Thursday, November 10, 2016

Caruthersville, Missouri... We're behind because we haven't had wi-fi much. Please bear with us and we'll try to get some more of the vacation posted!

Wednesday, November 9, 2016

near Hohenwald, Tennessee... We're behind because we haven't had wi-fi much. Please bear with us and we'll try to get some more of the vacation posted!

Tuesday, November 8, 2016

near Decatur, Alabama... We're behind because we haven't had wi-fi much. Please bear with us and we'll try to get some more of the vacation posted!

Monday, November 7, 2016

near Scottsboro, Alabama, again... We're behind because we haven't had wi-fi much. Please bear with us and we'll try to get some more of the vacation posted!

Sunday, November 6, 2016

In the morning, we left the Wranglers Campground driving towards Scottsboro. Along the way, we stopped at Fort Donaldson Civil War battleground.

The purpose of Fort Donaldson was to defend the Tennessee River from Yankee invasion. Upriver was Nashville, a really important railway hub for the Western South. Admiral Foote had sent 4 ironclads against Fort Donaldson, but the inexperienced gunners had successfully fended off the attack. On the right is a picture taken immediately after this battle showing the fattest gunner in the Confederacy. Fort Donaldson is not much of a land battle. Fort Donaldson is significant because it was Grant's and the North's first major victory of the Civil War. Grant demanded the fort surrender "unconditionally" and it did. This is where U. S. Grant received his nickname, Unconditional Surrender Grant. Fort Donaldson is also where we meet Confederate General Gideon Pillow for the first time on this trip.

General Pillow is known as one of the worst generals in the Civil War because of his string of bad decisions. In this battle, the Confederate plan was to break out of the federal siege and escape to upriver to Nashville. When the Confederates attacked, Grant was miles away visiting Admiral Foote. The Confederates successfully pushed the federal back about a mile creating a large escape route. In the middle of this success, General Pillow called the troops back into the front right before Grant returned. Upon his return, Grant counterattacked and closed the gap, resulting in the surrender of 13,000 Confederate troops the next day. General Pillow escaped upriver on a Confederate steamer.

We drove on to Scottsboro, Alabama and Unclaimed Baggage. - car   

Saturday, November 5, 2016

Wranglers Campground... We were located in Section D of the campground, called "The Pines" because of the numerous tall pine trees shading the lots. We were the only people without horses. All the other camps had horse, some had mules, tethered behind the campers. A few campers brought fencing to make corrals at the rear of their campsite. The horse on one side was named Zipper. On the other side was Cheyenne and Pace. And a little terrier named Shotgun. Don't remember the people's names.

All day, the horse were whinnying back and forth. Every minute a horse in the distance would whinny and a horse nearby would respond and vice versa. I am not sure what is being communicated. A horse in a stall across the way appeared distressed at being alone in the stall with no one around. The horse stomped around, kicked the door and whinnied frequently. And horses in the distance would respond. I bet this horse communication happened frequently during the 1800s. Western movies seem to leave it out.

In the morning, we watched people feed and brush their horses. At about 9 people began putting blankets and saddles on their horses. Some exercised their horses by running them in circles round and round, one direction, then the other direction. At about 10 to 11 groups road out of camp to the many trails surrounding the campground. I heard of two accidents, a girl fell off her horse and hit her head. And someone else was taken to a hospital.

A little afternoon, Kathy and I walked to the camp store and bought lunch. I had two hot dogs. Kathy had chips I think. Then we walked back. When not watching the horses, Kathy and I read. I fell asleep several times. -car

Friday, November 4, 2016

After leaving the campsite today, we drove to Grand Rivers, KY, to check out a potential place to visit. We were disappointed that it didn't look that interesting, so we went grocery shopping instead.

We've decided that we are going to pretty much take it as easy as possible this year, so we are going to spend a couple of days actually in the Land Between the Lakes area. Two lakes, Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, have been formed by damming the Tennessee River and the Cumberland River. Many families, towns, cemeteries, etc. had to be moved while the land was flooded. However, there is still a strip of land running between the two lakes, much of which is now designated a National Recreation area.

