Saturday 4-19-25 Rainy Morning & Walking

 

Overcast Day

 

The weather report was correct about the rain. At midnight the rain was back. It rained steady and at times very hard until 9:00 am. The rest of the day it was dreary and a little cool. The low was 50 degrees and the high was 56 degrees.

We spent much of the day indoors reading. 

We took a break from reading for lunch. Then we walked around the campground for 50 minutes and walked for 2 miles. After Larry went inside I walked another hour for 2.5 miles. I walked the three loops twice.

I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Two Game Tango of 6 games (3 Spider and 3 Pyramid). It took me 17 minutes and 28 seconds, which put me in 9th place in my group. I played Angry Birds.

After our walks we went back to reading. Larry finished a book and started another one. I finished reading To Dance with the White Dog. It was a great book.

We had cheese tortellini with sauce for dinner. After dinner I went for a half hour walk. I walked our loop three times. By the end of the day I had done 16,500 steps.

For dessert I baked peanut cookies.

The day started out with rain but it was still a great day.  

Friday 4-18-25 Hiking, Pizza Night & Walking

 

Spring is here!!!

 

We woke up to the temperature of 67 degrees and humid. It was 75 degrees at 11:00. The temperature started to drop when the clouds rolled in. 

I crawled out of bed at 7:15 and got dressed. We had oatmeal for breakfast. Then we got ready to go on a hike.

The hike was 2.50 miles long on two loops. The trails were Post Oak (1.70 mile red) and White Oak (1.30 mile blue). The hike was suppose to be 3 miles but the loops overlap each other. We had done Post Oak on Wednesday so we decided to do it the opposite direction. We started our hike at the trailhead by the Showerhouse, which was Post Oak. Where the trail Y's we went to the right. We hiked the trail until it connected with White Oak. Then we hiked for about a half mile where it Y's again. We stayed on White Oak and finished the loop. We finished our hike on Post Oak. Where the loops separate Y's there was a rock with arrows on it to tell you which direction to go. The markers looks like they were done by the CCC. The trails took us up and down small hills, over creeks, through the trees and by the lake. The trails weren't that muddy. It was a very humid hike but fun. 

We now have done all the trails in the campground area. The trails were Whitetail blue (.40 mile loop), White Oak green (1.30 mile loop), Post Oak red (1.70 mile loop) and Dogwood yellow (2.30 mile loop). They were all moderate trails with 2) natural surface of dirt, mud, gravel and loose rocks, 3) rocks, roots and down vegetation, 7) steep grade and inclines over 10%, 8) bluff or drops on the side of the trail and 12) road or highway crossing. White Oak trail did have wooden bridges to get over the creek. 

When we got back to the Minnie we relaxed for about an hour before having a pasta salad for lunch. 

The clouds rolled in after lunch. I decided to do my daily walk before the rain arrived. I walked around all three loops (Badger, Coyote and Puma) two times for a total of 2.7 miles in an hour. I got my steps finished with the total of 17,000 steps.

When I got back I went over and took a shower. I needed a shower considering all the sweating I did during the hike and walk. The showers were old but nice. When I got back Larry went over and took a shower.

We spent the rest of the day relaxing with a book. We both started a new book. My book is To Dance with the White Dog by Terry Kay. It's about Sam Peek's, who's beloved wife died after fifty-seven years of marriage and how he copes with it. There was a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie made from the book starring Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn. Last movie Jessica Tandy did.

I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Free Cell Adventure of 20 games. It took me 2 hours, 55 minutes and 53 seconds, which put me in 11th place in my group. Then I moved onto playing Angry Birds.

For dinner we had a pepperoni and mozzarella cheese flatbread pizza.

 

      

Thursday 4-17-25 Weird Weather, Hiking and Walking

 

Rainy morning

 

We had weird weather today. We had rain, it started at 7:00 am and was gone by 10:00 am. When the rain stopped the wind came up and the sun came out. At times the wind was very strong. The wind dried up the roads. The low was 54 degrees and the high was 78 degrees.

When I woke up I wasn't in any hurry to get out of bed because it was raining. I did finally get up at 7:20 and got dressed. I made oatmeal for Larry and I finished up the pancake batter from last night and mad a mini waffle for me. 

After breakfast Larry read. 

