2017/07/07 - Friday - Vacation - Day 23 - HOT HOT HOT HOT

I got up early and got things ready to leave.  We chatted a little bit with friends and got going about 8:45.

Stopped for gas and lunch at about noon.

As we were getting close to St George, I was checking the SmarTire system and noticed the tires were getting hotter, so I slowed down to 55 MPH (from 60 MPH).

As we approached Mesquite, I pulled off at the first exit and waited in a parking lot to cool down the tires and transmission for about 30 minutes

The next stop I had to do at the top of the hill from Mesquite because the engine temp was get very close to red.  We waited there for another 30 minutes.

We made it into Las Vegas before the SmarTire system went off complaining about the temp of the tire (177). O and the temperature here was 117

As we were transitioning from the 15 to 515 the ABS light turned on.

We are camped at the KOA.  When we setup for camp, the A/C did not want to turn on, come to find out the circuit breaker tripped.  Once that was reset the A/C turned on.

The Cats where very hot, so we got them wet and made sure they were cooled down before heading into Sam Town Casino.

We got dinner, Cheryl and Amanda did some gambling, Amanda and I did some walking around.

I left and once back at the RV found out that the dog had peed on the bed, so stripped the bed, turn the mattress over and make the bed.  Needless to say I was not a happy camper!!!

Amanda and Cheryl returned with pockets a little lighter of money...

2017/07/06 - Thursday - Vacation - Day 22 - Friends

We left at 9 and we started to head out of town and they have road construction - chip coating the road...

About an hour later I stopped for gas.

Next stop was for gas and lunch.  I noticed somebody was having issues with their hitch setup and he asked if I could help.  I offered two carbines and we used two locks and some chain to get him going again until he can buy a new pin.

Next stop gas before stopping for the afternoon.

We made it to our long time friends.  We moved things around, put the tow-dolly down the driveway. then snugly put the RV down the driveway (the RV temps were high....)

They allowed us to connect to power so having the A/C on to keep us cool is greatly appreciated.

For dinner we went out and we treated their family to dinner.

Back we continued talking late into the night!

2017/07/05 - Wednesday - Vacation - Day 21 - Yellowstone

We left camp about 9:45. 

On the way to Mammoth Hot Springs area the transmission got really hot.  The climb from Gardiner and the entrance of Yellowstone Park to Mammoth Hot Springs (MHS) is very steep.  The transmission almost hit 210.

We finally found a place to park in MHS (had to turn around once.)  We did some walking around. We got our parks passports stamped and we found a place to have lunch.  We picked the hotel restaurant - way to slow.

One section between MHS and Norris Canyon Rd had major road construction!

We finally pulled into West Yellowstone and went searching for the campground we used several years ago.

We pulled into Yellowstone Grizzly RV Park Resort at almost 3:00.  They only had one spot available for one night and it was a premium spot, so we took it.

Unloaded the van and headed back into the park.  Stopped at several places along the way.  We finally stopped for dinner at the cafeteria at Old Faithful, by the time we finished dinner Amanda wanted to watch Old Faithful.  Once it blew, we finally made it back to the RV about 11.

I received phone calls while we were out but could not listen to them until back at camp.  It was work, so I logged on and checked a few things.  All is ok. 

2017/07/04 - Tuesday - Vacation - Day 20 - Travel Day

I went ahead and set my alarm... well we got moving right on time 9:05 (ok five minutes late... but we are on vacation :) )

At noon we stopped for fuel for the RV and moved to a Walmart so us humans could eat our necessary fuel.

Again another fuel stop for the RV.

The first campground we went had a big sign that said FULL, so off to the next.  I noticed about three other RVs turned onto the road that we are planning to go.  Sure enough all three are heading to the KOA.  So we had to wait a little bit for them to get processed.  And thank goodness they had a spot for us - one of the deluxe spots.  But when they did not have anything else available you just take it and go with the flow.  It is a back-in so I had to unload the van and then back the tow-dolly and RV down the spot.  We have grass and our own "patio" that looks through the trees at the Yellowstone River.  Which is muddy and the level is currently high.

Cheryl made dinner.  While it was cooking Mom M and I worked on the A/C rain gutter.  We had bought some stuff yesterday to upgrade it so now it looks better and less likely to leak.

We watched a movie.

