Retired and Trippin

Well, we did enjoy the dinner and show last night at the Dixie Stampede.  When we rode back to the Lynina Inn there was a very light sprinkle, so that was not problem at all. We departed Branson, MO at 9:45.  It was cloudy and 57 degrees.  We rode Hwy 248 west and it was a very pretty ride with many curves and hills. We rode through Galena, MO and stopped for gas in Aurora.  We continued north on Hwy 39 through Greenfield, and Stockton and stopped for lunch in El Dorado Springs. We continued on home riding on two lane highways and county roads until we finished up on Hwy 69 northbound. We arrived home about 4:30.  Our ride today was 270 miles, the high temperature was 68, and after we crossed I-44 northbound in southern Missouri it was mostly sunny.  It was a great trip but I’m already looking forward to next weekend when we ride to Reading and Wichita, KS to ride with a good friend, Joe. For more pictures from today click on the following link: https://picasaweb.google.com/g

We started the day with breakfast in the lodge restaurant and then walking down to the hatchery at RRSP - again.  This time we had quarters so we could feed the fish. We rode out of RRSP at 10:15 under blue clear skies with a temperature of 64.  Another beautiful day.  How lucky can we get? We rode to Branson, arriving at our motel, the Lynina Inn ( http://www.lyninainn.com/ ), at 11:30. We have stayed here before but we were originally referred to this motel by our friends, Trisha and Mel.  It is very reasonably priced and exceptionally clean.  The free breakfast is good too. Since we’re old we had a little nap and then went to The Landing area of Branson to get in a walk and to shop at Dick’s Five and Dime in the old part of Branson. Tonight we’re going to the 8:00 pm showing of the Dixie Stampede.  We’re sure to have a good time.  It is cloudy now in Branson and there’s a 40% chance of rain tonight.  We’re hoping it holds off until we return to our motel. So far we’ve ridd

We did some hiking around Roaring River State Park (RRSP) in the morning.  We hiked the River Trail over to the hatchery and spring.  It was a cool and beautiful morning. The Roaring River spring was beautiful.  I’ve always liked to see springs – all that water pouring up out of the ground. On the walk to the spring there was a sign that warned of falling rocks.  We were not concerned because we see warning signs all the time.  While standing by the spring a frigging rock the size of a baseball fell into the water about three feet away from us.  Holy CRAP! We departed Roaring River State Park at about 10:30 leaving our trailer at the lodge.  It was 68 under mostly sunny skies.  Another beautiful day! We took County Road F east to Hwy 86 east to 23 south to Holiday Island, AR. We drove by a condo that Chris’ parents once owned.  Chris enjoyed spending time there with them.  Chris also had to stop at Fred’s to do some shopping. We had lunch at Myrtie Mae’s in Eureka Springs, AR.  T

Chris and I took off today for Roaring River State Park at 10:30 am.  We’d been there before but this time we were going to stay a couple nights in the lodge inside the park – something we’ve wanted to do for some time.  It was mostly clear and 59 degrees.  A great day for a ride. Our first stop was at Mill Creek Elementary in Lenexa, KS.  Chris worked here for over 20 years.  She dropped off a gift for a friend who was one day from retirement. We rode south to Osawatomie, KS and then on to Ft. Scott, where I made an urgent urination stop at McDonalds.  At Pittsburg, KS we stopped at Harry’s Restaurant for lunch.  The food was good and very reasonably priced. Our next stop was Baxter Springs located on the old Route 66 in extreme southeast Kansas.  They had a neat little visitor center with Route 66 stuff for sale.  Visitors were encouraged to sign the walls, so we did. We were given directions to the old Rainbow Curve Bridge located north of Baxter Springs.  It is the only bridg

The day was beautiful.  I was thankful that we trusted in the weather forecast and had planned a ride down to Pittsburg, KS for some larrapin good fried chicken at Chicken Mary’s.  We went with Carl & Marge, Mel & Trisha, Gary, and Greg.  Bill & Jamie would have gone but Bill had a boo-boo. We departed from 83rd and K-7 in Shawnee at 10:45. We took a slow route south to Olathe, through Gardner, and south past Hillsdale Lake. Just south of the lake we caught Hwy 68 east to Old Kansas City Road which took us south through Paola and Osawatomie.  In Paola we saw signs of fall (already?).  Maybe it was just color change induced by the heat and drought? Hwy 7 took us south through Beagle to Mound City where we took a potty break at a Casey’s.  That place is always busy.  We continued south to Fort Scott where we jumped on Hwy 69 south to 600th Ave (just north of Pittsburg) and east to Chicken Mary’s. The parking lot was nearly full but we only had to wait 15 minutes for