Back to TX -- the Ohio Leg

We left Timber Ridge Campground Monday to begin our journey back to Texas.  Really enjoyed our summer there.  Had lots of "Davis time" this summer and are so appreciative our their generosity over the summer.  Will miss those smiling faces.

Drove down to Columbus and stayed a night at the Cross Creek Camping Resort.  Since we were there last, they instituted a "no pet fence" policy which sucked, especially for Tangy.  We were going to go the ignorance route and put it up any way, but with just a one night, we figured we'd fight that battle on another stay.

We went to the Winking Lizard Westerville to meet with our friends Craig and Sandy, Dave and Jean and were surprised by Connie's cousin Lisa and her friend Wendy.  Had a great time, even though the Indians (a theme) lost AND I forgot to take a picture of our table.  Great catching up, they've been such good friends.

Tuesday, we headed to the hub of the universe, Wilmington, OH.  Stayed in our normal spot at Caesar Creek (saw a lot of deer!), went in to visit Connie's Dad Oz and his wife Betty.  Surprised them with a visit from Bethany and Kingsley.  Went out for pizza at Generations Pizza before retiring back to the rig and K's first overnight "camping" experience.  All went great except it rained hard around 3a and the vent window didn't automatically close when we went to bed.

Wednesday, we got moving slowly, but ended up at Frisch's for brunch with Oz and Betty, then back to the rig before Bethany and Kingsley had to take off for home.  A great time.

We headed out late Wednesday afternoon to check out an RV park for our Ohio Heartland Rally next August.  Looked like it's going to be a winner, and I hope to finish up details with the managers today.

Finally, it was off to the Little River Cafe in Oregonia.  It's owned by a Barb and Todd Holmes.  Barb and I were in homerooms together since Junior High, and Todd and I lived in each other's back yards.  Was a nice place with a live band, fireplace (which we needed!), and good food/drinks.  Met with Rich and Kim, Randy and Shelley, and even Barb made time to come out and see us.  Again, great catching up and experiencing their place.  Got home to watch the Indians lose.  😩

Today, we leave Ohio for the last time in 2017 and will make our way to Elizabethtown for an overnight, a couple of nights in Nashville before three nights along the mighty Mississippi.

Couple of Days on the Road

We got on the road Monday (the 1st) about 9:30a.  Pretty uneventful ride, not much construction to deal with, little or no traffic through Cleveland and Columbus.  Got into Caesar Creek State Park around 3p.

Pretty quick set up since there's no water or sewage and we weren't going to set up the dish.  We got cleaned up and went into Wilmington (our hometown) to see Connie's Dad and his wife for dinner at Damon's.  (I'm dieting so I had a salad.  Hated smelling those ribs and that BBQ everywhere, but I found the strength.)  Had a wonderful time with Marion and Betty.

After dinner, we ran out to Kroger (diesel was $3.51/gallon) and Wal Mart before meeting my lifelong friend Rich and his wife Kim at Buffalo Wild Wings.  Great time catching up, beating Rich at trivia, and enjoying each other's company.

On the way back to the campground about 0.3 miles from the entrance I double thumped a skunk.  Here it is Wednesday morning and the truck still smells.

Overnight it rained hard.  Carmen didn't get much sleep, so we didn't either.  Waited out the morning rain and got on the road about 10:00a.  About 5 miles from our destination (Renfro Valley, KY) we see a sign that says left land closed 5 miles ahead.  Things started slowing down in about a mile to a crawl.  There was a truck with a fifth wheel still attached that had broken down in the left hand lane.  We're still crawling after we get by him.  About a mile past him, there's a sign that the RIGHT lane is closed in 1 mile.  Now, its a mess and as I look in the rear view mirror there's a storm coming.  Long story short, it took us about an hour to go that last 5 miles and just as we got in the storm lets loose.

We took the 35 mile run over to Somerset and Burnside.  We first started coming down here with Connie's parents when we were dating in the late 70's.  Its where we both fell in love with boating and camping.  From that first time till now the road in from I-75 has become marvelous.  What once was a twisty, turning, up and down two lane road is now a great ride with 3 and four lanes gently going over the landscape.

If someone would have wanted to prospect on property since the 80's, Somerset, Kentucky would have been a great choice.  We rode with amazement what used to be a two lane highway and is now a booming commerce center with 5 lanes.  Nothing (except the 'floating Arby's' and Sonny's BBQ) was like we remembered it.  It was amazing.

Dennis, Craig and Don will be sad to know that "the bus" gave way to corporate America and is now where a strip mall sits.

