Damsite #60 on Pomme De Terre Lake 8/19-22/24

 Monday, 8/19/24

Since I wasn't in any hurry because I was meeting Conner. I had gotten him some books on or for becoming an Air Force officer. Cari also had some stuff for me to take to him. Got the refrigerator packed and finally got away about 10:00 am. I thought I would be getting there about an hour early but it turned out to be only 1/2 hour early. then he got out early and called me as soon as I pulled into Walmart parking lot. He came and we went to get something eat at a chicken place I had never heard of. There was a guy in front us in line, David, and we struck up a conversation. I went ahead and paid for his meal too. He was a student too and ended up sitting with us..... quite a talker. 

After that Conner took Me and showed me the campus, and also I got to go into his room. It was really nice. I finally got away about 3 pm and decided to go a little longer route, because the road for a straight route did not look very good. Conner seemed to be doing all right, and he even hugged me twice

Finally got to the campground, about 5:00 p m and by the time I got things hooked up and registered, I was tired. I ate some leftovers and then went to bed about 8:00 p m.  What is really strange is that I have been having problems with my left shoulder hurting, but when I got to camp the pain was gone.  There is still some soreness but easy to work through that.  God is soooooooo good!

Tuesday 8/ 20/24

Slept pretty good.  Go up about 6am.  My intent was to get the boat put together this morning and down to the water.  However, it took me all morning and early afternoon just to get it ready to get it down to the water.  Ate lunch and watched half of a move before starting to take it down to the water.  It was very rocky and the wheels I built for it would not work in the rocks.  So, I had brought the wheel which came with the boat and it goes over rocks but is hard to balance.  I ended up using both and that seemed to work ok.

This is what  it looked like when getting ready to take to water

After lunch, at about 2 pm, I started to take it down to the water.  Used the winch to keep it from running away down the hill, but there were so many rocks that didn't happen.  So I spent the next 2 hours getting it down the hill.    

                                                                          The hill

                                                                Half way down...

This is what it looked like about half way down.  Notice I had taken the motor off and moved the batteries to the seat.  Trying to create a better balance.  Of course I had to rest about 20 times which is why I didn't reach the water until about 4:30 pm.  The cable from the winch did not reach and I ended up using a rope tied to the end of the cable and even then it was a little short.  So, after all that I was too worn out to put the battery on and decided to wait until tomorrow morning to take it out when my energy should be replenished, it took me the whole day to put it together and to the water..

                                                                              Success!

I learned a lot taking it down and I think it will come back up a lot easier ... I hope

Wednesday, 8/21 

Sept really good. Got about 8 hour.

Anxious to get to the boat,so I had cereal.  Strange, This is my third day and I haven't had a fire yet, even though the weather is pretty good for it.

Went to the boat to put it in the water, but the water was shallow and it tuned out that I couldn't get the boat to float.  The water was up to the top of my boot and still no where close to it floating. the one wheel was just to big.  It was great for getting it over the rocks, but the water has to be fairly deep to get the boat to float. 

Finally just gave up and started the trip back up the hill. I guess this is just another failure. However, I have never had so much fun failing at something.  It only took me 1 1/2 to bring it up, so getting better.  

 

Osage Bluff #22 (05/20 - 23/2024)

 May 20, Monday

Had a great trip down... no problems.  Even had some energy left when I got here.  Site 22 is a pretty good site... rock and mostly level.  Used the curved levelers and it seemed to work pretty good.  It is near the water and I had planned on launching the boat but the weather is not really cooperating.  Could have launched it today but used up all my energy so thought I would see what tomorrow brings.  

Setting up went well and everything is working.  Took a trike ride through the area.  Didn't fix fire  because itt got warm and I still did not have a lot of energy.  Had some BBQ that I brought from home.  Internet is weak but working ok so far.... Satellite is good.  

