Into Montana

Sunday, June 13 - We lazed around this morning. Dorothy fixed our traditional Sunday breakfast of Foule. We sucked up all the free internet we could. Only three more days in the billing cycle and today we will not use any since we will be in a dead zone. So we will squeak in with our 30GB plan.

We left Worland on a road that Glenda picked for us. A shortcut I am sure. We went 30 miles and saw only one car. The roadside was most uninteresting. A desert. Everything was brown.

Heading NW from Cody the terrain became more to our liking. We have passed this way now three times on what they call the Nez Pearce Trail. The trail Chief Joseph used to elude the army who intended to kill every last stinking redskin.

We found our perfect boondock site along the Clark Fork. It was just as we remembered it.

Dorothy says it's a witch's hat at the left. The Plein air guy standing next to me says the witch is laying down on the right.

Our campsite

Our free campsite

After 6, a guy came in driving an early 2000's Fleetwood Class A. He was towing a Ford Fusion on a dolly. That you told us a lot about him. After a half-hour or so of banging he came over to meet us. We were to learn more about him. The first thing I noted was a Canon camera with a fisheye lens hanging on his neck as an accessory. There was nothing to use that sort of lens for where we were. He tells us he is Chris, that he sold his farm in Virginia last November and bought the RV for $90,000 at Camping World - about twice what it is worth. He put to rest in Bitcoin and has tripled his money to $180,000. Do you see this guy homeless before the end of the year?

Monday, June 14 - We got away at 7 to get through the park before madness descended. That worked pretty well. The east side of Lamar Valley is the most spectacular part of the park for our money. I doubt many would go there if it was not where the buffalo roam. The park is doing huge road construction somewhere near the NE gate. Over three dozen trucks hauling materials passed us. Thankful we got through there before they arrived.

The Usual Driving Through The Lamar Valley

We parked at a cyber friend's second home just north of Gardiner. It's nice, but it was 104 this afternoon. Even with the AC running the inside was never lower than 85. I am not going to fight the heat, we will head north in the morning and head to the coast if necessary.

On The East River Road North Of Yellowstone 

The Mouse Saga - Over a week ago when we were at Big Horn Canyon, I saw a mouse as soon as we pulled in. Right then I should have set a trap for the little sucker. The next morning we found he dined on a banana. I set the trap. He got the banana out without tripping the trap. The next time I pressed cheese into the mechanism. The trap was nowhere to be found the next morning until I got out a flashlight and found him alive in the trap secured by only one leg. Goodbye mouse.

Tuesday, June 15 - Montana is varied; prairie, badlands/desert, heavily irrigated cropland, and mountains. There is a distinct difference between the extreme eastern part of the state and the rest of the state. In the central and western parts, the terrain constantly changes from one of the above-named types to another in the space of ten miles, then perhaps to another type 20 miles farther along.

The view from our parking place last night was immensely improved by this morning's temperature of 58. We headed north on US59 a new route for us with very little traffic. I was able to cruise at 45 when I wanted to as I was not holding up anyone.

We headed for a Forest Service CG called Kings Hill which is at the top of a pass. At 7,400 feet it promised us a break from the heat. It was closed. So we took another place 1,500 feet down.  

It's 95 outside and 88 inside. 9% humidity. The same inside temperature we had yesterday with the AC running all afternoon. The weather is forecast to be cooler starting tomorrow. We shall see.

We haven't built a campfire in a decade or more. In hot weather - no way. But, today we had one and it cooled us off. We were outside with the fan blowing the flies off us. I looked up and saw the sun was shielded by dense smoke from a not-so-distant fire. That's why some ashes were falling on us. It was a blessing. The smoke cleared by 4:30 so perhaps it was a controlled burn and it was quitting time.

Wednesday, June 16 - We continued north on US89. The drive down the Belt Mountains is delightfully scenic. I was able to drive 30-35 and enjoy the roadside and not hold anyone up. There were two mining towns with homes going back 90+ years.

