Not far

Sept. 22, 2017

We finally made it out of MN, but it took awhile. After the funeral of a dear relative of Marks we took an extra day in Hutch to get some things done before hitting the road. Our first day out led us to a WM parking lot in Fergus falls just for the night. There must have been at least a dozen trucks in the back lot taking a much needed rest. But we slept relatively well and hit the road before noon.  Anything earlier than that is quite uncommon for us. hehe

Going west, the next day, we landed in Aberdeen SD. We are currently staying in the surrounding ground of their county fair grounds. Which they have turned into many many camping sites. Some with full hook ups and some with just water and electricity. We took full hook ups for only $23 a night. Not bad. It’s so quiet out here that in the evening all I could hear was an occasional train whistle and crickets.

Much to Lola’s dismay there is an ample supply of flies that want to come inside for a visit. Not sure when her fear of flies came about, but none the less it is here. She doesn’t go quite as frantic as our last dog did. 

Happy happy happy

Yesterday we went into Owatonna for some milk and rolls. Just a couple blocks onto main street I spotted a Godfathers Pizza place. Pointing it out to Mark had him make a fast sharp turn into the parking lot. Nothing makes him move faster than finding a Godfathers pizza. hehehe Yes, we love their pizza and consider it the best pizza in the world. Our traditional pizza at Godfathers is just a plain ole hamburger, original crust, with light on the sauce. That was the first pizza we ever had at GF and still remains our fave. The pizza we had yesterday was wonderfully delicious. In fact Mark plans on going there for lunch today. We don't know when we will see another one since they are few and far between.

We went into a HyVee store and were amazed at all the product they had, the full shelves and friendly staff. It was fun walking around that store. The prices were a bit high on some items but we managed to find some things we needed that were on sale. If we had a bigger freezer I would have gotten more than one pound of bacon. It was $3 a pound. Which is about half the price of bacon now days.

After our shopping Mark drove around town to see what it all had to offer. Nice place. We also drove around the country side. It was nice to be able to drive around and not pull our home.

The heat is still too much so we are very happy that we have full hook ups at this campground. It's really pretty quiet considering Hwy 35W is just a few blocks away. And it's close enough to town to get supplies without driving miles to get there, but far enough away to not be bothered with city traffic and such. The staff  here is wonderful too.

Well that's it for now. I may add more later. Mark can hear Godfathers calling his name. :)

Back tracking

We had a bumpy ride covering a lot of ground on Monday. From Iowa we headed to Wisconsin to see lake Michigan. Yes, it was, wet, big and sandy. hehe With a lot of people all around. As long as we were so close we decided we could put another state on our home and visit Illinois. It was a short uneventful trip to the state and then back to Iowa..We have not had good luck with having any good roads and it took it’s toll on all three of us.

After driving for 5 hours we stopped at a Lowes in Dubuque and asked if we could stay over night in their parking lot. The people on the floor didn’t know if we could stay or not but were kind enough to find a manage that had the answer for us. Yes, we could stay.  It was a noisy stay with many cars and trucks driving by but we slept well anyway.

Upon waking up on Tuesday morning Mark received a text that a relative had passed away that morning. So we turned around and are heading back to Hutch. We drove quite aways before we found a campground. Normally we would have camped out in a WM or someplace similar, but the temp as in the upper 80’s and we needed the comforts of air conditioning. It’s looking like a very warm week so I hope we can find electrical hook ups until it cools down again.

The campground we found was in Owatona deep into a huge grove of tall trees.  We scored on their fall discount, 50 amp service and full hook ups for under $30. Since we aren’t staying long, we just dropped the rear stabilizer, opened the slide, and hooked up the water, sewer and electricity. It is a nice place to camp too. Not sure when the funeral is so that will depend on if we stay another night or not. I’m not too anxious to go back to Hutch any sooner than we have to.

When we head back down the road, I’m hoping to go to Dowes Iowa like last year. They have a BP stop that has GodFathers pizza. We really would like one more before we go further south. The roads are better in Iowa than Wisconsin too. This time we will head more south than east. 

There are a lot of trees changing color already and the soy bean fields down here are really drying. I hope we can get out of the 5 state area before the beans are picked so no Asian beetles stow rides again this year. Yuck. Last year there were still a few in the camper when we got to AZ in November. 

This trip is no different than any other…….

Always an Adventure.

Great First week of our second year

Wednesday September 6th we started out on our second year of full timing. As usual for us we got a later start than we had planned. Some mornings we just move faster than others and some mornings   we tend to linger over our coffee long enough to want a second cup. Well this was one of those mornings. We didn’t hit the road until around 1:30 pm and had no idea what our destination was. We couldn’t go west, as planned, because of all the fires and smoke so we headed south and east.

