Eureka!

 


I arrived in Eureka CA yesterday evening around 6pm, after a very long day driving scenic Route 299 through the Shasta-Trinity Mountains.  This is a Byway that I had planned and it was wilder than I imagined.  I was not able to fully enjoy the beauty because the drive was pretty intense and my attention needed to be on the road.

The road was often under construction due to landslides and earth "collapsing".  Scary.  I had planned to spend another night up in those mountains but decided I was too tired and just wanted to get the drive over with.  






So, I pushed ahead to arrive at my sister's house.  She served me some of my favorite Blackstone wine and I was happy to spend some time with my family before konking out.  

My future neice, Helena and my nephew, Drew had some pre-wedding photographs done by a very creative photographer, who posed them for this photo.  The photo's rights were purchased by a local advertiser who featured this photo in the current COSTCO magazine.

Drew and Helena then got silly and decided to do a mock pose on the living room floor.  I especially enjoy effect of the blue crocs on Helena.   They are leaving soon on an adventure of undetermined duration in Sharon's RV.  They have sold their possessions, sublet the apartment, given notice to Helena's employer and are busy preparing for their post-wedding trip of a lifetime.

Cassie was overhelmed by being in a new house with a "puppy" named Ozzie, a playful dog way larger than her.  Ozzie is a golden doodle and is a lovable galumph.  This is a pic of my sister and Ozzie.

Enroute to the Trinity Mountains, I passed through Lassen National Forest and Cassie and I had a picnic by a babbling brook.

Here's Cassie doing her wiggle-scratch in the grass at the picnic spot.

California--where is Arnold's Garage Sale?

If I can find Arnold's Garage Sale, I could maybe pick up some interesting stuff!  

It would be a welcome change from the drive up here yesterday!  Not really pretty!  I was stopped at Bordertown and my RV frisked but no problem since the agent and I starting talking "dog".

It was extremely windy and the road was mostly single lane up and down hills so I did a lot of pulling over to let traffic by.  I wondered why there was so much traffic as the average population of the 3 towns I went through was 70.

Ended up west of Milford at a Passport CG called Honey Lake.  Named that because there is a nice-sized lakeview--or used to be.  Unfortunately, the lake has dried up and I have a view of a dry lakebed.  No pictures as you would be scared.  This place is quite remote and the campground is mostly permanents.  Anyway, I getting ready to pull up stakes after I post this.


Today, I continue toward places named Shingletown, Whiskeytown etc.   Hmmm...any guesses as to what I might find in these places?  Should end my day at Douglas City or Weaverville.  I have no idea where I will be staying tonight.  The people in rural California hate Walmarts or any big box business.

Nevada and My Friend Ruth

Not much chat today.


I got word this morning from Kate in Cape Coral that our friend, Ruth, passed away last night.  Ruth and Jim are dear neighbor friends and fellow RV'ers and we met them on the road a time or two and traded war stories about our adventures.  She and Jim have lived with her cancer for almost a year, and her struggle is over. 

Ruth was a loyal and ever-helpful friend during my and Frank's own battle with his cancers.  No matter how uncomfortable Ruth was, she would always call and offer me support and her friendship.  She was a determined "fighter" of her illness and pushed through the discomfort of the illness to attend Frank's memorium.  I will never forget her resolve to be there for me at that difficult time!  How I wish I was in Cape Coral right now.


Her husband Jim was continuously devoted to her care and took on the monumental task of being her caregiver and "keeper of the homestead".  Jim-you have my compassionate understanding of your effort in that regard and the new work that you must now do to live life without Ruth.

This is all I can think about today so this is not my usual blog.

Yo from You-Tall

Utah along I-80 is astonishingly lush and beautiful; it deserves to be designated a scenic byway, IMHO.  This is a Rest Stop; as you can see the jacket and long pants would suggest, the weather is very cool.  Today is a very long route to Wells, NV.

Along the way, I crossed many mountain passes west of Salt Lake City which took quite some time to inch up in 2nd gear at 30 mph.  I learned a few fuel fillups ago not to put any more fuel in my tank than absolutely necessary to get across the mountain to the next service area.  Same goes with water on board--the rig needs to be as light as possible as these grades are hard on a gasser.  I'm already "dreaming" of my next moho, a diesel.  (This was my original pick before the transaction on the trade went bad.)

