We hit temperatures as high as 102 degrees out on the interstate, but we arrived at the campground to a brisk 99 degrees (it’s a “dry heat”). Our two air conditioners quickly dropped the indoor temperature to 79, but it took a couple more hours to get it down to 73 degrees (no complaints in this heat).
This is a nice quiet campground about one mile East of I-65. When Beth went in to register, she was greeted at the door by a black cat that was nearly identical in appearance and personality to our beloved Mercury. She didn’t cry (much). All sites have full hookups with 50Amp electrical connections. We are located in a small circle of four long and very level pull through transient sites that don’t require disconnecting the tow vehicle from the camper. Each site also includes multiple sewer connections so you don’t ever need more than one sewer hose to reach your dump valves. The campground WiFi is excellent. We have a strong signal with 57/81 Mbps download/upload speeds. Our AT&T hotspot is achieving 91/4 Mbps download/upload speeds. There is a clear view of the southern sky behind the camper allowing our Dish satellite antenna to pickup all three satellites (61.5, 110, and 119). We were also able to pickup all the major networks out of Nashville on our over the air antenna.
Camper’s RV Park – Site #28Camper’s RV Park – Site #28Camper’s RV Park – Site #28
On Thursday we went to Embers Tavern & Grille for lunch. It’s another local establishment that Beth discovered on TripAdvisor. It was delicious. They had a drink on the cocktail menu called a “Grape Ape”. Being a childhood fan of the Grape Ape cartoon I had to try it. It was great. It would probably be hard to replicate, but I’d stop in again and have another one. We had wings as an appetizer and they were nice and crispy and their medium sauce was just a hair under both of our heat limits (our sinuses are clear). A large number of reviews commented very positively on their Philly Cheesesteaks so we both had to try one. Beth’s included mushrooms and peppers and she feels it may be the best she’s ever had. Mine was just onions and I’d definitely rank it in my top 5 ever.
Grape Ape CocktailGrape Ape – IngredientsWingsPhilly CheesesteakPhilly Cheesesteak – Onions Only
Today we left Cade Lake County Park and Campground in Sturgis, MI promptly at 8:45AM EDT and took Beth to Goshen, IN to get her final allergy shot of the road trip. We had a bit of a delay getting started when our power tongue jack decided to stop working. We ended up breaking out a ratchet and socket to override the system manually. While I ratcheted like a mad man I had Beth pull the fuse on the line leading to the jack from the battery. It looked good so I had her reinstall it and suddenly the jack started working again. It was still working when we arrived at our next campground this afternoon, so fingers crossed (Note to Self: Don’t ever forget a cordless drill again).
We arrived at Riverview Campground in Madison, IN at 3:45PM EDT. It was 91 degrees and we setup quickly to get out of the heat. We don’t have any plans to go anywhere tomorrow, so we left the truck connected to the camper. We stayed at this campground back on 7/14/2024 on our trip North. Any details can be found in that blog entry. The only thing that has changed is that the park WiFi has drastically improved and we are able to use it to watch YouTubeTV on our Roku.
On Monday (8/13/2024) we headed 21 miles Northeast to Cade Lake County Park and Campground in Sturgis, MI. We checked in around 1PM EDT. This campground has full hookups and we are parked in a back-in site beside a small canal giving us a clear view of the southwestern sky for easy access to all three Dish Network satellites. We were unable to pickup any channels via antenna. Our Verizon signal is LTE and not very strong at times. We are getting 133/15 Mbps download/upload speeds with our AT&T 5G+ hot spot.
The campground is fairly nice and our site is on a corner and very large. The camp host told us it’s the best site in the campground. For the first four days we had a couple of groups in tents that were of questionable character. The family next to us returned to their tents in the evening long after we had setup and the “Karen” leading the pack (with died blue hair) immediately registered a complaint with the campground about odors allegedly emanating from our sewer connection. When the camp host investigated I told him we had only attached the hose and hadn’t opened any valves eliminating any chance of an odor. We both agreed that there was no odor, but he asked me to dump a gray tank just so it looked like we did something to address the issue. Then he sprayed around our hoses with something from a tank (looked like water) to add to the illusion. Throughout the event he complained under his breath to us about the inordinate number of complaints the blue haired “Karen” had registered and how they all couldn’t wait for her and her tribe to leave Friday. The folks in tents across from us seemed to be living out of them while working full time jobs. We kept everything locked up at all times. Once both of those groups departed, the campground felt “normal”.
