September 22, 2021

Greetings again, Family and Friends! And Happy Autumn!🍃🍂🍁

This post has been in the works for at least a couple of weeks. But we’ve been on the road since September 6th, and for the most part, it’s been actual ‘camping.’ With limited utilities (particularly, sewer) we’ve had to be aware of our usage and make sure we didn’t deplete the fresh water tank nor overfill the black water tank (poopy.) I’ve always had much appreciation for well-maintained facilities, and it’s as close to camping as I want to get.

After more than four months, we finally pulled out of Branson on Labor Day. As much as we enjoyed it there, we were anxious to get back out on the road. Neither we, nor Felix, benefit by sitting too long. The holiday traffic on Highway 65 that morning was surprisingly steady, and in some places it crept along at a snail’s pace. It was like that all the way to Springfield (just 60 miles, thank goodness), where Felix had an appointment at Cummins for routine service.

Ordinarily I don’t write about a place that we go to for service, but Springfield, Missouri is an exception. It’s got a lot going for it, and would definitely be worth stopping for a day or two if you ever found yourself in that area. Besides being the birthplace of historic Route 66, Springfield boasts one of the top aquariums in the USA and maintains more than 90 unique parks throughout the city and Greene County.

Ever since the dam Visitors Center closed at the end of July, we’d been hearing that southwestern Missouri was a “covid red zone” and so, of course, we were concerned, but not overly, since Branson seemed back to normal and was wide open for business.

Because Felix’s servicing took two whole days (from 7am-to 5pm), we had to have somewhere to go or somewhere to be all day long. With the pups. No matter where we went—parks, restaurants, the mall, Camping World, Bass Pro Shop, the Aquarium—we found that the the story was the same: Very few mask wearers. People living life as usual.

It’s hard to know what to believe anymore. According to an article published in the New York Times, “Springfield’s daily average of cases is three times the national average, while Branson is four times the national average.” But we didn’t see any evidence of such a thing. Instead, we saw several of these billboards across the city.🤷🏻‍♀️

The Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium, next door to Bass Pro Shop, “The Grandaddy of All Outdoor Stores,” is AMAZING in every sense of the word and totally worth the price of admission. Of course, upon learning that it’s another Johnnie Morris-conservation endeavor, the expectation is for a certain, stellar experience, and this did not disappoint. Everything about it was over-the-top, and to be honest with you, we didn’t even make it to the museum area—it was that massive (350,000 square feet.) We used the pups as our excuse for leaving after more than two hours (they were in the car—windows down🐾) , but we were exhausted! (Double-tap on photos to enlarge)

One place we returned to time and again (because it was shady, beautiful, and free) was the Botanical Garden, a place we had discovered last year when we were here for service. It is truly a fantastic place to wile away the hours…if by chance you go, be sure to go to the Visitors Center first and pick up a map. There are 113-acres of paved trails that meander through varied themed gardens, past numerous playgrounds, and around Lake Drummond. There, only a few people were wearing masks, and, like Branson, life seemed to be back to normal (pre-March 2020.)

Springfield is a fun place to just cruise…and we did that a lot, just to pass the time. Murals pop up all over town; I read somewhere that there are more than 40!

Our camping reservations in Kentucky didn’t begin until 9/17, so we got to spend a week at one of our favorite places, Giant City State Park in the Shawnee Forest in southern Illinois. The rock formations there are ancient and magnificent, and the rolling hills of lush forest are simply beautiful. The best part is that it’s just a couple hours from St. Louis, so my brother and sister-in-law met us for a few days. I love it when we can get together.

Though it might seem that this mobile lifestyle is all fun and games, there are certain inherent challenges to RV-living that are not pleasant to talk about but exist nevertheless…such as critters. I’m not sure how it happened, but somewhere along the line we picked up some gnats and within hours it became an infestation! It was disgusting. When it comes to pests, there are never just a few. There were millions. After having marginal luck with those sticky fly tape rolls hanging all over and chasing after them with the Dust Buster, Dave did some online research and set up a couple of traps using apple cider vinegar. They were almost all gone after just 24 hours.

Now we’re in western Kentucky, and will spend as much time as we can with Kate and the kids. She is heading up to Boston to brew beer with Samuel Adams (the link goes to a recent Forbes magazine article.☺️) After that, we’ll head back to the Branson area for a couple of weeks. We loved the area so much that we started looking at property, and well, you can probably figure out the rest. I’ll write about it more in the next blog. 😉

Until next time…♥️🤗☮️ Maria