After reading about some of the campgrounds in the area, we decided to try the more unconventional (for us) campground, Wranglers Campground, This is a campground designed for campers with horses. It was pretty full, but we did find a spot. More on the campground and it's charms tomorrow.

We spent the afternoon doing some sightseeing in the Land Between the Lakes. First we drove south to The Homeplace. This is considered an 1850s "working farm and living history museum." At this time of the year there were few visitors, so the atmosphere was quiet (especially considering the Independence Day celebration that Kathy and the kids took part in years ago!) We walked the grounds until we found the field that two of the men were plowing with a team of mules.

Chris visited with one farmer and another visiting couple, while I chatted with the other farmer and petted the mules. We both were told interesting tales about the antics of the mules, past and present, the chickens, and the hogs that had escaped (again!) earlier in the day. The hogs were still to be found... 

Eventually, we arrived back at the farmhouse. After touring it and we first spent quite awhile in the kitchen talking to one of the women about cooking various foods. She had just finished a pumpkin pie and a sweet potato pie; they smelled great. We discussed whether making a pie with all our extra butternut squash would be similar and other ways to use it.

Then the three of us joined another of the women on the porch for a nice chatting session. These southern style homes with the rooms separated by a breezeway (even the second story bedrooms are separated with another breezeway) are great for sitting outside, rain or shine, and letting the breezes blow around you!

A little way past The Homeplace was an example of a limestone slab furnace used by the Great Western Iron Works during the late nineteenth century. This whole area had a number of similar furnaces producing iron, principally pig iron, to ship elsewhere.

Returned to campground!-- kdr

Thursday, November 3, 2016

We ate breakfast at the truck stop right near the campground and continued east.

Today was really just driving. Our short-term goal became the Land Between the Lakes area of Kentucky/Tennessee. Both of us have memories of camping there: Chris and his father went there when Chris was middle school-aged and my kids and I have camped there more than once. My kids have definite memories of hot, muggy days, the Independence Day celebration at The Homeplace, and catching Tennessee bugs for some of their biology classes!

We reached the north end of Kentucky Lake this evening and camped at Cypress Lake RV Park at Calvert City, Kentucky. It appears that more of the campgrounds are beginning to have individual shower areas. Somewhat like “family” restrooms, there is a door and each individual room has a sink, shower, and stool. It's much more personal and truly does become a family restroom, if necessary.-- kdr

Wednesday, November 2, 2016

We got a late start today. Chris gave an online session to the 2016 Apple class of Kansas librarians, we packed our food in the camper, ran a few errands, and, finally, headed east. Our destination... well, we've decided on Alabama. Specifically, Scottsboro, Alabama.

Last week, when Chris was at the ARSL (Association of Rural and Small Librarians) conference in Fargo, North Dakota, the Scottsboro public librarian told him about the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro. It's become a travel destination and just sounds kind of fun. Anyone that has followed the Rippel Vacation in the past knows that we tend to stop at Goodwill or other thrift stores during vacations. This sounds like an extension of that!

We actually didn't get too far today. We stopped at Kansas City East KOA for the night. Our site was actually one of the “deluxe tent” spots with electricity, so it fit us perfectly. We always rate our shower rooms and Chris gives his stamp of approval for the design of the showers. The floor and drains were sloped so that they actually drained well!-- kdr

Campground day, Sunday, October 18, 2015.

We spent today in the campground, washing clothes, updating this blog, and reading. Tomorrow we checkout Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Hot Tamale Festival, Saturday, October 17, 2015.

 

When Kathy and I were eating at Doe's with Jerry and Lee, they told us they were in Greenville for the Hot Tamale Festival. Greenville is the Hot Tamale Capital of the World. Kathy and I spent most of the day at the festival on Washington Street. Like all festivals, this festival contained lots of people and booths selling all kinds of stuff, not just hot tamales. In fact, hot tamales could not be sold until 11:30 after the judging. Kathy and I stayed until the grand prizes were awarded. We ate only 13 tamales which turned out to be some of the winners. We also bought some salsa, hummus, and brown rice from the growers. We noticed was the Geenville police were black guys. Kathy noticed the guys in the sheriff running office booth were white guys.

