotely controlled so they can turn to help the unit make a turn. They had a big intersection to turn in, but certainly not enough room for a rig this length.

One can only imagine the problems they will encounter on this trip to California. It would be an interesting trip to follow along and just watch what all it takes to complete this trip. What an adventure.

2011-03-16T19:31:00.000-07:00

We spent last night at one of our favorite spots, Guadalupe Mountain National Park. And as you would expect there were no cell phone or air card services, so I could not write a blog.

A very nice drive from Deming, NM. It was nice to get off of the busy Interstate, I10, and on some US highways. We were a little late getting there and got the last pull thru space. The sun was going down behind the mountain, but only about 6pm.

This morning, even before we got up the hikers were coming in by the carload, weighing their packs, stretching and making ready to hike the mountain.

Just after we left we took a state route toward Pecos, TX and were stopped by a local Sheriff stating that there were two big loads coming that took most of the road and that we should pull off where we were and wait for them. Shortly one arrived but they had lost contact with the second one via radio and did not know where they were for sure, but to wait.
These were huge units over 200ft long and I would judge them to be about 20 ft wide with 8 tires on each axle with 12 axles. They were hauling two huge pieces of machinery. I had a chance to talk with one of the escort vehicle drivers and he said they were going to California, but could not take any freeways as they were too big. They were traveling at about 20mph, so it is going to take a long time to get to California.

I will have more photos on tomorrows blog.

2011-03-14T19:04:00.000-07:00

We are back on the road again. We spent Friday nite at Holts shell campground. The next morning there were a pair of Roadrunners very close to our spot and Evelyn got a photo of one of them.

We traveled back to Mesa to have the new spring U bolts torqued again and then on to Nancy B's for the night. Sunday morning it was back on the road to Tucson to visit friends and spend the night in their big parking lot.

This morning, we left about 10:00 and headed east on I10 toward New Mexico. We are currently we are at the Dreamcatcher Escapees park in Deming, NM. A nice stop over for the evening, about 2 minutes from I10.

We will be in Texas tomorrow evening on our way to our first hamfest on the trip back to Indiana.

The two lower photos are of rock formations at the Texas Canyon in eastern Arizona.

2011-03-11T19:12:00.002-08:00

The rally is over and we got away from the fairgrounds about 10:30 after Evelyn dropped off some mail and made a quick stop at Walmart and then came back to the big parking lot and hooked up the van.

Currently we are at Gila Bend, AZ, one of our most stayed at camping areas. This is just a handy place to stop with a free RV dump station and free water as well as a half price campground or a large boondocking area depending on what you are looking for. Oh, and did I mention a Subway close by.

Tomorrow we will be off to Mesa to have the new spring U bolts torqued again and pick up some mail and get a haircut and then it will be off to Tucson to visit friends and then toward Texas and our next hamfest on March 19 at Midland, TX.

Then it is on to Weatherford, TX for another hamfest on March 26. Then on to Ft. Smith, AR for the Hanging Judge hamfest on April 2.

Then we will visit friends in Arkansas during the week and then be in Memphis, TN for a hamfest on the 9th of April. Back to Cherokee Village to visit friends and pick up mail and head for Kansas City, MO for a hamfest on the 23rd of April.

Then it is off to the Lewis & Clark College in Godfrey, IL (near St. Louis) for a hamfest on April 30th.

Off to Indianapolis to start Dr. appointments starting May 2 with a physical.

Other than that, we will have an uneventful month of March and April and then the fun begins with Dr. visits, eye exams, etc. getting ready to hit the road in June or July.

Not really sure what we will be doing in between but we have the National Handicapped Travel Club rally in Bancroft, WI September 21 thru 24. There is a hamfest in Baraboo, WI on the 27th of August. There is a lot to see and do in that area, so we may just spend that time enjoying the weather and the things available to do.

2011-03-10T19:31:00.000-08:00

The Gypsy Journal is over, all but the coffee and donuts in the morning. It has been a fun rally with many interesting seminars mostly related to RV driving and systems as well as crafts and outdoor activities.

I attended several seminars regarding more technical items like the charging of batteries and one on traveling the Great River Road from Bemidji, Minnesota to the mouth of the river in southern Louisiana. There certainly is a lot to see along that route. Big cities as well as smaller ones like Hannibal, MO and Natches, MS.

In Natches, the river brought the barges down to be unloaded from many places further north. The barges would be cut up for wood as they could not go back upstream. The bargemen would walk back up the Natches Trace to Nashville, TN. Many stopped along the way for various reasons, some to stay on a permanent basis.

You can walk across the river at Lake Itasca, the head water, in Minnesota on large rocks, or there is a walking bridge you cal walk across. The drive down from Minnesota to the mouth in Louisiana is about 2995 miles, much shorter if you take the water route.

The people from the Park of the Sierra campground were there giving out discounts on park fees to new people that visit the park. We were there last year and really enjoyed the area. The park is only a few miles from Yosemite National Park and a little farther to the National parks to the south.

At the closing ceremonies they thanked all of the volunteers that helped with the rally and had another prize drawing. As usual we did not win anything, but we did have a good time and learned a lot.

Hopefully we can make the rally in September just after the Handicapped Travel Club national rally in Wisconsin. We will have to make a quick trip from Wisconsin to Celina, Ohio, but maybe we can make them both.

2011-03-07T20:10:00.001-08:00

This afternoon was the opening ceremonies of the Gypsy Journal Rally here in Yuma, AZ. It was warm but there was a cool breeze and it was blowing quite hard and gusty at times. There were several units that came in today, but they said it was a difficult drive with the gusty wind.

There are still a few not in, probably due to the wind but they will not miss much.

We had a door prize session this evening with a lot of nice prizes, many from local restaurants and eateries. Many only good at this location, so people could use them while they are in town for the rally.

There will be several seminars tomorrow and I have decided to attend the Gypsy Journal FAQs and the Safe RVing, The Choice is Yours and the Ea$y Money concert at 7pm. And that will probably finish the day for me. It will probably be quite cool by that time.

