Friday, August 15, 2014. Camping at Point Beach State Forest (Wisconsin)

Day 2 of camping with Kyle started off oddly. While Chris was out walking, Kyle came in the camper and reminded me that we needed to get down to the office since we were on the "transfer" list for another site and the new sites were assigned beginning at 9 AM. It was already after that!

I hurriedly got ready and we headed for the office. When we arrived the campground staff person told us we were a little early, since it was still about twenty minutes until 9 AM! It seems that sometimes cell phones (the clocks/watches of today) in this area read a tower from Michigan and that State is actually on Eastern Daylight Time! It was a good thing that we were early though, because we were told that the people on the transfer list got first dibs if they were there, then others were able to request any leftover campsites. If someone on the transfer list is not there when others come, they lose their spot and have to become a first come/first served customer.

Since we still had time, we were given the available site numbers and Kyle and I went to check them out before the time arrived. At 9 we were the second camp on the transfer list, so we got to pick our new site. Check out time was at 3 PM and then we would move from Site 115 to Site 113.

Kyle and I checked out the beach on the way back to the site. Then Kyle, Chris, and I went down to see the lighthouse in the park and the beach near it. Chris and Kyle then began hiking the section of the Ice Age Trail that runs from the park towards the town of Two Rivers, Wisconsin. I waved them off, returned to the campsite to do the first entry on this blog, then drove to Two Rivers to pick them up.

Kyle has been hiking a number of trails in the U.S. the last few years and figured they'd finish in about an hour and a half. I couldn't find the end of the trail in Two Rivers, so parked in the shade at the City Park where I figured they may come by. And then I waited and waited... I texted them both and received some updates that it might be longer than they expected. As time went on I realized that 3 PM was nearing and we needed to vacate our first campsite by then so that the next campers could move in. After texting them about my plans, I headed back to the campsite right before 3.


I parked Kyle's car at the new site, walked down the road (two sites away), packed up the chairs, wood, etc., unhooked the camper, and drove it to the new site. I walked back and took off the weather cover (whatever the official name is unknow to me!) and walked it to the new site. Once more, trekked back, took out the stakes, and walked the still-up tent back to the site. I just staked it in the first available spot, likewise the camper was parked temporarily, and then returned Two Rivers (about 4 miles) to find the two hikers at the convenience store have some refreshments.

Chris and Kyle seemed to enjoy their hike through both woods and beach areas, even though it ended up being longer than they had planned.

We spent some time reading and resting, then Kyle and I went down to the beach to sit and read. It was cooler than we thought, so we didn't stay long. Some kids had made a really cool trench from the lake (Lake Michigan, by the way) inland about 12 feet to a VERY large hole in the sand. Of course it was filled with water. It reminded me of things my kids would enjoy doing when we were on family vacations.

 Another night of a campfire, reading, and conversing...

Thursday, August 14, 2014. Heading north in Wisconsin

We all took it easy in the morning. We stayed in Kyle's apartment; it was the first time Chris had seen the new one!

After eating some breakfast and getting everything packed, the three of us took a trip over to Savers thrift store. We were looking for a medium weight blanket for the weather we have been encountering. We have one for very cold weather, but not a good one in the camper for chilly weather. Found one. Plus we both forgot to pack jackets for colder weather. We each found some at the store, plus some other goodies. We find lots of really good stuff at thrift stores and this one seems well-managed.

And then it was off on our camping trip! Chris drove the camper and listened to his lectures, while I rode with Kyle so that we could catch up on things and have some mother/daughter bonding. The trip was fun. Our destination was Point Beach State Forest a little south of Green Bay Wisconsin. Since we use electricity for our C-PAPs, but Kyle's used to roughing it while camping, our campsite fit the bill. It was wooded with pretty good separation from other campers. Misquitoes were irritating, but not impossible.

The one problem we encountered was that electric sites were at a premium and our site was only available for one night. We will have to move tomorrow!