Kathy and I had never seen waterballs. Kids are sealed inside a clear plastic ball which is then pump full of air as shown in the foreground of the picture. The ball is pushed out onto a large plastic pool in the background of the picture. It sounds cool at first. However, no kid appears to be able to stand up and actually walk inside the ball. Instead they roll around. I am not sure how fun this actually is.








Several booths sold sport team stuff, mostly team signs. Kathy and I learned Delta State University's unofficial mascot is "Fighting Okra". Ben and Jason, why didn't you tell us about "fighting okra"? DSU's official teams are called "Statesmen". Fighting okra sounds way tougher. Delta State appears to also be proud of having "the World's Most Annoying" pep band. 

Confederate Flag Demonstration to Eating at Doe's, Friday, October 16, 2015.

Kathy and I woke up and decided to buy breakfast. Unfortunately, we hadn't seen breakfast places the previous night's trip to "The Square." Since our main job today is to visit the University of Mississippi campus we headed toward campus in hopes of running across a breakfast place first. We didn't. We drove right up to the front gate of the campus and asked the guard at the gate we were looking for breakfast. Without even looking at us like we were stupid, he informed us that we were at the University of Mississippi. We said, "Yes, we know. Can you recommend a place to eat breakfast?" And he told us about "Big, Bad Breakfast". And that is where we eat. The place was full. Kathy and I sat at the lunch counter. The menu is interesting. We learned that Tobasco produces spicy salt and spicy worcestershire sauce. Kathy had an omelet. I had "The Gentleman," fried chicken first soaked in Coca Cola. The meat was tender. The batter was thick. 

On the way back to campus, we took a picture of Faulkner's house, three blocks from "The Square". It is a private residence and doesn't give tours.

 We arrived on campus just in time for an NAACP protest demanding the Mississippi state flag be removed from campus because it has the "southern cross" in the upper left corner. Kathy and I assumed that a state university would certainly not remove the state flag from campus. However, two other state universities already have. The demonstration was orderly. Three black students spoke about their attachment to the university and the alienation by the southern cross on the state flag. Kathy thought they should have had a white speaker to show this is not just a black issue. I think they should have played Steve Earle's "Mississippi, It's time". 

Soon after the anti-flag demonstration, about ten pro-flag demonstrators showed up. This was about five men and three women and two children with one more in a baby carriage, waving Mississippi and southern cross flags. These were not students. One of the southern cross flags had a skull and crossbones on it. One of the guys was wearing a white power hat and carrying a sign saying, "Succession". So much for "heritage, not hate." Newspaper accounts made conflicting claims about who these people were. One claimed that they were members of the KKK from Georgia. Another gave another identify. Anyway, they were greatly out numbered by the protesters of the first group who peppered the second group with insults and questions. Since Kathy and I were standing in the back with the hangers on, we could here the insults and questions of the nearby black students, but could not hear the responses of the further away rebels. Police were keeping the groups apart. A newspaper article said the police eventually lead the group off campus and prevented the black students from following. 

Since Kathy and I couldn't hear well, we left before the end and walked to the university library. We found the James Meredith statue in front of the library.  In 2014, Graeme Phillip Harris and two other students of the Sigma Phi Epsilon hung a noose and an older version of the Georgia flag with the southern cross on the James Meredith statue. The fraternity was closed and the three boys charged with a felony.  In September 2015, a federal judge gave Harris six months in jail, followed by 12-months probation. James Meredith wants the statue torn down and ground to dust because the statue gives a false sense of progress. Back in 1962, federal marshals forced the University of Mississippi to enroll James Meredith. Now 50 years later, Meredith points out that still a federal court, not Mississippi, punished Harris with the hate crime.  

