Sturgis SD

Well we went hiking today early because it is going to get hot. We hiked a trail called the door and it was allot of fun and a little challenging. It was only a mile but their was some climbing and it was 80 degrees when we got back to the car. It reached 96 this afternoon so I kept Lynn in the air conditioning, she is real inclined to get heat exhaustion. We took a little walk after dinner to take some pictures of the sunset and sat outside until after dark.
We left for Sturgis this morning and are now in the Black Hills. I don't think I told you about a program we joined a couple of years ago called Passport America. This program allows you fifty percent off of camping fees at participating campgrounds and their a thousands. Anyway we found a great camp ground in Sturgis and our campsite high on a hill over looking the town with full hookups is only $12.50 a night, great wi-fi, showers and laundry. Lynn's down doing laundry while I work on the blog. It is 90 degrees here today but the laundry and showers are air conditioned. We will be here until Sunday morning when we drive to the Rally. Their is allot to see nearby like, Needles Highway, Spearfish Canyon, Mount Rushmore and the town of Deadwood. So it is a tough life but we have to do it. The picture of the rainbow in a field of sunflowers was close enough you could see the pot of gold.  Until next time tight lines and safe travels.

Bad Lands National Park

We left early for the Bad Lands and arrived about 10 am. Wow this landscape is wild. I sure would not want to drive a covered wagon through here. This land is rich with Indian history and the loop tour we took today was very educational. There was an Indian named Bigfoot who was killed at the wounded knee massacre and Lynn was reading his story when she turned to walk away she paid homage to wounded knee. She fell down and skinned here knee.

After that we left the park and went to Wall Drug in Wall SD. This is a great big tourist trap that has grown in size since 1970, you can find about any thing you need in there. We will be here a couple of days doing some hiking and site seeing.Until next time, tight lines and safe travels.

Red Cedar River CG

We left High Cliffs and headed for the Red Cedar CG in Minnesota using some new software I found for my phone, turns out it is a little out of date and the price went from $15 to $30 six years ago, we agreed on $20 and stayed two nights so we could go to the mall of America Friday wow what a big place. They had a huge indoor amusement park that was pretty cool and all the kids were sure having fun, they should allow you to ride bikes in there it is too big to walk it. They claim to have 400 stores.
We left Red Ceder this morning about eight am and headed for Big Bend Dam in South Dakota they have a Corp of Engineers camp ground that is listed in my new software. Ok the dam is 18 miles off the freeway but I figure it is worth it because I can camp for half price because it in Federal, well the river flooded and the camp ground is closed shi///. Alrighty I just spent seven dollars in gas to get here from the freeway, I guess I am not saving money. I talked to a big indian at the dam and he said their was another camp ground about seven miles from the dam on the Reservation next to the Casino it is $15 a night and has electric and water, so here we are. I just hope I can get back up the mountain I came down to get here, I  could smell the brakes it is so steep. Tomorrow we head for the Bad Land National Park. Until next time, tight lines and safe travels.

High Cliffs SP Wisconsin

Ok it may seam thing are not going well but it is just the Clement curse 'thanks Marty'. We had a great day of hiking and biking around the park, about 2 1/2 hours worth. We climbed a five story lookout tower and hiked a trail that led to ancient Indian mounds on top of the cliffs, it was alot of fun. Lynn started feeding the chip monks at or site and now they won't leave. I have attached a picture of our site, the site are large with lots of separation. All our planning is paying off, I needed to use the air compressor today, their is no wi-fi so my Motorola zoom is coming in handy using the cell towers to access the Internet. We are on the road again tomorrow headed west. Until next time tight lines and safe travels.

We finally started our adventure

we left the house about 10 am Monday after a few clitches. While I was loading the car I tore the faciea off under the car, now I remember I was suppose to but some boards down because the car is too low. It only took six bolts to fix it. The last thing to do was turn off the electricity, so I go downstairs and shut it off and fumble through the dark to get back upstairs. Ok I am in the motorhome and I am hot and ready to go, I hit the garage door button and nothing happens sh!!!!!!!!!! no electricity.  Ok so we made it to Brevort Lake and had a nice night by the fire. Left Brevort about 8am and headed for High Cliffs SP on Lake Winnabago. We arrived about 3pm and it was hot, so we went for a swim in the lake. After about a half our I feel something in my pocker, it's the car keys and my wallet. Now the Prius uses what they call a smart key it operates the car electricly, by the way it was not smart enough to hold it's breath while under water and it drowned sh!!!!!!!!! so anyway I was smart enough to bring the other key, yaaaa. Anyway I need a drink maybe two. See ya next time. Tight lines and safe travels.

It's almost time to leave

Well it's the middle of July and we have had a nice warm summer so far. We are getting execited to leave on our Grand Adventure and a little nervous too. The unknown is a little scary with all the what if's, you know what if the motorhome brakes, what if a family member back home gets ill, what if we don't like living in a motorhome and on and on.

We have tried to plan for as much as we can by reading and researching other RV sites and talking with people about what we need to prepare for. In an older motor home there are always things that go bad. So far we have had a roof leak, the hot water heater igniter quit working, a battery disconnect switch had to be replaced, I replaced the carpeting with a wood floor, I changed the oil, the ceiling fabric in the bedroom fell down, the propane tank had a leak, the FM radio had to be replaced, the fuel system on the generator needed to be cleaned, this would probably make most people give up on their dream but I like fixing things and it has been fun. If I could not do all the repairs myself I could not afford to travel in an RV.

Our plan is to head out August 15th and take thirteen days to travel from Traverse City to Gillette Wy for the Escapee rally.

I am going to try and post weekly during our trip. Stay tuned.

Welcom to our World

Well it is April 20th and the robin has laid her eggs in the bush next to the front door. I am sorry that this entry sounds like the others but it happened again, we got ten inches of snow last night. This is getting old and we would like spring to come and stay.
I am in the process of installing a wood laminate floor in the motorhome and it was alot more work than I anticipated. I was almost down when my neighbor came over and said I thought their was a heat vent in the living room, oop's. I had to take it all back up to find the vent. All I have left is the trim but it is too cold today. I have purchased my Sea Eagle Inflatable Kayak, air compressor and Honda generator now all I have to do is find a place to store them.
My youngest daughter gave birth to her first baby on Sunday. She named the little girl Elizabeth and we can't wait to see her.
I think we are still on track for an August departure toward the Escapade in Gillette Wyoming and then on to Yellowstone.
Until next time.
Hoping the snow goes away soon.