There are two things we do not want to do with our RV - drive at night or drive in a rain storm. As you can see by the pictures to the right, we got caught in a real bad rain storm just as we entered Illinois. It was along a very long stretch of highway without any off ramps. In short, we could not pull over and let it pass. Traffic slowed to about 25 miles per hour as thunder, lightning and extremely high winds blew us all over the road. When tree branches are blown off trees onto the highway it is not easy to keep this big rig in a straight line. Our poor dog almost had a heart attack. The poor thing is sitting on Mary's lap when a bright burst of lightning followed by the loudest boom just put her right up into the air. Now I am trying to control the RV in this storm and we have a dog going bonkers -- "are we having fun yet?"
We ended up in Joliet, Ill for the week and the home base for my first set of workshops for ISS in Schaumberg, Ill. about 45 min. away for which I rented a car to get there. My workshops had the second highest attendance of all 17 workshops on building a small business (I'll take it).
In Ill, they have Tollways (not Freeways). I don't really have anything against paying a Toll to travel a road, but between the Toll booths they don't have any off ramps. Four different times there was a bad accident involving 3 - 7 cars and each time traffic just came to a complete stop until they clear it. Getting the tow trucks there to clear it presented another problem. I'll take the California FREEWAYS anytime over this system - they need help.
We had a couple of interesting things happen at the grocery store. First, we have a new appreciation for the FOSTER FARM chicken commercials (with the out of state chickens that want to become Foster Farm chickens.) Would you believe that here in ILL, one whole raw chicken cost $8.65. Even worse, they only had about 6 whole chickens in the plastic bag in the bin. As for meats, that went for the entire length of the whole store. I guess the Atkins diet is alive and well in Ill.
As we checked out of this very large store, a young man was bagging the groceries. I went to take the cart and he picked up the bag with a carton of eggs in it and said "you may want to replace these eggs." I said, "Oh, are some of the shells broken?" To which he said - "No, I breathed on the carton." I made a split second decision and said "the eggs are in a shell, I'll take my chances."
If you have been following the news, then you know the heat wave is still following us. Record breaking heat and a few more thunder storms. From here we go to Ann Arbor, Michigan to see some friends that left California in the 80's that we have stayed in touch with. Then to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. From there we will be in Pennsylvania at Mary's sister's (and Bob) place for the weekend. Then it will be off to Boston, Mass.
More next week.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Wisconsin Dells 7/30 - 7/6
Here we are in the Wisconsin Dells. Now when I mapped out this trip, we would leave Cold Spring, Minnesota on our way to Schaumburg, Ill in which I will be conducting my small business workshops. So on the map, Wisconsin Dells was about half way and looked like a good stopping off spot for a week to just R&R.
I never heard of the Wisconsin Dells and I am going to bet that folks on the West Coast, unless they have relatives back here, have no idea what the "Dells" are all about. What a surprise.
This place is the Disneyland of the Central States. More than that it is the Water Park Capital of this nation. What a great place for a family to come to and have a "killer" of a great time. (We would love to come back here with our kids and grandchildren.) The Dells are part of the Wisconsin River and we have never seen so much activity, hotels, water parks, river boats (including speed boats that seat 20 people), water slides and the "Ducks" which are WWII (type) amphibious army vehicles (land and sea crafts) that drive on the streets and then go into the river. It would take over a week to really see this place and try to go to just 1/8 of what is here.
We arrived on Monday, and guess what! It was the hottest day on record. Now we have already determined that when we purchased this RV, someone stuck a "hot magnet" under our coach (I just can't find it). Once again on our trip, we hit one of the hot spots (read below for the others) because we have determined that the heat wave is following Jerry and Mary.
The RV Park we are at is a 10+ (on the scale of 1-10). Really nice, but it was so hot we just did not want to take part in what they had to offer. Please raise your hand if you want to take a sun set ride up a mountain (more like a small hill) on a ski lift and then hike back down -- in 95 degree heat. PASS.
We rented a red PT Cruiser for the weekend so we could go out and see "the Dells." We drove around and saw all these "tourist attractions" - it makes Las Vegas look like a small amusement park. It just goes for miles and miles.
We decided that a nice evening cruise on the Dells, with dinner would be just right for us old folks. So we booked a trip for Saturday night. So what happens that day? They get the first rain they had for over 2 months - gee, it is so nice to know we are here for a part of history.
We went on the cruise anyway. It had a inside cabin for dining and a observation top deck - that no one went on, but it was fun to see the Dells. Dinner however -- what would you expect if the menu said "chicken & prime rib" -- whatever you are thinking -- it was NOT. We have had a lot of prime rib in our life, but never a 1/4 patty? Yes, the prime rib was a 1/4 patty (like a hamburger patty) of (what they claim) prime rib. The vegetables - well that's what they were -vegetables. I looked hard to find the word "steamed" but could not find it. My chicken was pretty good, but when Mary put her fork in hers, it jumped off the plate and flew back into the "Dells." OH, not really -- it only made it to the railing and then died before it could fall in the river. Jerry pulled it back in and ate it.