Secret Missile - Barely seen in the photo above

We did the weekly marketing at the new huge Great Falls Walmart. We called our new friend and he met us and took us to lunch. We spent the afternoon jawing. 

Great Falls is not RV-friendly. Only one campground and it's next to I15. No thanks. Days End directed us to a vacant lot where we found a level spot and spent a quiet night

Thursday, June 17 - We drove west on MT200. Half of the drive was through prairie with distant views. I don't know of a way to capture it with a camera. You would need a wide-angle lens - nearly 140 degrees and then you would need a 4x6 feet print to see the detail. 

When we arrived in Lincoln we discovered we had parked here in 2019. Same site. The same couple from Great Falls was parked across from us.

Dorothy grilled pork chops and baked cauliflower.

We took a drive up into the low mountains. We never found the lake we wanted to find, but we found a lake. I did not take a single picture. Back in town, I had a dish of Huckleberry ice cream and Dorothy had a chocolate shake.

Friday, June 18 - We took 200 to MT36. Sealy Lake sounded familiar, but I could not place it. I did when we got to Salmon Lake which is just south of Sealy in a chain of lakes. A delightful appearing lake with homes lining the shores. We had camped near Sealy in 2019. Part of dementia is every morning you are like a new baby duck.

Did I screw up or was I screwed? My source of information on the FS CG was it was No Reservations. We got there by 11AM but the few no reservation sites had already been snagged.  I should have known better than to try to get into a CG with a water feature on a weekend. The last half mile to the CG was on the dustiest road we have ever been on. Of course, I washed the Jeep yesterday. Montana dust is white and very fine. We fixed spaghetti in the day-use area and then a nap. Then we continued to Kalispell parking on the grass at the fairgrounds.

I did not notice my passport had expired until a month before we left. I sent in the renewal and since it has been two months I checked on the status. They show it was received a month after I mailed it and it will take three months to process. That rules out visiting Waterton while we are in the area.

Saturday, June 19 - We spent most of the day visiting with a friend who shares interests with us. She took us to Panda Express. We had seen the restaurant signs before but never been in one. Decent food. Marred by a Chinese woman who did not abla so much and a loud kitchen fan that made understanding her impossible for me.

Sunday, June 20 - We did laundry at Dirty Dan's which has a door opening into a casino. Most gas stations in Montano have a casino. The rest of the day was pretty much a repeat of Saturday.

Monday, June 21 - We got Dorothy's laptop to an Apple store to figure out why it is gobbling up our bandwidth. Malware suspected. Four days into the cycle and it has eaten up 1/3 of our monthly allotment.

The clerk at the Apple store would not admit us without a mask. She was wearing one of those worthless gaither masks.  She said they had to be very careful as they were the only Apple store in NW Montana. I said we were vaccinated. That's when she pissed me off by saying people would just say they were vaccinated. Nickel to a dime she was not vaccinated.

Dorothy wants a haircut. Oddly there are only a few salons in the town. She got the only appointment open at Walmart.

 Tuesday, June 22 - We went north on US93 passing through Whitefish, which must be the Gatlinburg of the west. Upscale! We continued north to Rexford. Days End promised free parking at the city park. Parking was big enough for vans and offered a railway switching yard only 100 yards distant.

We had passed a gorgeous aquamarine lake on the way to Rexford and it had a Forest Service campground. But we found no turnaround until we got to Rexford. After rejecting the city park and another RV park we went back to Lake Dickey and signed up for two nights. The aqua marine water color is like many of the lakes in BC and Alberta and Glacier. 

Rexford must have over two real estate offices. 

NO RESERVATIONS

22, Count Them, 22 Photographs

Saturday, May 29 - Against our best judgment we decided that we could not endure staying in our very private CG another two days. We headed north to South Dakota. We found a COE CG and there were open sites. Woohoo. Well, open until the ranger posted reserved signs on them at 5PM. Sure enough, about 7pm folks from Denver came in. In the rain, we found a spot at Kemo Saby CG. The ranger was most kind to escort us to the CG. 

