Mid-Life Crisis on the Gulf Coast

Idle hands truly are the Devil’s workshop. Our relaxed travel regimen this winter has left Keith with too much time on his hands. Time to daydream; about a new motorhome; about a new boat; about a new condominium.

Newmar Dutch Star Motorhome

It all began in early January when Keith stumbled across the PPL Houston website, and began exploring used diesel motorhomes. The used motorhome arena currently is a strong buyers market. With 90,000 miles on our gasoline powered coach, Keith wondered if the time was right to trade up to something newer, larger, and more commodious. Then Keith looked up the value of our current coach, and suddenly realized that motorhomes are a depreciating asset. Big time. This observation, coupled with the fact that we genuinely like our present coach, led Keith into shower, where he turned on the cold water and quenched this fantasy.

Keith had just managed to get the motorhome Pandora back in the box, when he stumbled across a blog written by a couple who did the “Great Loop”, and were starting to do it over again (www.favorsgreatloopblog.com ) . For the uninitiated among you, the Great Loop refers to circumnavigation of the eastern US via the intercoastal waterway, the Hudson, Richelieu, and St Lawrence Rivers, the Great Lakes, the Illinois, Mississippi, Ohio, and Tennessee Rivers, and the Ten-Tom Canal.

Vintage Tollycraft, Available in Chelsea, Massachusetts

This blog led to other looping blogs, which led to thoughts about how nice it would be to make this journey, which led to extended time on various websites exploring used boats, which led to… Well, you get the idea. Keith spent many years cruising the southern New England coast, and truly misses boating. He found an older 40 ft. Tollycraft in Chelsea, MA, near our summer digs, which was repowered in 2001 with modern diesel engines, and which appeared to be well equipped for looping.

Keith was just on the verge of calling the broker to make further inquiries, when reality struck again. He was helped back down to earth by a friend who pointed out the realities of boating with Spinal Stenosis (which limits Keith’s mobility), and by reminding Keith about the expenses associated with owning and maintaining a boat. He also and pointed out that a boat is yet another depreciating asset. Keith is grateful for this reality check.

Back to the cold shower again.

About this time Kathy was getting the real estate bug in Rockport, and we embarked on a third fantasy trip, this time in search of an appreciating asset. Our January’s forays into Rockport real estate are described in the post previous to this one.

Bay House Condominium in Rockport, Texas

During the months of February and March, we extended our explorations to southern Alabama and Florida. We looked at two areas in Alabama, one in Fairhope, and the other the strand along the Gulf Coast, including the towns of Gulf Shores and Orange, AL. While we really liked Fairhope, there was very little by way of waterfront condo’s, or good boatyards. The Gulf Coast is littered with condo’s, almost all of them high rise. We just don’t know if this style of cliff dwelling would suit Keith’s temperament. Kathy, on the other hand, has fantasies about relaxing on a 14^th floor balcony, martini in hand, looking out over the Gulf of Mexico. We did a couple of days driving around, but did not call any realtor, nor look at any specific units.

Fairhope Waterfront

Fairhope Waterfront Condominium

Orange Beach High Rise Condominiums

Orange Beach Bum

During our relatively short sojurn in Alabama we camped at the Escapees Rainbow Plantation in Summerdale. We like this park very much, and there is lots of good eating in nearby Foley. We revisited our favorite haunts: Lamberts Café (home of the throwed rolls) and the China Buffet, and enjoyed a couple of good meals cooked by the Escapees Chef in the Plantation Clubhouse.

Relaxing at Rainbow Plantation

In addition to regularly scheduled dinners, The Plantation sponsors a “Flatulence Fest” every February. What, you well may ask, is a Flatulence Fest? It is a variation of the pot luck dinner, where every dish is made from beans, in one form or another. We attended this affair a couple of years ago, and were pleased to be at the Plantation for the 2009 reprise. Various cooks donate dishes; attendees donate $3.00, which goes to a local charity, and a good time is had by all. A highlight at this and almost every Plantation party is a performance by the Chenille’s sing group. The photo below says it all.

The Chenille’s Perform at the Flatulence Fest

Flatulence Fest Chefs & Products

Our early departure from Alabama was dictated by reservations to visit Mickey Mouse in Orlando. Keith scheduled several days for the drive, to allow for the possibility of delays, so we arrived in central Florida early enough for Kathy to fly north and spend a few days with her family. Recalling that idle hands are the Devils workshop, Keith stayed at the Escapees campground in Bushnell, so he would have organized activities to keep him occupied while Kathy was away.

