Sunday, November 7, 2010

What a difference a day makes, the temperature last night didn’t go below freezing and we woke up this morning to brilliant sunshine – now this is more like what we are looking for!!

We enjoyed the two hour gain in time and this morning we didn’t rush to leave as we were only going 305 km (189 miles). We arrived at Cozy C RV Campground at Bowling Green MO about 1:30 after a quiet drive through central Illinois. We were on I-72 for most of the trip and there was very little traffic, sure do like these kind of days. Cozy C is a nice little campground on Highway 54 just east of Bowling Green, it has very long pull thrus and at this time of year it is quite quiet, only about 6 other RV’s here. The wi-fi isn’t very good, sigh, but I am kind of getting used to that, don’t know if I will be able to post this tonight, I might have to add the pictures later.

Crossing the Illinois River


Court House at Pittfield IL


A Single Windmill


Crossing the Mississippi


When we were checking in I asked the owner about things to do in the area and he mentioned the lock on the Mississippi River at Clarksville was interesting. Now, we had no idea there were locks along the Mississippi but after setting up we headed to Clarksville to check it out and found out that there are 28 locks between Minneapolis/St. Paul and St. Louis and the one we visited was lock no. 24.

We lucked out as there was a barge heading south so we got to watch it going through the lock, it turns out this lock is only 600’ long and the barge was 1200’ so they had to break the barge into two groups to pass through the lock separately, this is called a double lockage and can take up to two hours. We watched the first half go through but didn’t wait for the second half as we wanted to be home before dark but it was very interesting to watch. As the barge was approaching the lock another barge went out and pushed it into line for the lock, the current is so strong the it tends to push the barge away from the lock. There was another barge waiting to go north so it is still a busy time along the Mississippi. I was chatting with a couple of the workers and they said the boats are lowered about 4-5’ in the lock – it doesn’t seem like a lot but I guess it really is.

Dam at Clarksville


Barge Approaching Lock


Entering the Lock


Front of Barge Going By Us


Now They Are In The Lock


They've Been Broken - You Can See the Gate Between the Barges


The First Half Exiting the Lock


Looking Down on Barges In the Lock


Tug Waiting to Enter Lock


Today we had a high of 70F (20C) – sure can’t ask for much better than that for the 7th of November and apparently it is supposed to be like this for about 4 or 5 more days, we sure won’t complain if it stays like this!

Five years ago today we were in an accident on I-95 at Rocky Mount NC, we lost our trailer, two people were killed instantly but John and I weren’t hurt; the Lord was looking after us big time that day and we are so very thankful that we survived and continue to enjoy traveling in our Airstream and finding all these new and wonderful places to visit and enjoy.

John grilled salmon for dinner tonight – it was very yummy and it was a great night for grilling.

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another good tomorrow.

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Okay, this weather isn’t what we wanted – we woke up to a temperature of 23F (-4C) this morning, not what I would call fun. Both the truck and trailer had thick coats of frost adorning them this morning, guess though we can look on the bright side and be thankful we didn’t get snow like they did in Kincardine! Fortunately we were only going about 400 km so we didn’t rush to get on the road, even so John’s fingers were VERY COLD by the time he was finished getting us ready to go. Fortunately, tonight isn’t supposed to be as cold.

Frost on Truck & Trailer



Today’s drive was pretty, we cut across Indiana to Illinois on Highway 24 and picked up I-57 to Champaign where we stopped for the night at D and W Lake RV Park. We were here many years ago and it is a good overnight stop, nothing too fancy but full hook-ups and you get one day free internet. The internet is nothing to write home about but I guess it is better than nothing. We gained an hour today when we entered the Central Time Zone, then we gain another hour tonight with the end of daylight savings time – can we say BONUS!!

Indiana Country Side


Colourful House we Passed


Entering Illinois


D and W Lake Park



We decided to unhook when we got here and head to Wally World to stock up on supplies, it looked like it was a fairly new store and it was quite busy but we got everything we needed, as well as picking up a cooked chicken for dinner and getting a new TV for the trailer. We are really pleased with the TV, it is a 22” Vizio and the picture is really sharp, I am sure we will quite enjoy it. We haven’t had TV since we left Kincardine on October 17th so it is a treat to have it again.