Kathy and I visited the library and the student union bookstore, walked the "Walk of Champions." The university has a tradition of the football walking through the grove on game days. The purpose of the arch is to remind athletes that they play for championships with teamwork, loyalty, and trust. The walk itself will be composed of 17,000 engraved bricks, $250 each. As we left town we passed the baseball diamond. Two teams were there playing a game. The diamond looked new and very nice. 

Kathy and I drove from Oxford straight to Doe's Eat Place in Greenville, Mississippi. Doe's Eat Place is an internationally known dump serving some of the best steaks we have ever eaten. Kathy and I discovered Doe's in previous visit to Greenville in 2009.  Doe's has other locations, but people say they don't give the same run down experience of the original. I am sure this is true. Doe's serves great food and a unique experience. This time Kathy and I shared a table with two guys: Jerry and Lee. One of them was from a small town near Greenville. The other was from Iberia, Louisiana. Now they both live in Texas. Kathy and I had a good time sharing travel stories with them. After finishing our meal at Doe's we camped at Warfield Point Park beside the Mississippi River.

Thursday, October 15, 2015. Driving through Memphis etc. (humming song... see below)

OK, the title of today is a poor play on the song "Walking in Memphis" because it comes to mind everytime I think about Memphis...

We didn't actually do anything in Memphis because we decided to go visit Oxford, Mississippi, and "Ole Miss" because our grandson, Blake is looking at it for college. We decided we would get a picture of the town in our heads in case he decides to go there!

By the time we arrived in Oxford, it was going to be dark, so we first stopped and got a campsite west of town at the Oak Grove Campground (Corps of Engineers) on Sardis Lake. It's a nice campground with well-spaced sites and lots of trees. I'd definitely stay there again if we ever go to visit Blake at the University of Mississippi!

Once we registered the site, we decided to drive in to Oxford and see The Square at night. Chris had read about Oxford and said The Square was supposed to be "the place" to be at night. Well, for a Thursday night in October it was pretty busy!! The Square is centered on the courthouse and there are lots of stores, bars, and restaurants, many still open. There might have also been a concert at one of the sites that night.

We ate Italian food at one of the places on The Square. We walked around and also visited a bookstore, Square Books, before returning to the camp. Tomorrow we will return in the light to see the town and, most importantly, the campus!

Wednesday, October 14, 2015. More of Eureka Springs...

Eureka Springs, Arkansas, KOA

We decided to stay a second night at the KOA near Eureka Springs and visit some of the attractions during the day. The campground is built on hills (can we say Ozarks?) and achieves flat camping sites by using terracing. Our site was small, but our camper van is too. The terracing makes you feel that your site is more isolated, plus we had our own little deck with table and grill.

We decided to head in towards town and visit some sites we had decided on.

The first was Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge. They rescue and then take care of mostly large cats (tigers, lions, ligers, bobcats, ocelots, cougars, for example) and a few other wild creatures (bear and some others). They are gradually, as they receive the funding, building large enclosures that are natural habitat for the cats. What was amazing is that most of their rescued cats actually came from Arkansas or the surrounding area! I couldn't believe how many private individuals have large wild animals.

We took a guided tour of the facility, too, and met a very nice young intern that told us tales about the animals, the facility, and the rescues. As you might expect, she told us that any people purchase, say, a tiger cub and it's so cute, etc. But about a couple of years later the owners realize that this is turning into a LARGE, wild animal! So they try to find somewhere like the Wildlife Refuge. But she also told us tales about rescues of twenty or more creatures from the same place, living in terrible conditions. It's upsetting.

Next on our agenda was a visit to Quigley's Castle. We really enjoyed visiting this simple site. I suggest you click on the previous link and read the story about the house rather than retelling all of it. I loved the part about Elise and the kids tearing down the old house while the husband was at work! But it is also quite a love story because her husband, Albert, obviously understood his wife and helped her with her artistic ventures over the years.

