Heading out again

Getting ready to leave early next week--going to Tontitown, AR for the 111th Tontitown Grape Festival. Looking forward to spending some time with our grandchildren and will be setting up a booth at the Festival to sell and sign copies of "Reflections of a Life Well Spent." Will be camping on Beaver Lake. Hope we get some sunshine!

Leaving Arizona

Tonight is our last night in Williams, Arizona. I can't say things worked out the way we first expected, but we made a lot of new friends during our stay.
As you know, Larry was admitted to the hospital the day after we arrived, and the folks here at the Grand Canyon KOA stepped up immediately to help us. Kathy and her husband Jim walked our dogs for us twice while I was at the ER with Larry. The next day I was able to find a place for Zoe and Hercules at Canyon Pets in Williams, and Kate was wonderful to fit them in without prior notice. She said they fit right into the routine, and they clearly enjoyed their stay. Thank you, Kate.
I can't say enough about the folks at Grand Canyon KOA. Judy and Ken made sure we didn't have to leave even though our original check-out date was Thursday, June 25. They not only helped with our accomodations they provided emotional and spiritual support through their love and prayers. Lori and Jinny also provided hugs and support and we will never forget all of the kindness we received from this KOA.
The KOA itself is not quite finished, but you can tell it will be a really nice KOA once everything is done. The full hook-up pull through sites were the roomiest of all of the KOA's we visited, and the new office will be 1st class when completed. It will include a gift shop, additional washers and dryers, bath and showers and a fireplace where folks can gather for a good time in between visiting the Canyon. The pool is not operational right now, but they are working diligently on finding a leak, and once that is resolved the pool will be open for business. There is an enclosed pet run that our dogs loved, and as I have already written, I've never seen so many stars in my life. This morning I heard a rooster crow and that really took me back to my childhood. We only received limited television because we do not have a satellite subscription, but if you are like us you don't really camp out to watch TV. There are no dining facilities right now, but Williams is just minutes away and we ate at three places with really good food--Goldie's Diner, the Pine Country Restaurant, and Cruisers. Awesome food, good service and a trip down memory lane as these are located on the old Route 66.
Although I would like a do-over on our vacation, we would not have missed meeting and getting to know the folks at the Grand Canyon KOA for anything. Thanks again, Ken and Judy, for going above and beyond the call to help out travelers in need. God certainly placed us with the right people at the right time.
I'm going to try to upload some pictures, but I may have to wait until I get home to use my own computer. But for now, we are returning to Little Rock tomorrow backtracking the same way we came. Hated to cancel the rest of the trip, but after Larry being so ill we are ready to go home. So, Happy trails to us and God bless those we are leaving behind.

Together again

Larry was released from the hospital and we got Zoe and Hercules back so we are all together again. He felt really well yesterday and so, of course, he did too much. This morning he awoke me before 6:00 with another terrible headache. Right about now I'm wishing I could click my ruby slippers 3 times and we could be home.
Enough whining. We drove to the Grand Canyon yesterday and got some awesome pictures. I'll try to get pictures uploaded today, but they don't do justice to the real thing.

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock that shadows the dry thirsty land...

God's paintbrush

God's paintbrush uses a broad stroke to color a vast expanse of desert from New Mexico to Utah. How can the desert have so many colors? How did God know just the right amounts of iron, manganese and limestone to create this unique palette? Again, I have to say, "My soul magnifies thee,
Oh my Lord."

I think Larry is feeling better right now. There is something about this land that is restorative. We have both been so moved by the sights we have seen. Pray that his recovery continues and that we don't run out of gas.