Notwithstanding these activities, Keith did manage to get into some trouble by exploring the nearby Gulf Coast, again looking for areas which might seem attractive for settling down. He identified Tarpon Springs as being especially interesting, because of the pleasant small town atmosphere, the mix of commercial and pleasure boating activities, and the beautiful surrounding Gulf Coast waterways. A minor downside of this town is the somewhat touristy area around the sponge docks. The carnival atmosphere reminds Keith somewhat of Old Harbor on Block Island. More on Tarpon Springs Real Estate in a future post.

Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks (Commercial Photo)

Following Kathy’s return from Massachusetts, we did the Disney thing. A detailed description is provided in a later post. Suffice it to say at this point that a week at Fort Wilderness cost us substantially more than a full month of waterfront camping in Rockport. Disney is unquestionably nice, but it is frightfully expensive. An exposition of what we got for our money follows in a later posting. The bottom line benefit was three delightful days in the parks with our Maryland granddaughters.

Disney!

Don’t touch that dial!

Rockport, TX II

We apologize profusely for our long absence from the Blogosphere. Our travel paradigm this past winter was a little bit different from previous winters, when we were moving every few days, and we always had new areas, new experiences, and new pictures to share. This past winter, we stayed put for weeks at a time. This new approach made Kathy very happy (she would really like to settle down somewhere for the winter). Keith’s feet unfortunately start to itch pretty badly after a week or two, but he stayed put for Kathy’s sake. We’re not sure about the long term resolution of this conundrum.

Rockport Texas Waterfront

A Rockport Beachfront Love Affair

We originally thought that staying put would give us the opportunity to explore an area in more depth. What we found was that staying put offers endless opportunities for relaxing, for dining out, for goofing off, for dining out, for long afternoon naps, etc., etc. While this turns out to be a sort of enjoyable lifestyle, with perhaps a touch of boredom for Keith, it doesn’t generate much of interest to blog about.

We spent the full month of January in Rockport Texas. Our first two weeks are described in a previous post. Herewith, we describe some interesting things we did during our second two weeks in Rockport.

A Clean Motorhome!

One of Keith’s activities was to clean a year’s grime from the outside of the motorhome. Particularly nasty were a lot of small tar spots picked up in various construction zones over the summer. Ditto a bazillion bug spots. Keith bought tar remover and spent several mornings cleaning panel by panel, followed by a coat of spray-on wax. By the time he finished, it actually looked pretty good. It gives Keith a certain feeling of satisfaction that he can bring it back, after 7 years and 90,000 miles.

Another activity was a circumnavigation of Corpus Christi. Driving southwest on Rt. 35 from Rockport, the road crosses the bay on a high level bridge, where views of the city, the Aircraft Carrier Lexington, and the ubiquitous Texas refinery landscape.

Corpus Christi Skyline

Aircraft Carrier Lexington

Texas Refinery Landscape

Driving southeast through Corpus Christi, the freeway crosses another set of bridges, and arrives at the north end of Padre Island. Keith & Kathy spent new year’s eve in a waterfront hotel here several years ago. We have fond memories of that trip. Driving northeast on Rt. 361 takes one across an inlet and onto the southwestern tip of Mustang Island. Mustang is a mostly undeveloped, sandy barrier island, except for the northeastern tip, which incorporates the town of Port Aransas.

Port Aransas Beach and Surf

Aransas Ferry

A free ferry crosses the channel back to the mainland and the town of Aransas Pass, where the residents of Port Aransas go to shop. Here the road reconnects with Rt. 35, which takes the weary traveler back to Rockport, and lunch.

While on the subject of lunch, we have found several excellent places to dine in Rockport, ranging from the somewhat upscale Charlotte Plummers, described in our last post, to The Diner, a very reasonably priced, downhome type of place which serves tasty comfort food. We also fond an excellent authentic Mexican (as opposed to Tex-Mex) restaurant, as well as a very reasonably priced Chinese buffet, again with very good food.