Of course there will be coffee and donuts in the morning before we start the seminars and there will be an hour and a half for lunch.

Our photos are of Dome Mountain between Yuma and Quartzsite on road 95.

2011-03-05T18:45:00.000-08:00

We are back on the road again after our stay in Mesa, AZ and having some suspension work done on the motor home. I think we are ready for the road and a summer of traveling.

We are currently in Gila Bend, AZ waiting to go to Yuma for the opening of the Gypsy Journal Rally at noon tomorrow. At that time they will start parking the early arrivals so the next day will not be so hectic for the parking crew.

I have looked at the lineup of seminars and there is something for everyone and maybe too many for some. It will be difficult to choose which ones to go to and which ones to pass up as they are at the same time as another that you would like to hear. Nick will be presenting several and I am sure those will be great. We will determine what ones to go to when we get the final lineup.

We will get an early start in the morning as it is over 100 miles from here to Yuma and we want to be in line before noon.

Hopefully we will be able to write a blog each night to keep all aware of what is going on at the rally.

Our photo is of the desert at Quartzsite in the are of the hamfest in January. Not nearly as many units as before.

2011-02-27T19:12:00.000-08:00

We are still at Hi Jolly, a free 14 day, camping area about 3 miles north of Quartzsite. We have an appointment for service work on the motor home on Tuesday at 7am. We will go to the shop tomorrow afternoon and hook up and be ready for service early the next morning.

We will attend the HTC luncheon on Tuesday while they are working on the coach. We had not planned on being in town for the luncheon, but service work is a must.

We went into town this afternoon for dinner at the Mountain Quail Cafe. This is a little mom and pop type eatery that puts out quite good food at a reasonable price. It will seat about 50 or so and it is always full, at least every time we have been there.

Not a lot going on in the big town of Quartzsite, other than an election the first week of March. It seems, by the editorials in the local free paper, that the city council are all crooks and out to bankrupt the town, so it seems. They want to throw the bums out of office and put some real people in there that will do the work of the people. Sounds like the same old thing everywhere. You wonder how those bums got in there in the first place, or did they become bums after they got into office. So it goes all over the country. Here, they can vote all 8 of them out at the same time. I only wish that the country could do the same in Washington.

So, it is back on the road tomorrow and burn up some more of that expensive fuel. We filled up here in Quartzsite for $3.55 a gallon. Who knows where it will end up.

2011-02-24T19:13:00.000-08:00

The rally was over last evening with a great group, the Breeze. It was 4 fellows and 1 gal and they were from San Diego. They played and sang music from the 60's and 70's that we all remembered well. Many were moved to dancing, some quite well.

The music was held inside the building on the stage which made it a lot better for them as they were out of the cool wind and we were much warmer as well.

Overall the rally was not very good. Some of the things they had planned did not come to pass. For one, a horseshoe pitching contest did not happen as there were no horseshoe pits on the grounds. You might think that someone would have checked that out before the rally.

So it went with other things. They had a golf outing and they got the scores mixed up and therefore the prizes were awarded to the wrong guys????

The rally was headed up by a nice guy, but he was a professional DJ. This was clearly out of his realm. He admitted that this was his first rally to head up or even attend, so what would you expect.

Our photos are of a dairy we passed coming in to Yuma. They raise alfalfa for the cows to eat and bale it and store it in huge stacks. In the Yuma valley there is hundreds of acres of all type of veggies growing.

We saw cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, head lettuce, red lettuce and maybe radishes. All growing in rows with irrigation for water and nutrients. Probably not much nutrition left in the soil as it is cultivated year round.

We are currently back in Quartzsite for a few days before returning to Mesa and then back to Yuma for the Gypsy Journal Rally.

2011-02-22T19:11:00.000-08:00

This is day two of the Passport America Rally. They served breakfast and there was a golf outing for those interested as well as a couple of seminars and a Western Hamburger dinner with onion rings, etc. The hamburgers were half pounders with onions, pickles, and other condiments. All quite tasty as well as filling.

Our entertainment was a Country & Western band that had just returned from New Zealand on tour. Afterwards they retired to the big building to play bingo again tonight.

As I indicated earlier, it is not very well organized or coordinated as there are two or three things going on at the same time and you can not be in that many places at the same time. And since they are not duplicated you just have to miss out on some of them.

The weather is getting warmer during the day but it really cools off after the sun goes down and you have to put on two or three layers of clothes to keep even a little bit warm. More comfortable to just go to the motor home and enjoy the heater.

Tomorrow, it is donuts at 8am and then we will see what else is going on.

2011-02-21T19:29:00.000-08:00

This was the first full day of the Passport America rally. We had the opening ceremonies and a nice dinner last evening and a drawing for some door prizes.

This morning they had coffee and donuts with the vendors being open at 9am. We went in and visited the vendors, many we had seen at previous rallies. The couple manning the NOMAD booth was a couple from Cherokee Village and Evelyn had known them for years thru their affiliation with the Methodist Church. They had a long visit, catching up on things. They spend the winter months here in Yuma, away from the cold and ice in Arkansas. They still maintain a home there and travel during the winter months.

Entertainment was a nice Country & Western band out on the outside stage. It was too cool for us, after the sun went down, so we came home. Afterwards they were to play Bingo and Texas Holdem poker witch neither interested us so we stayed home where it was warm.

Evelyn attended a seminar on traveling to Alaska and found it interesting and some places we did not visit on our trip in 04. Tomorrow there will be a golf outing for those interested and seminars, etc. for the others and a cook out tomorrow evening along with more entertainment. We will see what the weather does and maybe we will brave it ourselves.

2011-02-19T19:42:00.000-08:00

Well, the Yuma hamfest is over. It started yesterday from noon to 5pm. We had a pretty good afternoon, being Friday. They had predicted rain for the night and today so things were a bit iffy as far as the crowd was concerned.

We got up early to get ready to go in and it started to rain about 6:30am and it rained harder and harder until it was just pouring. There was lightning and thunder and all that goes with a good old mid western storm. It finally stopped about 7:15 and we went into the building to open up and start business when the public was let in at 8am. Guess what, at about 8:05 am the power went out. Fortunately the building has sky lights in it so we could see pretty well, but without power, we were dead in the water, so to speak.