Sunday, May 30 - We had not been to Custer State Park since our first trip in 2007. I particularly wanted to revisit the pigtail bridges. 

The kids from several different families kept the Merry Go Round busy all day, every day. No screens

Custer State Park

The pigtail bridge I drove three hours to photograph. A 360 degree continuous turn. Starts on the right and you exit in the center of the frame.

Mt. Rushmore viewed through one of the tunnels

There were 15 Mini-Coopers that were using the park roads for a road race. Staying on each other's bumpers and wheeling around the constant turns. We were parked at an overlook and the last three in the convoy were a little behind. I pulled out and inadvertently cut them off from their buddies. I could see the driver fuming for the next 11 miles.

Anywho, we had a pleasant 4-hour drive through the park, then returned to Kemo Saby, had a delicious Dorothy burger, went to Bomgaar's hardware to get a grade 8 bolt for the hitch, installed it in the parking lot, and finally went to the COE CG we were yesterday - this time with reservations.

Just one block north of Hot Springs is Cold Creek. Go figure.

Monday, May 31 - Laundry Day, The police in Hot Springs stopped us twice for speeding. 35 in a 25. Keeping it to 25 down a long hill is difficult. No tickets.

Tuesday, June 1 - We moved NW to Gillette, WY. In some parts, it's difficult to find places to dump and take on water. There is even a dearth of private RV parks. We found water at a visitor center along the road and a dump in Gillette in a wonderful park. Gillette has 32,000 souls and everything looks like it was built in the last 10 years. We stayed at a quiet well landscaped Walmart.

Wednesday, June 2 - We finally got someplace! Leaving Gillette, we could see the Big Horns Mountains. The first mountains of this trip worthy of the name. An hour later we were in Buffalo. We filled the propane tank and ascended the steep grade of US16 into the Bighorns. We are perched in a field of wildflowers at 7,000 feet with magnificent views in all directions. There is no one else close by. AND we have three bars. This is what we come west for. We were in the Bighorns in 2016 and our campsite was most memorable. This one will go down in the memory banks as a winner.

Our campsite in the Big Horns

At 5pm it is 76. Down below in Buffalo, it is pushing 90. The forecast for the next few days is for more heat in the valleys.

Thursday, June 3 - It was the third of June, another sleepy delta day....

We spent the day enjoying being parked where we are. Where we are parked reminds me of the scenes in The Sound Of Music. The meadow is covered in purple and yellow flowers. We finally identified the songbird that is invisible in the short grass - a yellow-breasted chat. He flew to a fence post, sang, and agreeably waited long enough for me to get the binoculars from the Jeep. But long not enough to get a picture. How that bird hides in the grass only 20 feet away with a yellow breast is a mystery to me.

Friday, June 4 - Dorothy wanted to stay, I wanted to move to the northern road - 14A. I agree our site would make a fine place for a mountain lodge, but this spot is the only scenic spot on 16. Just pine trees from here to the west side of the mountains.

So we drove separately down the steep grade, dumped and took on water, and made the short drive north on I90 to Sheridan. We shopped at Walmart and were so damn excited that the GPS showed a Safeway close by. We had our mouths set for their Friday $5 fried chicken deal. There was a Ridely's in the place of Safeway.

Chicken-less and depressed, we continued to Hwy 14 and had lunch at a city park with both ACs on. 94 degrees and climbing.

The ascent on Hwy 14 reminded me of some mountain roads in the Sierra Nevada, with lots of twists and switchbacks. We topped out at 8,300 but it was 83 degrees.

I was headed for a dispersed camping area, but when we passed Lake Sibley, it looked so good, I turned in. So we are in a formal CG for $10. They even have electric sites for $5 more. But I was thinking what do I need electricity for? Two hours later I thought oh yeah AC. No cell coverage here, but I did not expect it.

The Babbling Brook At Lake Sibley

The Last Of The Pella Pork Chops

About 4pm, the sky turned dark, Thor threw down lightning rods and a few drops of mist fell. The good news is that the temp dropped 15 degrees. No need for AC.