Another activity which Keith enjoys is browsing boatyards. Keith cruised the Southern New England coast for 15 years in a 28 foot sedan bridge, and he misses it. We found an excellent complex of yards just south of Rockport. These are real, working boatyards, featuring real boats, as opposed to modern marinas, which feature mostly modern, glitzy, and somewhat dull sportcraft. Shown below is one of the classic boats observed in one of these boatyards. We also saw a 32 foot Uniflite, similar to the boat Keith used to own, riddled with the pox. Worst case of pox Keith has ever seen. Made him sick. We took a few photos, but will keep them private.

Thirty-One Foot Bertram – a Real Classic

A major attraction in the Rockport area is the local wildlife, particularly the winter bird population. We have already described, in the previous post, a road tour of the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, where we saw a few of these birds. To obtain a better view, we took a water tour on an excursion boat. The tour went out of Rockport Harbor, through the bay, and up the inter-coastal waterway through the above mentioned Wildlife Refuge. We saw numerous bird species, few of which we remember. This would be a great place to come back to in our own boat (when we buy it) with a guidebook and camera, and spend half a day watching the birds and other wildlife (alligators, anyone?).

Navigation Marker Squatters

A Sister Bird Watcher Excursion Boat

Texas Intercostal Waterway

Feeding Egret

Blue Heron on Final

Contemplative Blue Heron on Rip-Rap

Another highlight of our Rockport sojourn was a visit with friends Bill and Pearl Speer, whom we met on a 2005 Winnebago Motorhome Caravan to Alaska. We drove to Port Aransas and met them for lunch, after which the Spears took us on a tour of the area in their spiffy new Jeep. We visited the inlet, where there is a lot of interesting commercial traffic associated with offshore oil drilling, we saw the delightful Port Aransas beach, then we visited with Bill & Pearl in their beautiful new diesel motorhome, made, of course, by Winnebago Industries. The Spears have been coming to Port Aransas several years, and have a very pleasant beachfront campsite at a local commercial campground.

Bill and Pearl in Front of Their Beautiful New Motorhome

Having found in Rockport virtually everything we need in life; i.e., warm winter weather, good friends who spend the winter in this warmth, a good supermarket, a WalMart, a lumber yard, an excellent hardware store, good local restaurants, good boatyards, good boating territory, and access to a small city with good airline service, we decided that maybe we might want to start to think about settling down in this area. This thinking led to several local real estate websites, followed by a couple of driving tours, and finally a visit to a local realtor.

Being entranced with the idea of a waterfront residence with boat slip, we visited a couple of condominium complexes with those features. We really aren’t quite financially ready for two permanent residences, and Keith isn’t ready to settle down, but with the current real estate depression, we felt we couldn’t afford not to look.

One condo complex was out in the Aransas bay on a key, while the other was on the nearby mainland. Both provided good bay and gulf access, and both came with boat slips. We found some units we liked, and became very tempted to make an offer, but we finally came to our senses and recognized that we really needed to look more before making a commitment. Also, with our entire families being in the northeast, we wondered if south Texas is too far away, especially with the deteriorating health of Kathy’s parents in Massachusetts.

Allegro Key

Canal Front Condominium on Allegro Key

Bay House Condominium Complex

Keith has decided that he doesn’t have the intestinal fortitude to endure multiple hurricane seasons on a low island in the middle of the bay, so we are glad we didn’t make an offer on Allegro Key. We are still communicating with the realtor about Bay House Condominiums, which are on the mainland. We have since found that real estate values are in much worse shape in south Florida, so we are continuing our exploration there. Stay tuned!

Rockport, Texas

From Here To There

We arrived in the Rockport , Texas area on January 2^nd , after a grueling 9 day trip from the frozen northland of the Peoples Republic of Massachusetts.  We have pledged that we will not again drive the motorhome south in the winter.  Next fall, we plan to drive the motorhome from the PRM to Texas in October, then store the coach while we drive the toad back to New England for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Highlights of our trip South were Christmas Eve with the Brown family in Taxachusetts, Christmas dinner with the Sheffler/McCormack family (sans Will & Larissa) in Pennsylvania, a couple of nights at the Rubenstein driveway campground in Maryland, then a series of truck stops to Foley, Alabama, where we paused a couple of nights to catch our breath, and a couple of throwed rolls at Lambert’s.  We departed Foley the 31st, and spent new year’s eve at the Isle of Capri casino in Louisiana.  Excellent buffet, and well patrolled free  overnight parking in their oversize vehicle lot.