This is my GPS navigator in a "flat line" state of existence!  It is indicative of the route across the Bonneville Salt Flats.  This segment lasted over an hour; I put the vehicle in Snooze Control and found myself daydreaming.  Signs along the way exhorting drivers to "Pull off the road if drowsy" were the only thing to stimulate the senses.




This is how the road looked for over an hour...

Finally, a REST STOP and a place for a picnic lunch.

Fellow picknickers, along with chihuahuas "Leche" (lying in the scorching sun on the hot pavement-obviously a brain-damaged dog) and "Cafe".

This is the famous "measured mile" used by the auto types to see how fast cars accelerate etc.    

One was able to actually walk on the salt surface.  Sue:  I picked up a sample of the solid "rock" for Cody.

I finally crossed another time zone--I am in Pacific now--and picked up an extra hour!  Pulling into the campground, I noted a Post Office across the street (have been looking for one without success for 3 days) and also a hardware store with walking distance of the campground.  This made me very happy so I hoofed it and got a lot of minor things accomplished-like buying a flyswatter for the stupid flies out here.  There is always ONE--just ONE--that gets trapped in the RV and is too stupid to leave when I put a window down for an exit.

After getting settled, I marched myself and my glass of wine next door to my neighbors who were sitting outdoors having drinks.  This is usually a sign that people welcome company and I had not spoken to an adult until the post office and wanted some chitchat.


Next stop is Winnemucca, NV where I WILL have a campground.  I understand I have two more mountain passes to traverse today.  Ugh.  The temps will be in the low 100's (but the air is DRY!!!!)

Wyoming to Nevada Today

Hung out at the loudest Walmart ever last night until the trains stopped about 9pm.  It was also used as a truck parking area and the RV's also had to share with the truckers.  Fortunately, the temps went way down and noone needed to use their generators for AC so after awhile, it was quiet until the trains rumbled through again about 5:30am.   I had good TV being in Evanston and gave myself a pedicure.  Nice, eh?



It's the little things along the way...I stopped at a rest stop and met a very nice hippee refugee fleeing Seattle for Indiana.  I knew he was an "older" hippee because he had those round granny eyeglasses and wore a scarf on his head and was skinny.  I didn't ask for details as he seemed a little "off" on his permanent relocation and had only a car stuffed to the gills with a bike mounted on back.  He also had a 9 mo old Russian Elkhound who played with Cassie.  Now..would anyone like to guess what this dog's name was?     

Buddy!

It was pleasantly warm and it was a very untravelled rest stop so I fixed myself a big ole salad in my NEW salad bowl which I am so tickled with.

I took a photo while driving of one of the dramatic rock formations enroute from Rock Springs to Evanston.  There were many Very Long uphill grades and I spent much of the trip in 2nd gear with flashers on, watching my fuel guage take a dive.


Going through the entire state of Utah today to my full hookup campground in Wells, Nevada.


Wifi compliments of Holiday Inn Express in Evanston WY

Wyoming Wilderness

I spent a very quiet and despondant night at Walmart Tues night.  So, as long as I was already at the Walmart, I decided to shop to chase the doldrums!  I bought a new pair of pants since the ones I had on were hanging halfway down my hips and a power drill for a couple fixit jobs inside the RV.  I went from an Extra Large size to a Large Size!  Ah, but it feels lovely to lose weight even if I am still Large!  And, PRAISE BE--my wrist appears to be healing.  I have not had to take a pain med for the last two nights and now I feel pretty confident that it is on the mend and I took off my wrist brace to start strengthening it.

I took off early for my scenic Snowy Range Byway excursion and found it was through part of the Medicine Bow Nat'l Forest, so I stopped in the Visitor Center.  

No one was up yet so Cassie ran off leash and peed on all the trees.

Sashayed on down and up the road (used 2nd gear a LOT up the mountain grades) and stopped at a freezing cold overlook about 8600 ft and hiked out with Cassie to a cool observation point.

