Apricity West 4

April 12, 2024 - Friday 

Left Tyler, Texas at 7:15am headed for Fort Smith, Arkansas via Oklahoma. After passing a plethora of Dollar stores of all name variations, I could FEEL and HEAR the Oklahoma roads beneath me - bumpity, bumpity, bumpity, bump! But after a while the roads got smoother and we felt like we were driving through the back country of Massachusetts or New York with plush green rolling hills, fields, and trees of all shades of Spring green. We even saw a couple of free range goats grazing on the side of the road. After being in the desert for the winter, the vibrant greens are shocking my visual senses. 

Set up in Ft. Smith/Alma RV Park by 1:30 - the advantage of leaving early in the morning. This is a beautiful park with a fishing pond, paddle boats, a pool, small log cabins, and a variety of trees...

 

April 13, 2024 - Saturday

Moved on to Missouri today and we are noticing that the #1 roadkill victim is armadillo. Our destination is Kibbie and Phil’s home on Osage Beach, Lake of the Ozarks. As always, Kibbie presents a fantastic meal ...

We have a close-up view of the lake with an added attraction this trip. A pair of Canadian geese are next door - papa in the water patrolling / protecting the area while mama has been sitting on the nest (in a box) since March 18th! Her eggs will hatch within in 28 - 35 days of being laid - in the meantime she sits, without leaving to eat, drink, sleep, or even poop.

April 14, 2024 - Sunday

As we finished breakfast...

...we heard a lot of honking. There was a flock of 8 geese approaching and papa was very aggressive about turning them away. Soon after, mama got off of the nest and into the water to join her mate. It’s very unusual for her to leave so we thought the eggs were hatching. There was fluffy down in the nest blowing in the wind which I thought was the goslings, but it was her down feathers which she preened to cover the eggs.

After about a half hour, she got back on the nest so maybe she was helping protect or needed to poop, eat, or drink! We’ll never know.

We kept an eye on the nest in hopes the goslings would appear, but no luck. When it does happen, they will immediately take to the water and find a place to hide from predators. Next year the couple will return to the same nest - they mate for life. 

 

We learned a lot of cool facts about this area. The Arch in St. Louis, MO is considered the “Gateway to the West.” This is where Lewis and Clark began their trek West by boat. Overlanders often stepped off of steamboats from St. Louis in Independence where they would finalize packing for the arduous trip ahead. There is an artesian well there with pure water and other non-perishable expensive supplies. The wagons were dubbed “prairie schooners” as they set sail on land and made the choice at the fork in the road - Oregon Trail or Santa Fe Trail. Mules (a cross between a mare and a donkey) are sturdy and sure footed - and sterile. They were bred here for the purpose of pulling a covered wagon. 

Oak spirit barrels, used for storing spirits (whiskey, scotch, wine), are made in Independent Stave Company in Lebanon, MO as there are so many oak trees here.  They have been in business for 110 years… and distribute to 40 countries.

 

April 15, 2024 - Monday

Got on the road with 2 bags of goodies - one was breakfast (Egg, Sausage and Cheese MacKibbie) and two bottles of champagne to celebrate when we get home. The other was lunch of meatloaf sandwiches, chips, cookies and clementines.

Not even an hour out, we heard a grinding noise and stopped to see what happened. One of the pins that holds the car to the hitch had broken and it was veering to one side! OK - good thing we stopped and we had a spare one to replace it. 😮‍💨

 

But now we kept losing power and pulled over to call a Mercedes Service Center in the area. Was it bad fuel, cruise control, computer? We backtracked about a half hour and at 10am limped in for a service check in Columbia, MO. They assessed the situation and came out to tell us that we had gotten bad fuel - not good! It would take the better part of the day to drain the bad fuel and change the fuel filter. The biggest expense was the labor, but it sure could have been worse. I will say they treat their customers and employees right with free popcorn, ice cream, soda, iced tea, hot tea…and phone chargers! We were very lucky to have Kibbie’s goodie bags ❤️.

 

We informed the Phillips 66 station where we filled up and wrote a strong review of 1 on a scale of 1-5 on their website.  We made reservations for tonight on the other side of St. Louis in Mulberry Grove, MO - 2.5 hours away.

 

Rich hit the hay as soon as we set up, but I just had to play a few songs on my uke - it’s been a while. Can’t wait to play for my grandkids. I'm sure they’ll be impressed - LOL!

 

April 16, 2024 - Tuesday

Rise 'n shine for a 6am departure - destination Erie, PA.

It’s a longer day than we usually do, but trying to get home tomorrow. So one time zone and 5 states were traversed today. I even got to participate a couple of hours in the task of driving.

 

Sites along the way while I wasn’t driving: 

Missouri River

 

Mississippi River

Huge Cross

Dogwood trees in bloom 

Miles of traffic backed up on the other side (thankfully) due to emergency vehicles putting out a truck cab fire - the cab was literally a blackened skeleton of charred steel. 🙏

Pulled into Prescott Isles RV Park in Erie, PA at 5pm for a brief night.