Cade Lake CP – Site #18Cade Lake CP – Site #18Beth’s New Buddy
On Saturday (8/3/2024) we headed 8 miles West to Shipshewana Campground South Park in Shipshewana, IN. We checked in just after 1PM EDT. This campground has full hookups and we are parked in a back-in site along the Southern edge of the property giving us a clear view of the southwestern sky for easy access to all three Dish Network satellites. They provide free Wi-Fi that is limited to 3Mbps (too low for streaming). We elected to upgrade to their paid service which bumps the speed up to 5Mbps (for $15/week) allowing streaming. The service was fairly spotty. We would lose our Wi-Fi connection regularly and sometimes the speed would drop to nothing. We hardly had any connectivity Monday and we don’t recommend subscribing to their service in the future. The pasture behind our site is home to small group of beautiful horses.
Shipshewana South Park – Site #126Shipshewana South Park – Site #126Shipshewana South Park – Site #126Exercise TimeNeighborsNap Time for Phoebe
On Monday (7/21/2024) Mom, Dad, and I dropped Beth off at Chicago Midway International Airport and she flew back to Tampa to pickup the grandkids. She and the grandkids spent the night at the Tampa Airport Marriott and flew back to Chicago on Tuesday. My sister Deb and I picked them up at Chicago Midway International Airport and brought them back to Mom & Dad’s (after a stop at the Michigan City, IN White Castle).
We all had a great time with the grandkids. They had fun riding on their great grandfather’s tractors. Penny and Evie learned to operate his Simplicity lawn tractor and Penny even mowed lawn. We spent an afternoon at my childhood friend Paul’s farm where he showed them all of his farm equipment (tractors, combine, semi-truck, etc). Afterwards they got to enjoy a swim in their family pool.
On Thursday (8/1/2024) I drove Beth and the grandkids back to Chicago Midway International Airport and she flew them back to Tampa. Aaron & Alysa picked the kids up at the airport and Beth flew right back out to Chicago. After dropping Beth off at the airport I headed West to a safe suburb (Hodgkins, IL). I had a very good breakfast at the Country Cup Restaurant on old Route 66 (which was attached to a bowling alley). After breakfast I moved to the AMC theaters where I watched the three hour movie Horizon. After the movie I had dinner at a nearby Texas Roadhouse which was also back on the Mother Road (Route 66). I then waited for Beth’s return in the airport’s cell phone parking lot. She returned on time and we arrived back at Mom & Dad’s around 11:00PM.
Tampa Airport MarriottChick-fil-A Breakfast at Tampa InternationalWhite Castle in Michigan City, INEvie & ChuckiePennyPenny and Great Grandpa Bob Hang’n in the MorningOver Medium Eggs on Sausage, Cheese, and ToastWord Search with Uncle RogerPlaying with Grandpa’s Tinker ToysPlaying with Dad’s Lincoln LogsEvie Learning to Hang LaundryKitty TimeKirby out for a Walk with Penny1940 John Deere A Rides1940 John Deere A RidesPenny Mowing LawnPlaying Aaron’s Mickey YahtzeeTime for a ComaTruck’nTruck’nThe Crew in Paul’s CombineEvie Riding Paul’s John DeereChuckie Riding Paul’s John DeerePenny Riding Paul’s John DeereChuckie Playing on Paul’s Utility TractorComa TimeOver Medium Eggs on Sausage, Cheese, and ToastJohn Deere Gator Rides with Uncle RogerJohn Deere Gator Rides with Uncle RogerJohn Deere Gator Rides with Uncle RogerRock Painting with Aunt DebCornhole CompetitionCornhole CompetitionComa TimeCornhole CompetitionCornhole CompetitionS’more TimeS’more TimeCuddle TimeSwing’n with Great Grandma Sarah
Trip from Madison, IN to LaGrange – 7/16/2024
On Tuesday we headed North to Mom & Dad’s house in LaGrange, IN. We left the Riverview Campground in Madison, IN at 9:00AM EDT (after visiting the dump station to empty our tanks) and arrived in LaGrange at 1:30PM EDT. We stopped at the Love’s Travel Stop in Knightstown, IN for fuel. Shortly after we finished setting up the camper my sister and brother-in-law Deb & Roger arrived. We spent the rest of the afternoon on the back porch catching up and enjoyed some Eckrich Smoked Sausage for dinner.
