Classes of 2008 and 2009

[IYQ]

I have a video news story from KELO about two vehicles running into a washed out road and being swept away. The two women died....It's up in your area someplace because KELO is Sioux Falls. Not for sure on the particulars....but it must be really dicey up there! Then south by Omaha and St. Jo MO lots of North/South roads closed for indefinite periods.... we're hanging out at the Mid States RV Service shop tonight off of I75 at Byron GA and the storms are coming! I hope just rain, but through here, who knows. saw a swath on the Interstate south of Atlanta yesterday that was wiped out by tornados that hit Tuscaloosa. They have bad ones here too. I wish they would get us done. I thought I'd be in Nashville by now...nothing is just quite working right. We're just stuck. Had problems today getting things back together and so we're here for another day! :{

I haven't heard anything on the Mitchell news (KORN) about the deaths of those two ladies but there is a lot of flooding along the Missouri and James River. Minot, ND just ordered the evacuation of the city because the water had raised over the top of the sand bagged levy and was flooding the city. North of Mitchell on the James River there is a lot of flooding of county roads. I haven't heard what the Mississippi is doing but Linda and Dave S. are right on it and I'm sure they would have said something if it was out of control. I'll be leaving here tomorrow morning heading for Camden St. Park just south of Marshall, MN As far as I know it will be smooth sailing to get there as far as the floods go. I'm going east on I-90 to the MN state line then turning NE on MN 23 to get there.

[IYQ]

Sorry about that, it turns out the campground actually belongs to the farm machinery museum there. The only place I could find it listed on the web was on this brochure from a farm machinery show. http://www.mnmachinerymuseum.com/Show_2010.pdf. You could call the museum at 507.768.3522 and ask them about camping there. We saw it on our way to the museum but didn't stop to check it out until we were leaving town and the museum had closed for the day. The pricing information I gave you was from a sign in the park.

 

Linda

I've decided to stop at Camden ST Park south of Marshall ( It's right on MN 23). If I can find a place to park I'll check out the Farm Machinery Museum and campground on my way through. I'm also kinda leaning toward using the commercial camp ground at big Lake when I stop to see how big of a restaurant bill I can run up when I get to your place. HA It's only 2 miles off US 10 and would make it easy to continue my journey afterwards by heading up US 169. I'll probably get there Friday night but will call you on Saturday morning. (If I have a phone signal, if not, I come to the park.)

[mskay]

I haven't heard anything on the Mitchell news (KORN) about the deaths of those two ladies but there is a lot of flooding along the Missouri and James River. Minot, ND just ordered the evacuation of the city because the water had raised over the top of the sand bagged levy and was flooding the city. North of Mitchell on the James River there is a lot of flooding of county roads. I haven't heard what the Mississippi is doing but Linda and Dave S. are right on it and I'm sure they would have said something if it was out of control. I'll be leaving here tomorrow morning heading for Camden St. Park just south of Marshall, MN As far as I know it will be smooth sailing to get there as far as the floods go. I'm going east on I-90 to the MN state line then turning NE on MN 23 to get there.

We just crossed the Tennessee State Line at Chatanooga. We're headed North West on I24...safe to say, we'll be sleeping in Tennessee tonight! Lots of clouds and we drove through Atlanta in the rain this morning. Everything working smoothly so far....I did see the people at Minot having to evacuate. The flooding is really bad this year. Hope you have a smooth traveling day, and make it to the park you want. We are traveling much further than I had intended for today, but Chatanooga has a rally in and they were full, so we are going to Lebanon TN... and will sit down until after the 4th of July. Take care and keep posting!

[sandsys]

I haven't heard what the Mississippi is doing but Linda and Dave S. are right on it and I'm sure they would have said something if it was out of control.

You need to remember that the Mississippi starts in northern Minnesota as a creek. It's a full river here but the flooding rarely starts until you get south of the Minnesota River which is on the south side of the Metro area and we are on the north side. That said, our lower level fire ring came out of the water after we got here but is threatening to go in again if it doesn't stop raining. The only trouble we have crossing the Mississippi up here is that they're working on our bridge so there are lane closures.

