On to MI and Evansville

Dave5Cs · October 01, 2017, 01:30:22 PM

We are in Tennessee. Lawrenceburg at a state park. We drove from Nashville down the Trace Nachese (spelling) road. what a beautiful and relaxing drive. lawns all along mowed and just neat scenery. We were going to stay in a camping parking lot tucked back in the trees but no one else around and no lights. we kept hearing a banjo playing if you know what I mean. The wife said there is a state park in Lawrenceburg 35miles ahead. and we were there by 8pm. gate was closed so we called the local Sheriff and he sent the Ranger to open the gate for us and gave us a nice back in on the river. We are at 5683.2 miles now . tomorrow Sunday we head to Alabama. In Tennessee we went to the Corvette museum where I saw my 62 hard top but mine had the front end missing when last I stepped out of it. Some really nice 65 to 67 Rays no others are worth my time in my opinion lol.
Went to Dinosaur World. unless you have young kids or grand-kids with you not worth the time. Am loving seeing our country.
At the State park they had a great Restaurant on the property and we had a pulled Pork dinner there with chicken Hatchets and ribs. lots of Veggies and blueberry pie and ice-cream for dessert.
Left Sunday morning and headed down 64 East then South to Alabama, Huntsville and are staying just outside of it with full hookups for 2 days. Will be doing some stuff there tomorrow but today is relax day.

Dave5Cs

Dave5Cs · October 03, 2017, 06:12:53 AM

Yesterday we drove the Jeep to Huntsville Alabama and toured the town. The art community has a color walk where you follow painted color spots around town to artists painted Murals on the walls of the town. We went to Lewter's Hardware store. The oldest Hardware store in Alabama Day 44. It had everything you can imagine. Yes even more than the Depot and old things you can't find anymore. We headed off after looking through an old general store that had Saltwater Taffy in every flavor imaginable.
We left there and drove to the Botanical Gardens just down the street. Was very large and we had to walk a long way between exhibits which is good for us after eating the Saltwater Taffy,LOL. there were herb, Veggies , trees and flower gardens as well as a very nice Restaurant and really neat wind art by a sculptor who was also an engineer. They were all silver big light weight and looked like wind flowing or water moving etc. Some turned and looked like everything was turning but when you looked at it closely there were only two things that went around in a circle and nothing else turned.
We then drove to Scottsboro and toured the unclaimed baggage facility where all the things you may have left on your plane flight ends up here after this company buys it and tries to resell it. It was interesting but they were also very proud of what they had which we thought looked like old things at a very high price. Lots of clothes and cameras, shoes of which I did buy a brand new pair of white Nike's for 40.00 over 100.00 in the stores. score.
The Kids are exhausted and slept the whole time we were gone which is good. Most of the time they are up all night playing cards and getting drunk on Tuna fish. Gotta go for now.
Pickup a bottle of Propane on the way back to the Bus for 23.00 15 lbs in a 20 lb bottle. About average. Have gone through 2 bottles so far. We carry 3 on board. Mostly for refrigerator stove and water heater.

Road Dawg · October 03, 2017, 08:10:43 AM

youre comments are very enteresting.

Dave5Cs · October 04, 2017, 07:39:24 PM

So last night we were in a thousand Trails RV park in Saulsbury, Tennessee. And boy howdy to describe it as rustic would be giving it an over the top compliment. We get there and no one was at the gate, yes it had a gate and a little guard shack. called the number and 5 minutes a lady came up n a golf cart. Said were we members and we said no so she tells us it wold be an extra 4.00 added to the 27.00 a night. We said we wanted full hookup and 30 or 50 amp for 1 night. She took the wife around in the cart and showed her a few spots. other than about 20 other trailers there was no one there in the other 45 spots including on the lake they had which was covered in algae.
so we picked 1 of the two pull throughs they had. I checked the electric and ours had 4.59 on the meter AC. so no one was in the other and I checked it and it read 122. so I plugged into it and wife turned on the Air. It ran for about 5 minutes and shut off. I checked the box outside again after turning everything off and pulling the plug from our coach. Now it reads from 85 to 137 volts ac. We unhooked the toed and went looking with meter in hand. We found no 50 Amp plugs as she said and had marked on the map. All were 30 Amp and marginal at that. We found two we could get into and that both the electric and the water worked. Looked like there had been no maintenance in the park for years there were huge spiders in almost every box we opened. There were weeds in and around all lots and rv's. So we went to sleep at about 7pm with no phone signals so no internet and our dish could not pickup anything. We go up at 4:30 am and hook the jeep back up aired up and were out of there after we had breakfast.