May 21, Tuesday

Slept pretty good but not very long. Went to be a little after 10 pm and still woke up at normal time.  
Got dressed and fixed breakfast over a fire.... yaaaa...... had bacon and french toast.... still better over a fire.  Took a longer trike ride throughout the area.  The front tire was slapping because I had made it hard rubber.... took out the inner tube.  Did some adjusting and it didn't work well on the test ride to took the adjustment out.  Now it is working great. Very windy today with gusts up to 35 so not able to get my boat out yet. And there's supposed to be some storms coming in later today. 

Well the storms came in and they were a doozy. I had put in some stabilizers and I feel like it's a good thing I did because even with them the camper was still shaking. I had my trike covered but evidently not well enough for the wind which took the cover off and so it got wet. Hope that didn't hurt the electronics. The sun came out again and it's starting to get cooler. 

May 22, Wednesday. 

Slept really good getting a little over 10 hours total.

Feel strange not to be going to church and Bible study and having lunch with the family.  Miss that...

Temperatures feel great, about 58 this morning.

Still have showers in the area. In fact one shower that came over was a hail storm, pebble size hail. It came down pretty heavy for about 10 minutes. But then melted right away. 

Then God showed me a rainbow and everything is as he promises. He is always with us. 

Wanted to get the boat out today however the weather with showers and really quite chilly doesn't look like it's a good idea. It always seems that in the afternoon I run out of energy.  And that is what happened again today. Beautiful weather, no energy.  Getting older does have its issues. But having Jesus makes everything perfect.

Several families, of geese, kept going through my campsite. 

Lake of the Ozarks State Park, site#136, (Nov 6-9, 2023)

 Nov 6, Monday

Pretty good trip down but fought wind again.  It looks like there is a frontal system coming through and I will be fighting wind again on way back.  Oh well, it is still great.  The weather is really warm, especially for November.  When I was here last November the temps were as low as 18 F, so I really have a lot to be thankful for.  When I first arrived at this site I wasn't too impressed and looked around at some others, but ended up here and it has turned out to be really nice... level and good view of the lake.  

Had Conner take down the cell phone booster that didn't seem to be working.  I brought all the pieces with me including a long pole.  I put it together and stuck up the pole.  I didn't seem to make any difference since the signal I was receiving was very weak.... 0 - 1 bar.  However, while fooling around with it, I discovered that if I lay my phone on the inside antenna that I go 5G with 4-5 bars.  Wow, couldn't believe it at first but tired streaming an it worked great with no pauses.  If I moved the phone even a foot away it got weak again.  I check the comments on Amazon and they said pretty much the same thing....  didn't have those kind of comments when I bought it 3 years ago.  Finally paying off.  

Nov 7, Tuesday

Slept really good especially with it being the first night.  

Fixed fire and then had bacon and eggs for breakfast....  just can't beat it.

Took a trike ride around the campground which is almost empty.  

Haven't done anything with the boat.  There is a path down a little hill to the lake. I had taken the boat batteries into the house to charge and forgot to put them back in the camper.  Put it on my checklist so not to do that again.  

Took another trike ride and one of the few campers mentioned how much he likes the trike.

There are a lot of deer running all over the place.  I saw one group of 6 deer just walking through the campground, and then 1-3 others at different times.  

The leaves are pretty good but just not very bright.  

Nov 8, Wednesday

Slept pretty good.... had to get up once and don't feel I really went back to a good sleep.  

Fixed a fire and had French Toast w/bacon for breakfast.

Internet still working good for streaming, but having trouble uploading pictures to this blog.  

Weather is still absolutely perfect... thank you Lord.

Nov 9, Thursday

Select absolutely wonderfully all night.

Fixed a

fire this morning and fixed pancakes and bacon which again were absolutely delicious.

I have to say that this must be one of the best trips I've taken in a long time.  I have to thank the Lord again for all of my blessings this week as well as others.  There wasn't one thing that went wrong, the weather was beautiful, I am feeling like there is no pain at all. It just doesn't get any better than this, and for the first time I really wasn't ready to come back home.

Gun Creek #84 and #87 (REND Lake) ( Oct 23 - 26, 2023)

 Oct 23, Monday

- The trip coming down was no problem, everything worked great.

