Journey to Cody Part 2

So our journey continued on into Iowa which was non eventful. We landed in Sioux Falls, S.D. for a couple of days to rest.  We did go to the waterfalls the city is named for. Nit very tall but worth the visit.

Heading to Box Elder from Sioux Falls was so boring. 326 miles of boring. This is your view all the way there.




We checked into the america's mailbox campground for 4 days to so we could see the sights.  This is one area you should make an attempt to see.  First, we made our way to Wall Drugs which I understand is a necessity as RV'ers.  We shopped and bought the required tee shirts. Next we went back in time to the days of Duck and Cover at the Minuteman Missile National Historical Site.  This is a great display from the Cold War days.

Next we visited The Badlands National Park.  I can't describe the colors and formations that we saw.  The valleys and mountains, the different colors of sediment that make up the mountains is unbelievable.

 









Custer State Park was a pretty landscape, rolling hills beautiful trees and Bison everywhere.  They say there are 1300 head of buffalo in the park. We got lucky the day we were there, I think we saw all 1300.

Pronghorn

There are also many pronghorn that roam this park, not to mention prairie dogs and deer.
After Custer State Park we went to Mount Rushmore National Memorial.  Not to be missed.  The carving alone is just amazing.

Avenue of States

 We were scheduled to leave Rapid City on Monday but received a call from the people we will be working for in Cody, Wy. saying don't come across the Bighorn mountains and stay out of Cody because there's no water due to the weather. So we're here in Rapid City till tomorrow. We leave in the morning for Sundance, Wyoming.

  

Journey to Cody Part 1

We have left Florida on our longest journey yet, heading to Cody, Wyoming.  We pulled out of Sand Hill Scout Reservation on Monday March, 13th. We spent the night in a Walmart parking lot so we would be first in for service at Southern RV in McDonough, Ga.  We needed our black tank valve and cable replaced and the antenna repaired.  Six hours later we were on our way to Red Top Mountain State Park so Barb could finish up her mom's estate business.  On Friday the 17th. we pulled into the Battlefield Campground in Ringgold, Georgia about six miles south of the Tennessee border so we could meet up with Barb's brother and sister in the morning before we head off towards Nashville where we hope to spend an extra day doing a little sightseeing.

After leaving Ringgold we made our way to Nashville, we actually stayed at a KOA in Lebanon, Tenn..  We got to spend a day touring downtown Nashville. Two must see places are The Ryman Auditorium and The Country Music Hall of Fame. The Ryman started out as a church in 1885 but soon became a music venue after Mr. Ryman died.  It became the home to the Grand Old Opry until years later when it fell into disrepair and the Opry moved to its current home.  After announcing the Ryman would be torn down the country music community came together to save the building. The Grand Old Opry now performs during the winter months in the Ryman again.

The Country Music Hall of Fame is the other place that must be seen. This is three stories of history, the number of gold and platinum albums hanging on the walls is just incredible.  You can spend hours looking at all of the displays.  Totally worth seeing.  We walked down to the river front to a pedestrian bridge over the Cumberland river.  Looking out you can see the Hard Rock, the amphitheater, the stadium used by the Tennessee Titans, home to the NHL Predators, and so many people out enjoying the city.

We left Nashville headed through the southwest corner of Kentucky and halfway across Missouri. Stopping in Boonsville we found a Walmart that said we could spend the night in their parking lot

Fulltime RV Living - Its not all Fun and Games

Don't get me wrong. Living the full time RV lifestyle is great, for the most part. But just like living in a house sometimes things go wrong. And sometimes you can multiply that by four. This past Tuesday was my day.

Buy this, you never know

First I went out and dumped our tanks, no problem there. Flushed until all was running clear. I closed the black valve to let the tank fill up a little bit and noticed water was still running through the clear elbow. After a few attempts to clear any debris that might be blocking the blade from closing all the way and having a really hard time pushing and pulling the handle I decided its best just to replace the entire valve. Just not today. Last year I bought a Valterra Twist-on valve just in case. Well just in case happened to be Tuesday. Problem diverted temporarily.

what a pain in the backside

Second. While I was flushing the tanks I noticed the plastic insert that covers the screw heads along the roof/wall side had split due to drying out in the sun. Now I get to find replacement cover and install that. At least its only cosmetic but still I want to get this taken care of.

Third. While I was up on the roof looking at the plastic trim insert, I noticed a rough spot on the roof. Looks like a branch brushed against it. Its not ripped. There doesn't seem to be any leaks. But I don't want it to get to that point so I'll be putting a patch on it just for a little piece of mind.

added a lot of needed space.

Fourth. I bought a truck box that is meant to be mounted on the side of your truck rail. But because we pull a 5th. Wheel I wanted it in the back of the bed by the tail gate. My only concern was could I lift the 5^th. Wheel high enough to clear the top of the box. In order to check that I had to retract the stabilizer jacks in the back. You guessed it, they wouldn't go up or down. I finally got them to move a little, about one inch. After some research on the internet and checking several RV forums, I'm not the first to have this problem. Seems Lippert Components Inc., commonly known as LCI. is the company that makes these stabilizer jacks. I can buy an entire new set for $500.00. But why do that when the only part broken is the little electric motor to raise and lower the jacks. LCI would be happy to sell me a new motor for the low low price of $225.00.

WHAT A BARGAIN.

So from now on I'll be raising and lowering my stabilizer jacks with the handy manual crank that came with the RV. On the plus side I can raise the jacks faster than the motor ever did.

In case you wanted to know, Yes we can raise the 5^th. Wheel high enough to clear the tool box. Here's hoping for better days to come.

Safe Travels And I hope To See You Down The Road