Saturday, June 5 - We scouted a new home on Freeze Out Road. It looked good, 360 view and three bars of VZ. When we got there with KoKo the cell signal proved an illusion. By midday, the road had a lot of scooter-pooter traffic. There must have been a mud bog down the road as they came back covered in mud. But the view was fine. The wind was 20-25. It died down after dark. I suspect it was the heated air where we were rising and the cool air over the snowfields rushing in that caused the wind. 

The View From Freeze Out Road

I usually study maps before exploring, but I had one mission and I thought I knew the location of the waterfall. Wrong. We had a pleasant enough drive to where 14A starts its steep, 14% descent into the Big Horn Basin. Got up to 9,300 feet where the snow is only half melted. [The roads are clear)

I had thought we would leave on 14A, but I changed my mind today and we will descend on the 8% grade of Hwy 14. I did 14A in 2016, no need to repeat it. I know our southern friends who have never driven in the western mountains can not comprehend such grades.

Sunday, June 6 - We went west on Hwy 14 dropping down only 500 feet, but we can both breathe better. As we started down I recognized the terrain and knew we had parked here before. Sure enough Shell CG came into view. We are parked in the same place we were in 2016, right alongside the gurgling Shell River. The river went up 13 inches in the last 24 hours because of the heatwave melting snow. 

Utah In Wyoming

NO RESERVATIONS was not only the name of one of Anthony Bourdain's shows, it's what we have been doing all the years we have traveled. OK, except in 2006, when Dorothy made reservations for every night of the five months we were gone. In the last three years, all Forest Service, National Park and Core of Engineers CG's require campers to use Recreation.gov. Someone needs to hack that site! I should start a GoFundMe to pay hackers to take it down. Many CG's are now 100% reservable. This CG has one site that is not reservable. And we are in it. Flashing road signs announce the fact that most of Wyoming is Open Range. Public CG's should be just as open.

We went the short distance downhill to see Shell Falls again. Probably not a soul has heard of the river or the falls that have not been through here. When the river is flowing full-throat like it is now, it's worth a look. Sitting in KoKo writing this the sound of the rushing water is soothing.

We continued downhill another mile where a cell signal can get up into the canyon and checked our mail.

Monday, June 7 - We have enough water to stay another day, but we have done all we know to do, so will we head down the hill. The heatwave has mostly dissipated.

We finally got cell service in Greybull and found that the only place that met our current requirements was Big Horn Canyon - about an hour north. It's a nice CG with good views. I was gobsmacked that while it is a national park, senior discounts only applied to primitive sites. It's run by a concessionaire and I guess they got a concession to sidestep the discount.

Big Horn Canyon From Our Campsite

Tuesday, June 8 - We left at 8am in Rubi to drive north along the Big Horn Canyon. Even with full overcast, it was scenic. We only saw two other couples on the 17-mile road. Your tax dollars were well spent here and without the hordes of hoopleheads and tour buses of full of Asians, it will stay scenic. The road enters Montana after a mile or so and dammed if the sky did not get bigger.

One overlook named Devil's Canyon showed they the area is honeycombed with canyons filled with water. It looks a little like The Maze in Utah. The watercolor is light brown, just like the sandstone sides. I don't know why it does not settle out. We noted one canyon that had a small stream feeding into it and the water was clear. Anywho, it's a swell hole in the ground. For my money, it wins out over the Black Canyon of the Gunnison by miles.

Some Of The Wild Horses Your Tax Dollars Maintain. They Say This Herd Has Unique Skull Shapes.

Big Horn Canyon

Big Horn Canyon

At the end of the road, there are four RV sites overlooking a canyon. Nice. No one was there. Only two empty boat trailers.

It was pleasant yesterday with a breeze. We did not cut on the AC until after dinner. We slept with it on. Great sleep. Today, it was again pleasant in the morning, but the cloud cover broke about noon and the AC has not shut off. About 3, I put out the awning to shade KoKo. About 4, a wind storm appeared. I got the awing down before it could get damaged. The storm lasted about an hour and then blue skies. About midnight the wind was howling again.