 

Christmas Eve in Massachusetts

 

After Dinner Christmas Nap With Keith’s Sister in Pennsylvania

 

Home of Throwed Rolls in Foley, Alabama

 

Isle of Capri Casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana

 

Passing Through Houston

We are camped at Waters edge RV Park in Rockport, and will remain here until February 1^st.

 

Our Campsite at Water’s Edge RV Park

 

View from the Campground

The park is located across the street from Aransas Bay and is very scenic. There are warm breezes and many palm trees. Keith says this area reminds him of south Florida around the Jupiter area. Pelicans , herons and sandpipers play in the bay and are very entertaining to watch.

 

Windswept Oaks Line the Rockport Waterfront

 

Pelican in Flight

 

Pelicans at Rest

 

Rockport Waterfront Statuary

We both arrived here sick with some type of flu and we spent most of our first two weeks recuperating, so we have not dome much exploring so far.

Because this is a popular destination for many retirees during the winter, the area abounds with many dining opportunities. We have enjoyed several local restaurants:

The Boiling Pot, which is a Cajun style restaurant we will rate in 2 different ways. The gumbo and key lime tart merit 4 COWS while the boiled seafood was only 2.5 COWS.

 

Lunch at the Boiling Pot

We had lunch with a couple of former caravanning acquaintances, Jim and Gaye Hull, at Charlotte Plummers Seafood restaurant . It is located on the water and has a nice view of the working harbor. I had flounder stuffed with crab meat (4 COWS) while Keith had crab cakes which were fried and not exactly to his liking; 2.5 COWS.

 

Jim & Gaye at Charlotte Plummers

For lunch one day we stopped at the Diner. This is a small place that we passed several times and decided to try because there are always cars there. We did and now we know why! We had a very tasty and filling lunch (grilled fish and fried shrimp)for a little more than you would pay at McDonalds. We give it 3 COWS and an extra star for value.

Another restaurant that we both enjoyed immensely was Las Camales, a Mexican eatery on business Rt. 35 in Rockport. We both rated the Mexican food 4 COWS. There were many unusual items on the menu and the food was the best Mexican that Kathy can recall eating. Authentic Mexican is somewhat different from Tex-Mex. It is less spicy and seems more “down home”. Keith likes both equally well; Kathy clearly prefers the real Mexican cuisine. We will definitely go back before we leave the area.

Yesterday we took a ride to Corpus Christi which is about 30 minutes from Rockport.

 

Bridge Art Spotted on the Road to Corpus Christi

We visited Barnes and Noble, and lunched at Catfish Charlie’s, which turned out to be somewhat difficult to find. We saw an ad and had directions but it was hidden and away from the road. But we did manage to find it and it was worth the difficulty. The parking lot was mobbed and we had to wait about 15 minutes for a table . The food was excellent. The fried oysters were light and crispy while the cat fish was very good. Hush puppies in a basket are served before the meal and are very tasty. The only disappointment was the gumbo, which was not to our taste. 3.5 COWS.

 

Catfish Charlie’s; At the Corner of

McArdle and Airline Roads, Sort Of

 

A Small Boutique Near Catfish Charlie’s (note name)

This morning we got up early and headed out on our first tourist expedition. We visited the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Austwell. Austwell is located about 45 minutes from Rockport. The refuge encompasses the tidal flats and salt marshes of the Blackjack Peninsula on San Antonio Bay. Inhabitants of the refuge include alligators, armadillos, white-tailed dears, raccoon and Javelinas (sort of a pig). It is also the winter home to more than 400 species of birds, including the endangered whooping crane.

We spent 30 minutes at the visitor center where we viewed a short video on the whooping crane and then we drove the 16 mile auto road through the refuge. On our drive we saw a flock of turkeys and many white-tailed deer. We did not see many of the birds, nor any gators.

 

Aransas National Wildlife Refuge Turkeys

 

Bird Roost at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge

 

Bambi

On the drive to and from Austwell we saw miles and miles of cotton fields being cultivated for planting. This area is referred to as coastal prairie, which we think is kind of neat. We love the prairie, and the addition of salt water is a real bonus. A sign at Aransas Visitors Center warned of snakes. We didn’t see any, but the very pleasant volunteer hostess told us that the cotton field workers all wear high top leather boots in these fields. We did not get out and walk about.

