We went to Chain O Lakes State Park on the Friday of Labor Day weekend to camp with Mom & Dad and one of the families we camped with growing up. We camped with Bil & Cindy and both of their children’s families (Wes & Anita and Carrie & Jeff). I hadn’t seen Wes and Carrie since 1984 when they were little tykes and I was in college. We had 5 campsites all located together and congregated at Carrie and Jeff’s site in the evenings to enjoy Jeff’s massive campfires (he, Bill, and Wes bring several trees worth of firewood).
Jeff’s Fire
The campground is very large (over 400 sites). The sites were built for campers built in the 70’s so they aren’t very long and definitely not level. We needed to jack our back end up quite a bit so I placed a stack of yellow jack blocks under our rear hydraulic jacks. Beth (aka, “Bubbles”) started leveling the RV and once she got the rear end lifted enough I walked away to see if Dad needed any help. Unfortunately, that was a mistake. While I was gone, the rear of the yellow jack blocks started sinking into the ground placing the bases of the hydraulic jacks at a significant angle. Dad didn’t need any help and as I started walking back to our camper I noticed the blocks sinking and started heading to the front of the camper to tell Beth to raise the rear jacks, but it was too late. The rear jacks slid off the jack blocks quite violently making an extremely loud thud! It totally freaked Beth out because she was afraid I was still under the camper aligning the yellow jack blocks. I was certain we had destroyed our very expensive hydraulic jacks. Fortunately the driver side jack landed solidly, but on the passenger side the base of the jack that holds the return springs slipped off and the jack slammed several inches into the ground. I thought sure it was ruined, but I dug out all the dirt around it and was able to push the jack back up into the cylinder using a pry bar.
Once I got the jack pried back up, I went back in the camper to change out of my “going to town clothes”. When I came back out I could see two feet sticking out from under our camper and our friend Bill said, “Brian, this is my son-in-law Jeff (under the camper)”. I said, “I can’t see him, but I already like him”. Jeff and I were able to pull and pry the springs and base plate back under the bottom of the jack and the jack now seems to work fine. In order to provide more stability I dug out my home made ramps and drove the rear of the RV up onto them. We then placed numerous 2″ x 12″ boards under the rear jacks and leveled them with 2″ x 4″s before placing the yellow jack blocks on top. At that point we were stable for the weekend.
Chain O Lakes SP – Site #261
Rear Jack Engineering
After that we had a great weekend. We cooked our meals over the fire (hotdogs, pork burgers, and hamburgers). On Saturday Beth and I hiked “Trail #6” which was a nice trail and ended up being 4.25 miles by the time we got back to our campsite. On Sunday, my sister Deb came by (her husband Roger was sick) and brought us delicious pulled pork that she had been cooking in a crock-pot for over 24 hours. It was delicious!
Yesterday morning when we woke up in Mitchell, SD, Beth discovered some drops of blood on the floor and immediately subjected each of her cats to a complete physical inspection (I had to inspect myself). It was eventually determined that Mercury was the culprit and we were concerned enough to want to take him to a Vet, but didn’t want to get stuck in South Dakota if it was determined that he might need to return for follow-ups. We had good luck last year with the Vet’s office in my hometown so we decided to drive straight through instead of spreading the travel out across three days.
We were on the road by 9AM CDT and only stopped for fuel. The first fuel stop was at the Freeborn County Co-Op in Alden, MN where we purchased diesel fuel for $2.19/gallon. The second stop was at the Kum & Go in Tipton, IA where we purchased diesel fuel for $2.09/gallon. From there we had enough fuel to make it to my parents house in LaGrange, IN and arrived there around 11:30PM EDT.
The good news is that Mercury’s appointment was 1:00 PM EDT this afternoon and the doctor didn’t find anything that made him feel a blood test was necessary. He did provide some medicine to address his “digestive” issues. Mercury got to come home and even spent some time this afternoon in his favorite Cat Habitat in his grandparents’ back yard.
Today we began our migration East towards my parents’ house in northern Indiana. We left Custer State Park at approximately 8:50 AM MDT. I had originally planned to travel East across US-20, but the temperature forecast at our first night’s stop in Nebraska was 101 degrees. I checked the forecast for spots along I-90 (about 50 miles North) and it was the low 90’s, so we adjusted accordingly.