Last week we went through an area where many things were named Crazy Woman. Road, creeks, trails, etc. Today it was back to the usual names Dead Man, Dead Horse, Dead Swede, and today I had on my Deadhead t-shirt. Devil is another popular place name.

Wednesday, June 9 - She Who Must Be Obeyed has declared this cleanup day. She defrosted the refer yesterday and is going to wipe everything down today. I cleaned the exterior. I am having internet withdrawals. This is day seven off the grid. Our 30GB is down to 3GB and it's a week until the next cycle. Elizabeth Warren, Bernie, etc. want free college. I want free unlimited internet. OK, 90GB a month would satisfy me.

Dorothy just reported we have a mouse. He ate a bit of banana last night. I saw a tiny mouse outside when we arrived. I will set a trap tonight. After breakfast, I opened the drawer where the mousetrap is stored and was face to face with the little critter. We were both startled. He was munching on plastic trash bags to use as nesting material.

I am listening to a BBC production of Rogers and Hammerstein's "greatest hits" while typing this. All of those productions were before I was "of age", but I recall listening to them. The older I get the more 1940's music appeals to me. I suppose Michael Jackson was the first of the no-talent superstars. A long list of no talent performers has made millions since. Mostly Black male rappers and Latinas with lips and bottoms injected with whale blubber, though some light skin women can be included. If you thought Jackson had talent, don't talk to me. 

There are two other canyons in the area that we have seen before but did take the time to make decent images of them. I plan to rectify that.

Thursday, June 10 - We have been gone a month. We drove south to Worland, WY. There are precious few places to park in this area. We wanted hookups as it's been hot and the forecast is for more of the same. Turned out that we had stayed in this RV park back in 2016. Why? No clue. Maybe for the same reason as now.

The town has two supermarkets, but one is being remodeled. That left us with a high-priced one. It will be nice to go through a big city and shop.

We spent the afternoon catching up on a week of surfing and drinking a bottle of delightful wine we had shipped to us from NM last year.

I was asleep by 7:15.

Friday, June 11 - We were off at 8 to Ten Sleep Canyon. This is the west side of the Big Horns on Hwy 16. We were disappointed that the dirt road on the south side of the canyon was closed to protect wildlife. It opens in 4 days. It would have allowed a better vantage point for photographing the canyon walls.

I Like The Green Fields and the Red Cliffs

Ten Sleep River Flowing Through The Canyon

Ten Sleep River

On the way back, we stopped at a brewery and I had two glasses of brew. We got to chat with a likable couple from Cali.

Back at the CG, Dorothy is washing clothes and I am blogging. More wine later.

Saturday, June 12 - Today's mission was to image Wind River Canyon. We got away at 7. Dorothy wanted McDonald's for breakie. We got to the mouth of the canyon just before 8. Already the sunball was spilling light into the canyon. I managed to get a few decent shots before the sun bleached out the canyon by 9. 

I imagined traffic would be light early on a Saturday morning. Not so, lots of 18-wheelers, trucks hauling livestock, etc. Fortunately, there were a lot of turnouts and sometimes, I just pulled on the shoulder to let them pass. All were driving the speed limit. No tourists eyeballing the scenery.

It's a magic canyon. I think the Indians did it. Southbound you have the strong sensation that you are going downhill. Yet the river is flowing briskly north. The GPS says you are gaining elevation. Still, your senses tell you that you are descending. Magic.

And one from 2019 in the afternoon

 

Tomorrow, we headed north into Montana.

Our Week In Nebraska

I originally was going to head north from Iowa to North Dakota. I changed my mind and went west through Nebraska. A mistake.

Friday, May 20 - It is overcast but has not rained yet this morning.

Our hosts went to two medical appointments with their daughter and did their marketing at Aldi. He showed me what they bought and what they paid. We will be shopping there whenever we can.

We did laundry and vegged.