Kyle built us a nice fire and we cooked hot dogs that Chris had picked up for supper. And sat around the fire as it turned dark. Yes, Kyle and I had some beer... we did NOT cook marshmallows, sing, or tell ghost stories. But a good time was had by all and we laughed alot.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014. The House on the Rock.... and Kyle!

One of the House on the Rock staff claims Alex Jordan and Frank Lloyd Wright never met. Wikipedia retells stories from two biographies of Alex Jordan Jr. of how Alex Jordan Jr. committed to building House on the Rock near Dodgeville, Wisconsin. Jordan was a devotee of Frank Lloyd Wright. One day Jordan drove to Frank Lloyd Wright's home Talisen, near Green Springs, Wisconsin to show Wright some blueprints. After looking over the blueprints, Wright said he wouldn't hire Jordan to build a cheese crate or a chicken coop. On the way home, Jordan pointed to a tower of rocks and said he would build a pagoda on top of those rocks. And he did. Then he spent the rest of his life collecting stuff and erecting buildings to house them. The end result is the most visited tourist attraction in Wisconsin.

Wright's influence on Jordan's construction is unmistakable. Wright had a building technique called compress and release. Front entrances had low ceilings about 6 feet above the ground. This seem oppressive, but about 15 feet inside the ceiling jumps up to 12 to 20 feet. Compress. Release. Jordan's house contains extreme compression, since my head sometimes bumped the ceiling, with little release. And dark, oh my gosh.

Wright played with windows. In one house Wright built a rock garden with bowling ball size boulders.  The bottom of a glass wall is cut to fit the exact shape of the boulders separating the garden half inside and half outside the house. Cool idea. A more common Wright technique is to have to large panes of glass meet at the corners of a room without a frame between them. The glass is beveled to fit tightly together at the corners. The glass may h,ave fit together tightly when first installed. Decades later, the glass is now separated by at least a quarter of an inch. And, as I recall, there is no cawking filling the cracks. And these are the windows in Talisen in the middle of Wisconsin. Fortunately, Wright was also fond of huge roof overhangs which prevents water from blowing in.

Unfortunately, Jordan did not adopt Wright's use of windows. Several walls have some rows of windows about chest high or facing down toward the ground. They add little light. Most lighting comes from a few recessed bulbs or indirect lighting from somewhere.

Like Wright, Jordan uses wood and stone for some walls and ceiling. Unlike Wright, most of Jordan's walls and ceiling are darkened by a thick, deep red plush carpet, the type I have seen in sleezy, dark discos. This carpeting even covers the kitchen. Reading a recipe would be impossible. And where are the cabinets to store cooking equipment and cans of food? Several rooms have bookshelves reaching to the ceiling some 15 feet overhead. Reading the spines and reaching the overhead shelves are impossible. I have to agree with Wright's assessment of Jordan's architecture.

Then there are the collections which go on and on and on. Several of the collections are interesting for those who like that "stuff". The best collections are the doll houses, the guns, butterflies, ships, and crown jewelry. With the exception of the ships and the crowns, few items are marked and identified, so people have to bring their own knowledge. The mechanical instruments are the most entertaining collection. There are several orchestras and bands with and without mannequins play a variety of tunes. I think I prefer instruments playing by themselves. The music is not played perfectly, but it is amusing.

After leaving the house, we drove to Madison to see daughter Kyle. We ate at a sidewalk cafe. Kyle told us about her Alaskan trip.   

Tuesday, August 12, 2014. Herbert Hoover's day!

Customer who appreciates sarcasm any time of the day.

From the Little Bear Campground, we drove straight to West Branch, Iowa.

We first visited Reid's Beans, a hip coffee shop.


Herbert Hoover's boyhood home until 10 years of after leaving the Presidency, Herbert Hoover returned to West Branch and began planning his Presidential Library. The portion of the town he lived as a boy was purchased and his boyhood 2-room home was remodeled and replicas of his father's blacksmith shop and his mother's schoolroom were rebuilt. The museum library tells the story of his life. And a remarkable life it is. He truly was a great man.

