2011 - Apr. 6-10 Gathering of Aframes at Rend Lake, IL

It was the first outing for our group this year. Marsha and I got there on Wednesday at 1:00. We were the first ones there, so we had our choice of any of the 21 sites in the Shagbark Group Camp Loop. Soon Joe & Loretta Aman arrived with four or five others not far behind. So, there were about a half dozen units there for the first night with the bulk arriving on Thursday, the "official" first day of the event.

I think we ended up with 21 units in all. Pam Pate, a new member from Tennessee, set up he camper and was greeted by her neighbor's cat who had stowed away while she was packing up. Surprisingly, the cat hung around all weekend and was ready for the trip home on Sunday morning.

There was rain in the forecast almost every day, but it only materialized around day-break on Friday when a storm went thru to the north and south of us. Other than that brief shower, the weather was beautiful. It even got into the 90's one afternoon!

As usual, John, Jan and Wendy Pfeil busted their butts to be sure that everyone enjoyed the Saturday morning potluck breakfast. Below are a few pictures from the outing.

2011 - Mar. 08 & 09 Day 28 & 29 Blasting for Home

Seems like when we get headed for home, there's no time for anything but the necessities (drive, gas, eat, sleep, restrooms). We left Crooked River State Park outside St Marys, GA at 10:00am on Tuesday, 3/8. By 8:30pm, we had traveled 735 miles during a beautiful day until the rain started near Nashville. We "camped" at a Flying J Truck Stop in Oak Grove, KY.

It rained all night and was still raining when I folded the camper down to hit the road at about 5:00am. I didn't have a chance to take a picture of our campsite because I didn't want to get the camera wet.

Anyway, we drove the remaining 333 miles and arrived safely at home around 10:45am today, 3/09, to find the highest gasoline prices of the whole trip - $3.62 per gallon at every station we passed! Welcome to Springfield where the government AND the gasoline retailers are crooked!

It was a great trip. The only time it rained was at night and, for the most part, we had beautiful daytime weather for our chosen activities.

Thanks for following along on our trip. Check back once in a while for our next adventure, whatever it might be.

2011 - Mar. 07 Day 27 Cumberland Island National Seashore

We boarded the ferry at 9:00 for the 40 minute ride to Cumberland Island. The island is a national park that was originally inhabited by native island people, but later became the winter home of Thomas Carnegie and his children. Several cottages were built there as the children grew older and required separate homes for their families.

We took the guided tour of the Dungeness Ruins, then hiked over the dunes to the beach where we turned northward for a mile and a half. At that point, we turned west and crossed back over the dunes toward the Sea Camp Ranger Station. We stopped on the boardwalk to eat our lunch which we had to bring with us as there are no services on the island. Along the way, we passed thru the campground nestled among the most fabulous grove of live oaks I've ever seen.

After a ranger presentation about sea turtles, we reboarded the ferry at 4:45 for our trip back to the mainland. It was a chilly, but great day! Too chilly to cook dinner back at camp, so we went back to Seagle's Saloon for another dose of abuse from "Cindy, the Queen of Mean."

Tomorrow, we head for home. See you on the road!