Winding Down

Knowing it was the last time we would be parked in Dale, it was a bitter sweet moment when we hooked up and pulled out of the Ward’s driveway for the last time. Unless you’ve been full-time RV’ing - we mean really full-time RV-ing without a permanent footprint to return to - it’s difficult to share just how special having a summer place to park in Wisconsin has meant to us. Not only did we appreciate the Ward’s friendship, but to be located in a relatively central location with access to family and friends was more than we could have hoped. The Ward's patch of cement sandwiched between their house and garage...well, it felt like a second home. But now, having made a firm commitment to sell our RV and begin an all out effort to house hunt in southeast Arizona, starting the drive west could not be put off any further.

our 'second home' at Todd and Cindy's

First up was having some routine service work on the RV. Unfortunately, our attempt to secure a service appointment at Kings Campers in Wausau failed to match our travel time table. No matter. Keepers RV in Manakto, MN, where we had purchased our Carriage Cameo in 2011 has a first rate service department. No problem getting an appointment. It simply meant a longer day’s drive.

our 'covered wagon' and wondering if these would be too small

We arrived at Keepers by mid-afternoon, time enough for their crew to begin work. Nothing major. An annual checkup of wheel bearings and address a small issue we had with a check valve in the freshwater pump. As anticipated, they wouldn’t be able to finish the work until the next morning so we spent the night in our RV on the property as we have done in the past. The RV was left sitting in a covered work bay where we hooked up to a 110 outlet and a fresh water supply. One of those rare times where the RV actually had a roof over its head! It also gave us time to wander about the lot looking at changes in small towable RV’s. Just looking.

With work completed first thing in the morning, we bid a fond farewell to Keepers staff who have always been friendly and gracious. Nothing like a family run business to make one feel welcome.

"Dignity"

Interesting to note similarities and changes along routes we’d not traveled for a few years. Case in point: when we arrived at the Chamberlain SD I-90 Interstate rest area just before it crosses the Missouri River, we were quite surprised to find the rest area remodeled and the addition of a very compelling 50-foot high stainless steel statue depicting an indigenous women in Plains-style native dress. Named “Dignity”, the woman is wearing a star quilt, composed of more than a 100 blue diamond shapes that move in the wind “like an Aspen leaf”. A stainless steel band encircling the statue’s base is inscribed with the names of every federally recognized tribe to honor the indigenous people of the Great Plains. A magnificent tribute to say the least.

Corn Palace theme 2016 - 2017

Alas, needing to make time, most of our route kept us on glued to Interstate highways. Mindless, butt-numbing Interstate driving. Thank goodness for Audible books. The upside kept us within easy reach of a few free overnights, the first being a Cabela’s in Mitchell, SD, home of the Corn Palace. Not our first time overnighting in Mitchell so we had the routine down pat. Time to make a stop in town where there is always plenty of off street parking for RVers to inspect annual changes to the palace’s exterior. This year it was all about music. Boondocking at Cabela’s parking lot put us within an easy walk to a nearby Culver’s followed by scoping out Cabela sale items. Other than some Colombia brand clothing (not on sale), we were not at all interested in aisles of camo-themed clothing and gear.

Our next destination? Wall, SD. Anyone who has traveled the east/west I-90 corridor is familiar with the seemingly endless supply of billboards extolling all the reasons one must stop at Wall. Free donuts. Ten-cent coffee. Numerous cowboy and Indian themed restaurants and gift shops. It’s a touristy thing to do (and there's also a pretty decent RV park nearby). Honestly? If you get the chance you have to at least stop once (yes, you can still buy a decent .10-cent cup of coffee). And once is usually enough for most travelers. However, we have a friend who lives in Wall. A friend we had wronged on our last stop. It was time to make amends.

a very happy Dave once we righted a past wrong

G. David Jones, a long time friend of Tom’s from Appleton, WI has made Wall his home for the past several years.  Faithful blog readers may recall that during our visit with Dave in 2014, that we had promised him a home cooked meal featuring Wisconsin bratwursts from Jacob’s Meat Market, a place legendary for its bratwursts. When we had first promised Dave a meal of Jacob’s brats (on Manderfield buns no less), he had salivated for days before our arrival.

On that fateful day in 2014 as the grill was fired up and brats were sizzling, something didn’t quite add up. The brats were not sizzling as they should. The smell wasn’t quite right. What was it? Ultimately, the proof came in the tasting and the taste was…was…they were not pork brats. Unbeknownst to Tom, when Carol picked up brats at Jacob’s, she didn’t choose pork brats. Or even beef brats. No, she had chosen heart healthy turkey brats. Well, to see the disappointment on Tom and Dave’s face was telling. Oh, they were polite enough. And serving them in buns from Manderfield's Bakery helped. But nothing could hide the fact that turkey brats are NOT REAL BRATS!

