Saturday-Sunday, May 29/30, Day 80/81

620 miles today, and took in some sights. It was our longest day as we make our way home.


We made our first stop at the Lewis and Clark State Park along the Missouri River, where we saw a replica of the keel boats used on the expedition.

We drove on from Iowa to S. Dakota, with a short trip through part of Nebraska. We also made a stop at the "world famous", "worlds only Corn Palace". For those who have not had the experience, every year the "Palace" is decorated with corn art.

Next up was a quick stop at the Missouri River overlook. The area is full of Lewis and Clark history.

As we neared the Badlands of South Dakota, we had some trouble with the RV that will require some repairs. After the long week, we were planning on taking a break anyways. So we sitting near the White River just south of the main area of Badlands National Park.

Sunday, we had family church in the RV, caught up on a few things and relaxed enjoying the nice weather. We also watched the old movie "Around the world in 80 Days" which we thought was appropriate given the length of time we have been on the road.

Friday, May 28, Day 79 , "Indy 500"

Road Day!
Amanda and kids made me a nice birthday breakfast.

We stopped in at Greenfield IN to visit the warehouse there. The kids had fun sitting in Dave's old car. Then it was back on the road again. We had a great lunch stop at the Beef House Restaurant.

We had our own "Indy 500" today. We passed through Indianapolis, and we drove over 500 miles! We went from Indiana, to Illinois, to Iowa.

We found a spot right next to the interstate, complete with burger stand, gas station, and RV sites out in the corn field! I was served a special dinner and then opened a host of presents, mainly from the US Air Force Museum. I have my reading cut out for me!

Wednesday/Thursday, May 26/27, Day 77/78 - Creation and USAF Museum

We spent the morning driving in the RV. The kids have done very well spending long hours on the road.

We stopped today at the Creation Museum, south of Cincinnati in northern Kentucky. We were surprised the number of people and how well done it was. It even included a large garden/park outside. We also appreciated how it told the whole story and connected creation with Jesus, and God's plan. The kids wanted to go back through it again. I especially got a kick out of the kids asking an animatronics "Noah" questions about the ark. (The kids would select a question from a computer and Noah would answer it). For more pictures and information on the museum, see http://creationmuseum.org/

We drove on to Dayton area, and spent the night at John Bryan State Park. A quiet spot with raccoons and places for the kids to ride their bikes.


Next up, the US Air Force Museum. We spent several hours looking at hundreds of airplanes and the large gift shop. They had a great selection of significant aircraft, and even planes like Boxscar, one of the aircraft that dropped the atomic bombs on Japan that ended WWII.

In the background of the picture with the kids you can see of P40, and a B25 of Doolittle Raider fame.

We also had fun seeing some of the planes that Grandpa Ted flew in air force and national guard such as the F86 fighter jet, and KC97 air refueling tanker.

After the museum, we stopped in at another Wright Brothers site. It has been fun to visit several different sites of the Wright Brothers and learn a lot more about the birth of powered flight.

We ended the day just across the border in Richmond Indiana at a KOA. Although there are cheaper places, and even some better places, we have found the KOA's provide a repeatable experience with playground, laundry, WiFi and usually a fairly natural setting with trees.

With the Ohio stops out of the way, we are going to be pushing hard towards the Mount Rushmore area, as we make our way back home. We have now started our 12th week on the road. You can see our progress through the East up to Dayton on the following marked map.

Tuesday May 25, Day 76 - Niagara Falls - Canada

Saw the falls this morning, both the American falls, and Horseshoe/Canadian falls. It is pretty amazing to see nearly a million gallons of water a second go over!

As we peered down, we contemplated such deep questions as - "Do you think the water is scared as just as it goes over the edge?"