They checked and found out that the complete grid we were in was out from a lightning strike and they did not know when it would be back on. There were people coming in that stayed in hotels on the north side of I8 and they had power but as soon as they got on the south side of the interstate, everything was out, traffic signals, etc. Traffic was difficult at least.

The locals said that when something like this happens, it is usually hours to a few days before things are back on. Sometimes they have to drive to Phoenix to get transformers, etc. to fix the problem as these things seldom, if ever happen in this area. Yuma gets less than 3 inches of rain a year and a storm like this happens very seldom.

Alas, about 10:30 the power came back on and things soon got under way and the sky cleared and the sun came out and it was a nice, but cool day. They even went so far as to bring in a couple of generators from RV's that were here to power lights and projectors for a couple of buildings where they were holding seminars.

After all was said and done, we had a pretty good weekend and made some gas money so we can get on down the road. Fuel is getting higher out here, in the $3.25 range per gallon.

We are supposed to be out of the fairgrounds by noon, but they mentioned that the Passport America group is coming in tomorrow for a rally next week. Evelyn will check and see if we can stay and join them as we are Passport members as well. Time will tell. If not, we may go back to Quartzsite for a few days and wait on a call about our springs that are supposed to be on order.

It has been cold and damp here and we are trying to get warmed up so we can go to bed and really get warmed up with the electric blanket.

2011-02-17T18:16:00.001-08:00

We are finally back on the road. We had been suffering from a case of "hitch itch" for several days.

You may know we have had a problem towing the van since we put new tires on the back of the motor home. It was very difficult to keep the two on the road. It seemed that the tail was wagging the dog. We had the front end of the van aligned and it was all ok. We went back to the tire people and had them rotate the front tires to the left rear as the right front tire was wearing on the outside and the left front tire was wearing on the inside. Not thinking that that would really help the situation we made arrangements to have the front suspension on the motor home aligned.

As usual, they could not get to it until this morning, 7am. We needed to be in Yuma this evening to set up for a hamfest in the morning. When I described the problem with the shop foreman, he immediately said it was not an alignment problem as the tires would either wear on the outside or the inside of both tires alike. Bud he assured me he would figure it out.

When they checked it out, it was a tracking problem. The center bold in the left rear leaf spring had broken and the leaves in the spring slipped and the left side of the rear axle moved forward causing the motor home to "dog track". The main leaf spring on the left side was worn almost 50% thru and the right rear spring was wearing as well due to the broken center bolt. He is trying to find a new set of springs for us, none are available on the west coast. He did replace the center bolt and align the rear axle, but the springs still need to be replaced. $$$$ Hopefully he can find something in the next few days.

Otherwise, we are here in Yuma at the County Fairgrounds, across from the air field where the Harrier jets and the tankers are practicing landings and they fly directly over us and are they noisy.

The hamfest runs from noon to 5pm on Friday and 8 to 5 on Saturday, so hopefully we will be busy.

2011-01-30T19:44:00.000-08:00

Today, we returned to the desert at Quartzsite from being in Palm Springs, CA for the Desert R.A.T.S. hamfest on Saturday. It was a very nice affair and we were busy all day making name badges for the attendees.

The weather was beautiful, down to about 50 degrees at night with a light breeze and quite warm in the sunshine during the day.

We stayed in Quartzsite until about noon on Friday as they had their hamfest on Friday as well as Saturday. We made several badges before packing up and heading for CA.

Tomorrow, we will head for Mesa, AZ and our normal parking spot at Nancy B's for a couple of weeks before heading for Yuma and their big hamfest.

On our way back from Palm Springs, we saw some smoke in the sky ahead of us and then it disappeared, however as we got to Blythe, CA on I10 we found out what caused it, a Swift tractor had caught on fire and the cab practically burned to the ground. The interstate was closed until they got the fire out and things cleaned up and then they opened one lane so the traffic could start moving again. We lost 30 minutes but that could have been worse if we had been a little earlier.

Our photos are of the hamfest yesterday. It was well attended and enjoyed by all. They served breakfast as well as a nice lunch of hot dogs and hamburgers, cole slaw, chips and drinks. It was held at the Boskovich Estate just off of Gene Autry Drive in Palm Springs. The estate sits high above the city at the foot of a mountain. The mountain started about 3 feet from the side of our motor home and seemed to go about straight up to the top. Several of the mountains had snow near the top, an interesting observation from where we were basking in the warm sunshine.

2011-01-23T19:49:00.000-08:00

Things have been progressing this week toward the annual Quartzfest in Quartzsite, AZ. Or numbers have grown, in this are of amateur radio operators to 147 units and over 250 people. Other groups are gathering in different areas. The "Beaver" coach group are gathering somewhere north of us as we have seen dozens of beautiful coaches pass our location.

Many are here just for Quartzfest and others are here for the winter. This is a free BLM area with a 14 day limit. You then have to move to another area and back for another 14 days. You need to service your coach, dump holding tanks and take on water every week or 10 days, so you have lots of opportunities to renew your 14 days.

At the opening ceremonies this afternoon they went over the activities and seminars that would be happening during the week. Lots of things going on for the hams as well as the ladies in the group.

We have not had any TV since we got here. In Mesa we had cable. One of the hams nearby checked it out and found that we needed a new antenna on the roof as the amplifier was bad. Actually we just needed the top portion as that is where the amplifier is located.

I disassembled the old one and found some rust on some of the connections. A bit expensive, but necessary if we were going to watch TV off the grid.

Our photos are of the many units that have gathered in only our area. Our organizer this year is Steve, call a do not remember, but a really nice fellow.

The LTVA's are about all full. There you can stay until April for a fee of $40.00. That will let you stay at any BLM in the country for free until April. There are lots of BLM areas, many along the Colorado River. None have any utilities, other than a dump station and a water source.

I did read that, even due to the economy, they were expecting 750,000 to 1,000,000 people in Quartzsite this winter. When you consider 2 or 3, at the most, people in each rig, that is a lot of RV's of all kinds, from the oldest tent campers to the newest diesel pusher motor home.