Solitary tree, rising above the sagebrush
Wondering where you got the nourishment needed
To reach up to the heavens and brush cheeks with the stars

Solitary soul, rising above the tormented masses,
wondering where you got the inspiration to reach up to God and praise His holy name

P

Good news/Bad news from the land of enchantment

Well, we made it to Albuquerque but Larry is not any better. I thought he was getting better but yesterday afternoon (Father's Day) he started getting sick again and last night he woke up with chills and fever. We got our doctor to send him another round of antibiotics so hopefully within 24 hours he will rebound.
The good news is we can certainly understand why New Mexico is called the Land of Opportunity. The vistas here are breathtaking. We were at the foot of the Sandia Mountains yesterday and we were listening to a Praise station on the radio and they were singing, My God,He can move the mountains, My God is mighty to save, He is mighty to save... Pretty cool, huh? We have met the nicest people on this trip. Yesterday at my book signing we talked with Alphonso and his two adult children, a gentleman named Jan and a very spiritual woman named Donna. We had a great time talking with them and I hope we'll hear feom each of them again.
We toured the Indian Cultural Center yesterday, and it was interesting to me to see the Creation or Emergence tales of the different tribes. I took a class in Native American culture in college and it brought back good memories as I went through the Museum (yes you heard me right--I got to go to a museum--yeah)
Last night after resting we drove to the Old Town and also drove down Route 66. Old Town was centered around a town square with a pretty gazebo and lots of trees The structures surrounding the square were adobe style and mainly consisted of specialty shops and restaurants
We are driving down I-40 west and for a short time paralleled Route 66 until it dead ended.
The Albuquerque KOA had some nice features (volley ball court, horseshoes court, playground and pet run along with a swimming pool and hot tub. I don't know if it is just me, but it seems each KOA we have visited seems more crowded than the last. We'll be staying at the last KOA in Williams and it is supposed to be very nice From that point on we'll stay at private park
Till next time, Happy Trails

.

On the road again

Bummer--I started a new post with a poem and lost it. Here we go again...

Tires spinning, road stretches straight and long,
Can see from here to Texas
And back again.

A few cows scattered here and there,
Scraggly plants reaching toward heaven
But mostly just land and sky.

More rain than we ever expected
And temperature swings worse than in Arkansas
89 this morning in Carlsbad and 66 on 285N.

Climbing, climbing the steady
Slope upward,
Crested the hill to find another stretch ahead,
And Albuquerque will wait for us.


Hey, don't laugh at my poetry. Hard to be creative on a Blackberry with country music in the background. We toured Carlsbad Caverns and I was again amazed at the vastness of the world beneath our feet. The caverns are filled with living organisms--how they survive without sunshine is hard to understand. I'll post pictures later.
Also visited Roswell. On the look-out for little green men but the oddest thing we saw was a group of young folks outside a funeral home. They were tattoed, ringed and probably decorated with a few things we couldn't see. I said a short prayer for them knowing their loss is as real as anyone else's.
Larry has been sick most of our trip. I took him to a walk-in clinic Tuesday.and to the ER this morning. He got another shot and felt well enough to resume our trip
At this point I must comment on the Carlsbad KOA. What a Class A operation.
Firstly, the park itself is really pretty. You can see it quite a ways before you get there because of the trees. Although the trees aren't large enough to be considered shade trees, they are a welcomed sight. The camp sites are gravel, but are nice and level. I think all of the sites are pull-through with full hook-ups including cable and wireless. The campsites are large enough that you don't feel crowded and the tentsites are the nicest I've seen anywhere with grass. There is also a pool, basketball goal, two pet runs and a great gift shop. They serve breakfasr on the week-end and Tues and Thur and also deliver dinner to your campsite.
Leslie and the others were extremely helpful, offering to help with Larry while he was sick. Be sure and include Carlsbad KOA in your agenda.

Second storm of the day

Well, we had a terrible storm around 4:30 this afternoon, and now, just before 10 p.m. we're in the midst of another one. The trailer is doing some rocking and hubby asked if I am scared. I've survived two heart attacks--I don't get scared much anymore. God knows who we are, where we are and what we need. I do feel bad for our dog--she is terrified of storms. Maybe it will pass quickly.

I talked to a couple of interesting women at my reading tonight. While we drove to the bottom of Palo Dura Canyon, they biked. One lady brought me a journal she has been keeping and after reading some of it I told her she has a poet's heart, and she truly does. It is not rhyme or even calling a piece a poem that makes it a poem, it is the words, the imagery, the sounds--she had it all. She had been to Bryce Canyon in Utah and encouraged me to go. Hope we can make a day trip over next week while we are at the Grand Canyon.