I played my games. I started out playing Angry Birds. I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Easy Street Mini of 15 games. It took me 32 minutes and 18 seconds to complete, which put me in 17th place in my group.

 After lunch, about 12:00 we went on a 3.25 mile hike for 2.5 hours. We started at the Dogwood Trailhead (Yellow 2.3 mile loop). The trail took us through the trees, by Mark Twain Lake and over creeks. The trail took us to Whitetail Trail (blue .40 mile loop). The trail took us to the CCC Picnic Shelter. The shelter was beautiful and constructed in 1941 by the CCC. The area had three water fountains (for drinking), that were made by the CCC unit. There was a stone sidewalk that took you to an overview of Mark Twain Lake. There were two different areas to look at the lake. This was also built by the CCC. While we were hiking to the area we saw three small buses. We figured they were from a Senior Home and it was an outing for the seniors. We waved at the drivers. After walking around the area we continued our hike on Whitetail trail back to where it connects to Dogwood trail. We continued hiking through the trees. When we got to the park road Larry asked should we take the road or trail. I said the trail so that's what we did. It was a mistake, because of the rain we had a lot of the trail was muddy. We had to figure how to get around the mud. We had to walk around trees through briar vines. We did this until we got back to where we began, which was for about .33 mile. This was the worse part of the trail. The rest of the trail wasn't bad. By the time we got back we were hot and tired but we had fun. We'll do another hike tomorrow morning because it's not suppose to rain.

 

CCC Water Fountain (doesn't work)

 

Overlook of Mark Twain Lake

 

Overlook of the lake

 

CCC Shelter constructed in 1941

 

After our hike we spent the evening and the rest of the afternoon relaxing. I finished reading How the Light Gets In by Joyce Maynard, it was a really good book.

 

Camping at Mark Twain State Park
 

After dinner I walked around for an hour and did 2.33 miles. 

By the end of the day I had done 16,000 steps.

   

 

 

Wednesday 4-16-25 Walt Disney Hometown Museum, Mark Twain State Park & More

 

Just having fun

 

We had a very nice day with sunshine and wind. The morning temperature was 38 degrees in Pershing State Park. The high was 73 at Mark Twain State Park. 

Pershing State Park is a beautiful park with a lot of trees and hiking trails from the campground. We spent two nights there and decided to move on. The next campground is Mark Twain State Park, which is 130 miles from Pershing. 

I got up at 7:15 and made oatmeal for breakfast. We also shared a banana. Larry wanted to stop at the Walt Disney Hometown Museum, which was 20 miles down the road. The museum opened at 10:00 so we weren't in any hurry. Larry did more research on where to go and places to see when we leave Mark Twain State Park. I read a little bit. 

About 9:00 we got ready to go. We put things away and secured. As we were leaving we stopped at the dump station. Larry dumped the tanks. He also filled the fresh water tank because it was right there at the dump. When Larry was finished dumping the tanks we were back on the road. 

The drive was on two and four lane state highways. The two lane highways didn't have shoulders and they were narrow. The scenery was mainly flat farmland. The wind stayed around all day but we did have sun.

When we got to Marceline, which is where the museum is. Larry stopped by Yummy's Donut Palace and bought donuts for a snack. We arrived at the Walt Disney Hometown Museum a few minutes after it opened. It is a beautiful two-story high building in the main area of town. The town is very small so it wasn't hard to find. Some how Marceline has stayed alive and seems to be prosperous. The museum admission was $10 for adults, $9.00 if you're senior or military, $5.00 for children (6-12) and children under 6 are free. The building is very nice and has a cool clock, that works. Two ladies greeted us, they were very friendly and helpful. The museum was established in 2001 to celebrate the 100th Birthday of Walt Disney's life. His family moved to Marceline from Chicago when he was four years old. He had three brothers and a sister (Ruth). The original museum was built on the personal collection of Ruth Disney Beecher. Now it has over 4,000 artifacts in the 10,000 square feet building. The first floor has artifacts about the Disney family and their lives. The second floor is about the making of Disney. There was a lot of information about Walt Disney and his family. We enjoyed walking around and reading about Walt Disney.