So it goes in the deserts of Arizona

2011-01-16T17:36:00.000-08:00

Here we are in Quartzsite, AZ. We came over from Mesa yesterday afternoon. It took a while as we had to stop for fuel after we got to town so we would have a full tank for the generator to work from. It will only get fuel until the tank is about 50% gone.

There are not a lot of people in this area yet. The LTVA areas are filling up and the campgrounds in town are pretty full. This area is continuing to gain in population but by next week it will be filling up.

Tomorrow, being a holiday, we will stay away from the big tent where all of the vendors are. We will probably go on Tuesday after a lot of people go to work.

We have a few things we want to look at. We have talked about a flag pole for the roof ladder. They make brackets that are very easy to use. We also want to look at a sediment filter as well as a water softener. Not sure we want a softener, but it sure would be nice to have a shower in soft water. The water out here is certainly hard and leaves a scum on everything, including you.

Not a lot going on here at the Amateur Radio area. Things will be picking up the first of next week and it will be crowded after everyone gets here. We will be leaving on Friday for Palm Springs, CA for the Desert Rats hamfest on
Saturday. We will miss the hamfest here in the desert but will be making nametags all week.

Our photos are of our spot in the desert and a shot toward the mountains on our west showing only a few units that have arrived. The last photo is of the same general area of the beautiful sunset here in the desert.

2011-01-13T17:32:00.000-08:00

Not a lot going on the last week or so. Just enjoying the warm weather, at least warmer than back east and up north. It has been cooler than normal in the low 30's at night and in the mid 60's during the day, but the sun shines most every day and that is good for the spirit.

We noticed one of the rear tires was flat. We called the road service and they sent out someone to install the spare. We do not know why it went flat as it was alright when we arrived here in Mesa.

It was time for new tires anyway as the old ones were the originals when the unit was delivered. I made a few calls trying to locate new Michlein tires, my preference, and learned that they were on back order as they were not producing them at this time. I talked with Redburn Tire Co. and they had 1 in stock. They checked and found 3 more at their store in Tucson and had them delivered here.

On Tuesday we went to Phoenix to have them installed. A costly project, but they really look good. I went from F to G load range, which will carry more weight at a lower pressure for a better ride. The spare is still an original Goodyear tire but it has a lot more tread and will serve as a spare for a long time to come. It is under the coach and out of the sunlight so it will not deteriorate as one out in the elements.

The whole state of Arizona is still in shock due to the shooting in Tuscon. I am not sure what the impact was on the rest of the country, but it is still tops on the news and probably will be for time to come. Certainly a tragedy for this community, city, state and nation.

We will be heading for Quartzsite on Saturday for a week or so to be with the amateur radio group and then we will go to Palm Springs on Friday the 28th for the hamfest on the 29th. Then we will be coming back to Mesa for a couple of weeks before heading to Texas.

Our photo is out our dining room window at a pretty sunset which occurs when we have a few clouds in the sky. Generally when the sky is clear there is no color, only light until the sun goes over the horizon and then it is dark in just a few minutes.

2011-01-01T17:41:00.000-08:00

We would like to wish you all a happy and prosperous new year.

We went out to eat at a local establishment last evening and came home, watched the tv and the celebrations across the world and to New York and called it a night.

It has been cool, at or below freezing the last couple of nights and supposed to be cold again tonight but them warming up a bit in the next few days. It warms up during the day to a fairly comfortable temperature but as soon as the sun goes down, it is cold almost instantly.

We are looking forward to getting back on the road. We will be going to Quartzsite in a couple of weeks but will have to get more lp gas in the motor home before then. We will probably replace the 4 rear tires at that time and get that out of the way for a long time. It will be an expensive project but one that is needed as the tires are 10 years old and the tread is getting down to the retread groves, so it is time. So if the new ones last that long, we will probably not be needing them, or the motor home, who knows.

So, here's wishing you a HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Merle & Evelyn

2010-12-29T20:07:00.000-08:00

Today started out dark and gloomy and went downhill. It started raining a bit before noon and rained all day and into the night. Not sure how much longer it is supposed to rain, but a nice bright sunny morning would be welcome.

Yesterday afternoon we met with friends Clark and Carol and the 5 of us went to the Organ Stop Pizza palace. It opened at 3pm and if you ordered your pizza before 4pm you got a discount of $2.00. So you can be we got our order in pronto. Evelyn and I split a large Vegie pizza and drinks. The building was built around this huge Wurlitzer theater organ. It has 4 manuals, 276 keys and 798 stops and nearly 6000 pipes.

The organ was built by Wurlitzer in 1927 and installed in the Denver theater. It was used regularly until the 1930's depression hit. Theis building has 43' ceilings. the wind is provided by 4 huge turbine blowers housed in a separate part of the building. It has been added to over the years and is currently the largest Wurlitzer in the world.

It is mounted on a rotating hydraulic 8,000 lb. elevator. Many of the percussion's (such as the xylophones, glockenspiels drums, etc.) are installed in the dining room for greater audience appeal. These sections are individually lighted when they are played.

All in all, it was a truly an experience to sit there and hear a masterful gentleman play this huge organ. He could really make it talk. He played without any music and took requests and would play most anything requested. Something anyone would enjoy hearing. The pizza was quite good as well.

2010-12-25T15:46:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to one and all. We spent a quiet day with Nancy B. and a nice meal this afternoon.

It has been a while since I posted anything, but we have been taking life easy and enjoying the warm sunny weather here in Mesa, AZ.

Not really a lot going on, just eating and sleeping and not really doing much. We do go to Church on Sunday and Christmas Eve at a nice little church that is not very far away.

The oranges are ripe and quite tasty and very plentiful on Nancy's little tree. Evelyn has been doing some cleaning in Nancy's house and we are making plans for next year as far as the hamfests we will attend and out trip back to the midwest for the summer months and our round of doctor appointments, etc.

We are planning on working our way south to Florida next year and work the circuit down that way during the first of 2012 and them across the south to the warmer climates of the southwest.