We stopped for fuel in Kadoka, SD (just East of the Badlands) at a Sinclair station and then stopped further down the road at a Rest Area for lunch. We had planned to stop for the night at a campground in Plankinton, SD, but the Exit was closed with a detour sign directing us to the next exit and instructions to back track. At that point it just seemed easier to move on to the next town, Mitchell, SD (home of the famous Corn Palace). We may have to at least drive by the Corn Palace on the way out of town tomorrow.
We are staying at Dakota Campground. It has lots of shade which we appreciate with these temperatures. We are in a pull through site with full hookups. Due to the trees, I had to break out our portable satellite antenna (R2D2), but didn’t have any trouble connecting to the Dish Western Arc satellites. The sites are somewhat close together, but not too bad. We would definitely stay here again for the price ($30/night).
Stockade Lake North Campground – 8/12/20 – 8/14/20 – Site #42E
Today we left Lusk, WY at 9:45 AM MDT. We headed north on US-85 until US-18 split from it and headed east at Mule Creek Junction. When we reached SD-89 we took it north until it combined with US-385 and took us on into Custer, SD. The scenery was beautiful throughout the trip and for the second day in a row we encountered hundreds of motorcyclists going to and coming from Bike Week in Sturgis, SD. Apparently, a lot of them leave Sturgis and visit Custer because the town was packed with motorcycles when we came through around 11:30 AM MDT.
Bike Week in Custer
We arrived at our campsite in the Stockade Lake North Campground inside Custer State Park at 12:00 PM MDT. We are in site 42E which is right at the entrance road, but it is huge and the campground is fairly quiet (even with all the Harleys running in and out). The Verizon LTE coverage is excellent. There are a lot of tall trees, so satellite reception was tricky, but we managed to find the right spot to receive all three Dish Western Arc satellites after a couple of tries with our portable antenna (R2D2).
Stockade Lake North – Site #42E
Game Lodge Campground – 8/14/20 – 8/16/20 – Site #21
We could only find campsites available for two or three days at a time within Custer State Park, so after two nights in Stockade Lake North Campground we migrated to the Game Lodge Campground. It’s back toward the eastern entrance to the park and somewhat close to the main road, but a very nicely laid out campground. The area is flat enough that the sites aren’t built up on mounds like they are in Stockade Lake North Campground. However, our site was downhill from back to front so by the time we got the RV leveled the front wheels were several inches off the ground. I had Beth lift it a couple more and then put two 2″ x 12″ boards under each tire and had her lower it back down onto the boards and re-level. This campground has a dump station and potable water so we filled our water tanks and dumped our black and gray upon arrival and on departure. It also had washing machines so Beth got caught up on laundry.
Game Lodge Campground – Site #21
Game Lodge Campground – Site #21
After setting up our campsite we decided to hike Lover’s Leap Trail. The trailhead was just a half mile from our campsite so we walked over to it. Along the way a ranger stopped to warn us that a herd of buffalo was grazing at the trailhead and to be very careful. We went behind a couple of buildings to get as close to the trailhead as we could without encountering the buffalo but when we got close the herd was about 20 yards from the trailhead so we carefully slid along weeds and ducked onto the trail.
We took Lover’s Leap Trail clockwise (it’s a loop) so that we could get the difficult climb over with first (this is what most reviewers recommend). It was a pretty serious climb and we had to stop and catch our breath regularly, but we eventually made it to the top and the view was worth the effort. Once you reach the top of the trail you still have to scramble up some boulders to get the best view. Scrambling up wasn’t too tough, but coming back down was a bit nerve racking. The remainder of the hike was downhill, but still not easy. The downhill hike back to the valley was steep enough to make our quadriceps burn and it felt like our toes were going to come out through the front of our hiking boots. Once we reached the valley it was a fairly flat hike along a creek (which we crossed numerous times). By the time we got back to our campsite we had hiked a total of 5.2 miles and enjoyed a cocktail while we built a fire to cook our steaks.
Lovers Leap Trail
Lovers Leap Trail
Lovers Leap Trail
Lovers Leap Trail
Lovers Leap Trail
Lovers Leap Trail
Lovers Leap Trail
Made it, Ma! Top of the world!
Legion Lake Campground – 8/16/20 – 8/19/20 – Site #5
After two nights at the Game Lodge Campground we migrated to the Legion Lake Campground. Beth went ahead of me to verify that our site was open. The previous occupants were just leaving when Beth arrived so she gave me the “all clear” to come ahead. As I approached the Legion lake Lodge (just prior to the campground) I had to stop for a lone Buffalo Bull that was walking down the middle of the main highway in the park. He eventually moved off the road and I was able to pass. As we were setting up our site he slowly meandered into the campground. He was one big buffalo and he slowly worked his way to the back of the campground and disappeared.