Hey, we just want to write about a little fun. We really did enjoy the Wisconsin Dells and will come back again some time (in May).
We leave tomorrow for Schaumburg, Ill. Mary will see her long time friend Mary Stewart and Jerry will be conducting his 3 workshops for the Imprinted Sportswear Show (ISS). This will be one of the business parts of the trip. We will up date you next week.
I never heard of the Wisconsin Dells and I am going to bet that folks on the West Coast, unless they have relatives back here, have no idea what the "Dells" are all about. What a surprise.
This place is the Disneyland of the Central States. More than that it is the Water Park Capital of this nation. What a great place for a family to come to and have a "killer" of a great time. (We would love to come back here with our kids and grandchildren.) The Dells are part of the Wisconsin River and we have never seen so much activity, hotels, water parks, river boats (including speed boats that seat 20 people), water slides and the "Ducks" which are WWII (type) amphibious army vehicles (land and sea crafts) that drive on the streets and then go into the river. It would take over a week to really see this place and try to go to just 1/8 of what is here.
We arrived on Monday, and guess what! It was the hottest day on record. Now we have already determined that when we purchased this RV, someone stuck a "hot magnet" under our coach (I just can't find it). Once again on our trip, we hit one of the hot spots (read below for the others) because we have determined that the heat wave is following Jerry and Mary.
The RV Park we are at is a 10+ (on the scale of 1-10). Really nice, but it was so hot we just did not want to take part in what they had to offer. Please raise your hand if you want to take a sun set ride up a mountain (more like a small hill) on a ski lift and then hike back down -- in 95 degree heat. PASS.
We rented a red PT Cruiser for the weekend so we could go out and see "the Dells." We drove around and saw all these "tourist attractions" - it makes Las Vegas look like a small amusement park. It just goes for miles and miles.
We decided that a nice evening cruise on the Dells, with dinner would be just right for us old folks. So we booked a trip for Saturday night. So what happens that day? They get the first rain they had for over 2 months - gee, it is so nice to know we are here for a part of history.
We went on the cruise anyway. It had a inside cabin for dining and a observation top deck - that no one went on, but it was fun to see the Dells. Dinner however -- what would you expect if the menu said "chicken & prime rib" -- whatever you are thinking -- it was NOT. We have had a lot of prime rib in our life, but never a 1/4 patty? Yes, the prime rib was a 1/4 patty (like a hamburger patty) of (what they claim) prime rib. The vegetables - well that's what they were -vegetables. I looked hard to find the word "steamed" but could not find it. My chicken was pretty good, but when Mary put her fork in hers, it jumped off the plate and flew back into the "Dells." OH, not really -- it only made it to the railing and then died before it could fall in the river. Jerry pulled it back in and ate it.
Hey, we just want to write about a little fun. We really did enjoy the Wisconsin Dells and will come back again some time (in May).
We leave tomorrow for Schaumburg, Ill. Mary will see her long time friend Mary Stewart and Jerry will be conducting his 3 workshops for the Imprinted Sportswear Show (ISS). This will be one of the business parts of the trip. We will up date you next week.
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Fargo, ND & Cold Spring, MN. 7/19-7/30
From Iowa we went to Fargo, North Dakota and stayed at Sean's Farm (Mary's oldest). Two other kids, Sue and Shannon with grandkids came out from California and joined us for the weekend and to celebrate Mary's birthday (7/22). We had a great time with a big campfire each night, and we mean BIG. Very relaxing to just sit there each night. No music, TV or radio. Just the sound of crackling wood. Sean has a large farm and surrounding area that they lease out to other farmers that grow soy beans. Big place and lots of animals, many for food.
From Fargo we went to Mary's home town of Cold Spring, MN. Like the Labor Day Pinderado in Cambria, Cold Spring was having "Cold Spring Days." They had a big concert with Lone Star (Walkin in Memphis, Baby I'm Amazed by You, I'm Already There) who has over 10 #1 hits on the country charts. Earlier that day they had a dog contest and Mary entered Chanti in the "Trick" division. Chanti can do many tricks, however, she got "stage fright" and did O, zip, nada, not one trick. Just sat there looking at Mary as she gave commands. Four dogs entered the trick contest. They had 1st, 2nd and 3rd place awards - Chanti didn't even get a dog bone. When we got back to the RV she did every trick - so we gave a treat anyway.
We leave here on 7/31 and head for the Wisconsin Dells for the week.
From Fargo we went to Mary's home town of Cold Spring, MN. Like the Labor Day Pinderado in Cambria, Cold Spring was having "Cold Spring Days." They had a big concert with Lone Star (Walkin in Memphis, Baby I'm Amazed by You, I'm Already There) who has over 10 #1 hits on the country charts. Earlier that day they had a dog contest and Mary entered Chanti in the "Trick" division. Chanti can do many tricks, however, she got "stage fright" and did O, zip, nada, not one trick. Just sat there looking at Mary as she gave commands. Four dogs entered the trick contest. They had 1st, 2nd and 3rd place awards - Chanti didn't even get a dog bone. When we got back to the RV she did every trick - so we gave a treat anyway.