We have several friends yet to see and visit with in this area before we head out the middle of January for Quartzsite and Yuma and Palm Springs, CA before starting east.

2010-12-09T19:47:00.000-08:00

Lots of things going on around here. We got the motor home parked on Monday morning and all hooked up. Nice to have cable tv and all those good things. The air card is working quite well.at least we do not have to rely on someone elses wi-fi that is usually pretty slow.

Tuesday we had a water problem with a broken valve on the outside shower fixture. As usual the manufacturer that built the motor home makes things easy for them but creates problems for the repair person. I will not go into details, but it was a big job to change the fixture when it should have only taken half an hour. On top of that, after the repair was made, the water worked fine except in the kitchen sink. No water! Water everywhere else in the motor home. So we bled the lines to the sink and had water everywhere. Finally discovered that the water diffuser on the sink was completely plugged with lime/calcium or what ever. I cleaned it out and all worked fine. It semed it was just one thing after another.

Our photos are of route 66 on our trip to Oatman, AZ. It is really the "Mother Road" in all respects. It is narrow and it really follows the contour of the area. Few of the hills were graded out and the low areas filled. The areas that drain the water from the mountains were not bridged, the road just followed the "draw" and lets the water flow over the pavement, thus preventing the need for a bridge and that expense. The road has not been improved since it was built. Some of the curves are 15 and 20 mph and
the road is about 20 feet wide. It is difficult to stay on your side of the road and stay on the pavement. Not a lot of traffic so it is not a problem.

I can only imagine what it was like negotiating these mountains and curves back when the road was new. There are lots of areas on the up grades to pull off the road if the car got hot. There are places to pull off on the downhill side to let the brakes cool. The grades are what appear to be 6 and 7% grades and the sharp curves that you can not see around. Pretty steep for vehicles at that time.

While we were in Oatman, I saw a relatively new Rolls Royce come in from the pass up the mountain and it parked on the south side of the business area. I did not have a camera available so I did not get a photo. A very unusual thing to see in Oatman, AZ.

2010-12-05T18:55:00.000-08:00

There were a lot of cars, trucks, and RVs coming and going all evening and this morning in the Hi Jolly LTVA. There were several units parked in various areas and appeared to be there for the duration. Many, I am sure are set up in the same place as last year and will be with many friends as they assemble around the area. There are many Escapees bof groups that meet in certain areas and spend time together and enjoying one anothers company.

We will be meeting with the Amateur Radio (Ham) group at the 99mm south of town off of US95. There will be many units in that gathering with all types of units and all kinds of antennas you can imagine and some you have never seen before. They will have an antenna shoot out on the day of the hamfest to determine who has the best antenna setup. A lot of fun for all involved.

We will not be able to stay the whole week as we have to go to Palm Springs, CA on Friday for a hamfest on Saturday. A very good hamfest last year and we anticipate a good one this year as well.

Today, we left HiJolly LTVA and made our way to Mesa, AZ and the home of good friend Nancy B. where we will be until sometime in January. There will be lots of things to do while we are here and we want to take advantage of what is available.

Our photos are from downtown Oatman, AZ showing some of the stores and items for sale.

The trip to Oatman on the original US66, the "Mother Road", is quite an experience and one experience all should have.

2010-12-04T21:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we took a trip to Oatman, AZ, an old gold mining town, now a town trying to survive. At one time the population was almost 10,000 and dropped to 15 and currently about 150 people live here full time. There are wild burros that roam freely through the old mining town. The burros were used to bring supplies to the area. Later, they were used to haul rock and oar from the mines. When the gold gave out and the mines closed the burros were left to fend for themselves. Today, they roam the streets of Oatman and beg for food. You are allowed to feed them in town but not outside the city limits.

There are all kinds of old time shops and outside one of the businesses there is a sign that says that the people and businesses maintain the right to carry and use firearms. A right given to them by the state of Arizona, as well as all those in the state.

The burros are two kinds, as we saw in town, a brown and white burro with distinctive black stripes over the shoulders and down the middle of the back and down the tail. The others are white or mostly white with some dark areas. You would think that in this many years they would all look alike due to inbreeding, but that is not the case here.

This morning we got things hooked up and secured ready to travel and hit the road. We went down US95 in Arizona toward Quartzsite and are at the Hi Jolly LTVA, a free camping area for 14 days. You can spend the winter here or in any LTVA for $180.00 until April of 2011. Not a bad price, however there are no services or water. You have to go to Quartzsite for that.

Tomorrow we will go to Mesa, AZ and get set to sit tight until after the first of the year and attend a couple of HTC lunch bunch gatherings.

2010-12-03T20:46:00.000-08:00

Another beautiful morning, a bit overcast but the sun was soon shining brightly.

We took a tour of the park and out on the peninsula that runs along the Colorado River. There are some 25 sites that will accommodate up to 5 units each. There is water and electric for each unit as well as public restrooms and a dump station. Most all have a beach area where you can swim or fish.

Most of the areas had at least one unit and we talked with one woman and they were there for the winter and would leave in April, so it is really a winter destination for a lot of people. Certainly a place to keep in mind if you are interested in a winter place to camp.

We decided to stay another day and take a trip to Oatman, AZ and see the old gold town and the burros. But, we have to go back to Arizona to do that, it seems we have been crossing the Colorado River over and over again going from California to Arizona and back.

This park is in California and really looks the part. Just a mile or so away, across the river in Arizona the terrain is very different with mountains and desert.

2010-12-02T19:20:00.000-08:00

We drove late last evening and did not get to the RV park until after dark. This was a little after 5:30, but it was dark. We got caught by a train and lost about 10 minutes, so that did not help any either.

We did not get away today until after lunch, however we only drove a dozen or so miles to the Moabi Regional Park just south of Needles, CA. This is really a pretty place situated along the Colorado River. There is a regular campground and a peninsula that has group camping areas that is really nice. I will get some photos tomorrow of the area.

