On the road!

The longest road can be the one that simply brings you to the beginning. That has been true for us. It has taken us so much work and years to prepare for our new life on the road. Though our departure was delayed, on a crisp Sunday morning in late November the day finally arrived – Launch Day!

In the month leading up to that day we had pulled our 5^th-wheel camper out of storage and set up camp at a state park 40 minutes from our house. Water was turned off for the season at the campground but we did have electricity. Between electric heaters, a good deal of propane for the furnace, thermal pane windows and the Grand Design Arctic Package with tank heaters and insulation we kept the camper and ourselves warm as temperatures got as low as 14° F.

Having the camper out of storage gave us more opportunity to move in our select belongings and figure out what would fit, and what would not. It also gave us a place to stay with our pets as we had work done on our house in preparation for sale.

When we were confident we had an offer for our house that would go through and confident that winter wouldn’t hold off any longer we knew it was time to go. As we pulled away from William O’Brien State Park it was both thrilling and terrifying. We were well prepared but not as prepared as we would have liked. Still it felt so good to be on the road.

Before heading south we went west to South Dakota to take care of business and set up logistics for our new full-time RV life. The first night we got as far as Sioux Falls and the next day we continued on to Rapid City where we spent two nights. We also squeezed in our first National Park visit of this new adventure, a quick trip to Mount Rushmore. We didn’t stay long with the rock group since the sun was leaving as we arrived but it was still great to experience the benefits of the Why after all that work.

On the drive back to Sioux Falls on day four we made a special stop along the way for lunch at the Chamberlain rest area. It sits above the Missouri River and features Dignity, a large statue of a Lakota woman in her star quilt. The plaque at the base reminds us that “all here are sacred, and in a sacred place.”

In Sioux Falls we again stayed at Tower Campground where we had stayed the first night. It’s in the city and has quite a bit of traffic noise but it was nice and served us well for short overnights.

Temperatures in South Dakota were unseasonably warm, even record highs in the 70s in Rapid City, but the forecast told us that winter was still chasing us so we were on the road again in the morning headed south. It was now December after all. There was no firm itinerary, we just wanted to get somewhere that was going to stay above freezing long enough for us to stop a few days and regroup. A number of campgrounds were already closed for the season and those that were open had limited facilities. We adapted, using water in collapsible jugs instead of the fresh water tank, and we did fine. Early sunsets also provided a travel challenge, limiting how far we could go and not arrive in the dark.

On the fifth night we stayed at Sharp RV Park, a delightful little RV park north of Saint Joseph, Missouri. It took us a minute to find our site even though it was right by the entrance. It was more of a pull-over than a pull-through site. We set out a cone next to our slide once it was extended just to make sure we didn’t become a drive-through. We had found another great place to spend the night. In the morning we had a very nice visit with Rick, the owner, before we headed south again.

We took freeways down and around Kansas City and then headed east for a while before turning off onto the country highways that carried us through the Missouri countryside, eventually bringing us to Lake of the Ozarks State Park. I was afraid the campground would be busy but there was hardly anybody there. At check-in the lady told us to just go find a site. We drove on down to the farthest section and when we came around the corner and saw site 139 right down by the water we knew that’s where we were staying. It was time for that break and we would spend 3 nights here.

The days at Lake of the Ozarks were busy but still relaxing. After 1750 miles in 5 days it was nice just to not be moving. Reception was limited, for online business we needed to drive up the hill. The waters beside us were fascinating. Bonaparte’s Gulls in winter plumage would dart about, dropping into the water and emerging with fish. American Pelicans created a bright white line amidst the gray of fall as they sat along a log out in the middle. With the delay in our departure from Minnesota it was hard to watch the summer birds leave without us. Now we were beginning to catch back up to them.

From there we traveled southwest, catching a bit of Route 66 at Lebanon. At Republic, MO we visited another National Park Service (NPS) site, the Wilson Creek National Battlefield from the Civil War.

