July 26- Aug 7
We left Garden Ridge and headed north. Had an afternoon start so we made it as far as 30 miles from Dallas. The next day was a long one and we camped just south of the Land Between the Lakes in TN. Roger wanted to drive the road between Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, since we hadn't gone that way. There is a Bison area that has about 50 head, that are the farthest east and north bison in the USA that are not in a zoo. Bison were found in Kentucky and Tennessee up until they were hunted out by the 1790s, and are the largest land animals found in the North American continent weighing up to 2,000 lobs.
After seeing the bison in the south part of the park, the drive was through a long green tunnel, with no views of either lake until we left the park and turned left to the dam. We took our bikes off for a ride along the dam and as far as the bike trail went. After that it was only noon-ish, so we headed on to Louisville. We arrived by 3:30 pm and Mom had said she was checking every noise. Roger got to work on his yard chores and we eventually spread 28 bags of 3 cu ft of mulch. We did some other routine things that get done when we visit Mom, as well as celebrated my birthday.
We left on Wednesday to go to the Columbus Zoo, which despite being in the top 5 in the USA was unremarkable, although it is a rehab zoo.
We got to Great Lakes Naval Base on Thursday and spent one night dry camping before moving to the Hampton Inn on Friday.
On Friday, 2 August, we met Jenny's mother, Kitty and her sister Andi, for brunch at the Lucky Platter in Easton IL. (Easton is a north Chicago suburb on Lake Michigan.) Roger and I both enjoyed meeting Jenny's mother and aunt. Roger also was relieved that he didn't have to actually go to the shower to meet them. After brunch Roger and I headed into Chicago for a Cubs vs Dodgers game at Wrigley Field.
We rode the L into north Chicago, which was really easy plus we didn't have to worry about traffic or the RV. (Although we did take the bikes off the RV and move them inside our hotel room. There are NO campgrounds nearby Chicago, much like any other big US city. We therefore opted for two nights at the Hampton Inn in Skokie/Easton IL which worked out well for game transportation and the shower.)
The game was not the best major league game we have ever seen. The Cubs only managed to score 2 runs off of 15 hits. The Dodgers scored 6 runs off of 9 hits, and 2 of the runs were unearned. Pitching on both sides was pathetic, and despite all the hits there were no homeruns. But we can now say we've seen 20th century Wrigley Field before it gets a major renovation this off season. It was cool to see the manual scoreboard, where a human changes the score on the scoreboard.
3 August-- On Saturday, I went to Jenny's Bridal Shower and met all of Jenny's sisters, plus her Aunt Judi, Maddie and Sydney. I had a really nice time and Jenny's sisters Katherine and Gail did a great job hosting at their Aunt Andi's place. (Roger went looking for a auto parts store that had a headlight bulb to replace one in the RV.) The shower group ended up walking down to Lake Michigan for pictures, since it was such a gorgeous day.
We left Chicago and headed to Elkhart IN on Sunday. We spent Sunday night at Duncan RV repair, because the AC fan had rattled loose again and it need to be fixed. We don't have room or a place to carry a ladder, so we had to get to a shop. Camping was "free" for the night and with an 8:30 appointment we were back on the road Monday by 11. From Elkhart we drove to Cuyahoga Valley National Park, and it was once again a green tunnel. The park has trails along parts of the Ohio-Erie canal, but since we got such a late start and it looked like rain, we skipped biking and headed further east. On Tuesday we made it to Williamsport PA and saw the pristine fields of the Little League World Series.
Lamade Stadium looks as nice as Wrigley and it was interesting to see all the activity getting ready for the start of the LLWS in less than 2 weeks. We spent the night near Newburgh NY, as Roger had West Point on his list.
7 August-- we got up bright and early this morning and were at Newburgh Auto Park at 8. Roger wanted to get the oil changed since it was due. The bill was nearly $200, since the RV took 13 quarts of special synthetic diesel oil (over $9/qt + filter + crawl under labor, because they didn't have a pit or ceiling high enough to lift the RV). Afterwards we headed to West Point. We parked at the Jewish Chapel on the campus and walked around. There are a lot of "off limits" places on the campus, which sort of surprised us considering that the only major area "off limits" at Navy is Bancroft Hall. It was a cloudy, humid, breezy GRAY day. No surprise to me why USMA grads are referred to as "the long gray line." The majority of the buildings are of Hudson River granite and I'm sure in the winter time are depressingly gray. It was depressing on a summer day.