Walt Disney Hometown Museum

 

i

Standing with Mickey Mouse the engineer

 

Some of the artifacts on display

 

A Disney guitar with Walt Disney on it

 

Mark I Arrowflite Tracked Junior Automobile made for Walt Disney 
 

 

The 50th anniversary ambassadors outfits (2005)

 

Model of the main street in Disney

 

 

Model of It's A Small World in Disney

 

 

Carnegie Library

 

One of the Railroad Cars in E.P. Ripley Park

 

The Coca-Cola mural

 

Afterwards we walked around the downtown area. We saw a Carnegie Library and nice park with train cars around it, the old midget car track and a water fountain. Marceline is a cute little town.  

After visiting Marceline we continued toward Mark Twain State Park. We stopped in Bevier to fill up the Minnie with gas. We stopped at Walmart and had lunch.

We drove another 60 miles and turned to go to Mark Twain State Park. The road was closed so Larry had to get the phone out and get Google to show us another way to the park. We had to turn around and go an extra 15 miles. We arrived at the park around 3:00. 

We drove around to find a site. There are three loops (Badger, Coyote and Puma). We found a level site in Badger and was ready to book it. But then there wasn't any internet. We walked to Coyote loop, where we found another site with some cell service so we moved the Minnie over there. It wasn't level so we had to block the passenger side up one block. Then Larry booked site #56 for four nights.

We relaxed for an hour or so. We read. Then I made mini waffles for dinner. After dinner we went on a hike for an hour. We hiked Post Oak Trail (red) a 1.7 mile loop. The trail took us through the trees and by the lake. We hiked by the boat ramp and a few cabins. It was a very nice moderate trail. By the time we got back we had gone 2 miles. Larry went inside and I walked the loop for another 30 minutes to get my steps. I ended up doing 13,500 steps.

 

Mark Twain Lake and road bridge

 

Trail mark arrows showing where the trails goes

 

 

 

A cottontail we saw during the hike

 

 

One of the park cabins

 

Then I played my games. I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: World Tour Mini of 10 games. It took me 1 hour, 3 minutes and 11 seconds, which put me in 17th place in my group.       

Tuesday 4-15-25 Trail Closed, Walking, Reading & Games

 

Disappointed, Trail Closed

 

We had a gorgeous day of sunshine and wind. Even though it was windy we still had a gorgeous day. In the morning the temperature was a brisk 40 degrees. The wind was out of the NW at 10 to 20mph. It got up to 63 degrees.

I crawled out of bed at 7:15 and made breakfast. Another easy breakfast, bagels and cream cheese. After breakfast we got ready to go on a hike. We were ready by 7:45.

We started from the campground on Canfield Savanna Trail (.4 mile one way). The trailhead was by the bathroom/shower building. It was an easy trail that went through the trees to a covered bridge. The bridge was under construction so we couldn't walk through it but I took a picture. Then we walked to a wooden bridge where the Boardwalk Locust Creek Riparian Trail begins. Both bridges go over the creek. When we walked over the bridge we discovered the trail was closed due to construction. There was no sign telling anyone that the trail was closed nor did the website indicate it was closed. This trail was the main reason we came to this park. The boardwalk trail led to another trail providing over 5 miles of hiking. We were disappointed. No one was doing any construction on the bridge or trail.

 

Covered Bridge

 

Bridge entrance to Boardwalk trail

 
 

Larry went to plan B, which was to walk around. We walked the road to the archery range. Then we walked the range. It was a very nice trail that weaved us through the trees, through the creek many times and by 20 different archery targets. Each target had three different color marks at different distances for you to shoot the target from. Each target had a sponsor (company) on it. It was a beautiful trail. The trail was well marked with signs and arrows telling you which direction to go. While walking the loop we saw cattle in their field. When they saw us they stopped eating to check us out. But as soon walked on they went back to grazing. When we drove in we saw the sign for the archery range and four different targets lined in a row. But we didn't realize how nice the range actually is. The trail was about a half mile loop.