 

Cotton Fields on the Coastal Prairie

Stay tuned for more exciting adventures from the second half of our month at Rockport.

On The Road Again, and Some Retro-Posts

 

 

Happy New Year!

We are on the road again, and, for the first time in several months, we are finding time to Blog. We currently are in Rockport, Texas for a month on the Gulf of Mexico. More on Rockport in another post.

In the meantime, between September and December, we:

 

• Spent time visiting grandchildren in Maryland and Massachusetts;
• Camped several weeks on the Cape Cod Canal;
• We (Keith) labored on home improvement projects;
• We got married;
• We entertained for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays;
• Keith made a “Popsicle Stick Erector Set”;
• We had an ice storm and a tree broke our roof (and bedroom ceiling).

A few representative photos from our fall escapades are provided below:

 

Mendon, Massachusetts Front Yard Campground

 

Bourne Scenic Park on the Cape Cod Canal

 

Halloween at Bourne Scenic Park

 

A New Chair Rail (One of Several Home Improvement Projects)

Note Rail Sample on Table

 

A Simple Truss Bridge Made From Popsicle Sticks

 

Things That Go Crash in the Night

 

We will be composing and retro-posting separate posts on the wedding, on Keith’s Erector Set, and on future travels.

Stay tuned!

Dowager Queen Marries Prince Charming

After almost eight years of living and traveling together, Keith and Kathy tied the knot on Saturday, 22 November 2008.

Friday evening before the wedding we entertained out-of-town guests, and a few close friends, in our newly painted dining room and living room with new draperies and new laminate flooring. Everyone seemed to have a good time, and we even got one or two favorable comments on the new decorating scheme

The wedding Saturday morning was held at the Publick House in Sturbridge, Massachusetts. Keith and Kathy enjoyed many pleasant dinners here while we were “courting”, so it had very romantic memories for us.

The Happy Couple

The ceremony was conducted at 11:30am, and was followed by 90 minutes of hors d’oeuvres for the guests, while the wedding party was engaged with the photographer, who was a friend of the family. We are very grateful to him for a large number of excellent photographs.

The bride wore a beautiful green dress. The wedding party included our five children & partners, and seven grandchildren. The grandkids were all dressed in identical green dresses, except for the one boy, who wore a suit, as did the rest of the gentlemen.

The Happy Wedding Party

Music was provided by Walter Buckingham, a minstrel whom Kathy knew from her days as a volunteer at Old Sturbridge Village.

Lunch included a choice of prime rib or lobster pie, with clam chowder, veggies, and, of course, wedding cake for dessert. The food was every bit as good as we recalled from earlier repasts.

Following lunch the band played through the afternoon, after which all went home. Most out-of-town guests stayed overnight in a nearby Hampton Inn. K&K elected to take a room there so we could visit on Sunday morning. We had a very pleasant visit with Keith and Larissa’s family, as well as with Kathy’s cousin and her husband from New Jersey.

Sunday afternoon we all went home, and Keith and Kathy lived happily ever after.

Eastward Bound - Minneapolis, MN to Massachusetts

Days 6-8 Minneapolis, MN to Lebanon, OH (8/23-8/24)

True to our commitment to slow down, we took three days to motor 786 miles from Minneapolis to Cincinnati, where we paused for two nights in Lebanon, OH to enjoy some Cincinnati Chile and Grater’s ice cream.

With our charging system repaired and the weather cooling down (somewhat), we boondocked both nights along the way, the first night at the Flying J in South Beloit, IL, and the second at Camp Wal-Mart in Danville, IL, on I-74 near the Indiana border.

We like the J’s because they have all the services we need (fuel, propane, water, dump station), camper parking out front away from the trucks, and decent food. It’s not that we object to parking with trucks, but sometimes they aren’t real friendly to us RV folks, so we prefer not to bother them.

Camp Wal-Mart is a more Spartan venue, but perfectly adequate for one night stops. Many stores are located near an interstate interchange, which obviates the necessity to drive miles off the track to find a campground.