Watch out for a woman with a camera and lotsa time on her hands!  From my experiences in Yellowstone, I know when I see a car parked alongside the road other than in a turnout or planned parking area that the motorist is either "distressed" or has seen some wildlife.  I had been travelling in a bigtime wildlife area on the Snowy Range route (lots of binocular signs), which was a lovely drive I started Weds morning about 7am.  Then, I saw a good-lookin' guy with a camera and his Harley parked at the shoulder.  Craning my neck backward at risk of going off the road with the RV, I strained to follow the angle of his camera.  I then saw what he saw---a huge bull moose with a mammoth rack!  Excitedly, I slid into the next turnout and hoofed it up to his location.  I saw him shooting like crazy and I was amazed that there were actually 3 bull moose; I got a decent shot of one of them.  I spent an hour with the Harley/Photo guy talking wildlife, travel, cameras and photography and other stuff and found out he was from Titusville, FL and married to an airline stewardess who likes her vacations with room service.  Anyhow, I had a very nice encounter with him and a few more folks who noticed the activity and also stopped.

Less than an hour later, I came upon the burg of Saratoga, WY--a town with absolutely nothing to recommend it.  I was welcomed by a large utility-type building calling itself the Yum Yum Karaoke Bar.  I saw no signs for the City Park on Saratoga Lake that I had identified in the planning stage.  So, I pulled over and consulted my map and actually caught an internet signal.  But, my task was to find out how in the world I could have missed an entire park on a lake!  Found out that it was outside of town on a "private" road and so continued on.  The road--ARGH--it one of those rural gravel roads with a washboard surface and a mile to the lake.  I wondered if I hadn't misunderstood as the park was supposed to have electric and the entry seemed pretty rustic.  

A mile and several loose dental fillings later, I came upon an ole feller who told me to "go on in, nobody'd be botherin' ya" and just put the $10 in an envelope and the paybox is on the Restroom Door.  So, I did and picked a spot and have electric and a pretty lakeview. 

I spent most of the afternoon "fixing" stuff in the RV that I didn't have time to do before I left, including a "think project".  There is virtually NO counter space in this or any other RV.  So, I used the stove top grate rack as the surface and put a portable countertop on it made from a solid plastic cutting board that fit almost perfectly!  I got out my handy B & D drill and drilled holes spaced between the slats of the stovetop grate.  I had previously searched high and low for small U-bolts that would be the right size to slide down between the slats and hold the cutting board in place without interfering with the burner units.  Works like a charm and was designed to stay in that position most of the time, including travel.  

In the rare event I want to actually use the stove for cooking, the U-bolts come right up and the cutting board has two retainer holes to hold it in place with some kind of special screw I found against the back wall!  Now, I have more counter space than most Big Rigs!

Cassie & I set off early this morning after a delightful dawn over the water and a chill in the air reduced by my furnace that is working (thank goodness).  Had to go dump and finally saw a sign for the campground dump telling me it was across the road at the lagoon.  So, I took a road that appeared to lead to a lagoon.  Well, the road just kept getting narrower and narrower...until finally I said Uncle.  I had to back out as there was no turnaround.  Could have really used my backup camera but did OK with mirrors.  My sister got me a service appointment on Sept 8 in Eureka to relocate the camera and also fix my water inlet connection.  She also got me an appointment with the hair salon.

Wifi connection compliments of Days Inn in Rawlins, WY.

Weepy night in Wyoming

I kinda knew I was not gonna be OK getting this far West.  Basically crying off and on all day.  Stopped at "our" favorite Rest Stop where we spent an RV-rocking windy night on top of a butte and had visitation by bunnies and coyotes.  I shouldn't have stopped but I guess it is part of my "process" as the grief experts might say.



Now, I am at the Laramie Walmart and have a remote corner spot looking directly at the mountains, a wind turbine and a stormy sky.  There are many lightening strikes and it is a beautiful, wild display of nature.  On the way here, I saw wild mustangs and that made me think of one of our most adventurous trips to a BLM land near Cody to observe wild mustangs.  

