Retired and Trippin

We departed the Queen Wilhelmina Lodge at 8:30 under partly sunny skies with a temperature of 39. Google maps led us east on 88 a short distance to 272 north to 59 west into Oklahoma, which eventually turned north. Just north of Poteau, OK we turned onto 112 driving north and east to 271 east and Interstate 540 north and east to Fort Smith. Chris wanted to walk so we decided to do it at the Fort Smith National Historic Site. We walked from about 10:00 to 10:45 as the temperature changed from 45 to 48 degrees. It was very windy. From Fort Smith we took Highway 64 north and west across the Arkansas River into Oklahoma and then 640 north to I-40 eastbound back into Arkansas. I-49 took us north to Joplin, MO and 249 took us around Joplin where we hopped on I-49 north (again) at Carthage, MO. Just south of Nevada, MO (and Camp Clark) it was a sunny 60 degrees. I-49 took us all the way north to the Kansas City area where we arrived home in Shawnee at 4:30 to a partly sunny 40...

It was another great day on Rich Mountain, in Queen Wilhelmina State Park, and the surrounding area. The weather started out cold but clear with temps in the low to mid 30's. Our first activity of the day (after a game of Yahtzee in the hearth room, which Chris won - again) was a tour of the Wonder House located in Queen Wilhelmina State Park. Chris and I got our own personal tour from park interpreter Melissa because nobody else showed up. The Wonder House is actually 2 small stone buildings constructed in 1931. It was immediately sold to a man who used it as a vacation cabin. In 1958 it became the property of the state park. The second activity of the day was a short drive west on the Talimena Scenic Drive, which took us into Oklahoma. We stopped for a couple photos from scenic overlooks and then we walked to the pioneer cemetery. Our hike today was the Black Fork Mountain Trail, which was recommended by Melissa yesterday. She said it wouldn't be as muddy as the...

It was a great day on Rich Mountain at the lodge in Queen Wilhelmina State Park (and nearby Mena, AR). We were in no hurry to get up since we had no place we had to be and no schedule to meet. After enjoying breakfast in our room we went to the hearth room in the lodge to play some games (it was raining outside). Last night we played two games of golf (card game) and each of us won one. This morning we played the rubber match. I was the winner. Then we played a game of Yahtzee. Chris won 266-262. It was a heart breaker. At 10:30 the fog blew away and the sun started to come out. I grabbed my camera and went outside for some pics. We drove down into Mena taking some pics along the way. The historic railroad depot in Mena was a stop on the Kansas City Southern line back in the day. The depot had been restored and is now a museum. I was glad to see an old Mena police car displayed by the depot. An old Mena resident working in the depot told me about the Studebaker building ...

Last night we enjoyed some FaceTime with Bryan and his boys, Jack and Gabe. Jack had his braces removed yesterday so he was enjoying being brace free. It was fun to see and chat with all of them. We left our hotel in Galveston, TX at 7:30. It was foggy and misting just like it was when we went to bed. The temperature was 56. We took Highway 342 northbound off the island and then Interstate 45 northbound briefly before hopping on 146 northbound. Our intention was to take 146 all the way to Livingston, TX. Just shy of Baytown, however, Google maps took us on a detour to avoid a road closure ahead on 146. We took 225 west and 8 north. Google maps intended for us to take 8 all the way to Interstate 69 north but 8 turns into a toll road just past Highway 90 and you had to have the EZ Pass (no cash pay options). So we took 90 east to 146 north. A few more miles for the trip. North of Livingston we took 59 north to Nacogdoches, TX. North of Nacogdoches we turned onto 259 north to Mt. En...

