Rig Storage & the end of the RV season

2013 was our 12 RV summer trip and another great  season,it started in June in Ontario with our grandson and ended next to St Louis 2 days ago.

We have a tradition of inviting a grandson / granddaughter one at a time when they reach the age of 13 (boys- Barmizva) and the age of 12 (girls- Batmizva) so this year it was Paz that came with us for a whole month in Ontario,he followed his sister that joined us 3 years ago,I hope they enjoyed the trip as we enjoyed them,one thing is sure they have been exposed to many new adventures ,meet different places and people things that widened their horizon.

After Paz bordered a direct flight home we crossed the boarder to Michigan,meeting on the way our friends Susan and Harry and later Niki and Grant ,it was so nice to spend time with  them again ,we also managed to be a part of a huge colorful gathering Pow Wow with natives coming from all over North America.

 

We crossed Michigan swiftly to Wisconsin because we Rved in Michigan 2 years ago for 2 months covering most of the main places ( see earlier posts),we traveled in Wisconsin for 2 months  with a short side trip to  Minnesota   to visit  our friends Jane & Hal that celebrated their anniversary.

   The Wisconsin trip started in the beautiful Door County continued  through Northern Wisconsin with its fantastic parks ,Waterfalls  ,Apostil Islands towards   Madison , we made our way slowly taking the time to hike ,enjoy the nature and meet people. 

          

    

                                                                                 

Illinois was the next State on the way to the winter storage,the highlights were in Rockford meeting with Karen& Larry ,a great couple we meet 2 years ago in a Crossroads rally,Starved Rock area where we hiked 4 days in the S.P visiting fantastic canyons,Peoria area, Springfield where we came upon a reenactment of the civil war and spend time to visit the Capitol , Lincoln's museum,house and village in New Salem.

   

Roddy & Ruthy drove all the way from Arizona with their 36’ Laredo to join us in the last month of our trip and we had a non stop blast all the way.

Getting close to the end of the trip we connected to Rick & Patt that went out of the way to help us get our Rig ready for the winter storage,it included having us parked on their property ,get the rig cleaned and winterized then having us store the rig close by in their friends farm.

We are blessed to meet  on the way people with big hearts  that made us feel like at home,so thank you all for adding to our travel experience an extra great twist,without you all it would not be the same.

      

    It seems like we are “always” eating…..

Hope to see you all next year.

Springfield IL-Dog Show

A day before we took off a huge dog show took place in the Springfield Fairgrounds ,many trailers arrived with dogs for the show ,everyone had to bring all the necessary equipment to present their dog in the best way,it included standing table,hair blower,ribbons,nail cutter,shaving machine,scissors,combs/brushes ,shampoo and many other cosmetics.

The preparations prior to “showing” the dog before a judge took hours and  dogs got treated like a bride or groom just before a marriage.

 

 

After the “treatment some look good

   

and some look like this….you judge for yourself…

      

I also had a dog ,a German Shepard which I loved very much,so I feed him with healthy food , I played with him ,it was a happy dog BUT still a DOG.

Lincoln New Salem State Historic site IL

We still have 2 days to camp in the Springfield Fairgrounds before driving to our storage place next to St.Louis,today we visited Lincolns New Salem State Historic site  and tomorrow we will do laundry and start getting the trailer ready for the winter and maybe have time to see a part of a dog show on taking place on the premises.

Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site, about 2 miles South of Petersburg and about 20 miles Northwest of Springfield, is a reconstruction of the village where Abraham Lincoln spent his early adulthood. The six years Lincoln spent in New Salem formed a turning point in his career. Although he never owned a home here, Lincoln was engaged in a variety of activities while he was at New Salem. He clerked in a store, split rails, enlisted in the Black Hawk War, served as postmaster and deputy surveyor, failed in business, and was elected to the Illinois General Assembly in 1834 and 1836 after an unsuccessful try in 1832.

 

 

Lincolns first Shop with Berry in the village.

Although we knew the main historic facts ,the 4 days  listening and mainly seeing with our eyes the places where Lincoln  lived worked and died where very interesting and made the events alive for us,we enjoyed every minute.

Among the stories we herd was one told about how young Lincoln 22 years old ended living in Petersburg IL : Lincoln was hired to work on a boat loaded with hugs sailing towards St.Louis,the boat got stuck on the way next to Petersburg and they had to spend time in the place till help came round,Lincoln decided to stay and work in the village leaving only after 6 years in which his career took a turn,,,,,,,, and all the rest is HISTORY.

On the way back we stopped in Petersburg and there too we found Lincolns “foot steps” .

Here is a shot I took in the main square  (Spooky….)

Springfield Illinois Capitol -our last stop before winter storage.

We settled down in Springfield fairgrounds campground that is located close to the downtown and not far from all the historical museums& sites mostly connected to President Lincoln.

The C.G has  around 200 sites and  is a part of a huge fairground with full hookups (a long sewer line is needed ) and WiFi,the place is very active year round holding many events like horse show,dog show ,flea market or life stock auctions,we were lucky to see a horse show and a dog show during our 5 day stay in the c.g.

Yesterday on Monday the 15th we drove downtown to the Tourist  Information center as we always do when we come to a new location –but found the the office closed and the downtown looking as a ghost town,so we looked around and found a traffic polis lady that said “The Government is shut down,it is Monday and it is Columbus day,so everything is closed,you can even park next to a meter without putting coins in it ,sorry for that”.

So in these circumstances the only thing the four of us could do  is walk the downtown ,see how deserted it is:

     

 

Visit the New Capitol,an impressive huge beautiful building that for some reason was deserted but open for visitors:

      

Walk in the village where President Lincoln lived not been able to enter any of the buildings:

   Lincolns House                     and street

 

Visit Lincolns Tomb:

      

So all in all we did not do to bad concerning the special circumstances.

But in the following day we managed to close the gap and go into the Lincoln Museum ( A MUST SEE) and go through the Old Capitol which I personally liked more than the new one because of its simplicity and accessible with a personal touch to the people rather than an expensive “cold” building with many doors.

    

As this might be my last post regarding our 12th RV summer trip and just before we store the rig and fly home for the winter  I want to take this opportunity to thank all those who took the time to visit my website and to apologies for not leaving remarks on some blogs,  see you all down the road in summer 2014.