sad day in oklahoma...

well, today was another experience neither nancy or i needed. the day started off bad, when i got in a big damn hurry and forgot to raise the rear stabilizers on the trailer. after dragging them through the campground and over two speed bumps, they were what you could call "toast"! but i even got up extra early this morning thinking we'd get an early start, get to the cowboy heritage center, and get to the next koa kampground early and then we'd be able to sit and relax awhile before bedtime. yeah, right! after i took a hammer to the stabilizers to bend them back into place, i got them folded back into position, although they are of no use anymore. i guess i'll cut them off when we get back to nc. i called a camping world in oklahoma city and they said bring the trailer in and they would see what they could do. long story short; no luck, so we bought a couple of rv jack stands to stabilize the rear of the trailer. actually they are easier to use than the factory stabilizers, so maybe today wasn't a total loss. when we got past oklahoma city about 13 miles, we stopped to get something to eat and while walking the dogs, we noticed that loki was not acting like his usual chipper self. he is always jumping up and down and always ready to go for a ride. but this time he was lethargic and wobbly on his feet. so, we asked about a veterinarian close-by and took him to dr. eisenhour in el reno, ok. after drawing blood and taking an x-ray, he said that loki has immune anemia and he needed to be treated as soon as possible, as his red blood-count was down to 15.84 (very low). loki is having his first hospital stay in his short life overnight and we will check back with the vet in the morning. needless to say, we cancelled reservations in elk city, ok and are staying at a koa in the cherokee nation about 5 miles west of el reno, ok. i guess you don't know what the future holds until it hits you in the face...

cross the mighty mississip...

this morning took us across the mississippi river at memphis, tn and then we were in arkansas. a not-so-long day today; only 8 hours, but that included two stops for gas and two rest stops along the way to rest our tired buttocks. arkansas has a lot of farmland, but the ozark mountains are pretty this time of year. as the photos of today's jaunt will prove. no quilt shops on our journey today, but there are four more days until we reach the pacific, so who can say? i saw another camping world today, but we didn't stop. the two rest stops we saw today are beautifully landscaped and very park-like. i guess that makes up for the heat, ha, ha, ha. tomorrow we are headed for oklahoma city, ok to visit the national cowboy hall of fame and western heritage center, then it is on to elk city, ok and our next koa (kampground of america). well, enjoy this jaunt as we head out west in our newfangled prairie schooner. sleep tight, y'all...

day one is done...finally...

get outta bed, sleepy-head...it's 8:00 and we're finishing up the packing of the trailer, then a shave and shower and maybe i'll feel like new? we finally got away about 10:30 am, north carolina time. we are driving most of the way from nc to ca on interstate-40, but we like to drive the scenic route from the house to newport, tn; that means taking hwy. 25/70 over the top and into tennessee. today we got as far as hurricane mills, tn and are staying at the buffalo river koa, just off of i-40. now, guys, when i say that add an extra 20% to the time traveling, it is true and factual. i calculated that it would take 6 to 7 hours to get to the buffalo koa, but it took us 8.5 hours because we stopped four times. once at camping world (you gotta see this place!), then a lunch stop, then a stop at the little blessings quilt shop in crossville, tn, then a gas stop. it's a good thing we don't have to be anywhere, anytime soon. but, in all seriousness, it was a fun day and we are all settled into the trailer for the evening. happy dreams...

hooked up and ready to roll...

well, it's the last night at home for a month. all packed up, but a few things will go into the trailer or suv in the morning before we depart. we can't wait until tomorrow afternoon when we pull into the first campground because we'll be able to rest awhile and just veg-out! I don't know if we have forgotten anything, but i am sure there will be something left behind; not being negative, but i think it is the axiom of traveling; that you will leave something behind and it will be insignificant, except in your mind. ugh! but, we are going to have a good time on this trip, which we have been planning for a year; to go out west to see our granddaughters and other family and friends after i had retired. and it is now that time. so, it is time to finish up and get some shut-eye. nancy probably won't desire to go camping for the rest of the year after this, but i told her that if we get homesick for our camping experience, we could always just go out to the back yard and sleep in the trailer for a night or two. that'll do it; goodnight from road-trip central...

one day to go...

well, time is getting short now; really short. we have almost everything packed, except the kitchen sink. i am trying to keep the weight down, so we plan on stopping every couple of days to buy a few groceries. it's either that or go on a huge diet! our other dog, katie, is not what you call excited, but i think she may have slept less today, so maybe she is more excited. she is a small beagle that we rescued from the river road roaming around the post office in alexander. her brother had just been hit by a car that day and when i saw her roaming, i told nancy and she went back and picked her up. she is really a very sweet dog, except for the beagle howl she emits from her gut when she is scared. so, we are just finishing up the packing and hope to not forget too many items after we are on the road a day or two. i am sure we will miss whatever we leave behind by the second day out. well, here's katie! tomorrow i have to plug the trailer into the 110v outlet to charge the deep-cycle battery to full. the only thing left is to hook-up, head 'em up, and move 'em out. it is not too exciting yet, but just wait a couple of days...

meet my pardner, loki

we are starting to get more excited about the trip now. we are still packing things up; hoping not to forget anything, but you know how that goes, there will be something left behind, somewhere. we are taking our two dogs with us on the great american road trip. they are very well-behaved and loki, our jack russell/shih-tzu mixed breed puppy, really loves to go for a drive whenever he can. when we go somewhere, he is always ready. so, i thought that i'd introduce you all to him. (i guess he isn't really a puppy because he is almost 6 years old now.) loki even just likes to go out to the trailer while we are packing. i guess he thinks he is going somewhere even if it is out in the yard to get into the trailer. by the way, he has been eyeing our bed an awful lot, but i keep telling him that his bed will be brought along and he'll have to sleep in it on the floor. i hope the trailer won't seem too small for a month-long trip; nancy is a bit skeptical, but i think we'll be okay. until next time, enjoy, and i'll get back to our trip preparations...

trip planning 101

it's been about a week since i last posted, but nothing much happening yet. we are still at home in north carolina, packing for the road trip out west. by now almost everything has been taken care of; we have our weather radio close at hand, since there have been a few tornadoes striking the south this week. one new item to report is that i have put decals on the trailer and the explorer to advertise my leather work as we travel west; rockin' rk leather company is going mobile! i also tried out the dining table and nancy has already made the bed so we are ready for a good night' sleep. i spent today working on our final itinerary, as we are planning on leaving wednesday, april 28 and will be gone for about a month to visit friends and family in california and colorado. well, more later; i have some more packing to do...

we bought an rv

to get ready for our trip out west, we decided that a travel trailer would be our choice of rvs. we looked at pop-up tent trailers and even thought about building a tear-drop trailer for camping. when it came right down to it, i did not want to work on building a tear-drop and take a year doing it. being retired, i just wanted to have everything at-hand so we could just hook-up and get away. now that the trailer is home, i guess we need to stock it for the trip. take a look at our fun-finder...