Saturday, May 22 - No Rain! We spent the day yakking,

Sunday, May 23 - We woke to light rain, but it stopped by 7am. We were on the road by 9:30 westbound. We were able to turn a 2.5-hour drive into 4 hours without any effort. We were on mostly two highways through the Loess hills. The road probably followed a wagon or game trail. It has a lot of 90 and 270 degree turns to avoid the hills.

We landed in Salix, Iowa at a pleasant county park.

A high of 82 today. Another low-pressure system is headed our way.

Monday, May 24 - There was a light rain overnight, but it was partly cloudy all day. We stopped at several stores in Sioux Falls. One item was replaced at Walmart which I know is packed safely somewhere in the rig. At Harbor Freight I replaced a hammer I lost by leaving it on the Jeep bumper. I got a new a battery for the Mifi at Batteries Plus. The Mifi is only 22 months old with about three months of use. 

We turned another 3.5-hour drive into 5. Rough two-lane road with lots of oncoming trucks. We parked at a pleasant city park in Atkinson, NE. $15 Most little towns in this part of the country have small RV parks.

Along the highway, a few of the dozen whimsical windmills

Man-made Waterfall

Tuesday, May 25 - A slight change in plans. I looked at the map and noticed a waterfall near the town of Valentine and what might be a Forest Service CG. We stopped in at the VC and found the waterfall was on private land and had been closed due to vandalism and the CG was under state control. She suggested another waterfall on the Niobrara River. So we went down the dirt road and found an OK CG on the river. The river is a haven for canoes, kayaks, and tubers and the water is not even close to warm yet. We have paddled the Rouge in Oregon, The Buffalo in Arkansas, and a few other scenic rivers, but we have never seen so many craft for rent - hundreds of them.

One CG went along the river for over a mile, hundreds of sites.

This CG is unusual. While the river is federal, the land along the river is private. The state leases the park from the owners and it's managed by concessioners.

The Niobrara

Wednesday, May 26 - Lots of biz here have Help Wanted signs. Starting pay of $13-15 at fast food places. We see lots of HS kids working. Three of them are cutting the grass outside our rig right now. Three were doing hard labor planting flowers at the state park yesterday and cutting the grass at 6:30. Things are different in mid-America.

Eastern to central Nebraska is row crops.  It got boring only seeing freshly planted corn and bean fields. The terrain changes to sandhills in the central section. All cows. The eastern towns are more prosperous. Perhaps because row crops generate more income than cows - when they can bring in a crop that is. Many of the western towns are run down. Frankly, Nebraska is not as exciting to us as when we crossed it once before.

There is very little traffic on US20 on the west side of the state. Lonelier than US50 in Nevada.

We parked in the city park of Hay Market. Full hookups even. This will allow us to shower, dump, fill with fresh water before we head into a primitive camping area and with no cell signal. 

I gave both vehicles a rinse this afternoon. Supposed to be 34 in the morning.

We have crossed the 100th parallel and changed to Mountain time so we are now officially in the west.  That means it does not get dark for another hour. 

About 6pm we got a deluge of rain along with some marble size hail. 

Thursday, May 27 - We drove west 45 minutes to Crawford and parked in the city park. It is a delightful setting, but I am not sure I want to be here for the holiday weekend. I don't know where we are going to be, We will take the Jeep to see the toadstools after eating Dorothy's Kufta lunch and investigate staying there.

The sky turned dark and the wind picked up, so we watched the movie Dry, which was a C+.

Train watchers come to a guest ranch here to watch the coal trains from Wyoming climb Crawford Hill, a 1.5% grade that requires helper engines. The land looks flat to me, but 1.5% must be a big deal for trains.

One of Mr. Buffet's trains

Friday, May 28 - The forecasted low temp did not happen, a mere 42. The sky remains dark but is supposed to be sunny by lunch. Dorothy fixed a steak we bought in Iowa - tasty. And then we were finally off the see the toadstools. I was not expecting much, but it turned out to be a B- grade. Maybe it was the fact that we have not done much all week and the sun got our spirits up?