There are many memories that I am reliving by being in this place.  There is so much to remember; Frank's and my happiest times were travelling in the RV and I am missing him Big Time today.  

Wyoming-finally No More Nebraska

Cassie finally won!  She just does not like the travel area prepared for her.  She can't sit, stand or even "kneel"--it's lay down or nuthin' and she's not happy about that.  She was really talking about this to me today, so we came to an agreement which I think we can BOTH be excited about (as Dr Phil says).  She now occupies the space between the driver and passenger seats on her foam pad with a big King pillow on top.  Her halter is attached to the lead which is attached to my seat belt.  So, she has limited mobility but enough to reposition herself on the pillow at will.  She gave me such a look of gratitude after I set her up in her new digs--brought little tears to my eyes.  She was very calm today and that made us both happy campers.  I told her I reserve the right to put her back in her Palace if she needs to be contained or if she attempts to move about while I am driving.  I think we have a meeting of human-canine minds.

I have encountered a new scam.  The gas stations advertise a "decent" price for fuel but when you go to fuel up, the actual price is 8-10 cents higher.  Ha-not really!  The low advertised price is for the higher-octane PLUS fuel!  The kneejerk reaction at the pump is to hit the lowest octane gas which, of course, is the higher price!  I overheard a woman "directing" her husband/boyfriend to be sure to pump the Plus because they are "getting" you with the advertised prices.  I looked at my pump price and saw that my 87 octane was 2.62--not 2.54 as advertised!  So, I immediately closed out that sale and reopened the pump with the Plus gas.  Sometimes it pays to eavesdrop on conversations...



This is the Wyoming Welcome Center where I parked and Cassie & I went on a little Nature Hike; that is why you're seeing the perspective up so high.  We are high up on a hill.  I made a lunch of salad and realized that I had not packed any bowls big enough for "my" large salads.  Maybe I should have packed the RV kitchen a little better.

Is there any end to Nebraska? Anyone home?

It seems not.  When I pulled into my Passport Campground, there was no one in the office and no one in the campground!  And, it was right off the interstate!  There were lots of black-eyed Susan flowers around, so I decided to adorn myself with one.

Will Nebraska never end?  It is SO flat and straight; I put the cruise control on and feel like closing my eyes and taking a nap.  But whew--did I become alert in Brule--it had a huge cattle feed lot bordering the road for miles and the stench was like nothing I have ever experienced!

Tomorrow, I will be staying at the Walmart in Laramie,WY.  That will feel like I am "out west"!  Had a bad moment when I realized that Frank was not with me to experience the excitement of seeing our first mountain "out west"; it was always a momentous event on our trips.  There's just nothing like the change from hills/flat terrain to the awe-inspiring majesty of mountains!  

But, life as I knew it is past and I must reinvent my pleasures.  I am beginning to find enjoyment in the driving, which I never imagined would happen.  I always seem to meet pet people in the Pet Exercise end of the Rest Stops.  Today, I met an overweight chihuahua (sp?) named Buddy and his owner who was a truck driver (who cares about HIS name!).  Why are so many dogs named Buddy. 

 The reason I chose that Laramie Walmart location to stay is because it is a great jumping off place for my scenic route "Snowy Range" which takes me off I-80 and over a scenic mountain road (SR130), stopping at Saratoga, WY for a night or two. 


Tonight, I crossed into Mountain Zone time and picked up an extra hour of activity time.  I am at my planned Passport America stop in Big Springs, NE--$10 for full hookup--AND it has a clean, reasonably-priced laundry.  Had my choice of sites since noone was there...  Hung the "delicates" and Hard-to-Dry laundry in the clothesline rigged up for me by my handyman, Steve.  This is how you do "white trash laundry" in an RV.

Even Cassie got a bath.  I set up a bath station on the HitchHaul where I have about an extra 12" of space that is not used by the carrier.  And, I don't have to bend over down to the ground or the shower basin to wash her!  I cut some foam to fit so Cassie had a comfy surface, hooked the hose nozzle up to the "rainfall" setting and gave Cassie a good hosing-down!  She has been wiggling in grass at every Rest Stop so she really needed some grooming!

