Fall Break - The Rest of the Stay

Friday - 

It turned cold with a cold front coming through.

It was a nice change from the heat back home.

Coffee on the porch and then we went to Hollister.  The College of the Ozarks is there, and Stephanie wanted some plants.  She bought a few mums, a cactus and a few pansies,  etc.  Then we went to Hook and Ladder Pizza.  This is our favorite pizza.  Valerie has a cold and so stayed in.  

Back at Lilley's and we laid down for a nap, then I made chili.  The men in the room next day were cooking steaks and burned them in their room, so the alarm went off and even the fire department was called.   We did buy our licenses do tried to fish, but didn't catch anything.  They guys on the dock mentioned the fishing was a challenge.  

Saturday

A little warmer today.  We went back to the College and got another mum and had ice cream at the Keeter Center.  Then back to rent one of the bass boats to fish.  

We caught a few but the water wasn't moving much.  I think, in total, we caught five.   We also caught a few sculpin.

Supper was dad's stew.  Then a bit of walking before bed.  We were tired so were in bed by 9:30.

Sunday

Last day here.  There was a heavy fog this morning.

We spent a good bit of time on the porch with coffee.  Then Mom and I went to Price Chopper for hamburger buns for tonight.  They were doing a good drive so I bought a bag of toilet paper to donate.  

Other than that it was a slow day.  No shopping or going out.  Michael gassed up but I decided to get gas outside of town since it was no more expensive and traffic was bad in the morning.

We went to the office, booked next year, and reserved a boat or 2 hours today to kick around on the lake.  No luck fishing but that was okay.

We stayed out for a bit over 2 hours and came back in, cooked burgers on the grill, and visited for awhile.  I think Michael has caught Valerie's cold.  We did take the opportunity to take a group pic.  Lisa took it!

The light on the changing leaves was beautiful!

We packed a bit then went down to the dock for one more round of fishing.  I caught one; a nice sized Rainbow!

Then one last walk around River Lane and the resort and off to bed.  We leave at 7 am.

But first, one last look at the dock!

Fall Break Day 1&2

Wednesday

Neither my school nor Stephanie's has a fall break, so once again, we made our own.

It has been so hot and dry at home it has been terrible and Missouri is always so nice, so we headed north on Wednesday.  We made reservations before we left last year. 

The trip was uneventful except for heavy rains in NW Arkansas.  We arrived at Lilley's a bit after 5pm.  We made a trip to Walmart for a few things, lit the charcoal for burgers and settled in.  Michael had to take Valerie to urgent care for a cold, which was concerning since she had heart surgery 7 weeks ago.  

Thursday

We got up and had coffee.  It was slightly rainy and still warm. 

Steph, Sadie, Kathleen and I went to Bass Pro and Brandon Landing, had lunch at the Fish House (Sadie had a pound of shrimp and could only eat a fraction), the Brandon Dragon game store, and a rock shop.  Then back home, got fishing licences and tried to fish from the dock.  No luck, but still fun.  

Tacos for supper.  It is supposed to turn cold overnight.  

#Summer2026 - Jamaica Beach

This is a bittersweet outing, as it is the last outing with the 2020 Sportsmen.  Three trips to Florida and a number to the coast, the RV has been a faithful friend.  

But things, primarily cosmetic, began to bug us, and after the trip to Orlando we wanted to try a more stable pull.  

So between trips we found a fifth wheel that met our needs.  But as we only had a few days, we opted to go to Galveston in the old work horse.  

Leaving home on Sunday morning meant lesser traffic, which was good.  Rain around Houston, however, was a bit stressful.  But we got to Jamaica Beach, settled in, and began our coast vacation.  We even managed a turn in the Lazy River. 

Monday was hanging around camp but lunch was at Bennos and we had burgers on the grill.

There were storms down here with lots of rain.  Tuesday was cooler and overcast so we went to Surfside and had lunch at the Seahorse Bar and Grill. The potions were huge.  

The storms last night kept us up, so we took a nap then went to eat at West Isle Marina.  Lance met is there.

It is cool to eat right on the water.

The rains didn't really clear until Wednesday afternoon.  Kay and Marvin came to visit and Mom and Dad went to Bennos with them for lunch.  We went to the beach.

The seven of us went to Miller's for supper. Our waiter was fantastic!. .the food was phenomenal too!.  IMHO the crab balls are the best.  The Shrimp n' Stuff food truck had good ones also but they were a close second!

Out habit has been to walk in the evenings, so we did that before bed.

Thursday was a slow morning, but after coffee we went to the seafood market for shrimp and redfish to take home.  I grilled up some shrimp for a light lunch and we air-dried our left over crab balls.   The to the lazy river.  Stephanie got really sunburned today!

The kite store is always fun!

Supper was Cooper's Landing at Lance's suggestion.  The food was really good.  The crab stuffed redfish was phenomenal!

Then back to walk and get to bed.  Tomorrow we head home. 

Last Day -

It was hot this morning.  Finally sun when there is work to do!

Brandon and family went to Galveston for breakfast while the rest of us rode bikes.  We struck out toward home around 11.

Dad was having issues towing his truck so we stopped at the Huntsville rest area.  The battery was dead and wheels locked up.  It's a new truck so the battery should not have been completely dead.  Jumper cables didn't help.

So we watched the truck while they went to Madisonville for a battery.  We got it installed, hit the road, and was home by a bit after 7 pm.  

It made for a long day.  In the end, just under 600 miles and a mpg of 10.3 at the end of it all.  Not too bad!