 

Linda

[sandsys]

I've decided to stop at Camden ST Park south of Marshall ( It's right on MN 23). If I can find a place to park I'll check out the Farm Machinery Museum and campground on my way through. I'm also kinda leaning toward using the commercial camp ground at big Lake when I stop to see how big of a restaurant bill I can run up when I get to your place. HA It's only 2 miles off US 10 and would make it easy to continue my journey afterwards by heading up US 169. I'll probably get there Friday night but will call you on Saturday morning. (If I have a phone signal, if not, I come to the park.)

Camden State park's website says it has two private geocaches and at least one wildlife safari cache.

 

You can't run up a big enough restaurant bill to scare me. We recently tried a new place looking for a steak dinner and it cost $100 for the two of us. And we didn't order any wine that night. You're going to have to drink a LOT of cranberry juice to top that.

 

I don't know what private park is in Big Lake. I know where Big Lake is and have driven through it many times but that was a few years ago and I suspect it changed a lot with the coming of the commuter rail trains there. Now I need to do some research on where to eat.

 

I don't do morning the day after an op session. You can safely call anytime after 11 or so. I might be up by 10 depending on how long it took me to wind down the night before. Would you rather I call you whenever I get up?

 

Linda

[IYQ]

 

 

I don't know what private park is in Big Lake.

 

I don't do morning the day after an op session. You can safely call anytime after 11 or so. I might be up by 10 depending on how long it took me to wind down the night before. Would you rather I call you whenever I get up?

 

Linda

Linda, The commercial park is on CR 5, two miles north of Big Lake. And you don't have to worry about me calling early I just fixed that by paying for this park untill Sunday morning. Then It will take about 4 or 5 hours to drive up there and get setup. So I'll be calling Sunday afternoon. We don't have to go out to eat Sunday if you don't want to. We can go out on Monday instead and I can still make it to Duluth Tuesday afternoon. It's completely up to you and how you feel. I'm trying to figure out how I can run up a big restaurant bill without running up a big calorie bulge on my belly. Oh. PS: I havent been doing any geocaching lately. I gave it up as a waste of gasoline. Besides it's not much fun unless you are doing it with someone else.

 

EVERYBODY: I'm in Camden State Park site 57. It's just about 10 miles south of Marshall, MN. I'll be here until Sunday morning. Boy did I guess wrong on MN state parks. They are pretty crappy and cost an arm and a leg. The camping fee is $23 per night plus $5 per night entrance fee. Read $28 bucks for just gravel roads a picnic table and 30 amp electricity. No on site water or sewage. I thought that because it was a weekend I'd better pay through Saturday night. When I got into the campground I found I was the only one in the whole campground. The campground is just a field with deep grass waist high and a dirt drive that is very unlevel. The spaces are plenty long alright but if someone occupies the space next to me they will be about 15 feet from my bedroom window and though I couldn't see them because of the thick Sumac brush I could shure hear them. The entrance sat about a third of a mile off the highway but the internal road wound around for about a mile and a half then ended up about 300 yards from the highway. I can hear everything that passes. There is also a railroad very near. Two trains have come past already and to top all that off the Verizon signal is very poor. I wouldn't be able to use it if it wasn't for my Wilson amplifier and trucker antenna. You can get an annual pass that takes care of the $5 per day entrance fee for $25 but I don't think I'll be using any more MN state parks. They are lousy.

Edited June 23, 2011 by IYQ

[IYQ]

I just tried to update my stick pin. The title at the top of the page comes up but nothing else. I tried disconnecting and reconnecting but that didn't work.

So my stick pin will just have to stay in SD.

[IYQ]

sorry for the double post but I have all kinds of wierd thing happinging because of a weak signal.

Edited June 23, 2011 by IYQ

[steved44]

Hey, Lee, I dusted off the old "flux capacitor", fed in some fresh ice cream and got it running. While it was running, I beamed you over to Camden Lake. It was a little fuzzy, so I couldn't get the exact location, but I did get the right "day and year".

