Columbia and Branson, MO

Friday, May 17
Alaska Bound! Yes, we did finally return from our California trip of summer 2012. Now we are on our next adventure, heading to Alaska via:

• Columbia, Missouri
• Banson, Missouri
• Pryor, Oklahoma
• Dallas,Texas
• San Antonio, Texas
• Savanna,Illinois
• Fairbanks, Alaska

 More on those stops to come.

We left Alexandria, on the 17th headed to Columbia, MO to visit daughter Tamryn and son-in-law Mac. Our first overnight was at an Ohio Walmart parking lot. Nice and quiet and safe next to two big rigs. We arrived Saturday just in time for dinner. Sunday morning we headed out to a small Farmer's Market & Craft Fair and met some of Tamryn's friends. Stocked up on homemade pickles and rhubarb jam.

We spent some of our day in Columbia helping one of Tamryn's friends, Penny Burton, install her MFA Thesis Exhibition, Fight or Flight. Penny had made thousands of hand made paper cocoon shapes which were attached to10 foot high "trees" as well as a swarm of hatched critters swarming just above our heads.

 

 

 

 

We worked the glue guns attaching the cocoon "babies". Just wish we could have stayed long enough to see the installation finished.

A visit to Tamryn's studio was like entering a small gallery...filled with inspiring work. She has had a busy year of papermaking, felting, screen printing, stenciling, mold making, and stitching.


We had fun visiting with Tamryn, Mac and granddog Cave. Knowing that we would soon see them again when we reach Pryor, OK, it wasn't hard to say goodbye.

Monday, May 19
We arrived in Branson, MO for our first International Corporate Roadtrek Rally, celebrating Roadtrek's 40th Anniversary. One of 250 Roadtreks at the Rally, we were happy to see a number of familiar faces to include friends we had met at our first Roadtrek Rally last fall in Sherkston, Canada.

From left to right:
Mary Ann and Tom Stibbe, OH
Yours truly and Mel
Diane and Dave Bancroft, MN
Kathie and Mike Inniger, OH

Our breakfast and dinner meals were served under the big tent where we also enjoyed evening entertainment. One night we were bussed to Dolly Pardon's Dixie Stampede--an evening with a stampede of buffalo, racing pigs, horse back riding feats, long horned steer roping, and ostrich riding babes. 

Roadtrek brought the latest models down from their factory in Canada, as well as representatives from the various companies that provide parts and pieces. Mel attended sessions with the service reps and picked up a few tips.

No trip would be complete without a tech fix.
Mel seized the opportunity to help Mary Ann with computer problems. Problem fixed!

We look forward to meeting up with our Roadtrek friends at a future Rally or perhaps they will show up on our driveway sometime soon.  Friday morning we took off for our next destination, Pryor, OK.

Pyor, Oklahoma

Tuesday - Sunday, July 10 - 15, 2012
From Dallas we headed to Pryor, OK to visit former Virginia neighbors Karen and Tom Ryan who moved to Oklahoma about eight years ago. Karen and Tom have been very active in their Hudson lakeside community keeping the swimming pool grounds and common areas planted, watered and weed free. Karen recently designed and managed the remodeling of the pool club house and they have been involved in over seeing the new boat dock and swimming dock as well.

Tom, Karen, Doc, Candy, & Mel

We started our visit with happy hour. Their dear neighbor, Doc (hmm, don't know him by any other name) stopped by and we spent some time catching up. We met Doc during our first visit to Pryor several years ago. He's known for his great BBQ skills and his ability to avoid goat herds on the Oklahoma highways...well, there was this one time that the goats might not have all made it. That was the same day Karen and Tom ran into a chest of drawers that had just fallen off the truck in front of them. You really have to be careful on the OK highways. Never know what you might run into.

Visiting the Ryans is much like spending time at a lakeside resort: good meals -- the lake just a few steps away with kayaks, noodles, and floats -- the pool just down the road -- interesting restaurants in the area...let me tell you about those restaurants. Hugo's in Claremore, OK is a hot spot for breakfast and known to be one of Garth Brook's favorite restaurants. Mel and I decided to share a breakfast which consisted of three eggs, 15 pieces of bacon, six "dollar" pancakes (each nearly the size of a dinner plate) and Mel decided on a side order of biscuits and gravy. All this for less than $10, if I'm remembering correctly. How can you go wrong? Oh my gosh, needless to say, we ate it all.