Fast forward to the present. We had informed Dave of our impending visit and that we would again offer him a home cooked meal consisting of Jacob’s brats. Understandably, he might have been a bit leery. You know - “fool me once shame on me...”? But this time, when the grill was fired up, that old familiar brat sizzle and unmistakable smokey smell missing in 2014 made clear that pork brats were indeed on the menu. When offered seconds, there was no hesitation. Things were right with the world again.

Wall itself was established in 1907, a railroad town for the Chicago/Northwestern Railroad system. At that time it was barely a pit stop but by the 1930’s it had grown due in part to the construction of a road that lead into then Badlands National Monument (redesignated as a National Park in 1978). Every summer, Wall, known, for it’s historic Wall Drug Store, hosts millions of visitors with as many as 20,00 visitors in a given day.

riparian area in Badlands

During previous visits we’d gotten to know some of the local residents through Dave. Another attraction of interest has been the Badlands National Park’s driving tour and hiking trails. There is a particular riparian area we frequent, good for birds during migration. And while we didn’t have a lot of time for an extended visit, we did find time to drive the auto tour and make a few birding stops.

Departing Wall, we turned south onto I-80 toward our second and final boondock stop, another Cabela’s, this one in Sidney, Nebraska. Apparently this Cabela’s was the chain’s original flagship store and offered more than just parking lot boondocking. There was a developed campground with 38 sites offering full hookups to basic electric. If it was ever the chain’s intent to offer RV camping at this level at other large stores we don’t know. We’ve never seen anything similar at other Cabela’s. And we’ve seen quite a few. We were happy to go with a basic electric hookup for a modest fee. Doing so allowed us to drop the fifth wheel, find a local restaurant, fuel the truck and of course still find a time for shopping. Otherwise, Sidney, NE didn’t have much in the way of anything we might be interested in doing. It actually made Wall look pretty good.

Our next driving stretch allowed us to get off the infernal Interstate system for a while, driving through portions of the Pawnee National Grassland before jumping onto I-76 that lead us to the east side of the Rockies and Denver traffic.

We’ve never had any issue whatsoever pulling our 35-foot fifth wheel through the mountains with our GMC. For that matter, we’ve never had any issues at all save for the one incident where we lost an RV wheel and tire in west Texas due to a faulty wheel bearing. There’s something to be said about keeping both the truck and RV regularly serviced. Peace of mind so we could relax and enjoy the scenery (but always keeping an eye out for idiot drivers).

Our next stop was a place we’ve stayed at several times in the past and one we were looking forward to visiting again - Chris and Robyn and grandkids Cali and Carter in Summit Cove.

tight but always doable

During longer previous visits we maneuvered the RV into the spacious back yard making Chewy, the family dog, very happy to have people to play with while providing a shady spot under the RV. Since our visit this time would be short, we snugged into our usual short term spot in  the driveway. Owing to a small culvert and limited space next to the house (with our slides extended) it’s always been a bit of a challenge. Once we were unhooked, leveled, plugged into the electric and hooked up to water, we were good to go.

the kids in Summit Cove

The family had already left for a baseball tournament in Denver where they would be overnighting. Carter had become enamored of baseball much to the delight of Chris and Robyn who wanted him to shy away from head banging football. The transition was enhanced when Chris assumed the role of coaching Carter’s baseball team.

The next morning we drove to Denver to find the baseball venue where the Summit team was playing, arriving just in time as Carter’s team was getting ready to take the field. The Wow! The kids had grown so much! Nothing quite like a family afternoon of little league sports. Even better when our team wins!

After just one more night in Summit Cove, we left early on the 29th. Following a must do stop at the Mountain Lyon Cafe on our way out of town, we motored south on Highway 9, dropping out of the Rockies. Intersecting with CO 285, we eventually crossed into New Mexico and a go to RV park, Santa Fe Skies on the outskirts of Santa Fe. Just a quick overnight before more Interstate driving on I-25 with one last stop at an RV park in Las Cruces, Sunny Acres RV.

Our first stop back in September 2010 at Sunny Acres is when we made the acquaintances of now dear friends Frank and Paul and another couple, Pinkie and Dave Hansen. Since that time we’ve been house guests and shared many meals. Through our visits in Las Cruces the city was on our shortlist of places we had been considering making our home once our decision to get off the road had been made.

Tom and Joyce

Again, just a quick overnight. On our way out of town we stopped for breakfast at our favorite breakfast spot, Cafe de Mesilla, owned an operated by another friend we’ve made in Las Cruces, Joyce Zimmer. Always a treat to stop and chat and meet other travelers like ourselves. But we didn’t linger long. We were on a mission. Crossing into Arizona as the calendar turned the page into September, we parked at Desert Trails RV Resort located west of Tucson, our minds set to begin house hunting in earnest.