After some discussion we decided to go to Harmony, MN for an Amish tour. I am an avid reader of the Amish and was very excited to see first hand how they lived.  We got to Harmony an hour before the tour so decided a cup of coffee was in order. And the little cafe where we stopped had the best coffee.

The tour started at 1:30 with three couples aboard the small tour bus. Our tour guide, Mary, was well informed of the Amish that lived in the area. We stopped at 5 Amish homesteads and were greeted with smiles. Each farm had a little store that sold things that they made, such as woven baskets, canned goods, leather goods, quilts that were beyond beautiful, and many other hand made items. We stopped at one place that had a bakery set up with the most delicious treats. All of us enjoyed some very tasty goods from there. We brought home a pan of pecan caramel rolls that was out of this world and some pizza bread that we will try before we hit the road again.

Along the roads we saw many horse and buggy’s and everyone waved at the tour bus. We saw the one room schools and were greeted by all the students with big smiles and waves. And all of the children that we saw were always barefoot, on grass and rocks. My feet ached just looking at them. The tour guide also stopped at a very old and still used Methodist church in Lansboro. Wow, it was a real step back in time and so nice for it’s age. You could tell it was still very much loved.

The tour was 3 hours so we hit the road again, hoping to land somewhere before it got dark. A Walmart parking lot in Austin, MN, was our camping choice. We like free whenever we can get it. We were tired after a long and fun filled day.  Of course when we stay at a WM we buy something in the store, to show our thanks.

After a  leisurely coffee in the morning we tore down and headed down the road once more. We headed for Prairie du Sheen in hopes of finding a buddy that Mark had not seen in years and had been to his home only one other time.  The drive was long and we saw much pretty country side. 

Like I said Mark had only been to Ricks place once so it took two times past it when we saw someone outside a home that we thought looked like Rick. After me asking if this  man was him, I was met with some hesitation but a yes, that is me was answered. Mark reintroduced himself and the chatter began. What a coincidence that the meeting happened the way it did. A lot of catching up and a meal at the neighborhood English pub made for a very enjoyable day. It was great to meet again. Pictured with Mark and Rick is one of the many beautiful clocks that Rick made. He is quite the woodworker.

There weren’t any places to camp but we managed to find a spot at a Carriage Day celebration. I asked if anyone could camp there for the festivities and was told sure, park anywhere. So we parked  and set up camp for the night. We pointed the truck in the direction we wanted to head out in the morning. Later we learned that not just anyone could park there but we were leaving that morning anyway. The morning was met with issues with the inverter not wanting to allow us to use our Keurig in the morning. What? No coffee? Yikes, we better hit the road and find some. So we left earlier than we ever have. We were on the road by 9 am. Which for us is a huge surprise.

We continued our drive in Wisconsin and found that there are very very few campgrounds there. So we kept driving and driving on the most awful roads. Wisconsin needs to work on all of their roads as well as interstates. By the grace of God our home was not torn apart. But we were mighty tired of all the jostling. 

After a long drive we finally found a campgrounds at Lake Geneva. It is one of the most unkept places we have stayed and the most expensive place too. But with it being the only place around to camp, they get buy with stealing you blind and not maintaining their campgrounds. They do have internet but it doesn't work at all.  We were tired and needed a shower, empty the tanks and fill with fresh water again so it was worth at least half of the price to us. hehehe The lady at the desk was very nice at least. But I don’t recommend staying at the Coachman’s Terrace in Lake Geneva. That is unless you have no other choice. I would suggest staying at a WM parking lot before staying here unless you need water and to dump.

Today is Sunday and we have no idea where anything is in this area, and we are in need of a day of rest. So today we will do as little as possible and just enjoy the quiet. Ha ha, there is little quiet here, people don't know how to control their dogs to stop barking. Grrrrrr. Tomorrow we will hit the road with intentions of going to see Lake Michigan. I think that is as far east as we dare go, Time to head away from any travelers escaping all the hurricanes. And we are finding that many places, campgrounds and hotels are filling with travelers escaping the hurricanes and fires as far north  or south as Wisconsin. Some have been here for vacation and can not go back home.

Movin' on out!!

Bright sunshine and a brisk 45º this morning. We won't be sweltering in the heat, tearing down, this time. What a relief.

Due to the fires and smoke we won't be going west as once planned. Not exactly sure where we are heading, but God willing we will get there safely. Between here and Facebook our family and friends will know where we are when I can get on here and post. Adding to this blog isn't possible when on the road, facebook is much easier.