Palo Dura was really quite spectacular in its own way. I took Geology in college and I know it took a lot of years to create even a canyon the size of Palo Dura (how's that for a scientific explanation?) but I have to tell you I always see our Creator in the face of the walls of canyons, or the scrubby brush called a Mesquite tree, or in any part of nature. I can almost hear Him speaking the canyons into existence--I call this a crevice, and I call this a crag, and I call this a cleft in the rock--Let it be. Praise God from Whom all blessings flow.

getting our kicks on Route 66

We are traveling the only stretch of Route 66 still in Amarillo. Pretty cool to drive this historic highway, but pretty sad to see the state of disrepair. When I40 came through it was the death toll not just for businesses along the Route but for the road itself.
Headed now to the Cadillac Ranch. More to come...

Amarillo by morning

After another jarring ride on I-40 we arrived at the Amarillo KOA. Typical A-frame building with metal sculptures scattered about. There are a few trees and with another 100 degree day I feel for those campers who are parked in the glaring sun with no shade whatsoever. There are pull through and back in sites, but they are not hard to navigate. There is a playground and pool, as well as a nice fenced in doggie park replete with playground. The park provides a hayride during the summer season, and I noticed the wagon was full the one night we were there to see it.
The folks are nice, in fact, I was in the office during probably the busiest time of the day, but I never witnessed one person getting frazzled. They remained nice and cheerful even and that's a welcome response when you have fought the wind and even the rain in trying to reach your destination.
The facilities are clean and include a laundry, a gift shop that even includes RV supplies, a cafe that is open from 6 p.m. to 8:30--they even bring your food to your RV. I had a reading scheduled and the owner, Bobbi, arranged the Rec Room for my reading. I certainly did not expect her to do so--my husband and I normally do that ourselves. The heat was pretty bad during the day, but both nights we were there were cool enough that we sat outside until dark. Our stay at the Amarillo KOA was comfortable and we like the hometown feel.
One thing we really looked forward to was eating at the home of the 72 oz steak--you have to eat a 72 steak along with salad, fried shrimp one roll and a baked potato in an hour and you get the meal free--pretty good since the meal costs $72.00. We didn't even try which is a good thing since I didn't even make it through my 6 oz filet. Larry had a 16 oz strip and left nothing but a stain on the plate showing where his food had been. We also visited the Cadillac Ranch, which consisted of 10 Caddies planted in a field of wheat. Spray paint is provided and plenty of people were availing themselves of the opportunity to express their pleasure at being at such a unique place. We passed, primarily because the wind was blowing and I am a little too practical to allow us to ruin our clothes just to write the tag "we were here."
We had to burn a couple of hours at a walk-in clinic--hubby was sick and finally couldn't fight it anymore. Turned out to be a sinus infection, which doesn't sound bad but anyone who has ever suffered from one knows how miserable they can make you feel. After a steroid shot and a Zpack he should be back to normal in no time.
I got some good pictures on the road. One is the biggest cross I have ever seen. It was in front of a church under construction and I didn't get the name. Also took pictures of windmills and telephone poles just because neither are frequent on the AR landscape.
More later--Happy Trails

A nice little park east of OK city

Well, after a tooth-jarring ride on OK I-40 we arrived yesterday about 5:00p.m. Fortunately I called the park before we arrived and found the cafe is closed Sunday and Monday, so we took the Shawnee exit and did a little grocery shopping.
The Oklahoma East KOA is conveniently located just off of I-40 and is a well furnished rustic site. Most of the sites are pull throughs and many have full hook-ups, but no cable and weak WI FI. The next time we book a stay here we'll need to make sure the Razorbacks aren't playing in a tournament (this time it's the baseball team in the college World Series.)
The RV park is set up really nice. The pads are gravel but mostly level and there is enough room between sites that you don't feel crowded. There is a nice playground for kids and a place where you can take the dogs off of the leash and let them run free. We chose to keep our pups on the leash because even at 5:00 p.m. It was 100 degrees.
There wasn't much to see between home and OK City, but there were some cowboy museums to see if one is able to get her spouse to stop. I am incapable of such a feat but I hear it is possible.
I'll try to add pictures later tonight.