#Summer2026 - Last 2 Days

June 30.

Today we left Florida.  We didn't hit the road super early.  We had breakfast and walked the dog, the. Got started hooking up.  There was a family in a large 5th wheel from Abilene, Texas, that I visited with, and then we hit the road. 

Florida is great in that roads are well maintained and the rest areas are frequent.  Not so much for Mississippi and Louisiana.  In fact I had planned to trade of driving duties but could not find a place, so drove the whole 403 miles.  

We hoped to stop at the Louisiana welcome center but it was closed, and the roads (I-20) were so rough!  The only rest area was only 10-15 miles from our destination.

We got to Lincoln Parish Park around 4 pm and got set up.  An older gentleman next door greeted us.  I asked about local restaurants and he recommended the Flying Burger and Log Cabin Grill.  Steph was more interested in that so we filled the truck with gas to be ready for tomorrow and spent the last of our eat-out cash.  

The food was so good! Portions were huge!  We both got Smokehouse burgers and Sadie got the shrimp po'boy.

We got back and Sadie and I walked Ferg around the lake.  It was certainly hot.

Then to bed to prepare for tomorrow.  

July 1

We didn't get into a hurry today either.  We walked the trail around the lake again and were on the road a bit after 10 am.  More awful Louisiana roads - this state gets an F!

We stopped at the Texas Welcome Center and had lunch.  All we had left was a few slices of bread, just a little ham and cheese, and PB&J.  

Steph drove from here to the Casey's outside of Tyler and we got gas.  This was the lowest price we had seen at $3.02/gal.  

We arrived home right at 4pm, got unhooked and decided to unload the truck when it wasn't so hot this evening.  At 4:00 it was 97 degrees.  

In total the engine ran on this trip for 57 hours and we covered 2500 miles.  I had planned for 8.5 mpg so 9.5 wasn't so bad.  

We are already thinking about our next trip that way!  It was a good one!

#Summer2026 - Pensacola Beach Day

Today was beach day!  We have been looking forward to Gulf Islands National Seashore for a long time.  So we fixed breakfast in camp, walked the dog, then headed out.  

 

Entry was $25 and good for 7 days.  The flag through Pensacola was yellow but the flag at the park was green.  I think the yellow was more accurate in that the waves were really rough and there was a current that threatened to pull you out.

Steph spent some of the morning shelling, but around 1 pm we decided to go back for lunch, rest and possibly come back in the evening. 

After supper in camp we decided to go back.  We stopped at a fairly empty parking area and enjoyed the beach until 8 pm.  We had the beach practically to ourselves.

Stephanie founds some cool shells this time, including some small sand dollars washed up on shore.  

After leaving we stopped at The Ice Cream Shoppe.  They had very unique flavors.  She and 8 had Key Lime Pie ice cream, which had little bits of graham cracker.  Sadie had mint moose tracks.  So good!

We got back to camp and walked Ferg, got showers and settled in.  Tomorrow we start a bee line for home.

#summer2026. - Rest at WEC and travel day

June 27

The WEC is a massive place. 400 acres for the facility but apparently 12,000 acres owned,  z they are constantly expanding.  I hope they don't get so bit it hurts them.

This morning we rode the bikes with Fergus over to the French pastry shop and had breakfast and a pup-cup.  Sadie and I had apple fritters and Stephanie had a quiche.  Then we set out exploring.

Steph left her sunglasses at the stadium last night so we set out to the list and found.  No one had turned them in, so she ordered a new pair to be delivered when we get home.

There was also a youth jumping competition.  Sadie wanted to see that.  

The day culminates in a $250k jumping derby.  It was fun to see and we got ice cream at a nearby show to eat while we watched the show 

It was after dark when we got back to the RV.

June 28.

On the road.  Traffic wasn't bad but is was hot today and we are all tired.  While there was time to rest yesterday we haven't caught up.  And hitching up the camper was hot work.

We left the WEC and headed north on I-75 and the west on I-10.  Steph drove the last 2 hours.  No rain or real highway trouble.

We set up at Avalon Landing in the same spot we were in a week ago.  Set up, then rested.  

We had been in touch with Brandon as we planned to eat on Pensacola Beach at Peg Leg Pete's.  The online wait list said 30 mins or so but that place gets crowded.  When we arrived at 5;15 the wait-list had reached 2 hours.  

While waiting on the porch the Blue Angels buzzed the beach, which was really cool!

Steph had the baked oyster sampler, Sadie the shrimp po'boy, and I had the grouper sandwich 

It was good to see Brandon and family.  They head home today.  Tomorrow is our beach day!

#Summer2026 - Leaving Ft. Wilderness

Not much to tell today.  The Disney portion of our trip is over, and it is on the road.

I called Ft. Wilderness and asked if we could check out later than 11 am, but we were at first denied.  During breakfast, however, they called back and gave us until 12:30.  We were grateful.  

Sadie wanted a journal from the camp store, so we rode the cart for that, came back and took Fergus to the dog park, and then got the cart turned in before 11 am.  

Mom and Dad went back into the parks, but took our picture before we left.  

We were on the road at noon, and ran into traffic going north.  We arrived at the World Equestrian Center about middle of the afternoon, got set up, and went to Publix for some supplies, among which was a Key Lime Pie.  

A bit of a rest, tamales for supper, then off to the jumping completion Stephanie and Sadie wanted to see.  

Tomorrow we remain at the WEC for another day.  There are some other competitions and shopping they want to do.