Yesterday we spent the day putting the bikes away and other tear down tasks. We made room in the storage unit for Marks bike and my Helix is at my cousin Sharon's. There were small things as well that we did to make todays tear down less time consuming.  But actually the majority of it does have to wait until the day we leave. Like empty the tanks, fill the fresh water tank with softened water, take stabilizers down, put way hoses and tie up the ladders, to name a few of the things that Mark does outside for tear down. I take care of the inside, some things have to come off of the walls, chairs moved back, table take down, tear computer down, tvs safely nestled , clear and secure counter items. All has to be clear of the slides as they move in place. Drinking water jugs are full, lunches were packed and our meds easily accessible. When all of this is done, it's hook up the camper to the truck, secure all, double and triple check everything, load Lola into the truck, and head out of Hutch. Of course I didn't list everything, or this would be too long. hehe

 Yesterday when getting fuel stabilizer for the bikes at the auto parts store, I was given a big of tiny tomatoes and some large tomatoes and onions. I canned the big tomatoes because I could never eat that many before they spoiled. When I was done I had 2 quarts of tomatoes. That made me quite happy. Add the tiny tomatoes to the ones that my friend Dawn gave me, means I have enough to nibble on no matter where we go. :)

Well I've written enough of a boring post so I'll go and get ready to start my part of the tear down.

On to another adventure. :)

Anxious

One week from today we will be hitting the road once again. We stayed in Hutch two months too long and I can hardly wait to get out of here. It was nice seeing friends and family and riding motorcycle with Mark but that is about all for me.  Time now to move on and see what God has for us on the road ahead.

This last week Mark did some final checking of the water pump and needed to make some minor adjustments or repairs if you will. It’s plumbing so nothing goes as easy as Mark would like. New and factory are never alike so adjustments sometimes have to be made to make things work the way they should and this was NO exception. There were some patience trying times.

Like millions of people across the nation, I have started to paint rocks and set them out and about. I’ll continue that as we travel as well. Spreading some cheer and bringing some smiles in these troubling times is something we all can do. Do a google search to see what I’m talking about. It not only brings a smile to whomever finds the painted rock but can be a fun family project as well. There are a few things that we would like to do yet before hit the road. Not sure when we will be in one place long enough to do anything but enjoy where we are. :)

To say where we are going and will end up would be premature. We are not really sure where we will land for any length of time but plan on traveling the boarder of Canada towards Idaho, Oregon and perhaps Washington then heading south.  Mark wants to go to Yellowstone and Glacial National park. I just go along for the ride. hehehe I’m sure most of this excursion I will have my eyes closed, again. I like the mountains only to look at, NOT to be in or driving through. But it’s impossible to get around them or so I’m told. hehe

Weekenders and brakes

Here it is August and our last month in Hutch for the year. We are so looking forward to moving on and southward again. The cooler weather will be so welcome. Summer and heat is not my favorite time of year. The best part is taking out the motorcycles and riding. But some days it almost too uncomfortable for that too.  From the sounds of it a nice cool down is headed our way.

This being the last month it was also time to get some more loose ends tied up. Like having the truck serviced and ready for many more miles and mountains. Harlan and Kevin from Harlans repair in Silver Lake took very good care of us and got all the brakes, bearings, oil change and many things that needed to be looked at and taken care of. We feel very confident heading down the road after the great work that was done. Because of the thorough work that they do, some major things with the brakes were found. They found the problems and God kept the problems from causing us trouble on the road. PTL The calipers were shot, nothing left and really could have stuck and left us stranded, the brake pads had separated and could have failed. But God got us through it all safely. And Harland and Kevin found and fixed it all. Mark checked the brakes and bearings on the 5er. The brakes looked good and he greased the bearings. So our home and truck are ready to roll.

Lola went in to get her shots and such taken care of for another year too. Sadly one of the tests showed that there could be kidney problems. She is going in for another test this week. Prayers that it is nothing serious. That and being a little over weight, like we are, is all that they found.

We met a nice couple, here at the park, that also are living full-time in their RV. He had a term that has really stuck in my head, and his meaning was very spot on as well. The term is Weekender. That is referring to campers, not full timers. He meant it as a not so good thing at the time he mentioned it…….those that have no respect for other campers. Such as walking across others camps, using the campsites of others, not picking up behind your pets, and not following the campground rules. That doesn’t mean you can not have a good time on your vacation, just be respectful of others that are camping too. Everyone wants to have an enjoyable stay.

When the weather cools down a bit more, I would like to see if I can find a few more items in the storage shed. I’ve come across some things that I have needed and don’t have here in the 5er. If I can find them I won’t have to buy another one. When I packed up our items from the apartment, the totes ended up in the back of the shed. The totes should’ve been in the front and the furniture in the back. But we had to do it this way since we could not move the furniture ourselves. Not sure I will have any luck, but want to at least try to find what I need. LOL, I think I am fooling myself into thinking what I want will ever be found.

It’s Always an adventure.