- I came to site # 84 and I knew it was sloping but what I didn't realize is that not only sloped down quite a bit it also sloped sideways quite a bit. I tried to set things up but it just didn't work very well at all. So when I went up to register, I had looked around and found site number 87 looked pretty good even though it wasn't on the lake. The only thing that was really nice about # 84 was that it was on the water.  The gentleman at the booth saw that I was in the Air Force because he also was in the Army so we had a bit of a discussion. He made the change for me to site #87. I don't really have a great view of the lake but I can see it through the trees.  But it is very level, And also it is kind of separated from everybody else which I like as well.

- Took a bike ride around but not very far , I will probably do more.

-  Had a couple driving by stop and tell me that they had a bike just like mine that was also electric.  Al & Vicky.   Turned out they are hosts for the campground. He mentioned we need to get together and take a ride, although it was her bike that is like mine. Not sure what he has.

October 24th, Tuesday

-    Slept really good, in fact it's probably one of the best first night sleeping experiences I have had.

- Haven't been doing a whole lot except writing my track around the area. The only place I can put the boat in would be down at the boat launch, but when I took a look at it it seemed to be very steep and I am just not willing for my first time to risk it.

- For some reason My Internet seems to be a little weak. Not sure if that might be because I took down the antenna making that it wasn't being very helpful. Could I be wrong? Nah...

-  Still glad that I moved spots even though the view isn't as good, it is sure a lot easier than fighting that slope.

October 25, Wednesday

-  Slept really good again

-  Had a little rain come through last night which was really unexpected. I did not put the awning out because I did not think there was anything coming.  I guess I should always prepare for rain even when it's not forecasted.

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Damsite #59 (Pomme De Terre Lake) ( August 28 - 31, 2023)

 August 28, Monday

    - Trip down was good.  Decided to drive straight through, which took about 4 hours, and by the time I got there I was kind of tired. Did not do much after that, just got Set up. Got checked in when I came in but he gave me the wrong site number so I had to get my bike out and rode back up to change the paperwork. So I got a little exercise. Everything is working really good, since I am without any shade it got a little warm. Just rested for the rest of the day.

August 29, Tuesday

    - Slept really good last night until about 4:00 AM which is about my normal time to get up. But went back to sleep until 6:30 a m.  fix my normal breakfast of eggs bacon and toast over the fire since the temperature is about 60 degrees, it was great. 

Felt energetic this morning so I took a bike ride and ended up writing about 10 miles and then still so thankful for my electric assist. Ended up riding over to Pom de Terre State Park.  great trip.

August 30, Wednesday

Slept really good again....  I could get used to this.  This is a picture of the moon over the lake... still looking good:

Fixed a fire again this morning and had bacon and French toast.  Of course it was great. 

Took another long trike ride, only about 3 miles, this morning and it still feels good.  

Fixed a fire for lunch but it was a little warm.... just had to fix some hamburgers and, of course, it was delicious.  

This has been really relaxing so far.... not really doing much of anything but enjoying it.  If my boat wasn't at home I certainly would not be anxious to get back, but the thought even crossed my mind to leave today.... but....

August 31, Thursday

slept really good again last night, in fact almost all the way through.

Getting packed up to head back early today because I'm hoping to be able to start setting up my boat today. God has been so good to me throughout this entire trip, all I can say is thank you Lord.

Boulder COE, Carlyle Lake (July 17 - 20)

 July 17 2023, Monday

Travel to Boulder was pretty easy.  I had put some fuel system cleaner in the tank and I felt like it helped, but still got 100 miles on first quarter tank of gas.  Got set up easily and started to enjoy it all.  The weather has been hot and humid with dew points ranging from 62 to 72.  

July 18, Tuesday

Cooler this morning and I really slept well.  Started a fire and fixed bacon, eggs, and toast....  so good. 