Elise designed her own house and the main feature is the fact that she planted trees and other plants INSIDE and planned everything around that. The house is actually extremely comfortably designed and I'd love to live there. The windows on the glass side are all like french doors and you walk across a little brige to open them.

Chris' mom designed and built her own home, also. She also loved nature and gardening, so we decided that she would have loved what Elise did with her home.

In the garden, both Elise and Albert built stone structures out of stones, cement, and other found objects. This includes benches, tables, birdbaths, and many more.

The whole place would go well in Lucas, Kansas, we decided. It fits the description of outsider art under whatever name you want to call it (found art, folk art, etc.)

We then returned to the Historic Downtown of Eureka Springs. We caught the trolley from a parking lot and that was nice. We basically walked around, but especially enjoyed visiting a magic shop (and talking to the clerk who would like to become a magician), Gourmet Eureka (a cool little shop with lots of goodies, both food and gadget. The proprietor let us taste lots of neat things and we reciprocated by buying many of them!), and a gem and art shop that had some great pieces.

Back to the campground to eat a supper of goodies we bought from Gourmet Eureka and a salad with our new balsalmic vinegar!

Tuesday, October 13, 2015. To Eureka Springs, AR.

It didn't take long to get to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, in the morning. Part of our vacation plans have been to see some of the sites Chris remembers going to several times with his Mom and Grandmother when he was small. But we aren't sure whether it might be Eureka Springs or Hot Springs, so we plan to see both during this vacation.

Yes, Eureka Springs is definitely a tourist town. Most people know this, but it's possible that someone that doesn't travel much might not be aware of that. But that can even be fun for those of us that aren't big shoppers, in a kitchy sort of way.

Before we even got to town we stopped at the Thorncrown Chapel outside of town. This chapel opened in 1980 and contains 425 windows and over 6,000 square feet of glass. It's surrounded by woods. They ask that you simply enter, sit, and keep talking to a minimum and quiet. There were quite a few people there when we arrived. The atmosphere and view are inspiring and peaceful. Although we didn't find any mention of it in the promotional literature, we feel there are definite nods to some of Frank Lloyd Wright's work.

On entering town we discovered Fresh Harvest Tasting Room. They have lots of various olive oils and balsamic vinegars to taste and purchase we had lots of fun tasting, especially the vinegars. Although they have the basics, most of the items are either fused or infused with all sorts of other foods. We found a number we really liked, but both really liked the Espresso Balsamic Vinegar. That also happens to be their best-seller!

We then went to a store called The Amish Collection. Kathy wanted to go in and drool over the furniture. So we did. I'll gladly take at least one of everything in the store, if someone is willing to bankroll me! There were scads of simply beautiful pieces; but even if we wanted to purchase something large we couldn't get it back in the camper van. It looks like a trip to Yoder, Kansas, is now on the agenda to look at their furniture.

We did purchase one smaller item: a table that can be pulled up to a chair or couch to eat, etc. OK, it's maybe a glorified TV tray, but it's beautiful wood! We think it will come in handy when all the family is at our house and those sitting on the family room couch need a place for drinks rather than the floor! We also discovered that it actually makes eating in the camper easier for Kathy. However, moving it from the bed to the driver's seat and back each day/night is somewhat irritating.


We called for reservations at the Eureka Springs KOA and then proceeded to go on in to the historic downtown area of Eureka Springs. We walked around mainly, bought some chocolate candies, and then decided to eat some supper in town. We ate at the 1905 Basin Park Hotel. We found the meals to be simply OK. Walked around a bit more and headed to the campground.

We're watching our way through season one of The Blacklist, in addition to reading...

Monday, October 12, 2015. Off and away.

As we have the last few years, we took our time getting around today and finally pulled out in the late morning. I forgot to make a brisket this year! (Thanks, Ben, for reminding me and making me feel guilty.) We do miss that we won't have brisket sandwiches along the way.