2017/07/03 - Monday - Vacation - Day 19 - National Park - Two

We got up early so we can get to the ranger led program for Amanda's Jr Ranger book.

We were about 5 minutes late, but no issue of us joining and listening to the talk.

We went back to the visitor center and Amanda completed her book so another JR Ranger book done.

We ate lunch along the way to our next location.  Getting close one of the roads was under major construction and it was basically a gravel road.

To get to "Fort Union Trading Post", the drive was is in Montana, but the fort is in North Dakota.  Amanda got another JR Ranger book completed.

We stopped at the "Theodore Roosevelt National Park - North Unit" but the visitor office was closed, but we did drive to the overlook. 

We came back to the RV so Turquoise could get some outside time.

We left again and stopped at two different locations and we got some wood to do a shelf in the RV for the computer above the desk, so I can stop worrying about the cats stepping on the computer while I am transferring photos.

We stopped for dinner and then went to Walmart to do some more shopping.

Back at the RV we got a few things ready for tomorrow drive.

2017/07/02 - Sunday - Vacation - Day 18 - Next National Park

We got moving a little late - around 9:45.  I took the route with the least amount of gravel roads for our travels.  I did not go straight to the 95, I waiting for awhile until heading north.

Around lunch time the rest area I was going to use was closed so I had to wait another hour before stopping and having lunch.  For some reason I was more tired today driving then I have been on this trip.

We stopped for gas, thinking it was a Flying J's but it is a Shell for gas (Flying J's for the truckers).

We are stopped for the night in Dickinson for two night, so we can go see the three National Parks in area.

Unloaded the van from the tow-dolly and we headed out.  I drove through part of town in search of a hardware store, but nothing on that route.

We stopped at "Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Painted Canyon Visitor Center"  and then continued on to "Theodore Roosevelt National Park - South Unit".  Amanda got the paper work so she can start working on the Jr Ranger Badge.

We did the Scenic Loop Drive - 36 miles and saw several animals, also during the loop a thunder storm moved over and we got to see the lighting show with lots of rain for about an hour.

Back out of the park, we stopped for dinner.

On the way back to the RV, the wind and rain was really bad for part of the drive.

2017/07/01 - Saturday - Vacation - Day 17 - Full and Horses

After getting the RV ready and pulling out of our spot, I put the van onto the two-dolly.  We finally left about 9:20.

We arrived in Fargo and our first stop was at Flying J's to fill the RV.  At the next location, the RV park was full, so we went to choice number two and they are full also.  So I headed for the airport.  Found a big parking lot and stopped to do lunch.

Called a few more places further out of town.  Finally found one that could take us for one night.

After eating lunch we headed for camp, come to find out they are on a gravel road and they really tailor to the horses.

Unloaded the van and Mom D got her stuff ready for her flight home tonight.

We got into the van and headed back into Fargo, first stop was at Flying J's again but gas for the van.

Next stop - dinner

After dinner we went to the airport and dropped off Mom D for her late flight home.

We went to Walmart to do some shopping.

I took the route that Waze wanted me to go and that was longer and more time on the gravel.  The van is really dusty now!

I did laundry - two loads, the first load I had to do two cycles in the dryer.

2017/06/30 - Friday - Vacation - Day 16 - Headwaters

Got things ready, but before leaving the campground I dumped the tanks (did not have full hookups).  Amanda called a campground to see if they had full hookups for the night and they do, so we set the computer and phone to that destination.

Gas stop of course was need to fill the beast!

Today was a very nice short day.  We got to the campground by lunch.  our site is a back in so unload the van and back the tow-dolly down the spot.

We ate lunch and headed out.

We went to see the headwaters of the Mississippi River.  We paid our $5 to get into the state park (Itasca State Park) for the day and headed to the visitor center.  We took Turquoise.  It was somewhat on the colder side so we did not want to go into the water, we did let Turquoise go in.

After doing that we continued the loop around the state park (which we did not do so many years ago).

We dropped of Turquoise back at the RV and headed into town.

After driving all the way through we stopped at the north end of town for dinner

Before heading back to camp, Cheryl wanted some ice cream so we stopped at a place to get some.

I walked the dog on the trail they have, and I did the two loops (long and short loops).  Once back I sat around the campground campfire and listen to the karaoke.