 

Sign for the archery range

 

The practice targets

 

After walking through the archery range we rested at a picnic table deciding which way to go. We had a choice, either the way we came or walk the road. We decided to do the road. We walked across the road to where the bridges were. Then we walked the park road instead of Canfield Savanna Trail. When we got to the campground we decided to do the walk we did last night except go the opposite direction. While walking to the non-electrical loop we saw the host with a cat (calico). We asked if it was his and he said no. She has lived in park for about five years now. He just feeds her. We walked through the non-electric loop to the end. Then we crossed the street to Scout Lake Trail. We hiked around scout lake (.3 mile). We walked the road to the picnic area and walked around. It was very windy and cold. We walked to the small lake, screened shelter and playground. We picked up Oak Ridge Trail (.4 mile) and hiked back to the Minnie. While hiking oak ridge we saw a giant snapping turtle sunning on a log and Canadian geese swimming in the riparian area. Riparian areas are the interfaces between land and the rivers or streams. We had walked/hiked for 4 miles. We had a wonderful time.

 

Giant snapping turtle

 

Canadian goose

Once we were back at the Minnie I walked to the pay booth to return the literature I had gotten yesterday. On the way back I stopped and said hi to Buddy.

 We spent the rest of the day relaxing. Larry started a new book and finished it. 

I played my games. I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Experts Only of 5 games. It took me 2 hours, 41 minutes and 34 seconds, which put me in 14th place in my group. Then I played Angry Birds.

After playing games I read.

After dinner I walked around for 2 miles to get my steps. I stopped and talked with the lady, who has Buddy. She is very nice. We had another outstanding day.

 

   

 

 

       

Monday 4-14-25 New State Park, Site Seeing & Walking

 

Windy Day

 

Our day started out with a brisk 56 degrees and a strong wind in Trenton, MO. It got up to 63 degrees. It was windy and chilly all day.

We had four wonderful days at Crowder State Park. During our stay we walked around the campground and met people. We did three hikes of a total of 13.5 miles through a gorgeous forest, over a creek and up and down hills. The weather was very nice with wind. Now it's time to say good-bye.

Last night we went to bed with the fan going and woke up to the heater running. I crawled out of bed at 7:20 and made mini waffles for breakfast. After breakfast we got ready to go. We put things away and made secure they were secured. We were on the road by 8:30.

Our next campground was 60 miles away at Pershing State Park. Larry wanted to make a few stops on the way. The drive was on two lane highways through small towns and by farmland. 

First stop was Walmart in Chillicothe to pick up a few items we were getting low on. It was a very nice store. We got what we could. The items they didn't have weren't that important, they were only snacks. Once I put everything away we were on the road again.

As we were driving through Chillicothe we saw a beautiful city park. The park was Simpson Park. The land (21-acres) was given to the city by Dr. Arthur J. Simpson to have a park for children and adults to enjoy. The city bought a few more acres to add to the gift. The park has a big water park, playground, sculptures through out the park, a memorial garden with a plague about Dr. Simpson and his wife, walking trail, tennis courts, croquet area and more. Larry parked the Minnie and we walked around. It was very nice and well kept. When we were walking back to the Minnie we saw a lady jogging around the park.

 

Entrance to the park sign

 

Mountain Lion sculpture Minnie in the back

 

Cubs climbing a pole

 

Playground

 

Mama Bear

 

 

A Lion and me

 

Too-turn Pole

 

Eagle on the back of the  Too-tum Pole

 

A racoon and her babies

 

After going grocery shopping we stopped at Sumner to see the worlds largest Goose, Maxie. It was located at their RV park. I don't think the park is open because the water was all locked up. There were a few sites with full hook-ups and bathroom. The bathroom was open. There wasn't a sign about how much it cost at the RV park or if it's even open. That's too bad because it wouldn't be bad to stay the night.

 

Maxie and me

 

Pershing State Park is 7 miles from Maxie. We were at the campground at 11:45. There was hardly anyone there. Larry had done research about the park and what sites were available. We found a site that was very level. The number was #11. We backed into the site and Larry tried to reserve it for two nights. The site locked up so he had to wait about fifteen minutes to complete the reservation. Then he plugged us in. I'm being spoiled, so far we have only been without power one night on this trip and we have always had internet. The site is across the road from the pit toilet, that is open all the time. The bathroom with showers were supposed to be closed until tomorrow but they are open.

Once we were setup the Minnie for a couple of nights I made soup for lunch. Easy just open a can of Campbell's Chunky soup and heat it up. After lunch I walked around for a half hour. I checked out the running water bathroom and found it was open already. It was very nice that the parks opened the running water bathrooms early. I walked around the non-electric area and electric area twice. A few of the electric sites were parallel to the road. The park isn't too large but it's beautiful with a lot of trees.