Fish's BBQ

One evening we met up with Karen's sister, Ann, at Fish's BBQ in Tahlequah, OK. You would only know about this place if you were a local. It is located in a semi-industrial area on a little side street with not much of a sign to indicate the restaurant is even open. The sign was out by the road and the steel garage in which it is located was down a gravel road with no sign whatever that there was a restaurant inside. There was no indication that this wasn't just a place to have your oil changed. Wow, they must really go through the oil, however. The place was packed and so were the plates of pulled pork, chicken, brisket, ribs, curly fries, beans, coleslaw, potato salad. Check out the menu here. I ordered the pulled pork and Mel ordered the ribs. We had enough leftovers in our doggie bags for another whole meal. Oh, they know how to do BBQ at Fish's.

Karen's cute sister, Ann

That same evening Ann joined us for a musical review "Downtown Country Classics" by students from Northeastern Oklahoma State University at their theater in Tahlequah. The evening ended with a stop at Braum's Ice Cream. They were having a special on their double dip cones...$1.79 for two huge scoops in a large waffle cone.  The same cone at our local Ben & Jerry's runs $6.94 before tax. As an ice cream lover, I made sure we hit every Braum's ice cream shop we saw as we made our way home to Virginia. Of course, we also had our eye out for those Culver Custard shops as well. It's a miracle I didn't gain weight on this trip. Hmm, didn't lose any either. As my mother used to say, "This (eating ice cream) is how I maintain my weight." A good rule for living a happy life.

Karen and Tom's lakeside community is one of those neighborhoods where everyone has a golf cart to run to the lake, pool, marina or tennis court. Tom, not to be outdone, has his own version of a golf cart, a Cushman. Unfortunately I failed to get photos while visiting, but did find this photo in my files. As you can see, he doesn't just use his Cushman for transportation...this is a working vehicle.

Hopefully we didn't overstay our welcome at Karen and Tom's. Mel did help Tom with a few projects around the house and pool, as well as a little computer tweaking. Karen and I managed a trip to Fabricut, a local discount fabric store, not that I really need any more fabric, but we had fun looking. We also spent several afternoons cooling off in the water. Tom got out the kayaks one day and we headed out along the lakeshore to admire the beautiful homes along the lakefront.  We had a great time together.

Karen ready to paddle!

The Roadtrek tucked nicely in the shade next to the Ryan's house.

Sunset on the lake.

Rockwall, Texas

Sunday, July 8, 2012

After leaving brother Darrell's, we headed north to Rockwall, Texas, home of Mel's sister Sharon and husband Jerry. We just missed seeing Sharon and Jerry while they were visiting their son David in Virginia, so it was nice catching them at home in Texas.

Monday, July 9, 2012
Sharon gave us a chance to catch up on laundry as well as family news. An afternoon outing included a stop at our new favorite frozen custard shop, Culver's. We first discovered Culver's when visiting our friend Dave in Colorado Springs. Culver's features a different flavor of frozen custard every day. They publish a monthly listing. At Dave's we hit it on Butter Pecan day. Mel was in heaven eating his custard loaded with pecans. In Rockwall, it was Mint Chip. We managed one additional stop later in our trip where the flavor was Key Lime Pie. I just did a web search on Culver's and have discovered the closest one from home is 313 miles away in Ohio. Probably a good thing...it isn't exactly calorie free, but it is soooo good.

We were fortunate to have Mel's neice Sara and her husband Scott meet us for dinner. They are doing well and live not far from Sharon and Jerry. Sorry we didn't get photos. Cute couple!

As long as I've started posting recipes, Sharon's Earthquake Cake recipe appears below. Sharon had offered to send some of the cake she had baked with us...and we walked off without it. It was yummy!  The photo below is one Sharon took just as we were ready to pull out of their driveway.
Thanks, guys, for a fun stay!

Earthquake Cake
1 cup coconut
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 box German chocolate cake mix
8 oz. package cream cheese
1 lb. package powdered sugar (2cups)
1 stick butter or oleo, melted

Grease and flour 8 x 14 pan. Spread coconut and pecans on bottom. Mix cake according to package. Pour over pecans and coconut. Melt butter and add cream cheese and powdered sugar. Mix well. Spread over cake. Bake 350 degrees for 45-50 min. or until done.

Candy...needing a hair cut!

Farmers Branch, Texas

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Grandma Johnnica and and exhausted Cheyenne

There's a lot of road between Colorado and Texas...another day of driving arriving just in time to join Mel's brother Darrell, wife Johnnica, and granddaughter Cheyenne (Kyle and JoAnn's daughter) in Farmers Branch (near Dallas) for dinner at their favorite Mexican restaurant. When we returned from the restaurant, Darrell lit the fire pit he made from a repurposed washing machine drum. Pretty cool, or should I say HOT!  The Edgerleys are a talented bunch. I'm not sure how me missed taking more photos of the house itself. Darrell and Johnnica have done a beautiful job of remodeling the house over the past few years. Darrell is a very accomplished cabinet maker and house remodeler and Johnnica, though not a professional interior designer, has put on the finishing touches. Nice job.