 

April 17, 2024 - Wednesday 

On the road at 6am and soon crossed over the state line into New York. It's a big state and we will be in it 90% of the day. Final destination Lee, Massachusetts! This blog week we were in 10 states!

 

Arrived in Lee where my Mom, my son and his family came for a pizza party! So good to see them and give hugs and kisses. I played the songs I have been practicing for them and it was fun! Randy played Rich’s guitar while I played ukulele and Rich played harmonica. It was such a great sound. My daughter and her family are in Florida for school break so waiting to see them next week. 

 

April 18, 2024 - Thursday

Ah yes - after family gathering, a good night’s sleep in a king size bed, full internet service, streaming TV, washer/dryer, dishwasher, microwave, etc. Feels good to be home with all the luxuries. Leanna and Lily came down to help us unload for a good hour. Now that all is inside, the putting things away begins.

 

This is the last post of Apricity West 4. It is the beginning of New England 4 which is not published as frequently - once a month as activities dictate. 

 

These are the drone pictures taken during the Texas Mud Band entertainment last week.

 

Apricity West 4

April  5. 2024 - Friday

If you remember from last week’s blog, we were invited to an Eclipse Party at Bill and Linda Strickler’s ranch. As you enter their driveway, you see a Texas and an American flag billowing in the wind. 

To the left, two metal longhorns, named after Alamo defenders Travis and Bowie, peer out at you.

Walking toward the front entrance, you see this pristine ranch house made of sandstone and topped with a copper roof.

Above the entrance is a piece of stained glass that Linda had been holding on to for many years. It is a family heirloom and she found the perfect spot for it.

To the right is a great patio with a corner wood burning fireplace to keep it cozy. This would become the morning coffee gathering spot. 

It was good to chat with Bill and Linda, proprietors of this beautiful 5-acre chunk of land with 75 trees adorning it.

Rich has always talked about Bill being a master wood carver of birds. He has a shop on one side of the barn which houses the 5th wheel - they lived in it while building this house.

He is deciding what to do with this root ball…

Linda’s craft room is on the other side - she is a talented embroiderer.

She recently acquired an old dentist desk which provides her with a multitude of drawers to organize her thread.

Their home is like a museum of his bird carvings... 

…and artifacts they have collected over the years

We were sitting in a circle chatting when Sheriff Joe stopped in. He was full of one-liners that had us in stitches. The first thing he said was to sit tight while the dogs sniffed out our RV’s for contraband. His deputy wife is responsible for training the canines - they are nearby neighbors. They had just engaged in a pursuit case. An RV was pulled over for a traffic violation and decided to try to get away. He took a shot at the deputy, elevating the situation to the point that they shot out his tires to stop and arrest him.

After returning to our homes on wheels for a supper break from 5:30-6:30, we gathered on the party pad (bring your own drink and chair) with the newcomers (2 more RV’s arrived today) and 2 sets of neighbors. The headcount was 18 tonight with 2 more RV's coming in from North Ranch tomorrow. All are dry camping, some have solar, others are plugged in. 

April 6, 2024 - Saturday

The view out of our windshield at 7 in the morning. There have been as many as 12 small white tails at a time feeding here. 

On my walk, this unique fence caught my attention. It belonged to the sheriff who was changing it out, so Bill put dibs on it and relocated it to their front yard. 

 

Robert brought a kite which he picked up at a garage sale and provided over an hour of entertainment. The winds have been strong yesterday and today and this kite got up so high that it was of interest to some turkey vultures soaring in the wind currents. It was quite a feat reeling it back in with a very strong resistance. 

One of the deputies stopped by today. They report very high congestion of eclipse chasers in this little town of Mason (pop. 2000) in the county of Mason (pop. 4000), and wish us well and safe travels when we leave. 

April 7, 2024 - Sunday 

Today is preparation day and this crew is used to feeding and entertaining the masses - 30ish. Dot and I helped Linda with the roll ups she prepared. Geri was slicing and dicing veggies and ham in her motorhome for the omelets-in-a-bag tomorrow. Never had them, but can’t wait. I am in charge of cracking eggs - YIKES! Dot is grilling English Muffins and making her signature margaritas. 

 

The Texas Mud band arrived - Ricky Boen (fiddler and pastor) and Darryl (his dad, guitar, singer and pastor) stepped out of their 37-foot Sport Coach Motorhome with the same markings as ours. Ricky’s wife, Lorna, and his mother, Jane, (greeter for the band) joined us as well. They are from Burnet (pronounced burn it, durn it, learn it!), TX and there are 50,000 eclipse chasers piling into the ranch next to theirs with RVs, vans, and tents. Tickets average $300 per person depending on how many days they stay. They have seen women topless and in thongs, and craziness beyond belief. For this reason, we changed plans and will wait until Wednesday to leave in hopes that all the crazies leave on Tuesday since we are heading in that direction!

Harvey and I played for a fun singalong for a couple of hours with 20 folks under the pitch black skies studded with star bling. Robert added to the vocals while Rich and Dot hamonica-ized when the spirit moved them.