There Was a Pretty Sunset Tonight


Tomorrow we head for Mark Twain country, should be interesting.

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another good tomorrow.

Friday, November 5, 2010

We are finally “On the Road Again” and it is nice to be heading south, enough of this cold weather!!

Yesterday we went from Green Acre Park in Waterloo, where we had been for the last 2-1/2 weeks, to Can-Am in London. Our toilet was leaking so we wanted to get that fixed and we needed a couple of new things (girls talk for I don’t know what it was we needed!) for the Hensley Hitch. We spent the night there so we could head out early this morning.

The sun was shining when we left London but before Sarnia we had a good rain mixed with a bit of snow – YIKES, let’s get outta here! The bridge plaza in Port Huron was a zoo and there were even a couple of idiots who had got in the wrong lane so were going the wrong way, then trying to cut into another lane – scary when you have a 35’ trailer behind you. We probably waited about ½ hour & it was our turn with Mr. Customs – we hit a really nice fellow and were through in no time, thank you very much sir.

The rest of the day was mainly overcast, with a few sunny breaks, and we saw a high of 40F (5C) at one point near the Michigan/Indiana border but most of the day the temperature was around 35-37F (2-3C) so a pretty chilly day.

There were lots of dead deer on the highway, at one interchange there were 5 of the poor things and I saw one running along the side of the road just before Indy, sure glad when he turned away from the road!

We are at Fireside Resort in Auburn, IN for the night, it is a former KOA and is open year round so we have been here many times coming and going as it is a good shot from here to Ontario. As usual the wi-fi isn’t working so I will try again in the morning and get this posted should the wi-fi be working.

And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to another good tomorrow.

Saturday/Sunday - July 31/Aug 1/10

Kelly & Pat got up early and went for one last walk on the beach before heading for home while Nan & I decided to catch a bit more sleep.

We were on the road about 9:30 and had a good trip home. We stopped in Portsmouth and I bought John an iPad, nice to buy it there with no taxes!

On the way home we stopped at Quechee Gorge and the girls & Pat walked down into the gorge while I stayed up and walked over the bridge to see it. They said there was quite a steep climb up and down and with my knee giving me grief we figured it was better for me stay up on terra firma.

We stopped and took pictures of this old covered bridge.



We stopped Saturday night near Saratota Springs, NY then on home on Sunday. Serita picked Pat up at Limeridge Mall in Hamilton, which saved us about an hour’s driving time by not having to go into Brantford, then we arrived back at Nan’s in Bolton about 5:30. John was already there, as well as Tim & Derrick to pick up Kel and Carl, bless him, had dinner ready for all of us – yummy chicken, sausage, potatoes, salad etc. It was nice to have a home cooked meal again!

As soon as we ate John & I headed for home, arriving about 11:30, it was so nice to sleep in my own bed again!!

We had a great trip and I think we all enjoyed it and I can’t imagine anyone would say we didn’t do enough shopping!!! A very nice summer holiday!

Friday, July 30, 2010

Today was another sunny, warm day – a great day for our visit to Boston. We were up at 6 a.m. to be at the Amtrak station to catch the 8:15 train to Boston. It was a good ride in and we got there about 10:15 and had to be back at the station to catch the 5:40 train back to Saco.

We picked up a trolley tour and did pretty well the whole tour of Boston before getting off to do a harbour cruise. After the cruise we walked over to Faneuil Hall and stopped for a bowl of yummy clam chowder for lunch, then walked to the Statute of Paul Revere and toured the Old North Church, then on past Paul Revere’s House to a pick up stop to get back on the trolley and back to the train station.

It was interesting to see the planes flying into Logan Airport, which is the only airport in the heart of a city. They were very low flying in over the harbour.

I will let the pictures show what we saw.




















