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We awoke to another crisp, cool, sunny morning, but this time in Cold Spring. Jay brought Anya out to the motor home. At first she was teasing us, anwering every thing with "no". We got to spend some time with Anya, as Kayla and Savannah were in school. Jay went to take a look at a house at 9:00am. I got the motor home ready and we left Jay and Becky's house at 11:30am. When we left, Anya was busy with the iPad
We stopped in Alexandria at McDonald's for lunch. I had a McDouble with frys and coffee and Cathy Chicken Wrap Snack. Interesting thing was, in Jackson, AR we were charged 10 cents more than the menu price for the chicken wrap snack and in Alexandria, we were charged 10 cents less than the menu price. Stopped at Mill's Fleet Farm in Fargo to fill up. $3.619/gal. We made 8 mpg between Owatonna and Fargo. Between Pecos, TX and Owatonna, we averaged 6.5 mpg. Then stopped at Stamart and put on 16 gal of propane at $2.99/gal and dumped the holding tanks.
Got home at 6:00pm. The porch cats were glad to see us. Had all the utilities and Internet working by 6:45pm.
It was 35 degrees over night in Cold Spring and 52 degrees when we left. When we got to Buxton at 6:00pm, it was 64 degrees. Wind was 9 to 15 mph, gusting to 20 mph. It was sunny to partly sunny all day.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Cool crisp clear morning in Forest City. Got up walked Snoopy, checked the Internet and walked over to the Winnebago Service Center. Got to the Service Center at 9:00am and they got me right in. The water heater was a simple fix, the Thermal Cutoff Switch. They also identified a Safety Recall from Ford that hadn't been done yet, Safety Recall 05S28 Supplement #15 - Speed Control System Modification. The technician was done fairly quicly, but we had to wait for the thermal cutoff switch. It domes in a 2-pack, but he only had 1 switch at the Service Center, so he ordered it from the warehouse so we would have a spare. Total cost with the WIT discount was $80.46. While we were waiting for the part Cathy and Snoopy sat with
some interesting people in the waiting room, one couple was traveling
with 3 Golden Retrievers and a Lab/Doberman. I went up to WIT Office in the Visitor Center and renewed the membership for a year and bought 2012 Rally T Shirts.
Winnebago Service Center
Got going about 1:00pm. Stopped at Mill's Fleet Farm in Owatonna, MN for gas. The most I have ever put in, 72 gallons at $3.819/gal. I thought I had a 70 fallon tank, but it must be a 75 gallon.
Got to Jay's house at 6:15pm. Jay, Kayla, Savannah and Toby were at home, Becky and Anya were at Early Childhood Development Class. We ordered a couple of Pizzas from Marnetilli's in Cold Sprint. Pizzas were really good and everyone was hungry. Watched TV and talked until 11:0pm.
Parked at Jay's House
Over night low in Forest City was 41 degrees. It was 50 degrees by 9:00am and 59 degrees by the time we left at 1:00pm. It was clear and windy all day with wind speeds of 5 to 18 mph, gusting to 23 mph. When we got to Cold Spring at 6"15pm it was 59 degrees.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Overcast in Rolla, MO this morning. It cooled off a little and there was a breeze. Got up, walked Snoopy, checked the Internet and moved the motor home closer to the store to do some shopping. Snoopy's water bowl cracked, so got him a new stainless steel bowl with rubber base. Also bought a 24 pack of water.
Got on the road at 9:00am. continued up US 93 and crossed into Iowa and then US 163 to I-35. Got to Forest City and the Winnebago Visitor Center at 6:15pm. Put in $100 worth of gas 50 miles south of Clear Lake at Flying J. It was $3.779/gal.
Had a lot of wind all day. Cool here in Forest City. Watched Dancing with the Stars and Body of Proof.
Over night low was 54 degrees in Rolla and it was 59 degrees. Wind was 10 to 24 mph gusting to 30 mph.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Beautiful morning in Searcy, AR. We spent the night plugged in at RV Fog Doctor, a glass repair facility.