We crossed the bridge out of Somerset into Burnside and our hearts sank.  That poor little town has almost completely dried up.  As much as Somerset has prospered, Burnside has collapsed.  The 7 Gables hotel and restaurant where we first stayed was closed down.  The little grocery store sat vacant.  Was kind of sad.

Connie's Mom and Dad prospected on a lot in Burnside back in the early 70's.  They still own it.  My friend Craig and I once went down and cleared it off.  The whole development is still not developed.  The lot is all grown over again, and probably fewer people live in the allotment now than before.  Again, it was depressing.

General Burnside Island State Park was our boat ramp, our campground, our golf course.  So many memories.  Other than the pool shutting down, it was in great shape.  The golf course was closed during the season of 2007 and completely renovated by the spring of 2008.  It looked fantastic.  The boat ramp that launched so many memorable trips had been renovated.  That was great to see.

This morning we head to Chattanooga for a couple of days before we're on to Atlanta.

It was either the tests or laughing too hard....

Just had a memorable weekend.

On Thursday, Connie got X-rays on the hole in her lung (pneumo thorax) then Friday met with the Pulmonary Doctor.  We both thought it was odd that she did a breathing test, where you exhale as hard as you can, inhale large, then exhale hard again.  She probably did that 5-6 repetitions.

Doctor said she still had a small hole, but we wouldn't need to see him for a month unless she started having pains at which point we were to call 9-1-1 immediately.  Disappointed that the lung wasn't fully healed, but with him saying see you in a month, we could tell his lack of concern.

We went over to our friends Don and April in Russell Township (Geauga Co.) for dinner and a sleepover before going to head to Bethany and James' house for her birthday celebration on Saturday.  We've known the Green's for 30 years, Don was the head football coach where I got my first Band Director job in Jamestown, Ohio.  Been friends ever since.

After a few beverages, we started going over stories, remembering this, remembering that, correcting each other on what we all thought were the facts.  We did a lot of laughing.

About 4a the next morning, Connie sat up and said she was having some pains, but she was going to try and sleep a different way.  About 6:30a, the pain was still there and off we headed for Hillcrest hospital.  Did all the tests, X-Rays, Cat Scans, etc. and, though the hole was still there, it wasn't any different from the scans on Thursday.  After ruling everything out, and the pain subsiding, they released her from the E.R.  She was allowed to go to Bethany's as long as she didn't do anything.

We went back to Don and April's (who were watching the girls along with their 3 cockers), gathered up everything, and headed to Fairview Park (OH) where Bethany and James live.  Had another great time there, Connie's Dad and his friend surprised Bethany by driving up from Wilmington (OH).

We met lots of Bethany and James' friends and co-workers, even reconnected with one of Bethany's childhood friends from Ashtabula.  Carmen and Sloopy even met some new friends.  The morning took its toll and we retired earlier than others.

Sunday (Father's Day), Bethany and James took his Dad and I to Springvale Golf Course for 18 holes of fun and laughter while Connie and James' Mom stayed back at their house.  Perfect weather, great fun, and a nice course.  I really enjoyed it.

After another terrific dinner, we gathered up our stuff and the girls and headed back home to Ashtabula.  A memorable weekend in our rear view mirror.

Nashville then on to T-Town...

Had a great time visiting with Connie's Dad (and sister), along with some of our Buckeye Heartland friends in Wilmington at Thousand Trails.

Left Monday morning around 10:30a and got into Nashville (without any drama along the way) around 5:30 EST, 4:30 local time.  Love Nashville.  Stayed at Two Rivers Campground where we spent a month in October of 2011.  To recap Thousand Trails (which ran $43/night) had grass, uneven sites, water/electric only and was located in the middle of ding dong.  For $2/night more, we got a level, gravel site with full hook ups and we were 7/10 mile from Opryland.  Don't get me started.

Saw 'Miss Peggy' (so glad as its her last week there) and Lisa.  Nashville is our Carmen's birthplace, and Lisa is the fantastic story maker that made that happen.  Brought a smile to get those two back together again.

 Tuesday, we hopped on the Downtown Shuttle to take on Broadway.  Love this area.  Best live music we've happened on.  In 4 hours, we heard Modern Country, Old Country, Rock, Metal, Dueling Pianos all done very well.  We were both over served which made the shuttle a great idea for $10pp round trip, and we had a tremendous time.  Visited Tootsie's, Robert's Western World,  Rippy's Ribs, Crossroads, the Big Bang, and, of course, Margaritaville.  (It's bad when you have to go back through your receipts to remember where you've been, isn't it?)  No covers at any of these places, but you needed to have some tip money for the band.  We did a lot of "holler and a swaller".