After we got hooked up, we went to Lake Havasu City, AZ to the post office and to Walmart to get some groceries, etc. We put the address in our GPS for Walmart and when we arrived it was not Walmart and we were not looking for the post office, but it was across the street. We then ask the GPS to locate the Walmart and when we went there, it was a huge shopping center, but, no Walmart. We checked with a Schwaun man that was in the parking lot and he directed us to the new Walmart about 4 or 5 miles up the highway toward home. Finally we got our shopping done and headed back home, stopping at the Loves Service/Subway, picked up a sandwich and came home. The mountains were quite interesting as the sun was setting behind them and it was getting dark, all in a matter of a few minutes.

2010-12-01T21:59:00.000-08:00

We had a lot of things to do today, get the rig ready to travel, laundry, go to town and pick up our mail as well as fill the lp tank with gas, etc. We finally got things done and away from Pahrump a little after noon. You have to go back to LasVegas to get through the mountains and then you can go south down US95. This is a good 4 lane highway and there is no towns along the way, just desert with mountains in the distance. There was one town, Searchlight, which had a couple of Casinos and a few filling stations, but that was about all. The town of Cal-Nav-Ari was less than that, just a wide spot in the road.

You know it has been cold at nights and we could see the snow on Mt. Charleston, but as we went up the mountain to get to LasVegas, we say a lot of snow along the highway and it was still pretty cold.

We are currently at the Calizona RV Park in Needles, CA. we are down considerably in altitude and at 10pm it is still near 50 degrees outside. Much warmer than the last week or so.

Not a lot going on the last couple of days, just getting things ready to travel. We were not sure our mail would make it today, so we really could not make any definite plans one way or the other.

We spent the evening sorting mail, paying bills, and deciding where we would go tomorrow. It will not be an early start as we will be late to bed tonight.

As we traveled down US95 we could see lots of high voltage power lines crossing the area from Hoover dam that was just a few miles to the east. That power plant furnishes power to cities all over the southwest grid. We even saw a huge solar system that was right along and under the power lines. Every little bit of power helps.

2010-11-28T21:17:00.000-08:00

Not much to do today, it has been cool and quite windy, so we stayed inside and mostly watched football games all day. Three of the four were good games , but the Colts vs Chargers game was a joke. However, when you have a lot of injuries and do not have a running game, what can one expect.

It is supposed to warm up a bit in the next day or two and hopefully the wind will settle down and driving will be better by Wednesday, when we hope to get away.

Our photos are from our visit to the Bass Pro Shop the other day. You have to look at them a bit to get a prospective on the fact that the first photo appears to be from underwater but the fish are actually suspended from the ceiling, surface of the water, but you see the shoppers and product displays below.

This store is very interesting with everything in hunting, fishing, you can imagine, as well as boats and all kinds of 4 wheelers. They even have cooking utensils and food items to cook as well as pre-packaged foods. Lots of dehydrated items ready to fix, just add water and heat over your open fire or camp stove.

There are actually so many animals around you find yourself just staring at them as many of their background is so realistic. You could spend hours just looking at the animals, birds and fish.

2010-11-27T21:03:00.000-08:00

A cool but sunny day today. There were a few clouds in the sky until after noon when it cleared off. This evening the wind came up and it is supposed to be windy the next couple of days but not as cold at night. That will be a welcome change.

We did not do much today, just try to recover from two days of eating turkey, dressing and gravy as well as all of the other goodies that people bring in.

We will be here a few more days waiting on our mail and some other items that should be here in the mail. However, if the wind keeps up we would not be leaving anyway as I do not like to drive when it is windy and gusty.

We may do another local casino before we leave and maybe win some big money, now that is not likely, maybe enough to pay for our lunch but not much more.

The photos are of LasVegas and the first one appears to be of the older section of town with all of the little shops and you can see the cross walks above the street. The other two photos are of casinos that are in the same area and are quite ornate in their design.

You can walk miles, it seems seeing all there is to see in a town this size. I understand that the inside of the casinos is even more beautiful than the outside, but we will probably never see the inside of them as parking is some distance away, at least for our big van. There is a lot of underground parking but it is for those little, at least not tall, vehicles like ours.

2010-11-26T19:12:00.000-08:00

When we came home yesterday evening, after a huge Thanksgiving dinner, I just crashed, taking a short nap and watching some TV before retiring for the night. It never crossed my mind to write a blog. So, I am writing tonight to catch up.

Today, we were up and at it a little earlier than usual, but not to go shopping early, but to get ready to play bridge at 1pm and then to get ready to eat leftovers at 5pm.

Another great meal with a chance to eat your choice of the leftovers from yesterday. Yesterday everyone at the same table fixed their speciality and shared it with others at their table. The turkey, dressing and mashed potatoes and gravy was furnished by the park. Today, all went on two tables and we all had an opportunity to sample it all. My, what good food, from cooks from all over the country. As usual, the turkey and gravy was just as good as it was yesterday.

We had an opportunity to meet and talk with others that were seated nearby. Today, it was a couple from Pennsylvania. They are leaving on Sunday and heading for Quartzsite, AZ and then on to CasaGrande to the Escapees park for the winter. We will be leaving on Monday heading for Mesa, AZ for a while and then on to Quartzsite in January.

Evelyn took a trip to town to get some groceries and then on to the Post Office to see if we had any mail, but nothing has arrived as of yet. We are expecting a care package as well as some things we ordered on the web. So, we will check again tomorrow and then again on Monday to see if anything has come.

Nothing really planned for tomorrow or Sunday, at this time, will just have to wait and see if it warms up. It has been below freezing the last couple of nights and again tonight before it warms up the first of the week.

The photos are from LasVegas showing one of the big hotels as well as some wooded areas but confined to a small area.

2010-11-24T21:46:00.000-08:00

Another cool night, in the 30's this morning, but it did not warm up much, maybe in the upper 40's with a brisk wind that made it feel even cooler.

We stayed in most of the day until I went to play bridge and Evelyn did some laundry. We attended the Happy Hour at 4pm with good conversations with many people. It is interesting the places some have been and how they saw the same area that we had traveled and saw something a lot differently. People look for different things and therefore see things differently. One of the ladies I talked with had driven to Alaska on two different occasions and at different times of the year, one early, in May with many of the facilities closed with snow piled all around and the second one later in the year with the changing of the colors.