So, we headed across Kansas to the east and decided our first goal would be... wait for it... the Goodwill store in Joplin, Missouri. For those that have followed our travels over the years you will remember that the store in Joplin has impressed us as the "best laid out" of the thrift shops we visit. We tend to visit stores like this on vacation; sometimes for some item we left (this year it was the microwavable large bowl that I left in the dishwasher) and sometimes just for fun.

Joplin's Goodwill had to move because the one we had visited was in the area hit be the tornado a few years ago. It's now near that spot, but smaller. We still liked the way it's laid out with the racks arranged by color in each department (all the red blouses together, etc.)

After finding a suitable item to cook in, a fork (yes, left some other things in the dishwasher, too!), and some jeans for Chris, we headed out again. We ended up staying overnight near Neosho, Missouri, at the Stage Stop Campground. It's small and sites are fairly close together, but was plenty OK for a quick overnight stay. We had a nice visit with the campground host.

Thursday, August 21, 2014. Saying "adieu" to Ontario and entering Detroit.

Please be patient, we have been off-the-grid while in Ontario. We've uploaded a few more days while sitting in a Tim Hortons in Kitchener, Ontario, on Thursday.

Wednesday, August 20, 2014. Driving across part of Ontario.

Please be patient, we have been off-the-grid while in Ontario. We've uploaded a few more days while sitting in a Tim Hortons in Kitchener, Ontario, on Thursday.

Tuesday, August 19, 2014. On to Canada!

Please be patient, we have been off-the-grid while in Ontario. We've uploaded a few more days while sitting in a Tim Hortons in Kitchener, Ontario, on Thursday.

Monday, August 18, 2014. Mackinac Island.

In the morning, we went ahead and reserved our same campsite for the next night. That way we could spend as much time on Mackinac Island as we chose.

The ferry to the Island only takes a little while. The first thing you notice after disembarking is the number of variations of bicycles and other means of transportation like scooters, sidecars for bicycles, tandem bicycles, etc. Many people of all ages are cycling around the area, but many of us were walking. There are also many types carriages pulled by horses (mostly draft horses), so it becomes evident that one type of pollution (auto exhaust) has beenWell, traded for another (horse manure). Ah, but it's historically accurate! Well, maybe not entirely, because there were probably lots more horses and other livestock in the past.

We walked around to view various points of interest including a butterfly house with additional insect displays,

Which of these is not like the others?

the historic Fort Mackinac, lunch on the deck at the Pink Pony, and visiting a couple of fudge shops (yes, and buying. There goes our good intentions!)

Fort Mackinac was involved in one of the first altercations of the War of 1812. The British troops, including French voyageurs and Indians, landed on the Island about 200-strong. The Americans at the Fort, about 57 of the, didn't even know the young United States was at war again! Being obviously out-numbered, they surrendered the Fort without firing a shot. One of the most interesting displays at the Fort was in the former Infirmary. Several beds are in one room with mannequins portraying sick and injured soldiers, including the Commander. I believe the timeframe was supposed to be around 1895. A movie is then shown on the back wall showing someone portraying the camp's doctor at the time. He explains the first patients ailment/injury and describes his treatment and the outcome. Then the picture changes to a woman doctor from the current era. She discusses what the name of any ailment would be today and what treatments and outcomes would be expected with our modern technology. Some vary a lot, but some of the earlier doctor's treatments, especially of fractures, are pretty close to what is still done. We thought this learning experience was well-done.

The last thing we did was to go on a carriage tour of the Island that lasted about 45 minutes to an hour. A couple of young men told us about the history of various places and people as we rode around the town and through the surrounding countryside. One of the Belgian draft horses (I love draft horses!) had some severe gastro-intestinal problems and regaled us with many loud instance of passing gas. This definitely provided some comic relief when our guide's presentation was continually interrupted.

So, another ferry trip and we returned to the campground. The temperature for the day, which was supposed to be
in the lower 70s, actually never got over 62 as far as I saw. So it was definitely not the prettiest day to walk and ride around the Island. At the campground we began having some light rain, so it was supper, reading, eating some fudge, and going to bed fairly early. Perhaps not exactly in that order!