Wednesday was a recovery day, and Thursday was travel to Tuscaloosa, AL the home of the Crimson Tide.  Again, no travel drama which we're thankful for.

 We're staying at the Elks Lodge here in T-town.  They have 7 spots with water/electric that they rent out on Football weekends for $40/night.  Great sites.  Went into the lodge last night, was asked if I brought any potatoes (um, that's "Idaho") and met a couple of really nice guys from Coshocton and Wheelersburg.  Always meet Buckeyes, even if they're dressed in Crimson.  We'll be here through Sunday.

The Travel Blog once again becomes a Travel Blog...

 Time for this blog to revert back to its roots and talk about our travels.  Thanks to all for your prayers and support of Connie, we both appreciate it.

We left Ashtabula (the home of Ohio State Football coach Urban Meyer, by the way) on Thursday, October 10th.  Kister Marina was a great time, a great place right on the Ashtabula River, and we saw a lot of old friends in addition to making several new ones.  Can easily say we had a great summer.

Our plans were to head to my Mom's area (Cardington, OH) for a couple of days, then Connie's Dad's area (Wilmington, our hometown) for a couple of days.  We got rolling casually late and about 49 miles from our exit I started noticing some smoke coming from our driver's side tires.  Immediately pulled over to see that one of our tires had let go.  <sigh>  Tires have been a big issue with us.  We've loved our rigs, but they have come with some cheap ass tires.  Had some good news as our Good Sam Roadside Assistance was very handy.  The spare was easy to get down and put on.  Only cost us about 90 minutes.

You can barely see our
rig on the horizon of this
huge parking lot

We had left things open, since Connie's treatment was Wednesday (10/9) and didn't know how she'd feel.  That being said, we didn't make reservations.  Every campground is having its 'year end', everybody get together.  So, when we arrived at the Cardinal Camping Center, we were basically put in steerage.  Gravel parking lot, 50 amp and water, but no sewage.  Not a biggie as we weren't really "camping", just storing our house for a few days.

Our daughter Bethany came down after work on Thursday, and we spend a wonderful day with my Mom shopping at Polaris (while I had the tire swapped out at NTB Polaris), just south of there.  Mom wanted to make it our "Christmas" shopping, and was a little frustrated that there was more 'shopping' than 'buying'.  Had a great dinner at Max & Erma's, then stopped over to see our friends Dave and Jean and their daughters.

Got up early Saturday morning (7:30a is early for us), walked the dogs, got the chair put back in the basement, and changed the tire.  First time on this beast, everything went very well.  Was done by 9:00a.  As I was sliding the spare back under to go up, I saw something in the remaining tire:  a screw.  Couldn't believe it.  Now, we've got problems.  Noon check out, and a had a run back into NTB Polaris.  Guy there was who waited on me the day before and I think he felt sorry for me.  Got me right in and out, so that by 10:15a, I had it on the rig and we could start tearing down.

Pretty uneventful ride until we got to our SR 73 exit for Waynesville and the traffic was backed up incredibly.  I guess there were was a big festival (Sauerkraut Festival), the Flea Market, the Renaissance Center and everything else going on.

We got into the Thousand Trails Wilmington at about 2:30p.  You'll have to read my review after I post it, but it's not going to be glowing.  Met some friends from our "Heartland Family" here, and Connie's Dad and Aunt came out and we had a wonderful dinner and time together afterward.

One week and 1618 miles: miles 916 - 1618

We arrived back to Bethany's Friday evening (mile 1329) to find out that she had a flat tire and we needed to have her car in to the shop by 7a Saturday morning.

Got that accomplished, then it was time to take Connie's parents back to SW Ohio while Connie stayed with Bethany and James.

Got the car hooked up and about the time we should have had lunch, we were going to be at my Mom's house (mile 1435) so we arranged to pick her up.  We went out to Edison's Depot, which was kind of fascinating.  Apparently, during Edison's time, the village decided to rename itself after the inventor.  He wasn't born there, didn't live there and didn't die there, but the little village just took it upon themselves to honor him.

Connie's parents decided to head on to Wilmington by themselves, I spent a little more time with my Mom, then headed back to Cleveland.  Got back to Cleveland (mile 1541) around 4p and we spent the evening with Bethany, James and the kids.

Pretty neat the way our two girls and Bethany and James' dog Tucker get along, play, romp, wear each other out.