All in all it was another great day but very tiring. (Kel & Nan on the train home!!)


We got back to the hotel, ordered pizza for dinner, ate and pretty well crashed.

And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to another great day tomorrow.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

It rained a bit during the night but we awoke to bright sunshine and enjoyed another hot, sunny day.

This morning our first stop was the train station at Saco to buy our Amtrak tickets for our trip into Boston tomorrow. From there we headed to the outlet malls in Kittery, which is just on the New Hampshire border.

Boy, talk about a busy place and a weird outlet mall – the road runs between the shops and there are 4 or 5 different areas so you have to keep moving the car. Our first stop was fine and we had no problem finding a parking spot but that was not the case at the next area we wanted to stop – it was a flipping zoo and we couldn’t find a parking spot so drove around a couple of times and headed to the next one. Fortunately we got a parking spot there and managed to find some really good bargains at the Columbia Sportswear outlet so left there happy.

Our next stop was Best Buy but they didn’t have the iPad I wanted so it was on to downtown Portsmouth. We stopped at Albacore Park and saw the Albacore submarine, a submarine that was used during WWII; we didn’t take the time to do an actual tour of it but did check it out and agree that there was no way any of us would be able to sail on something like that.


We got downtown and finally managed to find a parking spot so we could walk around a bit. We went to the Portsmouth Discovery Centre and watched a video on Portsmouth then the lady at the centre recommended we tour the Moffatt-Ladd House which was built in the 1790’s. It was a beautiful home and we really enjoyed the tour.

Portsmouth Brewery Sign


Loved the Name of This Pub

From there it was a stop at Wal Mart then back to Biddeford for dinner at the Olive Garden, which was very good, then back to the hotel around 9 p.m. We sure do seem to put in long days!!!

It is now time to hit the sack as we have to be up at 6 a.m. to be at the train station in Saco in time for the 8:15 a.m. train. I think another long day is ahead!

And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to another great day tomorrow.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

And the gorgeous weather continues although today was a bit hotter and more humid than yesterday, but thankfully there was a nice breeze.

Our first stop this morning was a quick run into Wal Mart to get water plus a few other things we wanted. From there it was off to Old Orchard Beach and the mini golf, what a blast that was and yahoo, I got 3 holes in one; and wow, I was the only one to get any holes in one – just pure luck!!

Next it was a stop at Tim’s for a coffee then on to Prout's Neck and then Cape Elizabeth where there are twin lights. Unfortunately we couldn’t find a way to get close to the lights but managed to get pictures of them from the Lobster Shack where we had lunch. It was a nice lunch sitting at a picnic table overlooking the ocean and after we ate Nan & Kel walked down on the rocks a bit. We drove around the cape looking at the houses and wow, are there ever some beauties!

View of Old Orchard from Prout's Neck


Prout's Neck Post Office



Nan & Kel on the Rocks at Cape Elizabeth


The Twin Lights



We came back to the hotel and Kel & Pat changed into their bathing suits and we were off to Biddeford Pool, a beach the girl on reception here at the hotel told us about. I didn’t bother with my bathing suit as I hadn’t really been too impressed with the beach at Old Orchard Beach but the one today was much nicer, with very little seaweed, and the water seemed a bit of warmer so I sort of wished I had put on my suit, on the other hand it was much cooler at the beach as it was after 5 when we got there so it was just nice sitting there. Nan doesn’t have a bathing suit and hasn’t been able to buy one so we kept each other company on the beach while Kel & Pat swam.

From there we drove around Biddeford Pool and Fortune’s Rock, once more oohing and aahing over the beautiful homes overlooking the ocean and we had to listen to the girls bemoaning the fact that they don’t have rich parents with a nice house on the ocean – poor them!

Biddeford Pool



Fortune's Rock

Back again to the hotel and after a quick change we went to Restaurant 99 for dinner and had another yummy meal.

I don’t know how the days can go so fast but they just seem to fly by, guess time flies when you are having fun! Again, by the time I get this finished I will be ready to hit the hay!

And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to another great day tomorrow.