Today we ended up in Memphis, Tennessee. We took a tour a Gibson Guitar factory, Oh my god I was drooling at how many I wanted until I saw the price. Watched them make a couple of the 335's and saw and held Lucile, BB Kings baby. OK it was one of his extra ones. Saw the real one and it is in a Lexan case in the museum next door. The Lacquer finishes on these look wet. some guy a his Grandfather came in and bought a beautiful Bluish green one for his Grandson who was playing it and was pretty good for 12 years old. The guitar had a tag on it for 6,500.00. Some peoples kids ya know?

The tour was a good one and only 10.00 for a complete 1hour and a half seeing the process but no pictures were allowed. All of them are numbered and cataloged. They take a week to complete with glue drying time and assembly. They cut out 60 guitars in a day all the parts to be sanded and put together. This factory does just electric semi hollow body and hollow body box type.

We then took another good tour of the Museum of Rock 'N' Soul. Wow from a movie of the share cropers and how soul and then Rock got started to Elvis making it all come together as the Radio and then TV pick it up and how people started taking over the business and all the Naysayers who finally wanted in on it too. Elvis's White suit was there. Its funny because we love the Blue's and Rock but never been a big fan of Elvis but there was a lot of him there.
We walked the Famous Beal Street and saw all the bars and music houses as well as the walk of Fame. Jerry Lee Lewis on the side of one of the original coffee houses as well as "Wet Willies"
We then cross the Mississippi River for my first time and on ward we went or 64 West.
We are in a 15.00 a night Rv park very nice in Kensett, AR tonight. clean and easy to get into with our 57 feet of bus and toed. and our 15th new state just outside Blythville,AR which we will go through tomorrow.

Dave5Cs · October 04, 2017, 07:45:16 PM

I got to give Kudos to Nick and Terry Russel for writing their books on travel, VFW RV parking, Free campgrounds and overnight parking places as well as their Fairgrounds book, RV dump station book and WIFI campground guide.
They write a Blog " The Gypsy Journal" which is really great Information.

windtrader · October 05, 2017, 08:58:30 PM

Quite a journey Dave. How much longer you going to be on the road? It seems you are staying with hook ups most of the time. How many nights have you boondocked? Any BLM or other public lands?

Dave5Cs · October 06, 2017, 05:42:40 PM

Day 48
Don we use BLM when in Arizona sometimes near Quartszite area. We stayed at some rest areas in Michigan, We are in Oklahoma tonight at a rest area until the morning. Have stayed 2 weeks at Wife's sister's Driveway (big & Long) and got the front AC hit by lightning and had to rewire it temp to use on the road because of the 3 Kids. Maybe used 9 RV parks avg 15.00 a night If adding all including free nights it maybe cost us 5.00 a night over all the time we were out there. In one last nigh in Eureka springs, Arkansas. up hyw 12 and 62. That was a slow long pull and lots of twists and turns. When we got there about 6pm yesterday there was a Biker get together and a 26 Annual Corvette National USA club Jamboree. And some were caught behind the old Bus coming up the hill. LOL Some pretty nice cars there. We left this morning after touring the artist community and the neat little houses on a loop back to the springs.

