Friday, June 7 We had a quick launch this morning as we were already hooked up. We didn’t even make coffee and stopped at McDonalds for a driving breakfast. Today is going to be a 400-mile dash across Iowa on i-80 to Mormon Island State Recreation in Nebraska. We are completing a journey that we started in August 2012! Before Tom headed back to school that year (I was already retired) I wanted to follow some of the Mormon trail, beginning where the Saints were evicted from Nauvoo, Illinois and had to winter over across the Mississippi River in “Winter Quarters”, Iowa. The trail is one of the historical migration trails maintained by the Department of Natural Resources, with routes and stopping points mapped out. We got as far as Omaha, Nebraska and vowed that we would come back and finish the journey to the Mormon Zion – Salt Lake City. Diving I-80 we finally reached a point where crops had been planted! Due to flooding and relentlessly standing water most fields in Ohio, Illinois and eastern Iowa had not been plowed. As the topography gave way to rolling hills the fields had been recently sown and crops were in the beginning stages. Another observation as this is our first long trip with the Rubymine – the 250 Diesel/Duramax truck. Today we have driven 7 hours, and are just under ½ tank of gas! Yes, this is because the tank is so big, but it is also because of 15 mph we are averaging while towing. Never a regret for buying the diesel! Arriving at Grand Island, Nebraska, we were set up at Mormon Island State Recreation Area by 2:30. Right off of I-80 it is on the Platt River corridor and includes 3 small lakes that were made when the interstate was excavated. The Lincoln Highway, Route 30 that goes through our hometown, goes right through Grand Island! If you want to actually set foot on Mormon Island, you must paddle! We walked the dogs while the trailer cooled off (it was 90 degrees outside) and then headed out to explore downtown without them. Nearby was a very large pioneer museum, but not enough time in the day to get our money’s worth! We had thought Grand Island would have a great downtown district – NOT! It does have a somewhat historic Union Pacific Railroad district, but it was all under construction and renovation. As we travel we are listening to a new audio book about the transcontinental railroad, and we had hoped to view this portion of the historic rails. We also read about and located Fred’s Flying Circus! It is an auto body shop opening in 1955 with a whole “garden of flying cartoon cars.” NO KIDDING! We found it, and took some pictures of the cars and then walked into the body shop. The original owner’s wife was more than happy to take us through the busy work-bays and around to the outside “garden” to give us a guided tour. At one point these cars were her husband’s (and her) pride and joy . . . today they are just a PITA to the mechanics that are trying to work on all the cars! Nontheless, Fred's wife is keeping his dream alive! It cooled off nicely at the campground as we pursed the usual outdoor cooking and leisure activities until bedtime.
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Tuesday, June 4 The trip has been mapped out, the trailer is packed, the house is clean, the mail is on hold, the yard is mowed, the truck has been serviced . . . we’re all ready to leave for eight weeks to the Pacific Northwest! The only problem is . . . we don’t leave for two more days! Thursday, June 6 Fast forward two days, and we blasted out of the driveway at 7:30 with a 400 mile drive on the agenda. Tom’s favorite activity in the winter when we are not camping is to plan . . . camping trips! He has an innate instinct for targeting a destination, and planning a meaningful outline of routes, campgrounds, and things to see along the way. He also has the patience to make the many contacts necessary for reservations and confirmations, and to record everything in a calendar format. Tom’s Trip Ticket! The first day of driving took us along familiar paths as we make a bee-line west: up and through Chicago, and then onto Interstate 80. We would be on I-80 until we reached Salt Lake City. Riding in the back seat are Charlie and Jasper; they know this routine quite well but probably don't know yet that this is going to be one of the long trips! With a time change assisting us we arrived at The Tailwater West Campground in Iowa City by 2:30. It is an Army Corps of Engineers campground in the recreation area comprised of Coralville Lake and Lake Macbride; beautiful grass, long concrete pads, hook-ups, and nice bathrooms . . . all for $24. In the immediate area there are 11 campgrounds, 11 boat ramps, 3 marinas, 5 beaches, and 27 miles of hiking trails! Not even bothering to unhook, we took the dogs for a walk along the dam flume where the water was rushing fast and furious as a result of recent rains and flooding. We then walked down into a Devonian Fossil Gorge. The Gorge is labeled with 20 “discovery point” markers and we casually walked the 375 million-year-old seafloor viewing and reading about the fossils. At 83 degrees and breezy it was a nice walk except that the cottonwood trees were shedding millions of fluff-balls that combined with swarms of gnats making it hard to breathe! Back at the campsite we sat under the shade of a big tree with fans to blow the gnats away, ate dinner, and sat some more!
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Archives
October 2021
We don’t go camping any more . . . we go ‘streamin’ ! The “SIlvermine and His” is our 2018 25' Airstream Serenity with Salsa interior and front twin beds., and ‘streamin’ is the name we use to describe our adventures. Stream along as we document everything from weekend trips to longer summer excursions and full-blown vacations. You know what they say: if you’re not in an Airstream – you’re just camping!
Tom & Ella Brown |