On Wednesday Beth was successful in getting a local allergist in Goshen, IN to administer the next shots in her allergy regimen. This was a major relief allowing us to remain in the area for an extended period of time without ending her progress with the allergy regimen. In other positive news, I could have chucked a rock from the allergist’s parking lot into the Menard’s parking lot. Considering that we will be having weekly trips to the allergist for the remainder of our stay, this proximity to Menard’s should allow us to sufficiently deplete our retirement savings.
Eckrich Smoked Sausage Dinner at the Backyard KOAKitty Happy Hour at the Backyard KOAKitty Happy Hour at the Backyard KOA
On Sunday we departed from Marion County Park Campground at 09:00AM EDT after visiting the dump station to empty our tanks. We had planned to stop at the Buc-ee’s in Smiths Grove, KY for fuel, but traffic for it was lined up clear down the off ramp and onto the interstate. We moved on up the interstate to a Shell station in Park City, KY. Due to road closures on I-264, which we would have taken around Louisville to get to I-71, Google Maps routed us through Louisville and across the Ohio River to SR-56.
We arrived at Riverview Campground in Madison, IN around 3:20PM EDT. It’s located just around the bend from Hanover College where Woody Harrelson and Mike Pence attended and I never realized was located along the Ohio River. This is a nice city campground right on the Ohio River. We have a great view of the river from our recliners. We are in Site #2 which the hosts tell us is the best spot in campground (we would have to agree). The other sites are fairly close together. One very long Travel Trailer had a hard time backing into their site due to a Marathon Motorcoach across the aisle sticking out into aisle. We have 50Amps and water hookups. The dump station is located along the street.
We were able to pickup Dish Network satellites 110 and 119 from the rear of our camper (satellite 61 was blocked by a tree). This allowed us to access all of the channels we were interested in (including Louisville locals). We were also able to pickup NBC, CBS, FOX, and CW stations via antenna. We are getting 37/46 Mbps download/upload speeds with our AT&T 5G+ hot spot.
Riverview Campground – Site #2Riverview Campground – Site #2Riverview Campground – Site #2Riverview Campground – Recliner View
On Friday we departed from Reed Bingham State Park at 09:00AM EDT. We stopped for fuel at the Love’s Travel Stop in Jackson, GA. We stopped at this particular Love’s because they have an Amazon Locker to which we had shipped a replacement toilet valve (ours is leaking). We hit three traffic jams in Atlanta at the south end (18 minutes), downtown (10 minutes), and the north end (20 minutes). We stopped at a new RaceTrac in Emerson, GA to use the restroom. We topped off on fuel while we were there.
Traffic in Chattanooga was backed up starting at the I-24 exit all the way through to the western edge of town. We experienced another one hour delay. We reached the Marion County Park Campground in Jasper, TN at 5PM EDT.
We have a nice campsite (#53) but it’s not on the water. When I made the reservation, I was told up front that it was 30Amp (no 50Amp) with water. We had to lift the driver side of the camper 2″ to get level. When I connected the power I noticed a 50Amp breaker so I gave it a try, but it was dead. I hooked up to the 30Amp connection and started both air conditioners separately to avoid popping a breaker. The breaker at the pole never popped, but one further down the line did. I called the campground office and they said they would send out the electrician. He arrived in seconds (he and his family are camped beside us and his wife was working in the office). He reset the breaker down the way and hooked up an amp meter and monitored our current usage. With just our small AC we were at 20Amps (because the converter was also trying to charge the batteries). I think I could have gotten both AC’s running if I had shutoff the converter. This is the first place we’ve been that we couldn’t run both ACs on 30Amps. It took until about 9PM to drop the inside temperature from over 100 down into the 70’s. By midnight the bedroom and the living area were around 71 and we slept well. Unfortunately, while running on just one AC the next day the inside temperature reached 87 again when the outside temperature reached 98. The electrician had been out boating all day and we didn’t want to risk trying the second AC and popping the same breaker while he was gone. We also had water pressure issues starting around noon and finally let it slowly fill our water tank so we could disconnect from water and run off our pump (one less thing to disconnect when we leave Sunday).
We like this campground (particularly the view), but it has been a bit frustrating. The good news is that the half of the campground that we stayed in back in 2017 is completely shutdown for new electric and water (they aren’t allowed to add sewer). So they know they have issues and are trying to address them.