Adventurer at RV Fog Dr
Rebuilding pane
While they were being assembled they cleaned up the existing seals on the frames.
At 11:30am the workers took a lunch break. Cathy and I went to lunc then also. We went to the Flying Pig on Main Street, used to be "Grandpa's" Cathy had a rib and Mac'n Cheese. I had a BBQ Sundae.
Flying Pig
BBQ Sundae
Cathy programed the RVND 7710 GPS for the fastest route to Forest city, surprisingly, it took us up US 167 and then to US 63 when we hit Missouri. It was a sunny hot day all the way. Beautiful scenery. We filled with gas at a Murphy's Gas at the Houston, MO Walmart for $3.659. Drove on from there to Rolla, MO where we spent the night.
The over night low was 60 degrees in Searcy. It was 74 degrees at Rolla at 10:00pm. Wind was 8 to 16 mph, gusting to 22 mph.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Warm and muggy this morning in the parking lot at Walmart in Jackson, AR. Took our time getting ready. Walked Snoopy, checked the Internet and got apple fritters in the Walmart.
Took off for Searcy, AR at 10:00am. It was about 40 miles and we got to the RV Fog Doctor at 11:15am.
After the race Cathy and I drove around Searcy. They have an old down town with a square with a court house in the middle of the square.
There is a University, Harding University. It is a religious liberal arts school with 7,500 students, 332 faculty members and 48 buildings on 350 acres.
We drove west on Race Street and found all the shopping and dining places, including Walmart. We stopped for dinner at McAlisters Deli. I had a Potato Ole, large baked potato with chili and Cathy had a grilled chicken sandwich. I had lemonade to drink and it was 32 oz.
When we got back to the RV Fog Doctor, there was an other motor home parking. They are from Longview, TX and their names are John and Cathy also.
Watched RTV old shows on TV and then GCB for the first time.
The over night low was 63 degrees at Jackson, the high in Searcy was 86 degrees. The wind was 2 to 10 mph, gusting to 18 mph. Humidity was 85%.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Woke up to fog and gobbeling. The wild turkeys were really putting on a show in front of the motor home.
Turkeys in the fog
At 9:00am we went down to the house for breakfast. Carroll and Roxanne made biscuits and gravey.
Went back to the motor home and got it ready to leave. Dumped the holding tanks and filled with water.
Left at about 11:00am. Went over to US-287, then up to Bowie. At Bowie we took TX-59 until it hit US-82. took US-82 through Gainesville and Paris until we hit I-30. We took I-30 north and stopped on the Arkansas side of Texarkana at Flying J for gas. $3.739 with the discount. Drove on to little Rock and stopped at the Walmart at Exit 128 for the night. They don't allow over night parking at this Walmart, so drove another 25 miles to the Walmart in Jackson. Had dinner at a pretty crummy McDonalds in the Walmart. they charged 25 cents for eater, 25 cents for an extra mustard and $1.80 for a wrap listed as $1.70 on the menu. Bought a box of ice cream bars and headed to the motor home to catch up on the BLOG. Strong, fast Verizon signal in the Walmart parking lot.
Morning was foggy, but cleared up after noon. Over night low in Sunset was 62 degrees. The high in Little Rock was 87 degrees and the humidity got up to 97%.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Overcast when we got up. Walked Snoopy, made coffee and got ready for my ODNA meeting with UND. Cathy is going to do on line scoring for Pearson Education again, so she had to get some notarized information in to them. Carroll took her to Alvord, about five miles from Carroll and Roxanne's. She got it notarized at the city hall and mailed at the post office.
After my UND meeting I worked on some things for the clinic. I finished about 3:00pm. I went down to Carroll and Roxanne's house to see what they were all doing. Carroll and I decided to go to Alvord, to the Ice House for some beer and margarita mix. Nice little liquor store. the county was dry until about three years ago.
When we got back, it was time to take their grandson Ben back to Decatur to meet his dad Chris. I rode along. Carroll explained a lot of things about oil wells to me on the way.
When we got back to the house Roxanne had dinner ready. It was a chicken on rice dish and very good. Carroll brought out a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon that was nice with the dinner.
