Come along for a Travel Day

Join me as we leave our two-night campsite at Bull Shoals Lake, Arkansas, and tow our home to our next stay for five nights at Nimrod Lake, also in Arkansas but a little south, on our way to Texas. Don’t be fooled by the three-hour driving time.

Pack up Inside

It’s about 9 am, and Tracy’s drinking his coffee and surveying what needs to be packed up outside ther trailer. Let’s tackle the inside.

Let’s take the guitars off the walls as well as all the hanging doodads and secure them on the sofa. Load up the shower with random stuff. Clear off all surfaces in the bathroom and kitchen.

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Check each item off my list!

Load the Truck Bed

When we’re done inside, let’s help Tracy tear down the tent, chairs, tables, lights – everything outside.

Let him pack it all up into the truck; only he knows the magic that makes it fit.

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Hitch up!

Use our phones, walkie talkies, work gloves, breaker bar, power drill, and measuring tape. And patience. No kidding. Now we’re hitched up.

Don’t forget to pull the chocks and leveling blocks from the trailer tires and stow them before we pull away. Oh, and check that all the trailer lights work.

Dump Tanks

Wear gloves. Enough said.

Hit the Road

Connect the back-up camera, check the route on the phone that connects to the truck’s screen, and check the route on my iPad.

Hit it

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Wait, we have a dog with us, right?

Yep.

Let’s Stop for Lunch!

This pull-off overlook in the Ozark Mountains is perfect. I’ll walk Banjo; you heat up some leftovers inside.

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Let’s Get There

Watch out for the wide load coming at us!

There was a guy selling watermelons—wish we could turn around.

Look, every Rasta in Russellville, Arkansas, is working at that car wash. (It was two guys.)

Quick, which way do I turn?

I dunno, Google Maps rerouted us!

I need to know now.

Let me load a new route … wait, I don’t have signal!

Welcome to Our Flooded Campground

Looks okay from the drive up.

However, as of yesterday, the site we’d picked online was covered in lake water, reported the cheerful retired guy who’s working this season as an Army Corp of Engineers volunteer to beautify this campground. He hadn’t gotten to pressure-washing the muck off our area, but he thought we might be able to back in okay, right beside the boat loading dock.

Not. Too steep, too close to the water and soft mud. Too tight a turn.

Time to take a break and assess the situation.

Luckily the other retired guy who’s volunteering here rode over in his golf cart and opened up another newly de-flooded site right beside ours that was indeed possible to back into.

It’s surrounded by mud and swarming with mosquitos, but it’s right on this flooded lake that’s going to make for some interesting kayaking.

8 Hours Later

It’s now 5 pm, and we’re all set up outside.

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We’re all set up inside.

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Let the relaxation begin.

Thanks for coming along on this trip! You guys stay safe, and give ‘em hell.