2017/06/29- Thursday - Vacation - Day 15 - Duluth

After moving and finally put the van onto the tow-dolly (slippery when wet) we got moving about 9:20.

Before leaving town we got the necessary juices for the RV.  The pump had the instructions for Credit and Debit reversed.  When I hit credit it wanted the debit pin (and the only other option was to cancel), but finally I hit debit and it worked as expected (processed as credit).

Next stop was at "Apostle Islands National Lakeshore" - "Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center".  Amanda worked on the JR Ranger program and got another one completed.  We also ate lunch in the parking lot afterwards.

Looking at the distances and time, we stopped at the KOA west of Duluth.  After setup we headed back into town and went to the "Lake Superior Maritime Center" and we also watch the Aerial Lift Bridge raise so some sail boats could pass.

Well, we are in Duluth so we had to find and do some shopping at the Duluth Trading Company.

We found a place for dinner and then we drove some more to a yogurt place for their dessert.

Back at camp I loaded the van back on the tow-dolly.  Cheryl and I walked around the campground twice and we relaxed.

2017/06/28- Wednesday - Vacation - Day 14 - Mining

Again, we got another late start... We left at 9:50, but then stopped to fill out the gas guzzling monster.

We are going to stop earlier then normal.  So the next stop was to camp on the outskirts of Hancock MI.  We only have electricity hookups for this park, the two reason was to be able to do laundry and the other was go visit two National Parks locations up the peninsula.  The office put us in a very deep spot, we are extremely secluded.

After eating lunch and getting dinner items made, we headed out.

We are doing the "Keweenaw National Historical Park".  The first stop was at the Quincy Unit location.  We decided that the mine tour (2h45m) was going to take to much time and the rain had started up so we opted out of that.  The next stop was Calumet NP Visitor center and Amanda worked some more on the JR Ranger badge.  She also picked up two other JR Ranger programs to work on.

On the way back to the RV, they wanted to get some shopping done, so we headed over to the Wal-Mart in town and got a few things.

We ate dinner and Mom M and I went and did laundry - which was only one machine for washing and one machine for drying and we needed to do three loads, and that took over two hours.

2017/06/27 - Tuesday - Vacation - Day 13 - Water

We finally got moving about 9:30.

We stopped at a hardware store and got two bolts for the tow-dolly (one is a spare...)

We stopped at Sam Club for gas and Cheryl, Amanda and Mom D went in for a few items.

I had to take a detour, but we finally made it over to the I-75.  We stopped at the first rest area and had a late lunch.  Cheryl also made items for dinner (sandwiches).

We drove over the Mackinac Bridge, nice and high, they were also doing construction so we were down to one line for each side.  We paid our toll of 14 dollars (RV-10, Car-4)

The next exit after the bridge we headed west on US-2.  Then headed north and west.

We are camped just outside of Munising MI at a new KOA location (the old location has been renamed)

We unloaded the van and took off for some sight seeing.  Waterfalls, some exploring, and finally into the national park.  We also eat our sandwiches and whatnot at one of the stopped we did in the park.

Back at the RV, Amanda noticed the drip tray in the fridge was frozen again, so I worked on cleaning out the line more this time and it seems to be draining now.  I also noticed that the external drip/splash tray is not totally clear, that will require more work at a later time.

2017/06/26 - Monday - Vacation - Day 12 - Sand Dunes

We got a late start, We all slept in.  We finally got on the road at 10.

Gas and a lunch stop was at a Flying J's.

I got a call from work wanting me to explain what had happen in the past, so I will do that later tonight.

We finally made it to the campground in the Platte River National Park Campground.  They did have a spot for us for the one night.

I stopped first to fill our water tank and then headed to our camp site.  I unloaded the van, that is when I noticed that I did not put the pin back in to stop the tilt of the tow dolly - sure glad nothing happened bad! I backed the dolly up and unhooked it before moving further back and setting up camp.

We jumped into the van and headed to one of the Sleeping Bear Dunes Visitor Centers. Amanda was able to get another JR Ranger badge.  We then found the scenic drive and made several stops.  We did a lot of walking in the sand.  The views were great and with clouds and all.

We finally found a gas station and then a place for dinner, but the wait was about 45 minutes.  The food was good.