We like this campground. It is just across the highway from Legion Lake (which is beautiful). Beth kayaked on the lake later in the afternoon and when she was done we both walked down to the beach and swam in the frigid mountain waters (it was quite refreshing). Our site is literally just off the side of the main entrance road, but it’s still a nice site. The only negative is all that we are right across the road from the bathrooms and the trash, so we are often awakened late at night and early in the morning to the bathroom doors and the lids on the garbage bins slamming shut. On a positive note, it’s only a few feet to the public showers so we are able to conserve water here in our electricity only campsite hookups.
Legion Lake – Site #5
Legion Lake – Site #5
Legion Lake Campground – Visitor
On our third day in the site we got up early and headed to Sylvan Lake to hike the Sunday Gulch Trail. This is one of the most popular trails in the park and we were glad we got up fairly early. When we arrived at 8:30 AM there were very few parking spots left near the trailhead. The trailhead is actually behind the Sylvan Lake dam so we hiked around the south side of the lake to get there with the intent of hiking around the north upon return so that we hiked the entire lake as well. This was definitely one of the toughest trails we’ve hiked. We ended up hiking 4.4 miles from the parking lot. Based on all of the reviews, we chose to hike the trail clockwise to avoid having to climb down the decent over the rock face near the beginning of the trail (if traveling counterclockwise). The first half mile was all uphill, but there were plenty of switchbacks so it didn’t seem too bad (although we still had to stop a few times to catch our breath). After that, it was mostly downhill into the valley until we eventually started the ascent up the rock face. Just prior to the ascent, I was starting to feel the need for fuel, so we stopped and ate the delicious sandwiches Beth had packed. We were glad we did because we needed the fuel to get back up to the top. The rock face had hand rails (and stair steps in some places) and we were glad it did. By the time we got to the top (after many stops to catch our breath) our legs and arms were jelly. It was all worth it for the incredible views.
Sunday Gulch Trail
Sylvan Lake
Sunday Gulch Trail
Sunday Gulch Trail
Sunday Gulch Trail
Sunday Gulch Trail
Sunday Gulch Trail
Sylvan Lake
Legion Lake Campground – 8/19/20 – 8/21/20 – Site #13
Today we had to move from Site #5 in Legion Lake Campground to Site #13. This site is near the back end of the campground so it provided a lot more privacy, but there were also a lot of trees so we were unable to receive any Dish Network satellite signals with either the roof mounted or the mobile antenna (now that’s roughing it). As an engineer it’s hard to give up on the challenge to find satellite coverage, but eventually I convinced myself that I was wasting my life away trying to win the challenge and kept hearing my Grandma McCally’s voice reminding me that as long as you have a book, you’ll always have a friend. So I took my book outside and watched my pyromaniac wife build a nice fire and cook the most delicious Eckrich hotdogs over it.
On Day #2 in Site #13 the forecast (which was accurate) called for afternoon rain. We decided it was time to send the chief sealant application engineer up on the roof to apply the Dicor Self Leveling Roof Sealant (using the new caulk gun we purchased at the Walmart in Pratt, KS) to address our roof leak. We think she was successful because we had light rain (sometimes moderate) throughout the afternoon and overnight and there are no signs of leaks.
Chief Sealant Application Engineer – Site #13
Stockade Lake North Campground – 8/21/20 – 8/23/20 – Site #42E
Today we moved back to this year’s original site at Stockade Lake North Campground (Site #42E). This will be our last stop in Custer State Park before we start heading east on Sunday. When we departed from the Legion Lake Campground in the morning we headed back towards the east entrance to use the dump station on the Wildlife Loop Rd and fill our water tank. Once we got setup at our campsite we headed into Custer to stock up on groceries and verify that the local Dairy Queen’s S’mores Blizzard was meeting corporate standards (it was).
On our second day back at Stockade Lake North Campground we got up, had a nice breakfast, and then drove down to the Stockade Lake Beach and plopped Beth and her kayak in the water. I setup my canopy on the shore and read a book while Beth paddled around the lake. When we got back to the camper we started a fire and cooked steak and baked potatoes over it. It was a great last day in Custer State Park.