We took fewer pictures as we approached more familiar territory, not for any conscious reason, but more because we were gradually slipping out of the “touring” mindset as we got closer to our home base. We include below a few representative photos from the Minneapolis to Cincinnati segment:

Wisconsin Cornfield

Our first Tollbooth This Summer

Flat, Flat, Flat Illinois Farmland

A Different Kind of Farm

The United States National Flower

A Bucolic Illinois Farm Scene

Rolling Into the Southern Indiana Hills

Another Milestone

Suburban Sprawl Near Cincinnati

Days 8-9 Lebanon, Ohio (8/25, 26)

Two years ago we visited the Cincinnati area to enjoy the Tall Stacks Festival with the Winnebago Club. At that time we stayed at Cedarbrook, a lovely campground in Lebanon, Ohio. We liked the area so much that we decided to stop there for a couple of days on our way home.

There are a number of really good restaurants around Cincinnati, which Keith discovered on his many business trips to the area. Included are the Montgomery Inn in Montgomery (great ribs), The Golden Lamb in Lebanon, the Grand Finale in Glendale (known for their desserts, hence the name), and many others whose names have succumbed to CRS.

Cincinnati also is known for their unique chili. Of a very thin consistency and served over spaghetti with choice of shredded cheese, onions, beans and hot sauce, it has a distinct, somewhat smoky flavor. Recipes are closely guarded, but are rumored to contain cinnamon and chocolate, as well as the usual chili suspects such as tomato, onion, garlic, and, of all things, chili powder.

There are two Chili chains in the area, Skyline and Gold Star. Both are good, although we tend to prefer tend to prefer Skyline. If you are transiting through the Cincinnati airport, there is a Gold Star outlet at the food court in terminal B. Keith’s preference is the 4-way, with shredded cheese and onions, plus hot sauce to taste.

Immediately upon arriving we unhooked and drove to the Skyline in Lebanon for a fix. That evening we dined on Cincinnati’s other signature dish, Graeter’s Ice Cream. The adult size hot fudge sundae with whipped cream, nuts, and a cherry is sufficient to make an evening meal. Graeter’s is the best ice cream we have ever eaten, bar none. Check them out at www.graeters.com - they ship.

The next day Kathy did laundry, and we enjoyed a campfire. We had intended to lunch at the Golden Lamb, but we found that our hunger for chili was not fully saited, so it was back to Skyline for a second day in a row. Not wishing to screw up a perfect record, we again had supper at Greater’s.

The next morning it was up anchor for the next segment to Annapolis.

A Happy Camper in Lebanon

Serving the Best Ice Cream in the World

Another Satisfied Customer

Home an Excellent and Unusual Chili

Days 10-11 (8/27-28) Lebanon, OH to Annapolis, MD

We traveled the 500 miles from Lebanon to Annapolis in two days, again boondocking at Wally World in Morgantown, WV. Used to be we would always drop into the store to request permission before staying the night, but have recently started calling the store in advance to ask permission, which avoids the potential for umpleasant surprises. It used to be difficult to obtain the store telephone numbers, which are not listed in the Wal-Mart location atlas. However, our acquisition of an air card a couple of years ago makes it convenient to go online and obtain the number after we pick the store from the atlas. We especially like the fact that the atlas specifically identifies those stores which are located near an interstate interchange.

Being on a mission to see Keith’s granddaughters, and to get hunkered down before the Labor Day traffic commenced, we just drove and did not take the time to take pictures on this leg, so there ain’t none.

Days 12-21 (8/28-9/7) Visiting Keith’s Grandkids

Shortly after our daughter bought her house outside Annapolis, Keith paid a contractor to re-grade the front lawn and pour a 6” double wide concrete driveway, complete with 50 amp electrical service. With the nearby availability of a sewer cleanout for dumping, this makes a perfect place to park for a couple of weeks and visit. We are close by, but not underfoot, and have our own private space when it’s time for the afternoon nap (and often early retirement). Fortunately the neighbors seem to tolerate a motorhome in the front yard for the odd week or two, so that’s not a problem.

Fortunately Keith was able to find a couple of small projects that kept his hands and mind occupied, but did not overtax his aching back. Following up on something he saw at the day care center, he installed half-height hand rails in the stairwells, at a height convenient for two and four year old hands. He also fabricated a gate to match the fencing around a patio which is accessed from a sliding glass door in the family room, so the kids can be left out without supervision for short periods. The gate was a challenge because the fence posts were frost-heaved and out of plumb in both directions, requiring some resetting and some shimming to make a square, plumb opening. It’s problematic whether it will stay square through the winter.