Later, a couple pulled in with a shitzu and I went over and chatted with them with Cassie and my glass of wine.  We let the dogs play together "off leash" and traded tall tales of the road.

A Hiccough and a Burp in Nebraska

For some reason, it was a very long day on the road and took me forever to get stopped and stay on my route schedule.  One reason might be my little peppy companion pup--Cassie raises a major fuss when she is tired of being cooped  up in her Palace.  She will not shut her yap, so I find myself stopping more often... One of the stops was outside of Omaha--a "Hiccough in the road" called Crete, NE.  No services.  Not even any pavement in the road further than 100 yds from the highway exit.  Nothing but a mobile home park and a very strange rundown building brilliantly painted in bright, day-glow colors with the words "Peace to the World".  





Didn't stay long there and finally came up on this super little Rest Stop in York, NE.  York NE is a "Burp in the road".  You can see the scene out my door.  I just could help it--I wanted to stay there rather than the Walmart!  So, because it was patrolled with security, was a Visitor Center and seemed "safe", I decided to stop.  Was I glad!  I popped my wine bottle, tuned in to find some TV signal and slept like a baby!  



Satellite signal compliments of Sapp Bros Truck Stop in York, NE.  Headed for a campground in Big Springs, NE where they hopefully have a laundry.

A Corny Salute to the Heartland

I am in a gorgeous area of Iowa.  Lots of cornfields so you are looking at my corny salute...


There are also a bazillion windmills-an impressive sight slowing turning with the wind chugging out those amps!  Wish I had one of those things on the RV!


I am in the final Iowa Rest Area so this is IT for internet for awhile.  The campground I picked out for tonight is FULL so I don't have a place.  My most likely options are either WalMart in York, NE or Motel Inn & RV in York, NE.  Depends on weather if I need electric or not...  Imagine a business just calling itself by it's function---Motel!

I found another thing to like about this state, aside from its basic RV Friendliness.  Whilst eating my hot dog with my RV entry door open, I saw a sign saying NO SMOKING anywhere but in your personal vehicle.  I noticed that there was NO Latin version of this rule printed anywhere on the sign.  And then I realized that I had not seen a single Latin sign anywhere for the last 5 days! 

I am here in the Heartland of AMERICA!

Terrible's Lakeside Casino-Not So Terrible!

It was a good driving day in Iowa where hundreds of hay bales resembling beige marshmallows line the highway along with old tractors.  There must a lot of farmers going out of business or buying new tractors.  I noticed a lot of tractors for sale in Missouri, too.  Did you know that there was a shortage of hay due to dry climactic conditions in the midwest?  And, that it is much more costly to transport round bales than square bales due to DOT restrictions on wide loads etc? 


Anyway, I digress.  Stayed last night at Walmart and spent some time trying to lure a little kitten out of a weed mound next to the RV.  She was crying pitiful little mews in this high-pitched little baby meow "I am a scared little pusseeeee" so I took my flashlight and a paper bowl with some Half & Half and tried to find her.  My RV windows were open and her mewings were heartbreaking and driving me nuts.  She would not come out so I left the bowl and moved the RV to another part of the lot.  I returned this morning to see if she had drank the H & H but it was still there and Cassie slurped it up.

Arrived at Terrible's Casino around 9:30 after first stopping at the first Iowa Rest Stop to use the internet.  Little did I know that I would have full-signal internet right here at the casino RV park!  As you can see, I have all the comforts of home, with my laptop, phone for Magic Jack & TV.  And, of course my perky companion pup!

 
I got a lakeside spot with a nearby grassy area for Cassie to wiggle in.  Called for the shuttle and was given a $2 credit.  

Snagged a video poker machine and walked away with $15.  Theresa-- they didn't have "Deal or No Deal" there.  That paid for my seafood buffet this evening, which had shrimp, snow crab legs, mussels & clams, not to mention wonderful prime rib.  Have you ever tried to crack crab legs and claws with only one hand?  I would have eaten more but my left hand just got too tuckered!  I tied on the feedbag and ate meat like there was no tomorrow.  Everything else on the buffet was so-so and not worth chewing.