We originally tried the TV antenna and only picked up TBN (and several of its sub-channels). We were able to setup our Dish Network antenna (R2D2) for the first time this trip and pickup all three satellites (61.5, 110, and 119). We are getting between 5 and 30 Mbps download speeds with our AT&T 5G+ hot spot although its reception seems to cut in and out occasionally.
Marion County Park – Site #53Marion County Park – Site #53Marion County Park – Site #53Marion County Park – Site #53
Today we started our summer trip up North. We left home at 8:30AM when our lawn service arrived. We left in a bit of a hurry to try and keep the cats from getting too agitated by the lawn service equipment (they were already uptight about being in the truck). At the last second I asked Beth if she was sure we had locked the front door. She went back and checked which accidentally triggered our alarm system. We were just getting out of the neighborhood when the alarm monitoring company called us (so glad we answered). Once we confirmed to them that we were the culprits, we called our neighbor Terry and he graciously went over and reset our alarm system.
We drove up to Beth’s allergy doctor’s office where I dropped her off and then went and parked the camper at the nearby Dollar General. I was able to successfully park at the loading dock where I sat with my cats and hoped a Dollar General truck didn’t arrive. We left there at 9:33AM EDT and arrived at Reed Bingham State Park at 2:40PM EDT. We stopped for lunch and fuel at the Loves Travel Stop just south of Lake City.
Last year we stayed in Site #35. This year we tried Site #14 to see if there might be fewer gnats in the less wooded area. The answer is “No”. However, this is a really nice site that is still quite shaded, but has a huge open area right outside our door (with no other campers in site). Unfortunately, there are still enough trees to prevent us from using our Dish Satellite. We knew that was a possibility and are relying on the campground cable. The campground cable is “OK” at best. The three local channels (ABC, NBC, and FOX) come full screen, but all of the regular cable channels come in very small and a number of them are not clear. The campground cable uses Dish Network (satellite) which completely lost reception during a heavy downpour that lasted a good chunk of the evening. We originally tried the antenna and picked up a number of channels, but only two locals. We are getting over 178Mbps download speeds with our AT&T 5G+ hot spot.
Kirby the Road WarriorReed Bingham – Site #14Reed Bingham – Site #14Reed Bingham – Site #14Reed Bingham – Site #14
We spent the Spring Break week camping at Alafia River State Park. We were in Site #4 which was roughly 130 yards from the restrooms. This was our first time in this site, but it is now our favorite. The lake is on the back side of the camper, but we can view it from under our awning due to the angle of the camper. On the first night we watched an Osprey catch a large fish in the lake and fly up into a tree along the shore and spend the rest of the evening feasting on it. We were able to easily receive Dish Satellites 61.5, 110, and 119 in the Hybrid configuration and get 142Mbps/16Mbps download/upload speeds with our AT&T hotspot.
Cat TimeMerc on WalkaboutAlafia River SP – Horses GrazingAlafia River SP – Site #4Alafia River SP – Site #4
Mom & Dad delivered their great grandchildren to the campground Wednesday afternoon and hung around for dinner and S’mores.
Evie the Radio DispatcherTater Tot TimeS’more Time
On Thursday I had an appointment to remove the stitches I received after attempting to repair our dishwasher, so we took the grandkids to town and they got to watch the doctor in action. The doctor placed them in charge of counting the removed stitches. That afternoon, Beth set her sites on training Evie to ride her bike without training wheels. Her project was a complete success. The grandkids also enjoyed playing with two different sets of neighbor kids throughout their stay.
On Friday Cam & Susan came over to see the grandkids and eat dinner with us. Cam even rode the electric scooter that Makenna donated to the family. As you will see in the video below, it eventually resulted in a race between Cam & the girls.
Lunch Under the CamperPlaying with the Neighbor KidsPadded up for Bike TrainingCam Popping a BubbleBurgers with Cam & Susan
We took the grandkids to Lion Country Safari in Loxahatchee, FL (near West Palm Beach). It has an attached KOA Campground. Aaron dropped the grandkids off at 9:00AM EST. They helped us finish packing the camper and we managed to depart by 10:08AM EST. It was a four hour drive so Beth packed a picnic lunch so we could stop and let the kids stretch their legs. On the way over we took the route over the North side of Lake Okeechobee and down the East side on US-98 (SR-674 -> CR-39 -> SR-62 -> US-17 -> SR-66 -> US-98). We stopped for lunch at a Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) boat ramp and campsite along the Istokpoga Canal which was nearly half way to our campground. We had a nice lunch and the kids ran off to the boat ramp to look at the canal. After lunch, Beth broke out three old cell phones that she had loaded with games to keep the kids entertained. For the most part, we never heard from them again until we reached the campground. The drive along the East side of Lake Okeechobee on US-98 wasn’t the smoothest and had a lot of construction that brought the road down to one lane in several spots, so we decided that we would take a different route on the trip home.