A cute story – Keith used a post hole digger to excavate the dirt from one side of a post, then drove a wedge down the other side to straighten it. He left the hole open until after the gate was mounted, to allow for final tweaking. The next morning, after erecting and plumbing the gate, he started to fill the hole, whereupon there was a sudden flurry of activity down below. Turns out a juvenile runny babbit had fallen in the hole, and couldn’t get out. It appeared quite incensed to have dirt tossed on it’s head so early in the day. Keith assisted it out of the hole, whereupon it ran frantically away.

Site of the Runny Babbit Incident

Days 22-23 (9/8-9) – End of the Idyll

Monday, Sept 8 we raised anchor and motored north to Pennsylvania for a visit with Keith’s sister. Her kids stopped by to visit, and she fed us an excellent dinner, after which we spent the night parked by the curb in front of her house, again confident that our house batteries would recharge while driving the next day. We arose early Tuesday to arrive in Massachusetts in time to have lunch with Kathy’s middle daughter on her day off from retail. We arrived in time for lunch, but she unfortunately had a migraine and couldn’t join us.

Our home base in Massachusetts is a condominium. The association rules unfortunately prohibit us from bringing the motorhome on the property, even to load and unload. We have a snoopy old lady three units down who calls every time we drive in, and we have received letters threatening with fines a couple of times, for stopping to unload the refrigerator. So, with the refrigerator nearly empty we by-passed the condo and drove another 20 miles to the storage yard. We emptied the rig and drove sadly back to the condo to take up our other life for a couple of months. We plan to camp on the Cape Cod Canal for two or three weeks later in September (when the rates go down), then we will punctuate our land bound sojourn by getting married on 22 November. After Christmas with the grandchildren, we will head south for the winter.

Stay tuned

Eastward Bound – Banff, AB to Minneapolis, MN

Monday, 18 August we terminated our summer idyll and commenced our journey back to New England, where we will reside in our North-Central Massachusetts condominium until after the holidays. In addition to a hectic round of medical appointments, some camping on Cape Cod, and visits with the grandkids in Maryland and Massachusetts, we are planning our wedding at the Publick House in Sturbridge on 22 November. We will head south for the winter after Christmas, as husband and wife.

Why are we squatting in Massachusetts until the snow flies? Because that’s where Kathy’s grandchildren live, that’s why. Any questions?

In prior years, when one or both of were still employed, we would have made the trip east in about 5 days, arriving totally exhausted for our first day back at work. No more! We expect to take about two weeks to get to Maryland, where we will pause a couple of weeks with the Annapolis granddaughters, then a couple more days to travel to Massachusetts.

Details of our first four days are provided below. The balance of the trip east will be incorporated in subsequent posts.

Eastward Bound Day 1 (August 18th) - Banff, AB to Moose Jaw, SK

We left Banff at 6 am the 18th and headed for Moose Jaw, SK, our first destination on the way back to New England.

As we drove east on the Trans-Canada Highway, the mountains gradually disappeared, to be replaced with rolling hills and farmlands. As we approached Calgary, the land to flattened out as we entered the Great Plains.

We Say Good-Bye to the Rocky Mountains

Dropping Down to the Great Plains as We Approach Calgary

Agriculture Appears as We Enter the Plains

After Calgary we passed a sign that announced we were entering the “Badlands of Alberta.” The terrain did indeed look like the Dakotas as we passed hundreds of herds of horses and cattle. The Alberta Black Angus Beef are very popular here.

Cheesebergs On the Hoof

Black Gold is Everywhere on the Alberta Plains

Our next stop was Medicine Hat where we bought gas, had a quick lunch, and photographed the tallest teepee in the world.

The Sign Said This is the Tallest Teepee in the World
Believe What You Wish

As we passed into Saskatchewan, the horizon became totally flat, the land transitioned gradually from mostly grassland to agricultural, with field after field of crops.

Saskatchewan Horizon

An Agricultural Province

Prairie Agriculture

We planned two to three hundred mile days, but we drove 506 miles our first day. The temperature was in the 90’s, and promised to stay that way for a few days

We arrived in Moose Jaw about 4:30 and pleasantly cooled off in our air-conditioned camper. Keith had planned to boondock our way across the continent, but the brutal heat forced us into campgrounds with electric service. We could have dry camped and run the generator, but Keith figured that with gas at $4.00 a gallon or higher, the cost to run the generator for 6 or more hours would about equal the camping fee.