One more wake-up and we're off!

We've planned and waited for what seems like forever, but our Great Southwestern Adventure is finally here. Hubby is putting final touches on the yard while I wash yet another load of clothes and load the camper. We're loading books and movies and CD's, but hoping we won't need any of it because I have us loaded up on things to see and do.

The dogs are excited--they know something is happening but not sure what. We have taken them on three camping trips so far and they have done really well. I have to include some pictures today of this past week when our grandchildren were here and we took them down to the neighborhood pond. I don't know who had more fun, the kids or the dogs.

Well, must get back to work or I'll be up until midnight (who am I kidding, I'll be up until midnight anyway.) The next update will be on the road, so see you then.

Back to Nature

Well, I'm a little late in logging our latest camping adventure. As soon as we arrived home we had guests from out of town, and they continued on to Nashville today, and tomorrow we are expecting some of our grandchildren, so I'm squeezing in what I can.

Last week we took the travel trailer to Lake Ouachita and stayed at what was formerly Denby Point. It has been renamed Lake Ouachita Shores, but everything other than the name was pretty much the same. I've labeled this entry "Back to Nature" because the reason you go to Lake Ouachita is for the lake--the camping facilities are some of the oldest in Arkansas and therefore scarce on luxuries.

The campgrounds that had water connections are still under water from all of the massive rains experienced in May (Arkansas was 13 inches above normal at the end of May.) We stayed in the campsites beginning I think with 22 (which is almost directly across from the fishing cleaning station.) Actually not as bad as it sounds. There was ample space between campsites and we had nice shade and a view of a inlet. Thankfully, though, someone left early and we were able to move away from the scales and closer to the lake. In fact, we were close to the swimmers' area and within view of where we pulled up the boat.

You can reserve sites at the Corp of Engineers campgrounds on Lake Ouachita 3 days prior to your arrival. A word to the wise--reserve. Also, if you are driving a 40 foot RV, ask the campground personnel if you can manuever such a large vehicle both around the campground and into a specific site. We only saw one RV and I don't think it was more than 30 feet long. The roads here are narrow and winding, and the pads are not especially long or wide. The only service we had was electric. We ran out of water the second day there. My husband had to carry water back and forth from the dump station (which had potable water) and he was not a happy camper. We were able to get the local CBS affiliate on our TV but nothing else, although we did pick up the baseball game on Saturday where we cheered the Hogs to victory and on to the State Finals.

We motored down to Shangri La for breakfast and it was as good as ever. Don't miss a meal there. The folks are always friendly, the service great (even on the day we were there when it was completely full) and the food terrific.

All in all, our trip was a success. We built a roaring fire and told ghost stores and toasted marshmallows (not as tasty as I remembered them from my childhood.) If you want to commune with nature and don't care about the niceties such as cable TV, water and sewer hook-up and a swimming pool, any of the Corp of Engineer campsites on Lake Ouachita will do you just fine.

Where is Noah's ark when you need it?

The good news is we were able to set up the travel trailer before the rain came. The bad news is the rains were of Biblical proportions and by the next morning our campsite was a muddy mess.

We camped in the A section which is nice because it is a small peninsula with water on three sides. The downside is that our side of the peninsula was virtually without grass, but there was plenty of red clay.

I don't want our experience to sound too negative. The folks at the check-in counter in the Visitor's Center were nice, and you could even buy ice there. The campsites themselves were set up well, with asphalt pads for the RV's, a nice gravel pad adjacent to the RV with firepit, grill and picnic table, and a nice walkway with railing leading down to another gravel pad for setting up a tent or just relaxing in lawn chairs at the water's edge. We had full hook-ups and both 30 and 50 amp service.

Also, we were camping with my twin sister and her husband, and being able to have a week-end with no obligations was wonderful. For a treat my sister made banana pudding and I could have eaten the whole thing (but I didn't.)