We are beginning to notice people that we have met before at different parks or on the road and have a chance to compare notes on travels since we had seen one another.

The photos were taken at the Bass Pro Shop in LasVagas that has a casino attached, so you can shop and look at all of the animals as well as a fresh water aquarium and a huge salt water aquarium. You can go directly into the Silverton Casino and eat or play the slots and then come back into the Bass Pro shop at will. A very interesting place to visit.

2010-11-23T20:27:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we woke up to a very cool morning, about 30 degrees and when we looked out we could see fresh snow on the mountains all around us. The big mountain is Mt. Charleston and the snow was still there this afternoon.

We have been in a cold snap and will be until the week end, however, as soon as the sun is up you can turn off the heat as it warms up quite quickly and stays that way as long as the sun stays out. It will be 85 degrees in the motor home in short order. When it goes over the mountain, the temperature drops 15 or 20 degrees in less than half an hour.

Today, we got a late start, but took a trip to downtown Pahrump to the post office to mail some work and then to Walmart for a couple of things and then to the Terrible's Casino. We got our Players cards and went to work. We finally cashed out with $15.40 in winnings. Then we went to the restaurant down the street for some BBQ which cost us some $20.00, so it was a money losing day, all in all a fun day. On the way home we stopped at the grocery and picked up some things we needed as well as the items we needed to fix for our Thanksgiving dinner here at the park.

Back home, the sun was just going down and it was ready to turn on the heat and enjoy the evening.

2010-11-22T20:39:00.000-08:00

Today, we took a trip to the big town of Las Vagas. It surely has changed since I was last here in the late 70's. We drove from the south end of town to the north end of the strip, turned around and drove back to the south end. There is a lot of traffic and more pedestrians than you can shake a stick at. There are escalators at most intersections moving the foot traffic to upper walkways. Each also has an elevator to make the walkway accessible.

Parking is difficult to find, some underground parking garages, but very little surface parking along the strip.

As you can see in the photos there is very little real estate that is not in use. In the second photo of the Statue of Liberty, you can see the rail of the roller coaster that actually covers the complete block. Also you can see other replica buildings from the New York area.

I was driving and watching traffic and pedestrians and Evelyn was taking photos. The complete strip is just beautiful, one beautiful building after another. It seems that everyone is trying to outdo the other as far as design and size is concerned. Just one magnificent building after another.

We finally went farther south on the strip and visited the Bass Pro Shop and the attached Silverton Casino. After touring the Bass Pro Shop we went to the casino, got our Players card with $5.00 free money to play the slots as well as the opportunity to visit their buffet for $5.00 each.

We visited the buffet and what a beautiful facility with excellent food including all kinds of fish, roast beef, all kinds of Italian dishes, as well as Oriental dishes and American food, a very nice salad bar and a complete desert bar. A real treat indeed.

Later we went to the slots and turned our two $5.00 free cards into $11.98, so we basically ate for free and a little left over. A really fun outing.

2010-11-20T21:05:00.000-08:00

The morning started dark and gloomy with lots of clouds and wind. We could not see the top of the mountains for some time. It rained on several occasions as the day progressed and the clouds broke a little and let the sun through for a short time around noon and then it was gloomy the rest of the day. It did warm up a bit and then cooled back down in the afternoon. Not really expecting much different until the first of the week.

The photos are of items in the Death Valley museum. The old stage coach is still in good condition and with some upholstery, maybe be back on the trail. The huge diesel engine was used in the processing of the borax before it was shipped to the rail head some 165 miles away.

There is a lot of mining equipment, ore cars, etc. that are well preserved, due to the hot and dry conditions. There is some rain in the valley, an average of 1.9 inches a year, so things are quite dry.

Our indoor/outdoor thermometer is also has a humidity indicator and it does not register below 20%, it just says LO. I never did see anything but LO while we were in the valley.

Hopefully by Monday it will clear up and we will be able to do some thing in the area.

2010-11-19T20:26:00.000-08:00

Not a lot going on here at the park. I played bridge this afternoon and the cards were not good. I made a couple of bids but no good hands like on Wednesday. I played just good enough to not have the lowest score.

Things are coming together for the big Thanksgiving dinner next Thursday. Looks like a lot of good things to eat. The park will furnish the turkey, gravy and potatoes with everyone bringing their favorite dish for their individual table. On Friday we will take all of the leftovers and share them with everyone along with the turkey, etc. I am sure all will get enough to eat.

Among the many features to see at Death Valley is the sand dunes. These are quite large and move up and down the valley with the winds. They are ever changing as the wind is always blowing to some degree. The wind goes up and down the mountains as the air heats up as well as up and down the valley, so the dunes are ever changing.

You can see the size of the dunes in the photo with the people walking out on the sand.

2010-11-18T19:16:00.000-08:00

Today, we went to the Nugget Casino, got our Players Cards and free $3.00 each to play with. Evelyn won $36.60 with her free $3.00 and I lost all of mine in short order. What we really went there for was their 2 for 1 buffet with Prime Rib and all of the fixings. What a great meal. So, we left about $20.00 to the good and so we can go back and still be money ahead. Maybe next time we will try another casino and spend some of their money. There are 3 or 4 casinos in town, so we will be busy checking them all out.

There are so many interesting things about Death Valley that you do not know which to go see next.

The story of the 20 Mule team wagons is one that is very intriguing. The wagons were built to hold 10 ton of Borax and the two wagons and the water wagon that had to go along and the other equipment weighed a total of 36 tons. All pulled by 18 mules and 2 horses on the tongue. The photo of the wagons does not indicate the size, as the wheels are about 7 feet high and probably 10 inches wide at the rim. It was a 165 mile, one way, trip to the rail head from the mine in Death Valley. It took 10 days to make the trip. There were three men that went on the trip, a driver and two men to operate the brakes on the ore wagons. You can only imagine what strength it took to hold back 36 tons when going down a grade.

You can read more details on the plaque dedicated to the Old Harmony Borax Works.