Eastward Bound Day 2 (August 19th) - Moose Jaw, SK to Minot, ND

As we headed southeast from Moose Jaw, we continued to pass fields and fields of grain. This area is called the “Breadbasket of Canada” and the name is well deserved. We passed through the town of Weyburn, which is said to be the largest inland collection center for grain in Canada.

Sunrise Over The Saskatchewan Prairie

The Breadbasket of Canada

Agribusiness Near Weyburn

We crossed into the US at North Portal. Crossing the border is always an adventure. This time we had to leave the coach while 3 agents examined our motor home. It took almost half an hour to clear customs and then we were on our way. The big concern was fruits and vegetables this time. Kathy almost landed us in prison by misremembering that she had already consumed a lemon that she mistakenly declared.

U. S Border Crossing – Site of the Lemon Hunt

Northern North Dakota looks a lot like southern Saskatchewan, with many grain fields. We also started to see fields and fields of sunflowers, which are grown for their seeds.

Colorful North Dakota Sunflower Crop

Tractor on Stilts – Identified as a Herbicide Sprayer by Our Friends the Richardsons

Prairie Lake Near Minot

We arrived in Minot and headed for the Space Aliens Café, a favorite chain of ours in ND. The restaurant is decorated with spacecrafts, cartoon and memorabilia from Roswell and Area 51. Ribs are their specialty. They are prepared Memphis style and are delicious. (3.5 COWS).

North Dakota Home of Surprisingly Good Ribs

We crashed at the Minot KOA, where we spent the night, and Kathy spent 2 hours in their air-conditioned laundry room.

Eastward Bound Day 3 (August 20th) – Minot ND to Moorhead City, MN

The next morning (our third since leaving Banff), we drove to Fargo, bought gas at the J, picked up a new battery transfer solenoid at Pleasureland RV, then drove to another Space Aliens Café for lunch (we really like this chain). Kathy had an alien salad and lunch pizza, while Keith had tortilla soup and a Ruben. (3 COWS).

Jack-O-Lantern Sun seen near Minot

Harvesting North Dakota Wind Energy

After lunch we drove across the Red River to Moorhead, MN where we camped the night at another KOA. A nice campground, reasonably priced (for a KOA), but the half-mile access road is unpaved, and in worse condition than the Top of the World Highway.

Every time we pass through Moorhead we think about looking for the Prairie Home Cemetery, where kids from the local college go to park at night. Having an acute sense of humor, Garrison Keillor named his now famous Saturday night radio show after the companionable activity in this cemetery.

Eastward Bound Days 4&5 (August 21,22) – Moorhead City, MN to Prior Lake, MN

Our fourth eastbound travel day commenced with a drive southeast on I-94 to Rogers, MN, where we paused for an hour of retail therapy at Camping World. Along the way we passed by Charlie’s Café in Freeport, MN, home of the best monster Carmel roll this side of the fictional Chatterbox Café. Charlie’s was mentioned by Garrison Keillor in his National Geographic Article, which is proudly posted in the café. We choose not to stop this trip because we were anticipating a substantial lunch at our destination, and did not wish to over indulge.

Leaving CW with our treasures, we by-passed Minneapolis on the beltway, then motored south a few miles to camp two nights in Prior Lake, home of the Mystic Lake Casino. Because of the heat, we chose to avail ourselves of the casino campground, instead of boon docking. We dined at the casino buffet after arriving, and then Keith hunkered down in the air-conditioned comfort of the motor home, while Kathy fed the tribes.

The next morning, Keith spent a couple of hours installing our new solenoid, while Kathy continued to feed the tribes, in a vain attempt to recoup the prior day’s losses.

Replacement of the solenoid should have been simple, but it is in a somewhat awkward location near the bottom of the battery compartment. In addition, the idiots at Winnebago installed it with ¼-20 Phillips head machine screws, which of course had frozen over the course of seven years, so Keith had to drill them out. However, once the installation was completed, Keith was ecstatic that the new relay fixed our battery-charging problem. Now we can boon dock overnight, confident that the battery will recharge as we drive down the road the next day.

The next morning we departed for points east, as described in a subsequent post. In the meantime, Kathy’s money is feeling very lonely, left behind in the casino without her.