  

April 8, 2024 - Monday 

9am - Omelette-in-a-bag-breakfast. It was delicious and is a very cool process. I lost my job of cracking eggs (2 in each bag) to Rich, an experienced egg cracker. So I stood by the table with zip lock bags and Sharpie pens for people to write their name to identify their bag. Then they move to the next table which has assorted omelet ingredients - ham, peppers, red onions, black olives slices, bacon bits, sausage crumbles. Then the bag is squished and sealed by Geri the expert on bag sealing, and passed to her husband, John, to put in the boiling water for about 10 minutes. When the bag is done, John calls out the name and that person pours the contents onto a paper plate and goes to the table with cheese, sour cream, fresh cut fruit, chili, banana bread, blueberry muffin tops, Hatch chiles and jellies.

Then on to the English muffin station where Dot has grilled the buttered muffin halves.

12:30pm - Buffet of assorted hors d’ oeuvres. 

The eclipse has started its cycle so a lot of action between sitings with protective eyewear and getting food and Dot’s pour-your-own Margaritas, complete with salt, ice and fresh lime. 

Thankfully, the weather was perfect for the eclipse, against all predictions we had been seeing for days now. There was no rain and the clouds didn’t block the view for us. It was weird when the moon eclipsed the sun and the atmosphere was dark and eerie - just spectacular! The temperature dropped 12 degrees...

Linda served special Eclipse cookies, brownies, and chocolate cookies..

At 2pm, the band had set up at the party pad and we moseyed over to be entertained by this group. They play Western swing and included "I Come To The Garden Alone”, my favorite hymn since I was a kid. They were amazing - see the video clips in the body of this email.  

Time to take a break to recharge our batteries. We took a nap and didn’t eat any supper!

 

7pm - gathered on the party pad to review the happenings of the day. Bill finally had the opportunity (no wind) to light his portable fire pit in the middle of the circle.  

 

April 9, 2024 - Tuesday

Slept late today after a very busy yesterday! Rain in the forecast, but after a few drops early in the morning, the clouds moved out and it was another delightful day. We determined that Dot’s Margaritas were strong, but the number of times we filled our plastic cup was more deadly. 

 

We gathered on the patio to eat the leftovers from yesterday. Linda wanted to clean out her refrigerator and, of course, we did a good job of it. Severe thunderstorm warnings were in the forecast so we moved under the roof just in time to hear the hail pinging off of it. Thunder was in the background, but no lightning to be seen and no rainbow either. We broke up early tonight as everyone is leaving tomorrow.

Sheltering under 10 foot deep porch…

I have learned so much about this crew - high school graduating class size varied from 29 to over 500. Past careers were fire fighter, shoe salesman, bird supply salesman, bicycle repairman, pharmacy tech, American Airline pilot, CPR/EMT trainer, hairdresser, nurse, and more…

 

April 10, 2024 - Wednesday

Woke up to a herd of 10+ deer grazing in front of us. They are probably so happy to see all of us pull out today so Bill can start feeding them corn again. There were sad goodbyes as RVs started pulling out. Winds are high, so I’m glad we only go 1 hour to get to Llano for a stopover to dump, shower, empty trash, etc. Safe travels to all...

 

Passing through Mason, we went by the courthouse which is made of unique sandstone - it was set on fire gutting the interior by a local felon 3 years ago and is still being refurbished. The local Historic Society issued a grant to rebuild it in its true authenticy. The grand opening will be in the coming months. It was estimated to cost $5 million but has grown to $22 million with remarkable fund raising. Bill donated one of his exquisite carved birds, an owl, which reaped $4,500 at auction. He is very detailed and makes the precise number of feathers as there are on the bird!

Beautiful church…

We got into Llano at 10:50am and had already decided we needed to have BBQ before we left Texas. Coopers Old Tyme Pit BBQ was on our right coming into town and we were able to park on a side street. Since it opens at 11am we thought we would have to wait, but about 10 trucks were already parked there, so we walked over.

I have NEVER seen anything like this before. The entrance is an outdoor pavilion with several large pits - the first one filled with ribs, sausage, turkey breast, prime rib, pork loin, short ribs, chicken, goat, and brisket. So we tell him the portion and cut of meat that we want, they put it on a tray and we walk inside to choose the sides to go with the complimentary slaw, potato salad, and pickles. We got small Mac ’n Cheese with jalapeno and bacon. 

Meat is served on butcher paper and you eat it off of white butcher paper. We were out of there by 11:30am with our bellies full - we did not have room for any cobbler. At least a dozen other people were eating BBQ at this hour right along with us. 

Set up at Riverway RV Park in Llano for the night. First thing we did is shower! The body wipes are great for dry camping, but nothing like a nice hot shower to wash your hair...😳

 

April 11, 2024 - Thursday

Headed to Tyler, TX. Can’t believe how many RV parks and dealers there are. Gas prices as low as $2.45, diesel at $3.29! Windmills are on the horizon and on  side of the road!

Love the wildflowers along the side of the roads. 

This was a long one - things will be calming down now after a super week of partying!