We enjoyed walking around Goat Island, and working our way over to the Maid of Mist boat tour site. The kids really loved the fashionable blue rain gear (aka a trash bag), but the jokes all stopped as we moved into the mist under the falls. The boat ride was a fun 1/2 hour. (If you enlarge the top picture of the falls, you can make out two of the boats on the water beneath the falls)

We decided to go ahead and walk over to CANADA. The kids got a kick out of standing one foot in each country on the bridge. We had a memorable lunch in Canada before returning back to the US and our RV.

We drove on and spent the night in Ohio (south of Cleveland). We had a bit of scare when Hope hit her head on the playground and got a large goose-egg bump. (All was OK, although the swelling lasted several days).

Sunday/Monday, May 23/24, Day 74/75

Sunday - We found a small church not far from the campground this morning (In Massachusetts). It was good to worship God with others.


We also found a Trader Joe's, which made Amanda's day! We drove on to the west a ways before settling down for the night in upstate New York. We found a great spot right along a beautiful river. The kids had fun playing in the playground and in river (only fell in a few times!).



Monday - At the campground, we also found out that across the street is a "diamond" mine you can mine at. It has been featured on the Travel Channel, and I think I have actually seen part of the segment. So we decided to try our hand at mining for diamonds. Even Red got in on the mining. We found that if you picked the right rocks, and hit them hard enough, they might just crack open revealing small quartz like crystals ("Diamonds"). We found some and had a great fun.

In the afternoon we drove on to the Buffalo NY area to visit Niagara Falls tomorrow. Dined on Amish noodles and barbecued kielbasa sausage!

Saturday, May 22, Day 73 -New Hampshire, Vermont

After paying some bills and trying to get caught up on the blog, we left Maine by back roads. Scenic drive through New Hampshire before entering Vermont. It was beautiful, but would be really nice in the fall.

Amanda-I quickly jumped out of the RV to catch this picture of us going through the covered bridge. Most of them we tried to avoid because as you can see, clearance can be an issue.

We went to a local cheese and syrup farm, Sugarbush Farm, in Quechee, VT. I think Vermont cows are happy too from the taste of that cheese!

We learned all about the syrup making process. One tree yields 30-40 gallons of the sap that is evaporated down into 1 gallon of syrup. A lot of work for a small yield. We enjoyed tasting the different the grades, graded for the time in the season the sap is yielded. The kids answered a question sheet and became Junior Sugarmakers. So, even though we aren't woking in our books much, the learning process keeps going.

After this we drove to a campground in Whately, MA. First time we had trouble finding a campground. One was full, several weren't open yet, and there weren't very many along the road. We will try to plan better on the way home since people are starting to come out!

Friday May 21, Day 72- Turning the Corner

We found the northern New England coast to be beautiful. We drove up a coast road and just drove up from New Hampshire to Maine, going by beaches, beautiful houses (some mansions), light houses, and little sea side villages. Still quiet on a Friday morning this time of year.

We stopped at a beach to play on the sand. Boy was that water cold!

Found a nice park at Nubble Lighthouse, where we rock hopped and looked around in tide pools. Then we had lunch from a little sea food shack. Lobster bisque, lobster roll, fish and chips, fish sandwich and cole slaw, split family style in the RV. A very nice drive this morning.

For the after noon we drove on to L.L. Bean in Freeport. It is a very nice series of stores covering everything from bikes, to housewares, clothing, to fishing and hunting.

This was also our "turning point", as we round the corner and start heading for home, albeit 3000+ miles away. We expect to make a much quicker trip home, maybe in time for Luke's birthday.

We also made a not too glamorous stop at a laundromat, and found a Chinese food restaurant for easy dinner. The Dunkin Donut shop provided some food for tomorrows breakfast. One stop shopping!

Found a campground not too far away and called it a night.

P.S. I am also including some additional pictures from Boston, since I have only figured out how to put a max of 5 pictures per post.

The solider memorial was fun because the kids recognized it. We had seen a plaster version in the Smithsonian, and then we came around the corner in Boston and found the Bronze. It was a tribute to the black soldiers in the Civil War, and the white officers who took a risk in leading them.

The other picture is of Paul Revere's house.