Tomorrow takes me to Waco, NE UNLESS the Camping World in Sioux City can give me some service.  I now have two issues; the backup camera issue and a leaky connection at my water inlet connection.  It is beyond leaky and pissing me off.   At first I thought it was my lack of hand strength what with my bum wrist but it's not.  I wish I had had a bit more time to do a shakedown trip with the RV before leaving but that's life.

MoHo No Go: Towed from MO

o

As I left the city limits of Kansas City (thankfully!), I had a sudden loss of power ascending an exit ramp off the expressway. I almost did not get through the lighted intersection but by flooring the accelerator, was able to limp to the downhill entrance into Walmart. Couldn't have found a nicer place to park; right at a grassy place under a shade tree. The weather was sunny and mid-70's--gorgeous. Cassie got out for a walkie and did her cutsie wiggle/scratch on her back in the grass. I said "Self--we have been down this road before and I'm still here". So, no panic.

Though surrounded by mall-type businesses, including 3 motels, I had no internet connection so I called my Supreme Warranty PooBah who said "Call me back when you can talk $". NO HELP at all in getting assistance for a tow or whatever. They only want to talk to the mechanic who can give them an $estimate$.

Called Theresa who located the nearest Ford dealership and gave me a phone #. They were actually located about 1/8 mi from where I was stranded in Liberty, MO. However, the moho would not start so I needed to be towed. The dealer gave me the tow people's number and they arrived about 30 minutes later. Meanwhile, I had myself a nice picnic of frypan meatloaf and chugalugged the jug of red juice. (When one is being towed, one does not want purple/red pomegranite juice to leak out into the refigerator.) I still don't know how to work my microwave/convection oven. I downloaded the manual but have not read it yet. Hey--I'm a busy woman!

The tow truck guy came and hooked me up in about 1 1/2 minutes and took me to the Ford dealer 30 seconds away. I am now sitting on a public wifi connection in the middle of the Ford Dealer showroom. Cassie is sitting very patiently on the stool next to me people-watchng. Or she was... she just spied a dog--a Yorkshire Terror.

My moho is not up on a lift so I hope that means they think the problem can be identified on the ground and I can be outta here soon! Like maybe a gunklidyte got stuck in the thingamajig... If I have to stay overnight, I hope they will let me stay in the moho as the temps are going down to 60 tonight and it should be very pleasant and quiet. This is a very nice part of town, I am told.

All is well; I left the dealer $123 poorer but the whooziwhatzit came loose from a doololly and all that was needed was to reconnect the two things back together. No one knows why..its just fate that things come loose (Hey it happens to our bodies too!) I am back on the road and have a wifi connection Compliments of the Comfort Inn in Bethany MO. I am almost in Iowa where all the rest stops have wifi.

Half a Bird---Better than None?

As I unhooked from the overpriced rv park that had been stricken with "dogmania", I noticed orange stains running down the side of my rig under my water connection. Hmmm...initially there was the ever present RV paranoia that took hold and then, it clicked. My potty water was also strangely orange and I erroneously concluded that I had forgotten to flush. Hardly ever do that by accident but sometimes when travelling in water conservation mode, "Condition Mellow Yellow" is in effect, which meant you don't flush liquids every single time. It turns out that steel mill across the street polluted the campground water with iron! Now it makes sense--Cassie threw up twice probably from the crappy water. After the 2nd whoops, I gave her bottled water and she did fine so I suspect the water upset her tummy. Boy is that campground going to get a stinker of an online review from me!

Here is a pic to prove that we are both alive and well despite drinking iron water.






You know the worst thing about having a wrist that might be broken? I used to think the worst thing was that one had to re-potty train to use the non-dominant hand for the usual hygienic finish. But, now I have definately changed my mind. The WORST thing is you can't shoot the bird at the cowboy trucker who scared the bejesus out of me crossing the Missouri River Bridge! Yup-the guy knew what he was doing. When trucks pass big butt RV's like mine on the left, the draft generated "pushes" the RV to the right side and you have to compensate to stay in your lane. That is hard enough to do with one hand; however, when one is crossing a large body of water in a tight lane with no shoulder and said cowboy trucker decides to pass me--a totally unnecessary maneuver on a bridge--it made me a little crazy. I decided right then that the HALF A BIRD to shoot was the worst thing about having a bum wrist.