We left going back on Hyw 23 to 127 back to 12 and into Bentonville AR. We took a tour of the Crystal Bridges Museum. All kinds of Blown Glass outside in a forest and ponds with huge glass balls floating and long 10 pieces of glass like spears sticking up with a 1000 pieces. some were drilled into fallen logs. The building itself was Frank Loyd Wright esk. With sculptures and water features everywhere. We parked the Bus with the toad in their parking lot next to 30 school Buses took an electric tram to the building and the grounds were filled with walking paths to see things as well as paintings inside by Artist Stuart Davis. Very old 1800.
We were going to go to the Walmart Museum but by the time we got there it was closing. Also the Native indian Museum was closed and could not fit in their parking lot anyway.
Tomorrow we are stopping and taking Boxcar Okie and his lovely wife out to eat and stay the night at their place in Oklahoma.

Then back on 40 to NM to see some stuff. Arizona to see Clifford and Sonya overnight and start that part of the trip back home stayin in Mohave CA and maybe one more stop. Should be home in a week or so.

Dave5Cs · October 09, 2017, 05:59:14 AM

Stopped at Boxcar's house for the night and what an interesting area that is. He showed us the video of the tornado that hit there and killed 3 storm chaser. there is a memorial on a dirt road where they were when it happened. The tornado was 4 miles wide and took out part of one of 3 metal shops he has on his property. A good thing it didn't hit the one that his Hoopy is in. He and his lovely wife took us to dinner at a really nice Asian Buffet and way over ate but hey what the heck on Vacation. The area has many Fracking machines and what a mess they are making of the land around there.
We left there and headed down the road I-40 west to the Route 66 Museum which was really neat. We part our bus in front of the Oklahoma Highway patrol office. We asked one of the Officers there if it was Ok and she said no problem enjoy.
They had a long video on the road being built as well as a lot of the impliments used to build it. A few car 50 Ford and 57 chevy as well as pictures of People going down the road and over bridges etc. They did it with each room being a different era until it demise and how some just refuse to let it die.
We got back on the road and continued on down 40 west and found the RV park that we were supposed to be at with a spot. The guy drove up and apoligized and said for some reason it was very busy and all the spots were taken but if we wanted to fill up on water and dump it would be free and we could stay at the back of the property and run the genny no charge.
We decided to go a little further to get out of the windy area.
so we hooked up with 27 south and drove to Texas and stopped at exit 27 Rest stop where we spent the night. Nice and clean not to many trucks and right off of 27 south. hope to get through Texas today and into Dam still in Texas.

Dave5Cs · October 09, 2017, 06:11:12 PM

Today day 51
We got back on 27 today and much cooler out side. Had to tighten a few hoses that were little leaks. Took care of that and then caught 386 west for awhile then headed down the road to a few rest stops and had Lunch and then through a lot of construction in Texas Lubbock. Ended up in Andrews Texas and stopped at a RV park there. Had food at a great little Mexican food place across the street. There were two Greyhound models on a shelf MC 9 and an MC7 challenger. John Madden stopped there a lot in his Bus when he was going to Texas Games and would give them all kinds of stuff to hang up. Other than that not much here except the stinky smell of Raw oil that make your stomach turn. Lots of fracking going on here.

Dave5Cs · October 13, 2017, 08:04:37 PM

Finally Miles was 8,874. 19 states. total oil used was just under 1 gallon, 2 gallons of window cleaner. Man does Ohio, Indy, California and Tennessee have some big bugs. Got hit with bats in West Virginia. At night they were flying in to the top of the windshield and the front cap. Loud and hard. No damage though. You could see them right before they hit. Diesel was 2.49 to 3.01 Avg was about 2.69.
avg 6MPG pulling the Jeep wrangler. Only had to unhook it once in a station I thought i had room but I would have taken out their Mailbox I didn't see.
Some new oil leaks but not bad. Lowest speed 12MPH in 1st and highest 72MPH on the flat on I-5 CA.
Went through 5, 5gallon water bottles of Ranch water from home plus 3 large cases of bottled water. We are not used to the Humidity. Most fun was Memphis, Rock and Blues, Gibson Guitar factory, Corvette Museum in Bolling Green Kentucky.

Home now and tired and will relax for at least two days. The End

dtcerrato · October 23, 2017, 04:46:24 PM

Dave it was great meeting you at the Evansville rally. Awesome meeting a fellow bus nut & CA carpenter! Hopefully we'll cross paths again. Safe travels.