Continuing up and down the big hills we went through Branson and across the border to Omaha, Arkansas where we stayed one night at Ozark View RV Park. Perhaps we should have traveled further that day but this was an amazing site that couldn’t be missed, even if it was just for one night. We were perched high on a hill looking for miles across the Ozarks. We arrived in time to get set up and then watch the sunset. The sunrise out the back window the next morning was equally breath taking.

Now it was time to pick up the pace again and push south towards Florida. The forecast was calling for a change in the weather. We did make another quick NPS stop at the Tyler Bend Visitor Center of the Buffalo National River, the first national river in the NPS system.

That day we went as far as Delta RV Park in Forrest City, Arkansas. We had made a reservation for there in the morning but it was a good thing we didn’t have plans to go further. There was a bad accident just beyond our exit and I-40 was shut down. It wasn’t surprising to hear of the accident. I-40 is a major east-west cross country route and it was full of aggressive semis.

On day 11 we had planned to stay near Birmingham, AL but we weren’t finding many good options for campgrounds. Everything was north of there so we shifted our focus that way and found a Harvest Hosts site at Vinemont, AL, the Sullivan Creek Ranch. And we were so glad we did. Heaven kissed the earth at this darling spot in the hills of Northern Alabama. They raise Akaushi beef cattle and sell the meat at their gift shop. Limited by a small RV freezer we bought a steak and a few other food items. We grilled the steak on the Blackstone a couple nights later and it was so good. The sky was filled with stars that night and we watched the International Space Station go over. In the morning we walked down one of the  trails among the pastures and were amazed by the beautiful grotto with waterfalls that awaited at the end. Emily and Greg were so hospitable, making our visit all the more memorable.

At this point the weather forecast was becoming more concerning, calling for a major outbreak of severe weather. Google maps recommended that we continue east to Atlanta and then cut south towards Florida. But I didn’t really want to go through Atlanta and that area was still within the area of possible storms. So we pushed south through Alabama, down through Birmingham and Montgomery until we arrived at A-Okay RV Park south of Dothan in the southeast corner of Alabama.

We were at Dothan two nights. The second night, on December 10th, a tornado developed about 40 miles north of Forrest City, AR where we had been. It continued to the northeast for over 200 miles hitting four states. Kentucky experienced the greatest damage and loss of life that night. This in December. Our concern had initially been staying ahead of freezing weather. But this was sobering, weather doesn’t play by the rule book anymore. Frozen pipes are a minuscule problem compared to what those people experienced.

After Dothan we made one more overnight stay, at the KOA in Perry, Florida. With the time change sunset was later and it gave us time to go out to Hagens Cove on the Gulf Coast to watch a spectacular sunset as flock after flock of ducks dotted the orange sky.

After 2 weeks and over 3000 miles we arrived at Forest Lake Village RV Park in Zephyrhills, Florida. It is an Encore park which is under the umbrella of Thousand Trails. This was our first visit to a Thousand Trails park. Forest Lake Village has a mix of RV sites and small “mobile” houses called park models. The spot we were assigned was not so much a site as it was a slot tucked in between two of these park models. It had a concrete pad and a sandy grassy area. Narrow streets with people parked right off the other side made maneuvering all the more difficult. The drama to park the camper took over an hour. Neighbors appeared during the second act to offer assistance and to make it clear that the camper goes on the grass and the vehicle goes on the concrete. Okay.

Though the start was rough we had a very nice 3 night stay at Forest Lake Village. One item of note is that the main street is called Hockey Drive and all the other streets are named after hockey teams, including North Stars Drive.

That covers the first two and half weeks of our new full-time RV life. We hit the road and made it south where we can begin transitioning to a more normal rhythm whatever that ends up being. Hopefully these updates will be coming more regularly now. Stay tuned for more stories of our time in Florida, the process we use for planning routes and making reservations, and whatever else comes to mind.