Before heading back to the RV, we stopped and Amanda took some more pics of the sunset over the water

Back at the RV, I was able to process and store the photos that we have taken the last few days.

I also replied to the email from work...

2017/06/25 - Sunday - Vacation - Day 11 - Unknown Battles

We really got a late start, but that seems to be normal when we have been stopped for several days at on location.  And top it off I had to wait until I pulled out of the space before hooking up the tow-dolly and van.  We finally left the campground at 10.

I was going to stop at a Flying J's for lunch but the off ramp was backed WAY up.  At that same off ramp everybody was heading to a air show.  I finally got out of the right lane and just skipped it.

About half an hour later (about 12:25) we stopped for lunch at a rest area.

Finally we stopped for gas at another Flying J's.  I had to go into the store and complain to the manager about the no receipt and the squeegee was no good (both sides were bad (pad & rubber)).

We stopped at River Raisin National Battlefield Park.  Amanda got another JR Ranger badge.  One of the ranger talked to us for some time and gave us a lot of history of the battles at this location.  That took about hour and 15 minutes.

We stopped for the night at about 6:05, at the same campground from 5 years ago - Detroit Greenfield RV Park.

I unloaded the van from the tow dolly and headed into town.  We stopped for dinner then went shopping for food supplies.

Back at the RV, I put the van back onto the dolly.  I also went ahead and started the camera transfer computer, Amanda has over 1100 photos to transfer to the hard drive from the last few days.

2017/06/24 - Saturday - Vacation - Day 10 - Square Dancing

We got started late, but we made a decision last night to do lunch first before spending the rest of the day down at the convention center.

Lunch was at a White Castle (In-and-Out is way better!).

I forgot my badges so went back to the RV to retrieve them before going to the convention center.

We converted to the long form for Kansas MO convention and then paid for the Spokane convention.  We went to the vendor area to get a thing or two.  Then we watched them break the worlds record. But I have an issue with that.  Mom M, I, and plus about 18000+ other people danced in 1981 on a football field, so I am not sure what record they are trying to break!

We did do some dancing in the Mainstream Hall.

We walked to Morton's for some very good and expensive food for dinner.

Back at the convention center, we paid for the 2021 convention that will be in Jackson MS.  We went and watched two demonstrations and then headed to the youth hall to see how the turnout was.  Based on the numbers I seen, things look good.

On the way home, it took me a trip around a few blocks, but finally was able to go over the "John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge", in fact we drove over it three times.

Back at the RV we got a few things put away to get ready for travel tomorrow!

I think we all had a good time at this years convention!

2017/06/23 - Friday - Vacation - Day 09 - SQ, Wet, & Race

Got somewhat of a late start for the morning, but we finally made it to the convention center for Square Dancing Convention.  We did some talking, walking, shopping, and more talking.

Now it was time for lunch, so we headed outside for a "short" walk.  During lunch the rain started up. So for the return trip we tried to use the Sky Walk.  We crossed the street and went into that building to start to use the Sky Walk.  But that ends about half way back, so back outside we went into the pouring rain.  Once on the next section, about half way again, it had you find a very weird path to continue into the last section of the Sky Walk before finally getting to the Convention Center.

We did more walking and talking.

Now it was time for going back, changing, and getting dinner.  It was pouring down with Flash Flood Warning (Alerts came over our phones...).  Several time driving back to the RV, I was splashing big time through some very deep water.

Back at the RV Mom M discovered that the cab over part had lots of water.  We spent the next hour with towels to soak up all the water and trying to determine where the water was coming from.  Several towels are now hanging in the shower to drip dry.

We got ready and headed out for dinner on the way to the convention center.  After the long time at dinner the group decided that we will just return back to the RV.

Back at the RV the rain had almost stopped so no new water spots and we might have found where the leak is coming from (driver side window up in the cab over.)

Amanda, Cheryl and I headed out for some night time photo shots.  We came upon a bicycle race.  Amanda took several shot for the next two hours.  One of the racers wife also noticed Turquoise and she stop and talked with us for the last hour.

Back at the RV the moms were almost ready for bed.  We got most of the things put away and we left the section to dry out some more, so that meant Mom M to sleep on the floor using the half of the over the cab cushion.

2017/06/22 - Thursday - Vacation - Day 08 - Taft and Picked Upped

We headed out for an appointment for Amanda.  Once that was done, we headed over to the William Howard Taft National Historic Site and spent about two hours.  Amanda got another JR Ranger badge. 