The Checklist CheckerLunch at the Istokpoga Canal Boat Ramp And CampsiteThe Road Warriors
We arrived at the West Palm Beach / Lion Country Safari KOA at 2:30PM and set up camp. We arrived on fumes so once the truck was unhooked from the camper, Beth ran off to the local 7-Eleven for fuel. We didn’t want to risk running out of fuel in the middle of the safari the next day. The campground roads were paved, the sites are grass, but each site has a nice cement pad with picnic table and full hookups. The campground Wi-Fi was excellent, so we never fired up our AT&T hotspot nor our Dish satellite. We streamed what little television we watched (including Purdue’s victory over Minnesota Thursday night). We were able to hear the lions roar several times throughout the evening.
Lion Country Safari KOA – Site #82Lion Country Safari KOA – Site #82Grandma’s Kitchen Helpers
On Friday we entered Lion Country Safari when it opened at 9:30AM EST. We purchased discounted tickets from the campground at check-in and were told that it was best to arrive when the park opens to catch the animals when they are most active. It took us about 90 minutes to drive through the safari and we had good views of all of the animals. The driving tour ends in the parking lot of the amusement park portion of the facility, so we went in and fed the giraffes, visited the petting zoo, and road the several rides they had available. We ate a rather expensive lunch in the amusement park, but the kids ate like we’d starved them. It’s good they did because then we went home and changed into our swimming duds and took them to the attached water park where they burned a lot of energy. They enjoyed the zoo, but the really enjoyed the water park. Because it was a Friday, it wasn’t very crowded and they could try every slide they wanted to repetitively.
When we got back to the camper, a new family arrived across the street and it wasn’t long before they were playing with our kids. Their son was seven years old and spent the most time with our kids. Occasionally, his nine your old sister would join. His eleven year old sister was not interested, but both sisters were good at helping keep track of whole crew.
Lion Country Safari – LionsLion Country Safari – ZebrasLion Country Safari – RhinosLion Country Safari – RhinoLion Country Safari – GiraffeLion Country Safari – Feeding GiraffesLion Country Safari – Water ParkLion Country Safari – Water Park
On Saturday, we just hung out at the campground. After breakfast we took the kids up to the KOA heated pool for a couple of hours. They were still tired from their day at the amusement park and didn’t fight us at all when we left the pool and went back to the camper. They spent the afternoon riding their bikes and patiently waiting for the neighbor kids to return from a baseball tournament. While they were waiting the kids started challenging us to a game of Truth or Dare. I always take “Truth” to avoid leaving my chair, but they always take “Dare”, so Beth and I started sending them on little journeys around the campground to build up their navigation skills. They really enjoyed that. Eventually the neighbors returned and the kids played together until their family sat down to eat supper around 8:30PM EST. At that point we retired inside the camper for the evening.
Lion Country Safari KOAThe Kids Playing with New Friends
It rained all day Sunday, but Mother Nature was kind enough to provide us with a small break in the weather at the time we needed to leave. We packed everything we could the night before (including dumping our tanks) due to the forecast. We departed around 10:00AM EST. For the return, we followed US-98 along the South side of Lake Okeechobee to Belle Glade and then picked up US-27 and followed it North to SR-70. We stopped at the Walmart in Arcadia so that the kids could have a bathroom break and eat some lunch. The rain was coming down so hard we decided to fuel up so that we could park under the awning long enough to take the kids back to the camper bathroom while fueling. It’s a good thing we did. A gentleman pointed out to Beth that one of our bicycles was about to fall off the bike rack at the back of the camper. We managed to get it tied back down, but we got fairly wet. We all ate in the truck while we continued home. It only took a couple of hours with a shop vacuum to clean up after the kids. We dropped the kids off at their house on the way into town and arrived home at 1:52PM EST.