They really remodeled the campground.  They paved all the sites and they are really very large.  Some are close together, but those that are on the lake have really nice views.  I am on site 33 which is nice, and can receive satellite (which was another issue...  turns out that the cable from the Wally to the receiver was disconnected.  I called Dish and the tech was not able to help me and gave me to the next level.  But just as I was calling them is when I noticed to had been disconnected.  Once I get it connected everything worked fine.)  Internet connection is good so have been able to watch some movies.  Mint is working well.

Rain has been all around me but we didn't get any.  They prevented me from getting the boat out to see how it all is going to work.  Might try in the morning. 

Rode my trike around the area a few times yesterday and today.  Not a lot of places to ride so only put on 4 miles so far.  

July 19, Wednesday

Slept really good again last night.  Fixed some cereal this morning because I want to work on the boat.  The weather finally looks good for it.  

Blew up the boat, with my electric pump, but waited until 7:00 am because it is a little loud and didn't want to disturb my neighbors.  Everything worked well.  

Started playing around with the motor figuring out how it works and finally got it attached to the boat.  It is a lot larger than I expected it to be..... Oh well... more power????  I did run into one problem that is preventing me from taking it out on the lake here..... the connections to the battery are for a standard battery and I am using my scooter batteries which have different connections.  Going to have to order some 8 AWG connectors..

Tried to mount the boat on a 2 wheeler but I need to do something so the boat can rest on it since when I lift it in the front it tends to bend.

July 20, Thursday

Slept great again.  Had pancakes this morning but didn't start a fire....  getting lazy in my old age.  Watch a great movie... Ticket to Paradise....  happy endings... I loved it.

Getting ready to leave for home, but not in any hurry.  God has again been so wonderful to me on this trip.  Different though because I never did talk with anyone.  Looking forward to seeing family again.

Wheatland COE, Pomme De Terre Lake (Jun 20 - 22, 2023)

 

Since I didn't have internet I kept a log in Evernote and just copied it here but added the pictures.

June 19, Monday

• Slept good be woke up early. Going camping at Wheatland Park on Pomme De tar Lake.

June 20, Tuesday

• Got to Wheatland COE and it turned out there is not any internet. I am able to text and sometimes get email. I think the email comes through when I go for a trike ride because i seem to occasionally connect. The booster doesn't seem to work at all.
• Had a good drive down with little to no wind. Just took my time and i felt good. It turns out that Wheatland is just a few miles down the road from Buck... This is a nice park and I am able to get 1 out of 3 satellites' so I am able to watch a few things but never sure what is going to work. I have also watch some some DVDs.
• Wheatland sites are nice, with rock driveways, but they are closer together that many of the COEs I have been but still have a little distance between them. I am on #30 which faces the beach and that wouldn't be bad except for the noise and I do get some view of the water but not a lot. The activity side of the site faces the SE so I get a lot of sun and the awning helps a lot there. Site #15 and #22 are pretty good but probably no satellite. Site #80 is the best site.... good view and should be clear enough for satellite.
• This site would be good if I had my boat because I could launch it close by.... site 22 backs up to my site and would be better for boat launching but probably less good for satellite.
• Took a ride over to site #80 and it is not only best for views, but I was able to get a little more internet connection. I was able to make a phone call. It looks like that is going to be my favorite site when I come back.

June 21, Wednesday

• Slept really good
• Fix French Toast & bacon over a fire this morning. It seems I can use a fire to cook breakfast in the morning in the summer and supper in the winter. Spring and Fall I can fix anytime.... depending on temps.
• Found that internet is illusive. Sometime just riding my bike I find a sweet spot where it connects but it does always last.

Saw this deer on one of my trike rides and didn't seem to bother her at all.

June 22, Thursday

• Got up after pretty good nights sleep but it was kind of short.
• Fixed blueberry pancakes and bacon over a fire.... tasted good.
• Drove back home and stopped in Camdon (?) and got gas at $2.95.... everywhere else it was $3.19 -3.40. I had noticed it was $3.03 on the way down so decided to stop there on way back. I was a little concerned but had about 7 gallons left.. so at 9 mpg and could have gone about another 63 miles.
• Got refrig emptied before crashing.