Now it was time for lunch we found a small place and was extremely surprised on how little we had to pay for all three of us.

We came back to the RV and took Turquoise for a walk around the pond.  One section of it you were walking in the mud because the pond is over the normal level. 

I also went ahead and did laundry.

We headed over to the airport to go pickup Mom D and Cheryl.  On the way back we stopped for dinner.

Back at the RV we got everything put away and now it is time for some needed sleep.

2017/06/21 - Wednesday - Vacation - Day 07 - Arrived

Before we left the campground, I got the propane gas topped off.  So that delayed us from leaving until about 9:30 when we finally hit the road.

Next stop was gas, but I missed the first exit for Fly J's, but luckily the next exit had Pilot so we stopped there to top of the gas tank.

The traffic was not bad when we skittered around Indianapolis.

We stopped for gas and a late lunch about 30 minutes outside of Indianapolis.  That Pilot has no good location to park, so we had to go across the street and park at the casino to eat lunch.

We pulled into the RV Park a little after 4. Paid for the next four nights.  The RV park is in Ohio but the road to get into the park is in Indiana.

We got a back in space at the ponds edge.  Unload the van and unhook the tow-dolly.  Once we got the RV leveled Amanda noticed that the AC unit was leaking on the inside.  It appears that the condensation vent holes are plugged again.  So that meant we spend the next half hour building my red neck a/c rain gutter to weep the water out of the condensation tray and down the plastic into the sink.

We also put on the Thunder Shirt for Turquoise because we can see on the weather app that rain was coming.

We left to go explore, so we left and headed to the convention center.  We picked up all the packets.  I also spent some money on two new belt buckles (current and next convention).  We also visited the youth/family hall and they have carpet floors, so not very good to dance on.  On our way out we stopped and watch a little bit of the Trains In Dance down in the live band hall.

The parking is charging $20 for the event - very expensive for only 2 hours being there.

I took a different route home and went to find dinner.  We left the convention center (Ohio) and drove into Kentucky, passed where Mom D and Cheryl will be landing and then into Indiana.  We drove further south looking for a place to eat.  After turning around we stopped.

After dinner we filled up the van and headed back to the RV.

The rain gutter did its most of the job, we only had one minor part that needed to be fixed but nothing major.

We watched a little tv and then headed for bed.  The next few days will be busy days.

2017/06/20 - Tuesday - Vacation - Day 06 - Arch in the distance.

It was hard leaving friends in the morning, but finally we left a little after 9:30.

On the way to the freeway, we got stopped by a train, so I took that time to double check the straps on the van, yep they needed tightening. 

The toll road cost a little less then $10.

We stopped for fuel and lunch at Flying J's in Joplin.  I could not see any signs of the tornado from several years ago.

Next stop again was another Flying J's for more fuel of course.

St Louis is not fun to drive through in a big vehicle.  Several of the ramps backed way up onto the freeway causing some major slowdowns.  And that down town exit to cross the river is really bad!  But of course you can see the Arch while we were waiting for traffic to move.

 We stopped about an hour east of St Louis for the night.

Amanda started working on dinner and Mom M, Turquoise and I walked around the pond.

We watched two movies tonight. 

Amanda noticed that a rain cell was going to move over so we put the Thunder Shirt on Turquoise and that did seem to work.  He was a little nervous but not totally freaked out.

2017/06/19 - Monday - Vacation - Day 05 - Friends

We got going almost on time 9:05

We got gas at Fly J's and Amanda and Mom M went in to grab something quick and simple for a lunch/snack.

The toll road cost us $11

Waze did a total reset for some reason in the middle of the city freeways.

We got to your friends place shortly after 1.  I had to unload the van from the tow-dolly and then back in the RV to setup for the night.

We put Turquoise in the back yard so he could get some running and rooming in.

We headed to Wal-Mart for some items (we ran out of paper towels)

Back at the friends place, dinner was in the process of being cooked/made.

Dinner was very good and we had good conversations.

L.G., A.M. and I played a game on the PS2 system until it was way late in the night...

Lets hope we can get up in a reasonable time.

2017/06/18 - Sunday - Vacation - Day 04 - Accommodating

We got a little latter start then planned.  We left at 9:20 and our first stop was shortly afterward.