2010-11-17T20:57:00.000-08:00

We are currently in Pahrump, NV and will be here until after Thanksgiving. We will be enjoying the facilities at the Escapees Pair A Dice Co-Op. I played bridge with the group and won first prize, 3 quarters. I did have some good hands as well as some good partners which resulted in an enjoyable afternoon.

I played with Wally Zahnd, from California a couple of hands and we were talking and he was at the 49ers encampment last week and had been there for two weeks with a Christian bof group. He said he remembered seeing the van in Death Valley and wondered where our booth was. He needed a namebadge made, which I took care of this afternoon, after bridge and happy hour.

Our photos are of the Devils Golf Course. This is another interesting area where the water, when it rains, dissolves the salt and when it dries up it heaves up in very hard pieces and from a distance it appears to still be water due to the reflection of the sun on the salt crystals. Just another feature of this unusual National Park

2010-11-16T21:29:00.000-08:00

Photos for the prior blog.

2010-11-16T21:01:00.000-08:00

This was a most interesting place. It looked like a volcano to me but they call it a crater caused by an underground explosion that blew rocks and dirt a considerable distance.

The colors in the layers of the rock are beautiful, more so than the photos show. It is about 500 feet deep and we could see people that had hiked around the outer rim as well as some that were way down in the crater.

It is a very unusual place to find in a desert, especially one as bit as Death Valley which is huge in its self. But this is an unusual thing, in my opinion, to find in an area such as this.

The rocks change colors as the sun moves across the sky and the shadows make things look quite differently as the day goes on. It takes only a short time to get a completely different photograph of the same area.
It is interesting to watch the sun go down. The atmosphere is so clear that when you are in the direct rays of the sun it is quite warm. In the shade it is quite cool and when the sun goes over the mountain it is almost instantly cool. It only takes a few minutes until it is dark as there is not any clouds to reflect any sunlight, so there is very little twilight time at all. It is then time to put on a jacket as the temperature drops quickly.

The photos are of the Ubehebe Crater which is quite spectacular as well as colorful.

2010-11-15T19:19:00.000-08:00

We took a trip north in the valley some 50+ miles to Scotties Castle. This is a beautiful place with many modern conveniences of the time. It was built by Scottie by money he conned out of a friend. When he ran out of money, he just contacted his friend and asked for more money.

This unit has steam heat with a boiler system. Solar heated hot water. It had its own spring for fresh water. It was cooled by spring water.

We wanted to tour the house but the wheelchair lift to the second floor was out of order and it was to be another hour before the next tour began. I understand it is furnished with its original furniture and decorations and is today as it was many years ago.

This is really a work of art especially considering where and when it was built and the materials available.

It is today, a part of the National Park system and will be preserved as such for years to come. This and the whole story of Death Valley is one that is so interesting that one could spend years just studying the geological changes that caused the valley as well as those that occur daily which makes it more a wonder to behold.

The valley is used year round by many people, mainly Indians that have lived in the valley for hundreds of years. One of the tribes has a village very close to our campground and they make and sell Indian Tacos as well as
Indian frybread. We tried the Tacos and they are quite tasty and filling. Many of the visitors to the park eat there and seem to enjoy the food.

We did not see much wildlife in the park. We did see one Coyote going up the mountain just off the road. There were several birds around due to the fact there was water available. They talked about the Big Horn Sheep in the mountains. Water is so scarce that only a few sheep will share a water source. Any more animals and there is not enough water for them all to survive, so they either have to more on or some will parish. Humans can also cause problems if they stay too close to a water source, as the animals will not come to drink and there is no where else to go for water.

There are several plants that grow in the area. It depends on how deep they have to go for good water. Some can get sufficient water a few inches from the surface and others have to go much deeper to get what they need, or parish.

At Bad Water, the water is quite saline however the pupfish have evolved to the point they can live in this water which nothing else will drink.

2010-11-14T19:49:00.000-08:00

Well, we are back in civilization with air card service. As you know, we have been in Death Valley National. Park for the last few days. What an interesting place, none like it in the world. It is the lowest place in the hemisphere at over 190 feet below sea level.

It really does not feel any different with all of that additional air above you. It is hot in the sun and cool in the shade. You look at the altimeter and wonder why it says -160 feet??? So, how did it get this low. They explain that during the formation of the earth many eons ago, this part of the continent raised up and split open and what fell in between was this huge valley that was actually below the level of the sea, at least that is it in simple terms.

The visitors center has many drawings as well as photographs showing what actually happened and why things are as they are. They have a huge topographical 3D map of the whole valley and the mountain ranges all around and those ranges for many miles away. You really get the impression that you are really quite small in the scheme of things in this great valley. The region receives about 1.9 inches of rain a year and sometimes it comes a lot at one time and it actually forms a lake of salt water and then as it evaporates the salt crystals form, many in the area of the "Devils Golf Course" In this area the ground actually cracks as it dries and heaves up into hard sharp pieces of substance that actually sparkles in the sun, due to the salt crystals. They are so hard you can walk on them, but it is dangerous as you could fall and get cut or break a bone.

We were here attending the 49'ers Encampment. This is a re-enactment of the 49'ers gold rush to the gold fields of California and the story of those that found themselves in Death Valley in the process. It is also the story of the discovery of Borax and the mining and shipment of the raw material to the processing plants on the other side of the mountains. Many have used Borax around the house as a cleaning agent as well as to wash the grease from your hands. The name "20 Mule Team Borax" was a common household name, as well as one frequently herd on the radio.

It is also the story of fortunes made and lost as well as those that took advantage of others on foolish and unwise investments from those with money in the east.

This is a harsh land and one that can take your life if you are not prepared for the harshness of the area. The temperatures in the summer often reach 120 degrees for days on end and the nights are cold as there is little cloud cover to hold in the heat. Water is scarce to non existant and must be conserved when ever possible.
It is interesting to note that the smaller towns do not even have car wash facilities due to the conservation of water and a dirty car is the norm, not the exception.

Our photos are of Pahrump, NV and the Terribles Casino and campground as well as the road toward the mountains and Death Valley.