The only walking we have done in the last two years has been to doctors' offices, hospitals, and food shopping. Today we hiked!  Well, a 1/2 mile. When I saw the trail, I silently said to myself that I could not do it. It was not an easy hike for us, but we did it. Pretty good for old handicapped people. Will our muscles be sore tomorrow? I will be more prepared for hiking the next time.

There were a lot more people there than we expected - over a dozen cars. PA, VA, and MI were represented.

Dorothy said she could not decide if she would like it better in a sod house or in a ghetto. Such a princess.

My Tribute To John Ford

Toadstools

Mrs. Toad

Grassland

Cathartes aura

Saturday, May 29 - I made pancakes this morning for a break from eggs. The skies are dark again. We are done with wonderful Crawford. We are going to risk going a little north hoping to find a place to park on this holiday weekend. 

The Last Hurrah

Dear Diary, Forgive me, I continue to record the mundane.

Every year we recognize that this could be our last trip. We are designating this one The Last Hurrah but hoping it will not be our last.

Monday, May 10 - The rain, thankfully, stopped at 7am. The odometer read 121,158 miles when we left. We got about a 1/4 mile on I85 when the rig starts swaying dangerously. WFT! We get off the interstate and head to our auto shop. Nothing apparent. We drive both vehicles separately and all is normal. I adjust the hitch some. That makes a difference, but we still have some sway. An hour down the road we pull off and I find two hitch bolts that are slightly loose. I tighten them. Maybe it's a little better. The next morning, I get serious and tighten all the hitch bolts with a cheater bar. No apparent change. What has changed since we went to Florida a month back? No changes to the Jeep. The Lazy Daze has new upper and lower ball joints, tires and, of course, alignment. What is pushing the rear end around? It tracks straight, but if you move the steering wheel above 50 a little unintentionally it will start to swing left to right for a few intenerations.

Three days later: Thanks to a fellow LD owner mentioning it, I checked the pressure in my front tires. I screwed up. I put in only 55 pounds instead of 65. That 10 pounds makes all the difference between the front end floating. It's back to tracking like a train.

We overnighted at a COE park on the Tombigbee River north of Columbus, MS. $10 We are fond of COE parks as they are the best value around. Plenty of elbow room, W&E, a dump, and showers.

Tuesday, It rained in the early hours of the day, but again stopped by 7am. We got away about 10 and headed west on US82 across Mississippi.

I have a pretty good internal compass. But it went out by 180 degrees this morning. Getting to and from a water site usually means a circuitous route. Without the sun I could not tell east from west. It took most of the day to get my compass reset.

Arkansas

We overnighted at a COE park on the Arkansas River near Arkansas Post. A familiar place to us. $9.50

Wednesday, May 12 - We had zero cell service until 6:15, then it was spotty surfing. We managed to get away at 9. 

We are now in scenic country. Southern Arkansas is flat and covered with row crops, mostly rice. The upper part of the state has low mountains, up to around 1,200 feet so you get some decent vistas. We are enjoying the spring foliage of the hardwoods. The greens are so more intense than in Alabama.

We are on the Buffalo River in one of the very few 5 star Forest Service CG's. (our rating system) It's fluffed and buffed. It's a haven for yakking and floating. We paddled the river some years ago.

The Buffalo River

Our campsite

Across from us

The sun popped out around noon and we had a delightful afternoon in the mid-'70s. I enjoyed a beer and a bit of medication from Cloud Nine Confections. It made our dinner of pork tenderloin and the last of the Taiwanese cabbage seem especially good.

Missouri

Thursday, May 13 - Another 3.5 hours north on US65. We have only been on two roads. US82 from Montgomery until we connected with US65. Both are about half 4-lane. The road surface has been remarkably smooth most of the way.

We are shunpikers. We avoid Interstates. They have all the joy of eating white bread. Sure there are traffic lights, but we like the distractions of the roadside.