We spent the rest of the day relaxing. Larry started another book and finished it. I played games. I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Easy Street of 30 games. It took me 1 hour, 2 minutes and 30 seconds to complete, which put me in 15th in my group. Then I played Angry Birds.

After playing games I read.

After dinner Larry and I walked around. Larry walked with me an hour and then I continued for another 1/2 hour. We wanted to checkout the campground. We took the Oak Ridge Trail (orange markers) .40 mile one way. The trail takes you along the river and comes out at the picnic area. We walked around the area. It had a group pavilion with a screened in area and big grill. There was a playground and a statue called Motherhood. The sculpture was made by a gentleman who was in prison for killing someone. After walking around we crossed the main road and walked a little ways to Scout Lake Trail (yellow markers) .30 mile loop that goes around the lake. We had to walk across four bridges to get around the lake. It was a nice trail through the trees. We said hi to a young couple. Then we walked back across the road to the non-electric sites of the campground. After Larry went inside I walked around the campground a couple of times. I met a lady with a beautiful white dog (Buddy), that looked like a polar bear. It was a very nice walk/hike. By the end I had walked 2.33 miles. I ended up doing 14,000 steps for day.

 

Motherhood statue

 

River from Oak Ridge trail

Bridges on Scout Lake trail

 

        

   

Sunday 4-13-25 Hiking, Camping & More

 

Let's going hiking

 

We woke up to 54 degrees with a breeze. Once the morning clouds went away the sun came out and it got to 84 degrees. 

 

I crawled out of bed around 7:20 and got dressed. Then we had french toast sticks and shared a protein shake.

 

After breakfast we got ready to go on a hike. Today we decided to hike Tall Oaks Trail for .6 miles to where it Y's off to the right and left. We went left where we met up with the white connector trail #2, which takes you .9 mile upper hill to the Thompson River Trail South Loop (3.2 mile loop). We hiked .75 mile of the trail to White Connector Trail #3 (.8 mile). This trail took us back to where Tall Oaks Trail Y's. We hiked back to the Minnie. 

 

The trails we took today took us over creeks, up and down hills (some up hills were very steep) and through the forest. Tall Oak trail was the toughest because it had more loose rocks and roots in the trail and the incline was very steep. We did cross the creek a few times, which wasn't too bad (not much water in the creek). Both White Connectors were very nice. We went up hill but it was gradual with switchbacks and not a lot of loose rocks. Part of the connectors were wide. Once at Thompson South Loop trailhead the trail we hiked was the easiest trail here. It wasn't perfectly flat but it had very little rocks and roots on the trail. We were surprise on how fast we had hiked the .75 mile to the White Connector #3. The trails took a long the creek and over it via rocks. As we hiked we stopped now and then to look at the scenery and rest on a down tree once. By the time we were finished with the hike we had hiked 4.25 miles in 2 hours and 45 minutes.

 

 

 

Hiking a long the creek and through the forest

 

When we got back to the campground people were gone or getting ready to leave because it's Sunday. Our entertainment was gone because the kids had to go to school tomorrow.

 

We relaxed a little bit and then I made sandwiches for lunch.

 

During lunch Larry went online and paid for another night at Crowder State Park. If you make a reservation on the day you arrive you're not charged the reservation fee of $6.50. Because were Seniors we saved $2.00 a night for camping so it costs $21.00. Terrific price for a state park. 

 

In the afternoon I played my games. The Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Two Game Tango Mini of 6 games (3 Klondikes and 3 Tri Peaks. It took me 16 minutes and 9 seconds to complete, which put me in 29th place in my group. Then I played Angry Birds 2 and Angry Birds and Friends. I play both games everyday because Angry Birds 2 has one challenge and Angry Birds and Friends have two challenges. 

 

 

 Angry Birds

 

Larry and I both went over and took showers. The shower house was nice and the shower was excellent. There was plenty of hot water and a really good shower head.

 

After playing games I continued reading How the Light Gets In by Joyce Maynard. Larry started a new book and did research on where we're going from here.

 

After dinner I walked around for an hour. I stopped and visited with a lady, who had five dogs. By the end of my walk I had done 2.33 miles. At the end of the day I had done 19,500 steps.