Jun 22, 2019 - Branson, MO

I left Lawrence behind and headed to Parker, Kansas were I visited a first cousin and several second cousins was a nice time, then it was on to Branson, MO for a submarine reunion with members of the last submarine I was on in 1973, the USS TULLIBEE SSN 597. The reunion was for any one who sailed on it from the launching to when it was decommissioned, there were 653 sailors that sailed on it during that time, there were 36 of the crew there, 8 that sailed with me was a nice time chatting about long ago times. The USS TULLIBEE SSN 597 was...

Jun 9, 2019 - St. Joseph, MO - AOK Camground -

We arrived at the AOK Campground and RV Park around 4:30. It is a pretty park with two small lakes, a pool, and all the other things one would expect. We were escorted to our site by the owners, Dale & Sandy. Dale guided us into our site. After parking, Dale thought our coach looked low on the drivers side. He looked under the wheels and noticed that three leaf springs on the rear axle were broken and the main leaf spring was bent over backwards. Dale said it could be very dangerous and even life threatening if the main leafs were to...

May 30, 2019 - Stanton, Missouri

This is a day that could have turned out bad but it doesn’t! We drive the eight miles back to Lebanon. Lebanon is a pretty big city. We get on the interstate. When it is time for our morning break, I check the GPS for a Walmart. The first Walmart is within two miles. “Take the next extra.” There is another Walmart in 30 miles but I know it is not a Walmart Supercenter. Don’t ask how I know this. Not only is this Walmart a Walmart Supercenter but there is a Staples across the street. “John, I have $13 in rewards that runs our tomorrow.” He...

May 30, 2019 - St Louis!

Just about 300 mile trip from Indy to St Louis. Found the RV park and got set up. Caught the shuttle over to the casino, and made our deposit at the slots. Hearing a lot about the local area not being very safe, so we're hanging around the coach today until we venture out for some Sugar Fire BBQ. Tomorrow we are going to a Cards vs Cubs game at Busch Stadium. Looking forward to seeing another MLB park.

May 29, 2019 - Lebanon, Missouri

Missouri is the Cave State. We start our morning at Fantastic Caverns. The jeep tours are again running. We see the cave differently than most. There are places where we drive through water. We see water in places that will later be dry. The tour is very good. We decide to continue across Missouri on the Interstate. The route to St. Louis parallels Historic Route 66. Route 66 is not part of this trip. We have never driven the entire route but we have seen many of its sites in the past. We do not want to make this a long day. I pick a KOA...

May 28, 2019 - Springfield, Missouri

Part 1 Last night I had second thoughts about staying two nights in Springfield. Tomorrow morning, we will decide if we need an extra day. We have a busy day! We start our day at Fantastic Caverns. We have visited here before. You ride a jeep through the caverns. We are surprised that today’s tour is a free ten-minute walking tour. The caverns are flooded. They have been closed to the jeeps for several weeks. They may be able to resume the jeep tours this afternoon. The walking tour is okay but not what we expected. Our next stop is the...

May 28, 2019 - Springfield, Missouri

Part 2 What now? John informs me that the first Bass Pro Shop is here in Springfield. I guess we need to check it out. Next to the Bass Pro store, Bass Pro has built the Wonders of Wildlife Museum and Aquarium. It is recommended that we start at the Aquarium. At first, it seems nice but is this it? The answer is no. There are signs that direct us to the next part of our journey. This place is unbelievable. It goes on and on. It is really quite impressive. Eventually, we start to wonder when our journey will end. We are hungry and have...

May 27, 2019 - Springfield, Missouri

Today is a travel day. We actually discuss staying another day in Eureka Springs. We could still entertain ourselves here but we decide we’re putting down roots. We say our goodbyes to our campground hosts. This has been a wonderful place to spend the week! We head west on Route 62. Much of the route is familiar to us. We twist and turn as we make our way to the White River. After crossing the river, we again twist and turn as we climb our way away from the river. At the town of Gateway, we turn north on Route 37. This also is marked...

May 24, 2019 - Day 8 - Happy Trails RV Park, Phillipsburg, MO

I'm awakened at 6am, not as usual by the dog pawing at me to get up, but by the RV shaking in a stiff wind and the sound of rain hitting the roof. This surprises me a bit since the weather forecast had only a slight chance of rain for this morning. I get up, close the air vents, and check the weather radar picture on my phone. Sure enough, we're sitting right on the leading edge of a very impressive storm front. There are no bright colors in the radar picture, so I figure it should just be some light rain for quite a while and the heavy...

May 19, 2019 - Route 66 Illinois to Missouri

We had breakfast this morning at the motel then left to get on the road at 8:00, the weather was windy and cool with low humidity 67 degrees, had some problems a couple times trying to find the actual Historic Rte 66, we had to get on I-55 a couple times. We saw lots of attractions along the way, however since it was Sunday some stuff was closed we stopped for the night at The Wagon Wheel Hotel, the oldest continually running hotel on Rte 66 built in 1935, and has been renovated of course. We had supper at Hicks of Missouri BBQ which was...

May 13, 2019 - Just Driving Through

We drove through Indiana and Illinois to reach St. Louis, Missouri. I have to say those three states do not look very different from each other. They all have relatively flat terrain. Outside of the big cities, there is a lot of farmland. The roads were not as good as US 40 in the south. Indiana was especially rough. Anyway, the Gateway Arch in the Jefferson Memorial Park is stunning to see as you enter into Missouri. It dazzles you when you see the sun reflect off the stainless steel exterior. Construction on the arch started because St....

May 10, 2019 - May 9 - Denver to Boonville, MO

We traveled 735 miles yesterday from Denver to Boonville and our little van just turned 20K. We drove 10 hours. Our lucky shopping dinosaur is in place for the long trip. For those of you who don’t know the story, Gene bought this dino from a little boy for a nickel – he told Gene it was a LUCKY dinosaur and it has been. When we started, we made it all the way to Limon, CO (about 60 miles) before Gene was hungry and I had to use the bathroom. I thought to myself, “This is going to be a LONG trip!” I tell you, this little Ford Transit van is...