Cassie and I made 3 very pleasant rest stops today. She is on some kind of internal schedule where she gets antsy in her "Palace"--between 60-90 minutes and she starts crying. So, of course I stop and let her stretch, drink and pee. It was a beautiful day and the rest stops we visited were unusually pretty places and very well maintained. Cassie did her wiggle/scratch in the grass to the delight of some onlookers who thought that was the cutest thing ever. It was a nice day until I got to Walmart.

Walmart in Columbia is possibly the worst Walmart in the system. It is impossible to find as it is not on a main road nor visible from the interstate. It had equipment piled up in every corner of the lot, which was woefully undersized for the shopping public. The lot is on a incline--not a flat spot on the entire property! The inside was being renovated, so all the shelves were half pulled apart/half empty and much of the merchandise relocated somewhere inscrutable. I found the wrist splint I was looking for; it is a rigid splint and is better than the Ace bandage. I was planning to stay overnight there but I could'nt stand it. Even though I was tired of driving, I left at 7:30pm for the Isle of Capri casino to boondock in the parking lot 30 minutes away.

I had previously determined that there were NO RV PARKS around this area. However, I saw a sign on the road that there was RV parking at McDonald's near the casino and a shuttle from the casino would come if you called. So, I pulled in and...there is was...in the distance a little shack down a side road that said RV Express and full hookups for $10. This place is NOT shangri-la in fact it looks like a rickety storage area, but, I am all hooked up, Cassie is snugged up next to me, I am sucking down a "Coconut rum + something" and it is raining (what else is new?) Tonight, Boonefille MO just west of Columbia MO. Tomorrow, going to Osceola, IA where Terrible's Lakeside Casino is.

Let's give a HOORAH to Travelodge of Concordia, MO for providing the free wifi signal so I could get this post online!

Blacktop Blues

Unhooked IN THE RAIN yesterday to get on down the road. It had been a planned 2-night layover to "rest" from the rigors of the road, but frankly, the shopping at Mama J's was pretty limited. I checked my route on my computer and found that I had 8---count 'em 8---road changes! Yikes, it's usually 1 or 2 but my route was a diagonal one to chop off about 30 miles.

All smaller, dual lane back roads but all are painted so it is OK. (That was my cardinal rule with Frank--any road was OK but only if it had paint on it). So, off I went in the rain. I made one mistake in Parsons, MO but only went about 1/4 mile off route and just combined it with a rest stop for me and Cassie.

Made a Walmart stop and caught a signal near the periphery of the lot "greg" so I phoned my dealer on my MagicJack. The person taking my call was the lady who "closed" my deal and she remembered me phoned him and got the guy's email who installed my backup camera. He suggested I send him pics so he could see which camera, position etc and he could email me back instructions on how to reposition.



The sun finally peeked out as I arrived at my stop in Sikeston, MO. I rolled into my campground and was met by a dog. Indeed, the office looked like "Overstock.com/CanineAccessories". Not a hooman in sight but everything a dog could ever dream of owning.

Finally, this ole feller in a straw hat shuffles out smoking a cigarette which he waves around my face and hands me a Registation slip and says $23. I challenged him that the Passport rate said "$20". He said "Ole directory". That's it! Can't believe this place in the middle of nowhere has a street rate of $46 as there were only transient workers here. There is a steel mill and a railroad directly across the street and some kind of farm equipment storage lot behind the campground. Not pretty. Don't know why the Statue of Liberty is at the entrance; I checked and the torch does not light up at night (that's my RV directly to the right). Too bad. And, as I approached, there was the distinct odeur of skunk which fortunately, was not detectable in the campground.

When I got in, my wrist throbbed so badly that I immediately made myself a cocktail and took a pain pill. Fired up the computer and the MagicJack and called my health plan and local urgent care centers, trying to find a combo both ON my plan and that had an xray machine. No luck in this are nor anywhere in Missouri or Kansas along my route. Feeling OK right now but usually it is better in the AM and screaming at me by 2pm.