Today we left Chatfield State Park at 9:30 AM MDT on our way to Custer State Park in the Black Hills of South Dakota. We stopped at the Sam’s Club in Cheyenne, WY for fuel ($1.99/gal) and picked up groceries at Walmart. Then we headed up US-85 to BJ’s Campground in Lusk, WY. The scenery was beautiful along the way and we encountered lots of motorcyclists in both directions headed to and from Sturgis, SD for Bike Week. Later in the day we encountered extremely heavy crosswinds that forced us to pull off the road twice and re-secure our kayak mounted on the roof of the Tahoe.
The campground is small and obviously intended for overnight travelers passing through on their way to the Black Hills, but it is very nice and Linda the owner was wonderful and extremely helpful. There are no trees, so satellite TV access is not a problem using the roof antenna and there was very good Verizon LTE reception. The campground Wi-Fi was somewhat slow but usable (it took several tries to upload some of the photos).
We left Wakeeney, KS bright and early Sunday morning (8/2) and arrived at Chatfield State Park in Littleton, CO at 1:00 PM MDT. It is 33 miles from the kids’ apartment in Westminster, CO which is about 7 miles farther than Cherry Creek State Park (where we have stayed the last two visits), but the the traffic congestion is much less because we don’t have to traverse through the city of Denver.
Chatfield State Park – Site #21
Upon arrival, we immediately unloaded all of our “stuff” from the truck so that we could use all three rows of seats to haul the grandchildren and headed for the kid’s apartment. Aaron was already at work by then, but Alysa had completed her shift and was home with the grandchildren. We had a short visit with Alysa and then packed up the grandchildren and headed back to the campground.
When we got back to the camper we had some dinner and then headed off to the beach on the other side of the lake. The beach area is more gravel than sand, but the kids had never been to a beach before and didn’t know what they were missing. They had a great time playing in the water and attempting to build sand castles.
Chatfield State Park – Beach
Chatfield State Park – Beach
Chatfield State Park – Swimming
Playground & Pony Rides – Monday 8/3/2020
Today we had 11:30 AM reservations for pony rides at the state park stables. I took the girls over to the campground playground to keep them occupied until our appointment. Alysa had to work, but Aaron came by to see the pony rides. We thought that since they had to ride assisted (by parents/guardians) that they would just walk them around a small corral, but we actually did 3 large laps around their property. The girls were in heaven. After the pony rides and lunch the girls and I went to a local business and bought firewood. When we got back they spent the rest of the afternoon playing in the dirt, running around the campsite, and riding their bikes.
Chatfield State Park – Playground
Chatfield State Park – Playground
Pony Ride
Pony Ride on “Chester” & “Doobie”
Playing in the Dirt
Family Time – Tuesday 8/4/2020
Today Aaron & Alysa came to the campground and we hung out, barbecued, and got caught up. It was a little warm, but we all had a good time. The girls continued participating in their favorite activities (running, biking, and playing in the dirt) and little Chuckie hung out with the adults in his Pack ‘n Play. We built a fire with the firewood we purchased the day before and cooked steaks, potatoes, vegetables, and corn on the cob over the fire. After dinner Aaron & Alysa took their family home to rest up for tomorrow’s trip to the zoo.
Hanging Out at the Campsite
Tuckered Grandchildren
Hanging Out at the Campsite
The Denver Zoo – Wednesday 8/5/2020
Today we went to the Denver Zoo. It was a bit hot, but we still had a great time. After our trip to the zoo we at a late lunch/early dinner (or as Alysa says “Linner”) at Cheddar’s.
Baboon, Penny, Alysa, & Everleight
Penny Showing off Her Wingspan
Everleigh
Aaron, Chuckie, Alysa, Penny, & Everleigh
Penny on Break
Everleigh Munching on Cotton Candy
The Girls
Grandpa & Chuckie
“Linner” at Cheddar’s
Jim’s Burger Haven – Thursday 8/6/2020
Alysa had to work today, so we went to their apartment around lunchtime and caught up with laundry while hanging out with Aaron. When Alysa got off work we watched the kids while she and Aaron ran a couple of errands. When they returned we went to dinner at Jim’s Burger Haven and tried out their famous 6″ burgers. The burgers, buns, fries, onion rings, and shakes were all great.