The pictures we took were just this side of breathtaking and I will try to show them here.

During our stay we found that our surround sound did not work, and a couple of the cabinet doors on our Jayco Eagle broke. We took the unit back to Crain RV and they replaced the surround sound and repaired the cabinet doors. Can't say enough nice things about the people at Crain RV in Little Rock, AR.

Our next planned adventure is out west. We are departing June 15 for the Grand Canyon. I will do some speaking engagements on the road but I know there will be plenty of time for sightseeing. After all, I am alway looking for inspiration for that next great poem.

Until then (or if the need to wander strikes us between now and June 15) Happy Trails.

Rain, Rain go away

Hello, again,
We are headed to Lake Dardanelle State Park in Russellville, AR. We'll just be camping over the week-end, but we are looking forward to our stay. We are meeting my sister and her husband there, and are eager for a little downtime. Hoping we don't have to set up in the rain, but we'll see what happens.

We were at Lake Dardanelle State Park for a family wedding a few years ago and are happy to be going back. It is a beautiful setting and we'll try to take pictures if the weather cooperates. Will write more after our stay.

Happy trails...

You have to start somewhere

Hi, folks,
Here we are, starting down a new pathway, exploring the USA one state at a time in our new, 31 foot travel trailer. Accompanied by Zoe, our adorable half lab/half beagle, and Hercules, our manic and needy lab/rat terrier mix, we are ready to embrace the open road, heeding the call to try world famous chili, barbeque, hamburgers, pizza, beer, and yes, we will be the judge of what is "best."

As we meander down the interstate, we will offer you our likes and dislikes of RV parks, resorts, places to stop along the way and even places to avoid. We will do our best to include services that will be helpful during your travels, and, since a picture truly does say a thousand words, we will include photos along with our ramblings, and occasionally we will insert a poem or two.

Our first trip was to Maumelle State Park in Little Rock, AR, a park operated by the Corp of Engineers. Maumelle Park is a gem of a park nestled alongside the Arkansas River, yet only 10 minutes from west Little Rock, which means if you don't catch any fish you don't have to do without dinner--Kroger is just minutes away, along with a wide variety of family and upscale dining.

The park has over one hundred campsites, accommodating anything from a tent to a full sized Motor home with awnings and slide-outs. There are electric and water hook-ups along with dump stations, and the park is well maintained. Our site was on the river although there are wooded sites as well. Although the park offers no supplies, with civilization being only 10 minutes away you shouldn't run any of anything for very long.

If you don't catch any fish, or you just get tired of burgers and hot dogs, for family dining, travel west on Cantrell to find Izzy's, a place that offers both a comfortable setting and good food. Their tamales are a specialty, but you can also find salads, sandwiches, and pizzas. The folks are friendly and the service is good. Prices are reasonable, too.

There are plenty of other options, from pizza places to a little more upscale, such as Capers and, traveling farther east on Cantrell, you will find several restaurants, including Bonefish, Johnny Carinos, and many other choices. Also, a short drive down Rahling Road takes you to Chenal Boulevard and many other shopping and dining opportunities, along with the Chenal 9, a state of the arts movie theater which includes an IMAX theater as well.

There are vets and other boarding facilities that offer day care in the event you want to explore the central Arkansas area and don't want to be tied down to letting the puppies out of the RV every few hours. Our favorite is Canine Country Club west on Cantrell. You do not need reservations for day care, and the only problem you will face is your dog may not be ready to leave at the end of the day. Anita and her family will treat your dog like family. Tell her Zoe and Hercules sent you. If your dog becomes ill, Dr. Kim Miller at Chenal Valley Animal Hospital gets our Top Dog Vet Award. Links for both of these facilities are on this page.

Be sure to explore downtown Little Rock while you are in the area, making time for the River Market area along with the Clinton Library. The Old State House is interesting, and if art is your thing be sure and visit the Arkansas Arts Center. You can generally catch a play at the Rep or one of the local community theaters (Weekend Theater is one of our favorites) and the Symphony is always a pleasure.

Check out these places and more while visiting Little Rock, Arkansas.