[steved44]

Well, we got old BessyBus ready for travel. I went into the Cummins shop in OKC on Monday evening. They had me a 50A plug for the night, so that was great seeing it was 99 degrees and AC was a necessity. The next morning they had me in a stall at 9am. The tech that worked on our generator had worked there for 20 years and really knew what he was doing. That and all the parts we needed were in stock, so it all went pretty smoothly. We had a fuel line replaced that the previous owner had "rounded off" and was keeping me from being able to change the main fuel filter. He had to take the sound proofing box off to get to it, and also changed the water pump belt. Oil & filter, air filter (all that Yuma dust), and we were ready to go. Then I went a couple of miles to Morgan road exit on I-40 where Speedco is located. The intersection is a mess, with the whole thing under consruction. I could see Speedco, but had a hell of a time getting to it. I went there a couple of years ago for a PM service, when the first started doing RVs, and one of the guys there remembered me. They did the service including adjusting the PH level on the antifreeze and had me out of there in a couple of hours. Bessy was really feeling good when she left there, must be trying to tell me to "get on the road". Then I drove back to the casino, and my same spot was empty. Just like Tom Bodet, they left the light on for me.

 

We are finishing up a few photo assignments and family things before we pull out, but we're ready.

 

The casino just broke ground yesterday on their new hotel, which will be 12 stories. They were installing a construction fence today, and looks like heavy equipment is starting to show up.

 

Also this weekend is the Fleetwood rally in Shawnee. Some early rigs are pulling in here and circling the wagons. Bill Adams, who installed my Motosat just pulled in a while ago and is parked next to us. The probably have a booth over at the rally. I may have to drive over there and see what's happening after a while. Happy travels. Steve

[rmcf308]

Then I drove back to the casino, and my same spot was empty. Just like Tom Bodet, they left the light on for me.

 

We are finishing up a few photo assignments and family things before we pull out, but we're ready.

 

Steve

 

 

You better get on the road, being to close to that ice cream machine may not be good for your figure. What percentage of that casino do you own now?

Jerry

[steved44]

You better get on the road, being to close to that ice cream machine may not be good for your figure. What percentage of that casino do you own now?

Jerry

 

I don't know, but they call me "Mister"!

[sailbad]

I don't know, but they call me "Mister"!

 

Steve, take it from someone who has spent way too much time in Casinos, when they start calling you "Mister" put your wallet in your FRONT pocket and get out of there while you still have Bessie Bus.

[IYQ]

Steve, you were supposed to teletransport the ice Cream over here not me.

 

I went for a walk around the park this afternoon. It's empty but I found out why the train sounded so loud. This is a long skinny park and the train track runs right down the center of the park. Man they must really hate campers to build a campground on both side of a railroad track. There is a small pond here with bass and bluegill in it and there are brown trout in the river. They brag that they stock it twice a year. Man We stocked the river every week in the resort I lived in, in North Carolina. The fish are all caught within 10 days of stocking in most places.

 

Dave: that's what you should do. Dig a hole on your property and advertice that you stock it twice a year. No, On second though you'd have to stock it with flying fish as strong as that wind gets there. Is that why they call it a fly rod? Is it for catching flying fish?

[sailbad]

That's what I could do..... Turn this place into a tourist trap.

 

Let's see, a pond with flying fish and a alligator. Then we could include an old southwest favorite, the Jackalope. I could put in a mine shaft with a couple of snattelrakes. Then I could put in a skeet range so the folks could sharpen up their skills before going to the "fishing pond". and I could put in a little train around the perimeter.

 

I'd need to add another RV hook up by the gate so IYQ would have a place to park while executing his duties as gate guard, parking lot attendant, ticket booth sales, guide, rock rental, and grounds keeper. We will need the rocks so folks can fill their pockets to help hold them down during windy weather.

[sandsys]

IYQ,

 

Sunday should be fine unless we are having tornado warnings.

 

It looks like the meal will probably be at Applebee's in Monticello since everything else I could find in the area had poor reviews. At Applebee's you can order their most expensive meal with a couple glasses of wine and desert and still not break the bank.

 

Linda

[IYQ]

IYQ,

 

Sunday should be fine unless we are having tornado warnings.

 

It looks like the meal will probably be at Applebee's in Monticello since everything else I could find in the area had poor reviews. At Applebee's you can order their most expensive meal with a couple glasses of wine and desert and still not break the bank.