We had dinner out at a local tavern (Stamper's) close to the kids house in Fairview Park.  Food was decent.

Afterward, we watched our first two episodes of Duck Dynasty.  Not sure what the buzz is about, but at least we can say we've seen it.  Spent the night in the spare bedroom (different bed #5), had some pancakes in the morning and off we went for Ashtabula.

Arrived back to the rig almost 7 days and 1 hour after we left (mile 1618).  Drove about one way to Billings, MT.  Everything was good here, took about an hour to unpack and we were back to semi normal.

Wilmington and Ashtabula

We spent all day Thursday and Friday in our hometown of Wilmington (OH), actually outside of it about 7 miles in Caesar Creek State Park.

Thursday, we spent most of the day with our parents.  Mowed the yard, my first time in about 3 years.  Don't miss it.  Big moment was we went to Verizon to get my Mom a new phone.  

Thursday evening, we met with many of our friends from High School at McD's Pub.  Great to see everyone.   Amazing how you can pick right up with people you haven't seen for 30 some years.

Friday, was a miserable, dreary day.  Welcome back to Ohio.  Spent most of the day just reminiscing with our parents, though sadly, we did go to one of our friends' father's calling hours.

Saturday was a travel day.  We cooked a pre-Mother's Day brunch at the campsite, then got on the road around 11a.  Lunch at the Flying J north of Columbus, then dropped my Mom off in Cardington.  Still had about 3 hours to go after that.

Got into Kister's Marina around 5:30p, and set up didn't take too long.  Our daughter Bethany came over, as did our friend Lenny.  We then went over to Lenny's to see his Mom, brother and girlfriend.  Carmen and Sloopy got to see 'Dessa and Sierra, two litter mate 11 year old German Shepherds.  Carmen had a little too much energy for those two.

Sunday, we went over to Pickle Bill's in Grand River for a Mother's Day luncheon with Bethany's husband and his parents.  Great time.  So nice to have Lake Erie perch again, and catch up with James and his parents.  Cold, though.

Today was a back to work day, but I did take some time to do some work on the site.  We inherited an old DirecTV dish on a pole that we decided to take down and make into a hanging plant post.  

Neighbors said on Sunday that there were steps that people have left over the years that we were welcome to, so we grabbed a set.  Needs some tweaking, but we'll make it work.

Finally, there's plumbing.  I still hate plumbing.  Had a small leak from the hose so I cut into the hose and replaced the male end.  When I did, I realized we needed a new hose.  Also wanted to fix the sewage so it was more permanent for when we come back, and got all the pieces/parts from the bone yard except for a couple of elbows, but the pipe was old that no one carries it any more, so it didn't fit the elbows.  Tried to make it work, but it doesn't look that way.

The mower

Tomorrow, we'll head over to Cleveland, meet with our parents who are going to be dropping off a mower for Bethany and James new house, then Connie will have her first treatments and appointments at the Cleveland Clinic.

Day 4 & 5 on the Road to Ohio

Tuesday was a pretty ordinary drive day.  Got away from the Boston (TN) KOA around 9:30a with an outside thought of running all the way back to Ohio.

Stopped for lunch as we crossed the Tennessee/Kentucky line shortly after having a trucker honk at us.  Thinking something was wrong, we pulled into rest area about a mile up the road and saw nothing.  First time that a trucker honking hasn't meant something bad.  Whew!

That thought of making it to Ohio faded pretty quickly as we realized the time change was going to lose us an hour and neither of us wanted to get into Caesar Creek State Park after 6p.  We set our sights short of Louisville at Grandma's RV Park, which would give us a 3 hour run the next day.

Grandma's must have had some issues with dogs.  They had to have had the most "dog rule" signs per square yard of any RV park we've ever been in.  As an overnight stop, it was perfect.  Level to pull through without unhooking, gravel and full hookups.

Up and rolling fairly early (9:00a) and into Caesar's Creek by 12:30p.  Sat in the same spot we were in when we picked up the rig back in August of 2012.

Connie's Mom and Dad came out and visited while I ran up to Cardington (OH) to pick up my mom (about a 2 hour trip one way).  Connie and I had some great alone time with our parents, before meeting at the  Max & Erma's an exit up from I-71.

Construction on the main route to the Campground, so on the way back from Max & Erma's I was able to stop at a real, out of the way, private family cemetery to say hello to an old friend.

We're back in Ohio.  Long trip.  Too long for the number of days we did it in, but we're safe, we didn't break anything, and we're augured into our hometown for a couple of nights.