After becoming the highest paid professional man in the world, he retired from work and spent the rest of his life as a "public servant". He used his extraordinary managerial skills mobilizing volunteer relief efforts which literally saved from starvation millions of men, women, and especially children in Belgium and Russia during World War I, the Mississippi Flood of 1927, etc. He became known as "The Great Humanitarian".


Recognition of these managerial skills eventually won him the White House in a landslide. His Presidency was immediately challenged by the Great Depression. His preference for limited government and volunteer mobilization failed him this time. After losing to FDR and 12 years suffering neglect during the recovery from the Great Depression, he devoted his life to public service, writing books, giving speeches, etc.

After leaving Hoover's memorial, Kathy purchased some heritage tomatoes from a local farmer's market. We then moved on toward Kyle's. 

Monday, August 11, 2014. The verdict...

Good news...

Chris got up earlier, as usual, and walked down to the mechanic's shop to find out the diagnosis and prognosis on the car's problem. It started right up for them! The most logical answer seems to be that the van suffered from vapor lock.

So we both had a small breakfast at the motel and we actually were back on the road!

We decided that since we had missed our supper in Omaha, we'd try to make it there for lunch. How exciting, our taste buds were kicking into high gear for the Ethiopian food at Lalibela Ethiopian Restaurant. But when we got to Omaha and pulled up, they are closed on Mondays!

We were still sitting in the parking lot, staring at the sign with the hours, when one of the owners came up and asked us if we needed help. We told him how disappointed we were, but he didn't open just for us! Odd.

We may try it again on the way back.

So, we continued on across Iowa and decided we'd find a campground near the Herbert Hoover Presidential Museum. So we found Little Bear Campground near West Liberty, Iowa.

Sunday, August 10, 2014. Off we go?

Vacation 2014 started with a bang... or maybe it's better described as a whimper.

After packing on Saturday, we lollygagged around and left home around eleven-something. All was going well; two weeks of traveling wherever we wanted in our camper van. Of course it's not "officially"  vacation until we get out of Kansas, because we are so familiar with our Kansas roads.

So, we grabbed some lunch in Abilene and as we were driving along we got this great idea. Instead of heading towards Iowa and Wisconsin through Kansas City for our first leg (as usual), "let's go through Omaha and eat at that great Ethiopian restaurant we like!"

Our route, therefore, changed and we headed for Nebraska through Marysville, etc.

And that's were the bottom fell out; but not literally, thank goodness.

We were just a few miles into Nebraska, coming up on a small town called Wymore. We had already decided we would buy gas there or the next larger town, Beatrice. So, there we were, merrily driving along and suddenly we couldn't go any further. Oh, the van was running, it just wouldn't go anywhere when you pressed on the gas!

We pulled over onto the grass (no real shoulder there). We debated the cause: no gas? The engine was still running. So finally the closest past problem we could come up with was, maybe, the fuel pump. (Yes, all you mechanics may have figured out the validity of that one already...)

After a couple of rather long and frustrating calls to our roadside service number, we decided to handle it ourselves. Chris couldn't get phone service, but I had been able to if I stayed in one spot a number of feet behind the vehicle. Chris, however

The cute couple point to their destination, Michigan.

, could reach 911 while I was wrapping up my other call. The County Sheriff's office quickly provided him with three names of towing companies. We called the first and he said he'd head down the twenty-plus miles to get us (from Beatrice).

When he arrived and loaded up the camper, he had already contacted a mechanic willing to look at the car the next day (yes, this was Sunday). After we unloaded the van, we checked in to a nearby motel for the evening and ate some supper. The motel didn't match up to the motels we encounter around our Central Kansas Library System 17 counties, but it was a bed, etc. for the night. We enjoyed watching two aviation movies, Tuskegee Airmen (1995) and Flyboys (2006); one for each of the World Wars, both based on true stories.

And, tomorrow we will discover how many days it will take to fix the van and decide what to do about vacation. Dum, dum, dum, dummmmmm