Jim’s Burger Haven
Penny’s Birthday – Monday 8/10/2020
Today we went to the kids’ apartment to celebrate Penny’s birthday. Penny loves to play Super Mario and her favorite character in the game is Princess Peach, so the party was Super Mario themed and Penny received a Princess Peach dress. Everleigh also received a dress for the character Princess Daisy. Penny loves steak and requested grilled steak for her birthday which everyone was happy to accommodate. Aaron grilled steak, chicken, and vegetable kabobs and they were all delicious (I’d rate the steak in my Top 5 all time). The cake and ice cream were also great and Penny was in the height of her glory.
Yesterday we left Goddard, KS on US-400 (nice four lane highway) and stopped at the Walmart in Pratt, KS to pickup a caulk gun (I left mine at home) and some other essentials. We then headed North on US-281 (nice two lane highway with plenty of shoulder) to Russell, KS where we hopped on I-70 West.
Today we got up and walked three miles on a frontage road along the interstate. It was quite desolate (surprise, you’re in Kansas), but Beth was excited because there were horses where we turned around to head back. When we got back we had some cat outdoor time while we cooled off and then headed into town for lunch. We ate at the Western Kansas Saloon & Grill. The food there was delicious. Beth had a Patty Melt and I tried out their Steak Fingers (which were like finger size chicken fried steaks). After lunch we stopped off at the local grocery store to stock up on grandchild food/treats.
Today we continued West on I-40 to Oklahoma City at 9:15 AM CDT and then headed North on I-35. We took a short detour to the Oklahoma City Camping World (which we stopped at on our 2018 trip as well) to pickup some Dicor Self Leveling Sealant. We discovered a leak coming in through our bathroom cabinet which we assume is coming through the seal around our kitchen vent or our bathroom skylight. When we stop somewhere that it’s not expected to rain my chief sealant application engineer will climb up on the roof and apply the sealant.
We stopped for lunch in a truck parking area about 70 miles North of Oklahoma City. The Queen of GasBuddy had us stop at one of the last exits in Oklahoma to top off on $1.85/gal diesel fuel at a Shell station (second best price ever). The toll for the I-35 portion of the drive through Kansas was $5.25 (exiting onto I-135/I-235).
We arrived at All Seasons RV Park just West of Wichita, KS at 3:00 PM CDT. This is another no frills RV Park. Based on the office building it appears to be a former KOA. The sites are very tight and our neighbor is parked in the opposite direction so our doors face each other and I think in my younger days I could have jumped from our entry step to theirs. However, the price is right at $36/night (with our GoodSam’s discount) and we got another $5 refund from American Express for shopping at a small business. We have good satellite access and for the second night in a row we have very good Wi-Fi service.
Today we left Lake Catherine State Park and headed West again. Actually, we started out heading East on I-30 towards Little Rock and picked up I-40 and started heading West. We decided on our last trip that we would never take the hilly twisting turning back-roads to/from Fort Smith again. We departed at 9:00 AM CDT and arrived here at the Lazy 8 RV Park in Henryetta, OK (where Troy Aikman attended high school) at approximately 3:15 PM CDT.
We stopped for lunch at the Ozarks Rest Area just East of Fort Smith, AR and ate sandwiches. I opened a bag of Doritos which may be the first ones we’ve had since staying with my parents last summer. It’s a good thing we don’t buy Doritos very often because they are truly addictive. Beth (the proverbial queen of “Gas Buddy”) found diesel fuel at the Murphy USA in Sallisaw, OK for $1.84/gal (yet another new record). It’s fun filling the RV up on the first try (no breaking out another credit card when reaching the $100 limit). Since we were at a Walmart, Beth ran in and grabbed some groceries.
This is a “no frills” RV Park just off of I-40. There are only about 8 or 10 sites, but they are all pull through and have full hookups (with 50 Amp electrical service). We are adjacent to a BBQ restaurant which the park owner also owns. The reviews say that the BBQ is very good, but unfortunately they are only open Thurs – Sun, so we won’t get to try it out. The park has very good Wi-Fi access and free laundry (so Beth is knocking out a couple of loads).
Today we migrated to one of our favorite all time campgrounds, Lake Catherine State Park. This is our third stopover here and the first on the way out to Denver. We are in Site #64 which is right on the lake and this is the first time we have been here during the summer when we could actually get in the water (which was like bath water). It’s a hopping place this time of year. We will be here three nights.
Tomorrow we plan to hike the 4.5 mile Dam Mountain Trail and then put on our swimming trousers and jump in the lake. Tuesday we will hike the 2 mile Falls Branch Trail which we hiked on our previous visit. Beth also plans to get some kayaking in during our visit.