We leave here on 7/31 and head for the Wisconsin Dells for the week.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Rain, rain and more rain
The wedding we attended in St. Paul was a "picture perfect" wedding. Late afternoon right along side the Mississippi River at a private boat club. The evening was beautiful.
We left on Monday and headed to the Winnebago Rally. Once again we hit a "heat wave." Only this time it was followed by heavy rain storms each night. It has been a long time since we have seen so much lightning, one right after another. There was entertainment scheduled each night in a very nice Amphitheatre and every night they had to cancel it. So everyone is just sitting in their RV as the rain falls. One night we had a tornado watch. That put us on the edge of the chair. Nothing "touch down" but we did have winds up to 80 mph.
During the day they had workshops on just about everything you need to know about your RV. Sitting in a outdoor tent in the heat and humidity - well you can guess how your attention level drops. However, even with the rain and heat we had great time, met some nice folks (including a couple that lived in Cambria and now live in Paso Robles) and we went the Winnebago factory. Purchased some items to up-grade our coach and learned a lot about the mechanics of our RV.
We left on Monday and headed to the Winnebago Rally. Once again we hit a "heat wave." Only this time it was followed by heavy rain storms each night. It has been a long time since we have seen so much lightning, one right after another. There was entertainment scheduled each night in a very nice Amphitheatre and every night they had to cancel it. So everyone is just sitting in their RV as the rain falls. One night we had a tornado watch. That put us on the edge of the chair. Nothing "touch down" but we did have winds up to 80 mph.
During the day they had workshops on just about everything you need to know about your RV. Sitting in a outdoor tent in the heat and humidity - well you can guess how your attention level drops. However, even with the rain and heat we had great time, met some nice folks (including a couple that lived in Cambria and now live in Paso Robles) and we went the Winnebago factory. Purchased some items to up-grade our coach and learned a lot about the mechanics of our RV.
On this leg of the trip we had our first "incident." Mary went to put eye drops in her eye, but picked up a bottle of finger nail glue instead. It was instant pain for her. They had a medical RV and took her to the hospital by ambulance. She is doing OK, but each place we go we have to stop at an Eye Clinic to keep a check on it. Mary gives a whole new meaning to the statement "I'll keep an eye out for you."
We are now outside of Fargo, North Dakota at Sean's farm (Mary's oldest). Will be here for the weekend. It is the first time on our trip that we don't have to have the air conditioner on. Nights are great with a big fire.
More next week.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
In the middle of America
7/12/07 - 2,212 miles.
We left Zion on 7/05 and took a back road to Salina, Utah for the night. We left the park the next morning and had breakfast at Mom's Cafe. Great food. We then drove for 3 hours, at posted speed of 75 mph. We stayed at Fruita, Colorado (scheduled stop) from Friday to Monday.
The RV Park was right across the street from the Dinosaur Museum and a mile from Dinosaur Hill, a quarry site dig from 1901. And YES, that is Mary riding her bike up the hill to the dig.
On Monday we took off, passing through Vail Colorado, and spending the night in Denver. We left the next morning, leaving Colorado, and made our next scheduled stop in Minden, Nebraska at the Harold Warp Pioneer Village.
If you ever travel across county, be sure to put this stop on your trip. It would take more than a Blog to write about the 20 Acres of Americana this guy has on display. See the photo below that explains what the place is about.
From Minden we drove out of Nebraska into Iowa. We did not have any scheduled stop, just need a place for the night. Turns out the Flying J truck stop will let us park for the night - for free.
We are now in St. Paul, MN. We will be attending a wedding this weekend. Then on Monday we leave St. Paul and head to the Winnebago Rally in Northern Iowa. More next week.
Jerry and Mary
We left Zion on 7/05 and took a back road to Salina, Utah for the night. We left the park the next morning and had breakfast at Mom's Cafe. Great food. We then drove for 3 hours, at posted speed of 75 mph. We stayed at Fruita, Colorado (scheduled stop) from Friday to Monday.
The RV Park was right across the street from the Dinosaur Museum and a mile from Dinosaur Hill, a quarry site dig from 1901. And YES, that is Mary riding her bike up the hill to the dig.
On Monday we took off, passing through Vail Colorado, and spending the night in Denver. We left the next morning, leaving Colorado, and made our next scheduled stop in Minden, Nebraska at the Harold Warp Pioneer Village.
If you ever travel across county, be sure to put this stop on your trip. It would take more than a Blog to write about the 20 Acres of Americana this guy has on display. See the photo below that explains what the place is about.
From Minden we drove out of Nebraska into Iowa. We did not have any scheduled stop, just need a place for the night. Turns out the Flying J truck stop will let us park for the night - for free.
We are now in St. Paul, MN. We will be attending a wedding this weekend. Then on Monday we leave St. Paul and head to the Winnebago Rally in Northern Iowa. More next week.
Jerry and Mary
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
What would you take?
As we plan our first 4 month trip in our RV, the questions comes up "just what should we take?" So here is a question for those of you reading this. Q: If you had to plan a 4 month trip what would be the item (or items) that you would want to make sure you took along with you?
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