Darrell's fire pit

Sunday, July 8, 2012
Mel's niece Cary, and Beth, the wife of Mel's nephew Ross (currently in Afghanistan), joined us for lunch. We had a very coordinated dessert...watermelon paper plates and napkins and watermelon! Thanks Darrell and Johnnica for your great hospitality!  While heading out after lunch for Rockwall to visit Mel's sister Sharon and husband Jerry, we stopped by Cary's house which she is remodeling. She has a good start with walls coming down, new bathroom, wood floring...we hope to get photos as the work progresses.

Darrell, Johnnica, Mel, Candy, Cary, and Beth

Aurora, CO

OK, true confessions. We have actually finished our trip and have safely returned to Virginia after 56 days on the road (and we are still talking to each other). We got home last Wednesday evening and have been playing catch up ever since. Now that the van is unpacked, laundry done, mail sorted, emails nearly caught up, it is time to finish up this blog! Last entry was July 4 and I'm just sure you have been waiting to hear about our final days, right?

Thursday, July 5, 2012
We had a short drive from Colorado Srings to Aurora, CO where my girlfriend, Vicki Florer and husband Dick live. Vicki and I lived a few houses from each other in Savanna, IL and were best friends from Kindergarten through Sophomore year in high school when Vicki moved to Colorado with her parents.

We enjoyed a delicious pork roast dinner (thanks Dick!) while we shared our memories of Savanna and caught up with the years since our last visit. Hope to see Vicki (and Dick) again in Savanna next year for our 50th High School Reunion.

Friday, July 6, 2012
We started the day with the best pancakes Mel and I have ever eaten. Vicki's recipe comes from her vintage Betty Crocker cookbook. Haven't tried it yet as I see I must not have baked anything in the past year or so. My baking powder is a year out of date. Well, next trip to the grocery store, I'll be ready to try this out for myself:

Vicki's Pancakes
1 egg
1 Cup flour
3/4 Cup milk (maybe a little more)
2 T oil
1 T sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Beat egg with hand beater until fluffy; beat in remaining ingredients just until smooth. For thinner pancakes, stir in additional 1/4 cup milk. Grease heated griddle if necessary. (To test griddle sprinkle with few drops water. If bubbles skitter around, heat is just right.) For each pancake, pour about 3 tbsp batter from tip of large spoon or from pitcher onto hot griddle. Cook pancakes until puffed and dry around edges. Turn and cook other sides until golden brown. Nine 4-inch pancakes; 100 calories per pancake.

Thanks, Vicki and Dick, for a great breakfast which prepared us for a long day of driving.

We had a pretty boring, long drive through Eastern Colorado and Western Kansas stopping for the night in Russell, Kansas at the Triple J Camper Park just off Route 70. Not a beautiful campground, but we did have a shady spot. It was still really HOT. After dinner in the RV, we walked down to the nearby McDonalds for our 99 cent ice cream cone. On our walk back to the campground, we stopped to visit the two raindeer in the campground's small "zoo". They were feeding the raindeer boxes of fruit rejects from the local grocery store -- lettuce, grapes, apricots, and strawberries. They loved the strawberries.  Sorry, no photos.

Colorado Springs

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

After leaving Durango, we headed to Colorado Springs to visit our friend Dave Howe. Dave and Mel worked together at Arlington Hall Station in the early 80's; then in Augsburg, Germany; and finally at Fort Belvoir, VA before they both retired. Dave moved to Colorado Springs seven years. Can hardly believe it has been that long ago. It was as though we had just seen Dave yesterday...the same "old" Dave. We enjoyed sharing our memories of our days in Germany and remembering that good German food.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012
We spent a quiet 4th of July with Dave. Due to the devastating fires still burning on the West edge of Colorado Springs, and the many fires in other parts of Colorado, fireworks were banned for the 4th. The smell of smoke was in the air and you could still see the fires burning on the Western mountain from Dave's window. We spent the day taking care of laundry, shopping for some items for the van at REI, and enjoyed a meal at Red Lobster.

Dave has become quite an expert knitter and has been winning awards for his exquisite, intricately knit shawls. I became the lucky recipient of one that happens to also be in my favorite color, green. Thanks, Dave. I can appreciate the time and energy that went into this piece and will thoroughly enjoy wearing it. In addition to a beautifully knit shawl, the hand dyed yarn is special as well. Mel received a new handknit ski hat and scarf...now he's ready for the slopes!