 

Linda

I love those Applebee riblets but they stopped making the southwest salad I usually get when I eat lunch there. But they have an apple pecan salad that is pretty darn good also. I just started raining down here and the weather man lied. he said no rain for Minnesota. Oh well if I ever find a weather man that don't lie I'll take him down to Dave C's tourist trap and put him on display. We did pick up a few campers today, we have about 10 in here now. It's been a lazy day I took a 2 hour Steve. ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzz

[Wanderin]

We pulled into Sequim yesterday which is almost at the northwest tip of Washington State. We're also right down the road from Lee and Loralie. We stopped and visited with them last night. This morning we're meeting at the Farmer's Market then we're off to Ediz Hook and some old stomping grounds. Look out, Spiker, we already have ferry reservations to sneak up on you tomorrow!

[Striper]

We pulled into Sequim yesterday which is almost at the northwest tip of Washington State. We're also right down the road from Lee and Loralie. We stopped and visited with them last night. This morning we're meeting at the Farmer's Market then we're off to Ediz Hook and some old stomping grounds. Look out, Spiker, we already have ferry reservations to sneak up on you tomorrow!

 

 

Cool, what time are your reservations for. (that way I know when to leave. ) Actually I'll be around pretty much all day as I have a batch of Salmon to go in the smoker.

 

Joe

[ccsimpson]

6-25 to ? maybe a week. We are at the Barksdale AFB in Shreveport, LA. Just left Vickcburg and the national Civil War battlefield there was great and very intgeresting. But we were really dissappointed in Vicksburg. The town itself was pretty shabby. The draw is the battlefield and a few casinos. Well, we can say we have been there.

Carol

 

 

[IYQ]

Well, I'll be heading on up to Linda and Dave's to try and break the bank at that dinner I haven't eating for a week now so I should be pretty hungry. LOL The sun did show it's smiling face today about noon And the temperature got up to 81. With all the humidity here it felt like about 95. Funny but in the desert I'm still wearing a jacket at 80 degrees. Here at 75 degrees I'm sweating. I haven't unhooked the truck since I got here so I'm all hooked up and ready to roll in the morning. All I have to do is put a few things away inside and take off. It's only about 160 miles up to Linda and Dave's so I should be there fairly early tomorrow. The radio said something about 101 being closed where it runs into 25. 101 is the hwy Linda and Dave live on but I can't find any where on the map where it runs into 25. I'm thinking they are talking about some place down where the Minnesota River crosses. I won't be using 101 to get there tomorrow but I will be using 25 as I plan to cut cross lots and use 12, 24, 37 and 25. I'll be crossing the Minnesota River on 23 near Granite Falls. I haven't heard of any trouble there so I guess I'll just be playing it by ear as I head across 12.

 

Carol A: I find that most towns that depend on an Historical event to keep them alive are about dead. I didn't like Vicksbury either. You better get out of the deep south before we have to ring the sweat out of you to keep you from drowning

[Wanderin]

Cool, what time are your reservations for. (that way I know when to leave. ) Actually I'll be around pretty much all day as I have a batch of Salmon to go in the smoker.

 

Joe

We'll be there when the salmon finishes getting smoked. :D

[steved44]

Well, we "broke loose". Left the casino this morning and headed North. We wound up just north of Kansas City in a nice campground called Basswood Country Resort. They are a passport america, but don't honor that on weedends, however they are also Escapees and gave us a 15% discount, so we took it. Full hookups, swimming pool and a lot of familys here. And no wind and 15 degrees cooler than where we were. Feels really good. First really long tow for the truck and it was fine. This is a pull through spot so we probably will not unhook the truck. This place is in the flight plan for Kansas city airport, so a few planes are flying over, but I used to be in the Air Force, so it "feels like home". Well got to go out and "pull a Lee" and sit in my chair and gab with the passers by. Life is good! Steve

[Striper]

We'll be there when the salmon finishes getting smoked. :D

 

 

HMMMMMMMM and here I spent a good share of the day hiding the Cranberry Juice. Just got the Salmon in the brine, should light off the smoker in the morning around 9ish.

 

Joe

[Wanderin]

HMMMMMMMM and here I spent a good share of the day hiding the Cranberry Juice. Just got the Salmon in the brine, should light off the smoker in the morning around 9ish.

 

Joe

And, it'll be finished WHEN? I think you need to start it about 6:00 AM.

 

PS We're going to swing by those parks we talked about before we head your way. Actually we're stalling for the salmon to get done.

Edited June 26, 2011 by Wanderin'