For dessert we had Carroll's frozen pie with Chocovin.
Over night low was 64 degrees and the high for the day was 80 degrees. Humidity was 79% and the wind was 8 to 15 mph, gusting to 22 mph.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Overcast and humid this morning in Abilene. Went into Walmart and bought breakfast sandwiches and coffee at the Subway. Checked out email. Went back to Walmart for cookies and rolls for the trip. Took off for Sunset, TX at 9:00am. Took I-20 to US-287. Got to Sunset at 1:00pm. Put on $100 worth of gas just outside Sunset at $3.959/gal. Carroll met us in Sunset and guided over a dry, dusty, bumpy road to his place. Every thing is very green around Sunset, they have had a lot more rain than usual. We saw water in the tank for the first time. Carroll said there is 10 to 12' of water in it, but it will be dry by the end of summer. We parked the motor home next to Carroll's 5th wheel. Full hook ups available.
Several wild turkeys were walking around the area by the motor home. We got things hooked up and then cleaned up to go out to dinner.
At 5:00pm Carroll picked us up and we went in to Decatur to Sweetie Pie's Rib Eyes. Mostly only rib eye steaks on the menus. Some chicken and cat fish. Nice table and high back chair seating. Steaks we good it 12oz or larger. Thinner 90z were cooked all the way through. Large baked potatoes served with a bowl of butter. Steaks were highly seasoned, which I liked, but others might not. They play the music fairly loud and some of the wait staff sing.
Sweetie Pie's Rib Eyes
Carroll brought us back to their house for dessert. He had "made" a chocolate frozen pie, complete with colorful packaging. I had a bottle of ChocoVin from a winery in Deming, NM and Carroll brought out a bottle of port from Modesto, CA. Carroll's pie went perfectly with both wines. watched deer and turkeys in their back yard.
Can't get off air TV and didn't set up satellite, so went to bed early.
Over night low in Abilene was 58 degrees with 78% humidity. Over cast in the morning, but burned off at about 1:00pm. High for the day in Sunset was 78 degrees. Wind was 9 to 14 mph, gusting to 20 mph.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Another perfect morning, clear and warm. Got up, walked Snoopy, hauled the garbafe to the dumpster then checked email. filled the water tank and dumped the holding tanks. Said good bye to some of the people we had met and checked out of the Ranch. Seven days for $60, including electricity. Went through the gate at 10:45am.
Headed south on US-295 to Carlsbad, Malaga, NM to Pecos, TX. Filled with gas at the Flying J in Pecos for $3.739/gal.
Drove on I-20 to Odessa, Midland and Abilene. Stopped for the night at Walmart in Abilene. We got there about 7:00pm. We actually lost an hour going from Mountain to Central time zone. I went in to find out if it was ok to park over night. they said it was, but if I wanted to stay longer than 24 hrs I should let management know. Noticed they were having a big close out sale. Went back to the motor home and told Cathy. Didn't see her again until 10:20pm. Turns out all the close outs were 50% off the close out price. Cathy got a lot of good things including a pair of my favorite jeans for $6.50.
We went to try and find a place to eat, but they were all closed. Bought a sub at Walmart deli. Turns out it wasn't all that good.
Over night low at the Ranch was 46 degrees and high for the day in Abilene was 80 degrees. Wind was 111 to 22 mph, gusting to 30 mph.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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Another perfect day. Sunny and warm. Off air TV was acting up this morning, especially ABC. Worked OK after 6:00pm.
Spent the whole day at the Ranch. Cathy did laundry in the motor home. I fixed a few small things in the motor home. Cathy strung a clothes line between the Jeep and the motor home and hung a few things outside.
Went to Happy Hour and said good bye to the people we met here. We will miss the Ranch and the people.
Watched Dancing with the Stars and Body of Proof on TV. We had left overs from the other night for dinner.
Over night low was 44 degrees and the high today was 86 degrees. Clear and sunny all day. Wind was 7 to 23 mph, gusting to 37 mph.
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| Posted by John Hilley at | | | |
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