From West Point we headed north to Saratoga National Battlefield Park. I drove through the park, enabling Roger to look around. The park has a 10 spot driving tour. I am trying to be very patient with my history loving husband. I just don't have the imagination to see the battle fields and lines that are described on the plaques. There was a nice view at one stop of the Hudson River and it's bend that the American troops were able to bombard any British ships. This was obvious even to me, without much brainstrain. We're spending tonight at the most expensive campsite ever, $80/night. The campground is a "resort" in Lake George NY. Roger and I are of the opinion that campgrounds put "resort" in their name just so they can charge more. Tomorrow is off to Fort Ticonderoga and Lake Placid if the weather holds up.
We left Garden Ridge and headed north. Had an afternoon start so we made it as far as 30 miles from Dallas. The next day was a long one and we camped just south of the Land Between the Lakes in TN. Roger wanted to drive the road between Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, since we hadn't gone that way. There is a Bison area that has about 50 head, that are the farthest east and north bison in the USA that are not in a zoo. Bison were found in Kentucky and Tennessee up until they were hunted out by the 1790s, and are the largest land animals found in the North American continent weighing up to 2,000 lobs.
We left on Wednesday to go to the Columbus Zoo, which despite being in the top 5 in the USA was unremarkable, although it is a rehab zoo.
On Friday, 2 August, we met Jenny's mother, Kitty and her sister Andi, for brunch at the Lucky Platter in Easton IL. (Easton is a north Chicago suburb on Lake Michigan.) Roger and I both enjoyed meeting Jenny's mother and aunt. Roger also was relieved that he didn't have to actually go to the shower to meet them. After brunch Roger and I headed into Chicago for a Cubs vs Dodgers game at Wrigley Field.
We rode the L into north Chicago, which was really easy plus we didn't have to worry about traffic or the RV. (Although we did take the bikes off the RV and move them inside our hotel room. There are NO campgrounds nearby Chicago, much like any other big US city. We therefore opted for two nights at the Hampton Inn in Skokie/Easton IL which worked out well for game transportation and the shower.)
The game was not the best major league game we have ever seen. The Cubs only managed to score 2 runs off of 15 hits. The Dodgers scored 6 runs off of 9 hits, and 2 of the runs were unearned. Pitching on both sides was pathetic, and despite all the hits there were no homeruns. But we can now say we've seen 20th century Wrigley Field before it gets a major renovation this off season. It was cool to see the manual scoreboard, where a human changes the score on the scoreboard.
3 August-- On Saturday, I went to Jenny's Bridal Shower and met all of Jenny's sisters, plus her Aunt Judi, Maddie and Sydney. I had a really nice time and Jenny's sisters Katherine and Gail did a great job hosting at their Aunt Andi's place. (Roger went looking for a auto parts store that had a headlight bulb to replace one in the RV.) The shower group ended up walking down to Lake Michigan for pictures, since it was such a gorgeous day.
We left Chicago and headed to Elkhart IN on Sunday. We spent Sunday night at Duncan RV repair, because the AC fan had rattled loose again and it need to be fixed. We don't have room or a place to carry a ladder, so we had to get to a shop. Camping was "free" for the night and with an 8:30 appointment we were back on the road Monday by 11. From Elkhart we drove to Cuyahoga Valley National Park, and it was once again a green tunnel. The park has trails along parts of the Ohio-Erie canal, but since we got such a late start and it looked like rain, we skipped biking and headed further east. On Tuesday we made it to Williamsport PA and saw the pristine fields of the Little League World Series.
7 August-- we got up bright and early this morning and were at Newburgh Auto Park at 8. Roger wanted to get the oil changed since it was due. The bill was nearly $200, since the RV took 13 quarts of special synthetic diesel oil (over $9/qt + filter + crawl under labor, because they didn't have a pit or ceiling high enough to lift the RV). Afterwards we headed to West Point. We parked at the Jewish Chapel on the campus and walked around. There are a lot of "off limits" places on the campus, which sort of surprised us considering that the only major area "off limits" at Navy is Bancroft Hall. It was a cloudy, humid, breezy GRAY day. No surprise to me why USMA grads are referred to as "the long gray line." The majority of the buildings are of Hudson River granite and I'm sure in the winter time are depressingly gray. It was depressing on a summer day.
From West Point we headed north to Saratoga National Battlefield Park. I drove through the park, enabling Roger to look around. The park has a 10 spot driving tour. I am trying to be very patient with my history loving husband. I just don't have the imagination to see the battle fields and lines that are described on the plaques. There was a nice view at one stop of the Hudson River and it's bend that the American troops were able to bombard any British ships. This was obvious even to me, without much brainstrain. We're spending tonight at the most expensive campsite ever, $80/night. The campground is a "resort" in Lake George NY. Roger and I are of the opinion that campgrounds put "resort" in their name just so they can charge more. Tomorrow is off to Fort Ticonderoga and Lake Placid if the weather holds up.
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