The weather today wasn't nearly as nice as it was yesterday. It was misting, drizzling and foggy all day long. So we did inside tourist things here in Galveston. We started by visiting The Bryan Museum , located in the historic Galveston Orphans Home, which showcases a large collection of historical artifacts, documents, and artwork relating to the American west. Chris enjoyed the building and the decor. I enjoyed the numerous weapons on display. The art was also interesting. This piece reminded me of my motorcycle crash. The original building looked like this (a photo in the museum). A hurricane in 1900 did this to it. We then toured the 1895 Moody Mansion . The Moody family was one of the most wealthy and influential families in Texas. It was quite a house and it is still being renovated. We got it figured out that Galveston was having their annual Mardi Gras celebration starting tomorrow. We saw some decorations set up in the historic downtown area and some ...

Don fed us a B&B type of breakfast that was LARRAPIN good. We had some omelet, bacon, pancakes, grapefruit and coffee/milk. The grapefruit was picked from Don's tree and veggies in the omelet came from Don's garden. We washed a load of laundry before packing to go. Immediately after departing Don's B&B at 10:30 (49 degrees) we went to a car wash to clean and vacuum the car. I let Google maps lead us south to Angleton, TX. It was all secondary roads and they were too numerous to record. In Angleton I got a much needed haircut before we had lunch at Chili's. Highways 288 and 332 took us south to Surfside, TX where we caught 257 northeast along the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way we stopped at the Kelly Hamby Nature Trail, which took us down to a beach. At first sight the beach appeared to be covered with rocks. Closer inspection revealed that it was all sea shells. So Chris had fun collecting a few. 257 turned into Seawall Boulevard when we got to Galve...

This morning Don took us to a Rosenberg business where we scored some kolaches and pastries for breakfast before driving to Brazos Bend State Park. The weather forecast was for rain off-and-on most of the day. As luck would have the rain started the second we arrived at the park. We drove through the park to the trail head and the rain stopped. Although it rained (temperature was in the 40's) lightly once and misted several times we had an enjoyable walk. It was too cold for the alligators to be out but we saw all kind of birds. My brother, Don, and Chris walking through Brazos Bend State Park. Afterwards we picked up some lunch and took it to the Rosenberg elementary school where Don's daughter, Anna (my niece), teaches special education. We enjoyed lunch with Anna and we got to see her room. Anna in the hallway of the elementary school where she teaches in Rosenberg, TX. (EMAW) After returning to Don's home for a spell we went to a Richmond elementary sc...

When we left Paris at 9:10 it was mostly cloudy and 30 degrees. Highways 24, 19, 287, and 488 took us south to Fairfield, TX, where we had lunch at the Something Different Restaurant. As we drove south the temperature climbed. A short distance from the restaurant we turned south on Interstate 45, which took us all the way to Houston. The Sam Houston Tollway took us around downtown to Hwy 59 westbound, which took us to Rosenberg. Our drive today should have been 355 miles but we missed an exit at Rosenberg due to construction so our drive was probably 365 miles. The high temperature was 69 degrees. We did experience a minor vehicle related issue in the morning. As we were driving along the low tire pressure warning lit up on the dash. I drove another 15 miles to a town before checking the tires, all of which were fine. This is a new 2018 Honda Accord with 7,000 miles on it! I re-calibrated the tire pressure monitoring system and the warning light went away. A short time later the ...

It had been cold, icy and snowy for some time so Chris and I decided to escape and search for some warmth. Heading south to Texas for a visit with Brother Don and spending some time on the gulf was our plan. We left home at 9:30 and it was 24 degrees. The previous night some light snow and ice graced our neighborhood. The main streets were just wet with a little slush so we had no problem heading south on 69 Hwy out of town. We stayed on 69 until south of Fort Scott, where we took Kansas Hwy 7 southbound through Girard and Cherokee. At Cherokee the sun was out and there was no snow visible on the ground. At Columbus we picked up 69 Hwy again and drove south into Oklahoma. I-44 took us south and west to Big Cabin, where we were once again on Hwy 69. Driving south we went through Pryor (where we had a fast food lunch), Muskogee, and McAlester. South and west of McAlester we hopped on the Indian Nation Turnpike southbound. It ended at Hugo and Hwy 271 took us into Paris, TX. We arr...