On the River

Sunday, 8/29

Sioux City, Iowa Across the Wide Missouri

Up early to avoid the heat when scrubbing the bugs off our windshield ... a two-day collection, along with the dust and some mud created by a single passing cloud of wet.  What a mess!  Prior to bug removal was an excursion on my back to the underside of the generator to see if the filters were possible causes, or visible electrical shorting behind the control panel.  No luck.  That means an early Monday morning departure to a local mechanic.  Driving there with crossed fingers will be mandatory.

A pleasant walk to the marina's renowned restaurant provided some exercise, more than offset by a buffet lunch.  Excellent choice.

It's backgammon night, score to be announced if I win.

It's also a good time to say "Thank You" to all who are following us and for your comments.  Most of you are using my rrdflyer@aol.com address and that is fine.  Doris or I will do our best to reply to everyone.  I can truthfully say that it doesn't seem like we've been on the road for two weeks, but then, we've seen so much and enjoyed meeting so many fellow travelers and local residents along the way.  We are truly blessed with so many abundances.

Crossing Nebraska

Saturday, 8/28

Chadron in Northwest Nebraska is the old US 20 that crosses the US from Boston to Newport, OR.  At age 21, I finally had my first car and drove it from home to Oregon via US 20.  So, more reminiscing as we headed east towards Iowa along this highway across northern Nebraska.  We could have dropped south to I-80, but as we found out, we made the right choice.  Most noticeable:  No traffic.  We had the two lane highway to ourselves.  When Doris drove, all I asked was that she keep the coach between the fields.  On the right, soybeans.  On the left, corn.  Thousands and thousands of acres of both in the eastern half of northern Nebraska.  Earlier,the western half gave us serene, rolling grassy plains.  Therefore the beauty of the land, and the incredible agricultural abundance, along with easy driving made for a great day in America's heartland, not to mention $2.85/gallon diesel that was pumped for us.

The only negative was the wind.  30 mph wind, per the roadside windsocks.  Broadsiding us for most of the 364 miles (this trip's second longest daily distance), we both built up our arm muscles, constantly trying to keep us somewhere between the corn and beans.

5:30pm found us at South Sioux City, Nebraska's Scenic Park Campground.  A section of a pretty city park and marina, the RV area looks across the Missouri River toward Sioux City, Iowa and its river boat/casino/hotel.  Cost?  $20/night for full hookup.  "Stay as long as you want", said the manager.  When we looked at the property, we decided to stay an extra day and enjoy our wait to have the generator maintained.  The daily strong wind is a good offset to the slightly humid, 90 degree temperature. 

Doris's renowned "On the Road Again" chile was a great way to end a long, visually feasting day.  "Visually feasting"?  I must be tired.