We hope to see Dave next month in Tennesee where we will be attending a memorial service for one of our dear friends we all knew in Germany, Andy Corbett. Andy's sister has planned a service in August where we will get together with Andy's family and friends from Germany. His wife Judy and daughter Sabrina will be there as well.

Thanks, Dave, for a great visit.

Durango, CO

Sunday, July 1, 2012
Took off for Durango after a quick car wash next door to the campground...boy, we were sure getting buggy. When we left the campground, the temperature was a nice 70 degrees. Heading across the flat desert land, 10 miles down the road it had climbed to 86 degrees. Love that AC! The temperature went up a degree every couple of miles. A half hour later it was up to 95 degrees and still climbing.

Amazing landscape along Route 89...a continuous stretch of rock formations and layer upon layer of color. Everywhere you look is a scenic view. As we approached the Arizona state line, I took a photo of Lone Rock, a strange rock tower emerging from the waters of Lake Powell. Passing through Glen Canyon -- first clouds we have seen for days, maybe even weeks. The water level of the lake was quite low. We stopped at Glen Canyon Dam Welcome Center for a few photos.

106 degrees at Four Corners Monument Tribal Park where the borders of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah meet. Both Mel and I stopped at Four Corners as kids and remember it as a little pull off along the road. Now you need to pull off Route 160, travel about 1/4 mile down a road to reach the Corners managed by the Navajo Nation. Entrance fee was $3 a person. Indian beadwork and crafts were available from vendors around the Monument.

Smoke is in the air. Fifteen fires along Rte 160 near Mancos, just past Mesa Verde National Park and saw several fire trucks spraying water along part of the perimeter. We learned later that this fire was now "under control," yet it looked pretty ominous to us.

Mel, Katrina, Katie, and Cousin Merl

We arrived in Bayfield, CO just East of Durango at Merl and Katie Schafer's (Mel's cousin and wife) in time for apple crisp dessert made by their daughter, Katrina. Katrina was visiting from the Phoenix area where the Schafers live from October to late May. They spend the rest of the year in their self-built log cabin on the bend of the Animas River. Katie's sister Karen and her husband Junior, from Indiana, were also visiting.

Monday, July 2, 2012
Plans for the day included shopping time for the ladies in Durango and repair jobs around the cabin for the men followed by dinner and music at the Bar D Chuckwagon.

While shopping, Karen found the perfect "gift" for Merl. A pesky skunk had been roaming around their cabin for the past few days and Merl had set a trap for him in the yard. Karen found a realistic looking stuffed toy skunk just the right size. Katrina and I pitched in and planned to set a trap for Merl. More on the skunk tale later.

After our downtown Durango shopping spree, we dropped Katie off at the Bar D Chuckwagon Supper Ranch, 9 miles North of Durango in order to get good tickets for the dinner and show later in the evening. Katrina took Karen and I to buy some local Colorado honey and a stop at Baker Bridge. Baker Bridge was featured in the Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Now the bridge serves as a "I dare you to..." local attraction. We ended up seeing three jump from the bridge to the river below. The river serves as an area swimming spot.
We met up with Katie at the Bar D where the guys joined us. The evening started with a stroll through the tourist shops and then a chuck wagon dinner--for 500. Because we had seats right up front (thanks Katie!), we were some of the first to be served on our tin cowboy plates -- beans, baked potato, BBQ beef, apple sauce, biscuit, and spice cake. They had a very orderly system set up and it only took about a half hour to serve all 500. Following dinner we had a very entertaining evening of cowboy songs by a very professional group which included two guitars, a fiddle, and a bass. We really felt like we were back in the old West.

Tuesday, July 3, 2012
What luck! Merl discovered he had caught that skunk during the night. After we had our grapefruit from the Shafer's AZ backyard, eggs, and bacon, we decided to check on the skunk. We talked Merl into "taking care of it" before we pulled out for Colorado Springs. He grabbed a small tarp and headed around back of the cage so he could get behind the skunk and throw the tarp over him.

The plan was to pick up the covered cage and drop it off the small bridge into the creek letting nature take its course. He was ready to pick it up when Katrina ran up to save the poor critter. It was Merl that got skunked as well as Katie. Merl will never live this one down.

We hit the road around 10 am and, at Katrina's suggestion, stopped at the Bayfield bakery for green chili fritters, a maple pecan pastry, and a loaf of cranberry pecan bread. We were ready for a tasty lunch later in the day. The interesting scenery continued as we made our way to Colorado Springs.


Skunked!!!!

Katie's sister, Karen on left, Katrina, Katie, and Cousin Merl

Mel and Candy out back...really neat log cabin.