Gas stop at Flying J's and Amanda went in and got a cinnamon roll and she also got some biscuit bites for me and Mom M.

We stopped at a rest area for a little lunch.

Another gas stop still in New Mexico.

Crossed into Texas a little after 3 and we left Texas at 6.

Another gas stop before finding a camp ground.

We stopped at a KOA at 7:20 for the night and found out they do somewhat of a dinner, so we went back to the office after setting up to have dinner.  Their menu is not much and with all of our issues with food, they were VERY accommodating.  When they gave us the bill it was very small, so I gave a very good tip!

2017/06/17 - Saturday - Vacation - Day 03 - Route 66

We got up and headed into the house for breakfast.  Thanks again for the great food.

We got on the road about 9:15.  We stopped at Sam Club in Flagstaff for the RV and food next door for us around noon.

Around 4 it was time to get gas again for the RV.

I was using Waze (of course) and I noticed that it wanted me to get off the freeway and then get back on about 7 mile down the road.  The detour was at the exact same spot as last year.  Waze was routing us around a construction zone that had traffic backed up (one line).  But the on ramp we were to use was closed and Waze did not have it closed, but of course Waze just recalculated and we got back onto the freeway (three miles further) at the next exit/on ramp.  And we still made time. The only issue I had using the detour was the road was ruff.  Using the ruff and winding road, the SmarTire system alarm went off telling me the rear inside passenger tire was extremely hot (177).  The next several miles I stayed at 55 MPH to help bring the temps down on the tire.

We stopped for the night around 7:30 at Route 66 RV Resort.  We went into the Casino and had dinner.  A band did entertain us for part of it.

2017/06/16 - Friday - Vacation - Day 02 - Another Tire

We got moving about 8:40.  First stop was at Flying J's to feed the RV the necessary fuel.

Once on the road, the pulsating vibration seemed to be worse.  So I went ahead and stopped at the Barstow Wal-Mart.  Well, the tire I thought was bad is bad.  So I changed the tire.

Now the drive was smother, well as smooth as California roads are.

We stopped at John Wilkie Rest area for lunch.  Amanda would not make my lunch, but my mom did :)

The tire sensors was indicating the tires were getting hot (174) so I slowed down from 60 to 56 and that help lower the tire temperatures.

Amanda did some research and we found out that Kingman does have a Discount Tire store so we stopped there to replace the bad tire and get the front two re-balanced.  The manager noticed that I did not have a spare for the tow-dolly and stated that he can check to see if he had a rim and tire for it.  He did and now I have a spare tire for the tow-dolly. 

Uncle P. came and picked up Amanda and Mom M. while I waited to get the tires done.

Once the RV tires were done, I headed over to get gas at Flying J's, and then headed to family by 4:24.

E made a very good dinner even with trying to learn of all of our restrictions and the home made cookies were great.  We watched a movie before calling it a night.

2017/06/15 - Thursday - Vacation - Day 01 - Heading Out

I worked most of the day today.  For lunch I went to the Bar and Mom M and A.M joined me.

Once I finally made it home, put in the last minutes items and waited for Cheryl to get home.

Got the RV, tow dolly, and the van all together.  Of course the Dog was ready to go, but fishing Amber out of the cat walk was a challenge.

I stopped for gas, because after the last trip I did not fill up the tank and it was over half empty.  We also went and parked to get some dinner.  TGIF had a 30 min wait, Islands had a 20 min wait, but the Peruvian place had no wait.  Peruvian it was - yum.

Cheryl and D.M. went back home and Mom M., A.M., and I headed on the first leg of the trip.

On the way up the pass, the RV felt like one of the tires had developed a bulge, I stopped at Cleghorn Rd, but could not find any bulge.

We stopped at Little Sister's Truck Wash to get the RV and Van cleaned.  Now they look nice, but they did not do a really good job.  They did not do all the tire dressings.  And when I tried to complain they just went back into the bay to start working on another customer and because of that I did not leave a tip!

We stopped close to the Barstow Outlet.  We are camping in the OHV area for the night.  I checked the tires again. I think I might know which tire but nothing visible and purely speculations.

Late night getting the last minutes items put away and organized.  Wish us luck and no major issue with the tire tomorrow...