We landed at Pomme de Terre Lake in southern Missouri. Another COE facility. $11 a night lakeside.

Friday, May 14 - The freaking weekend. We are holed at another COE less than an hour north of our place last night. 

After I got to sleep, Dorothy heard a TT come in next door. He had to back in several times before he got it right. Saturday morning we see they put up their awning in the dark. They are prepared to "camp". Light rain is in the forecast for the next 12 days. I understand it has been dry here, so good for the farmers.

Our next stop will be Pella, IA. For what? Pot Roast. Yep, Dorothy recalls she got the best one ever there at the Ulrich Meat Market and wants a repeat. I know we will also eat at the In't Veld Meat Market on the square. We will also watch the pelicans float like battleships down from the dam in the swift current. They drift down and fly back to repeat the joy ride.

I take advantage of Amazon's book samples so I can decide if I want to read the book or it would be a waste of time and money.

Saturday, May 15 - Dreary all day. We vegged.

Iowa

Sunday, May 16 - We made the long five-hour hop to Pella. I had intended to stop at a state park about halfway to Pella. But I neglected to factor in the weekend in my trip planning. There is no way to pop in at a state park on the weekend when all the hoopelheads are out.

It rained most of the way. KoKo and Pelli are covered in slime. We crashed when we arrived and watched some Youtube and CBS Sunday Morning on Roku.

We are parked at Howell Station, a COE park. One of seven COE CG's on Lake Red Rock.

The water is way down and they are not releasing any water from the dam. That means the joy ride for the pelicans is out of order. 

Monday, May 17 - I left the headlights on during our lunch stop for about 15 minutes. That killed the battery. Fortunately, I carry a lithium starter battery, so it was no big deal. I replaced the battery of unknown age today. The GPS noted there was a Walmart close by and they had an auto store. No, they didn't. OK, fine there is another Walmart only 12 miles away. Oops, that was air mileage and there is a lake between. 45 minutes to get there by land. And they did not have an auto store either. I took my third choice of battery brand at O'Reilly's.

Lunch was divine. A Ruben at In't Veld Meat Market. Perfection.

Pella was founded by Dutch immigrants and remains firmly Dutch.

Don't you wish you were this happy?

Tuesday, May 17 - After buying a lot of meat, we made the 2-hour drive from Pella to Perry. This was our ninth day out and we have had two days of sunshine. The other days were heavy clouds. The long-range forecast is for more rain.

We are staying with Jeep friends, Keith and Sandy. We are parked in a marvelous green grass parking site in their huge backyard. We met them a decade back in Silverton and have been able to hook up with them several times since in both Colorado and Utah. They have been traveling and jeeping for 40 plus years.

Wednesday, May 18 - The rains continue off and on. The sky cleared for an hour or so. We spent most of the day catching up. We had a delightful dinner at Casa de Oro. There were nine of us, our hosts and their daughter Carrie, Bret, and his wife Linda, plus their friends Rob and Norma. We were jeeping with them in Moab in 2018. 

Thursday, May 19 - The rains continue off and on. The sky cleared for an hour or so. Keith helped me wash Koko. It was dirtier than I can ever recall it. 

The morning consisted of more jawing. We have had few conversations the last year, so this was most welcome. We visited our hosts' rural church and stopped by Bret and Linda's home which was built by his grandfather, father, and him. Quite a place. They have a lot of toys. I don't know how they find the time to enjoy them all. Funny how age changes your views of acquisitions between 50 and 75. We met their newly graduated and talented daughter, Elizabeth.

The church was built in 1887 on the only knoll in view

Sandy made a scrumptious meal of salad, fried chicken, baked potato, and green beans in sauce. And for dessert, banana pudding with blueberries. Out diet went out the window this week. We need to check into a fat farm.

Friday, May 20 - It is overcast but has not rained yet this morning. Laundry day. The sun came out at 2!

I am fixing Carne Asada for dinner. They did not have flank steak, so I am using round streak. I am skeptical.

We plan to leave here Sunday. I need to decide where.

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To be continued