June, 2006 - Bridge Coast to Coast Saga

May 30 - June 4
Tuesday, May 30. We travelled back to Portage across the middle part of the state, through several small towns including Fond du Lac, Waupun, and Fox Lake, a very nice drive.

Wednesday, May 31. Today, Dan had arthroscopic surgery on his knee and everything went well. Becky was cleaning up the roofing debris at their rental house this afternoon, so I went over to help her out. When finished, we all went back to Dan's and had some dinner.

Friday, June 2. Dan was feeling much better this morning, so he and I went to some garage sales in the morning. Rachel and Reanna stopped by and spent the afternoon. We had a fun game of Farkel with the neighbors, then Sharon fixed a fish fry for dinner. After dinner, Chad, Becky, and Cody came by for a visit. When they left, we played Farkel again.

Saturday, June 3. This weekend was Canal Days in Portage. Sharon and I went to buy plants and shrubs so I could get my gardening fix. During the week, I pruned their shrubs and planted some pots of flowers.

We then all went to see the historical reenactors that were setup at the Indian Agency House, a historic landmark on the Fox River in Portage. There were several people dressed in authentic clothing from the fur trading era. We watched several people shooting muskets and black powder guns at targets and doing various crafts of that time. We then went to the little carnival for a brat.

In the afternoon, we went to DeForest to Rachel and Rob's house for steaks and some lively games of Farkel, this time playing for a dime a Farkel. Rose and Rachel were the big winners for the night.

Sunday, June 4. We got up early this morning and drove to Reedsburg to meet up with Rosemary (my ex-sister-in-law) and her husband Robert, son Paul, daughter Rachel, and mother Lou. We went to the airport for a Rotary breakfast and fly-in. It was great to see them all again and we had a nice time at the fly-in, a great breakfast, and a wonderful visit.

The drive was very nice, through the Baraboo Hills, giving us beautiful views of the countryside. This week, the weather has been very nice with warm, sunny days and cool nights. The sunsets have been a brilliant orange. The birds have been coming to visit the feeders; goldfinches, cedar waxwings, bluebirds, house sparrows, and even hummingbirds.

June 5 - 11
Monday, June 5 brought a burst of energy from who knows where. I spent the day doing laundry; washing the motorhome, Sharon's car, and the Suzuki; going to visit Mom; and cleaning up the outdoor rug. I hung the rug on the clothesline to hose off and the weight of it caused the clothesline pole to snap right off at the ground. I felt so bad, but Dan and Sharon thanked me for helping them to get rid of it since it was no longer used and for make their lawn mowing job a little easier.

Tuesday, June 6, the dreaded 6/6/6 date. We had an appointment today to have the hydraulic hose that operates the slide-out repaired at Wisconsin RV World, the repair covered by our extended warranty ($249). In addition, we had a leak on the black water tank repaired and 3 maxxair vent covers installed on the roof (these will allow us to keep the roof vents open during rain or while driving down the road, so we will have better air circulation), and that cost another $700. While talking about it the next morning, it dawned on us that we should have installed them ourselves, but it was convenient to have it done while the hydraulic leak was being repaired. Sometimes I wonder what we're thinking or if we're even thinking at all.

While the motorhome was being repaired, we went to a couple of travel trailer dealers looking at toy haulers with Dan. He is considering buying something for camping and hauling his ATVs. We then stopped to visit Mom for a while. When the repair was complete, we picked it up and headed back to Stoughton and parked in front of Pat's house.

June 8. Today we moved on to my brother, Ron�??s house, just west of Stoughton and 2 houses away from where we used to live. I think this will be home for the next 2 weeks. We are parked behind his barn with a nice view of the horse farm next door and have a fire pit just behind our rig. Their house is adjacent to a former shooting range, thus a nice gravel drive that leads up the hill to the range and once there, a beautiful view of the countryside. Ron and Sharon have several free roaming cats, so there is an assortment of them running around.

There is a flurry of activity from bluebirds, swallows, goldfinches, and other birds. We've also seen a hawk perched in the along the tree line, a turkey, and a deer.

June 9. I went to the farmer�??s market this morning, but it was no longer in the location that I remembered, so I missed out. I went to a few garage sales and stopped by to visit my cousin, Fran. Later on, I pruned some shrubs for Ron.

In the afternoon, we went to DeForest to Pat & Roger�??s house for a cookout. Pat�??s son, AJ was home from Colorado so they had a gathering of family and friends. It was a good time, we got to see a lot of folks that we�??ve not seen for a while.

A cold front has moved through the area and our nice, warm days have changed to cloudy, some rain, and cool. When we got back home, it was about 55° and it rained all through the night.

Saturday, June 10. We decided to take a drive up to Wyocena to see Mom today. On the way north, we stopped in Madison on Pat's friends, Dan and Alecia's house to see how the remodeling project was going and to meet their 9 month old son, Victor. Victor was sleeping but we got to see the project and Josh, now 3 years old.

During a stop at McDonalds on the north side of Madison, we ran into Mike's sister, Patty and Jack, so sat and had a bite and visited with them. On toward Wyocena, and Mike called Dan who was getting strawberries at the Wildberry Farm, a few miles south of Wyocena. We met him there, got some strawberries for ourselves. They are just starting to ripen here and were really sweet! We had a nice visit with Mom and Dan and Mom really enjoyed the stawberries. Today was fairly cool, but the sky opened up and became a very pretty partly sunny day.

Sunday, June 11. This morning, we met Pat and his friends, Dan and Alecia at the bridge just south of the dam in McFarland to canoe the Yahara River as far as Fish Camp. It was really cool this morning, although the weather report said it should get to 70 and it warmed up once we were on the river. The river was clear and moving pretty quickly, although the wind was brisk. It was hard work when we had to cut across Mud Lake, a much wider portion of the river. It was a great time paddling and stopped along the shore a couple of times for snacks.

There was plenty of wildlife along the route; geese, swans, and ducks with their babies; a blue heron; a kingfisher; and turtles sunning themselves.

After the paddle, we loaded up the canoes and stopped at Barber's Bay for a burger. It was a fun day, but we all needed naps when we got back.

June 12 - 18
Monday, June 12. Today was a clothes shopping day for Savana and I, since I needed to pick up some things for the upcoming wedding and for the trip to Switzerland. We had a lot of fun trying on clothes. We found we have similar interests because at one store, we both picked out two of the same retro style dresses to try on. It was kind of frustrating because I only ended up with 1 item from my list of about 6. Tracey picked up pizza for dinner, so we hung out with them for a while.

Tuesday, June 13. The weather has been beautiful the last few days, clear and crisp and in the 70s during the day and dropping to the 50s at night for comfortable sleeping weather. We've only run the AC a couple of times in the middle of the day when it was above 80.

This retirement lifestyle is kind of strange, in that I wonder where the time goes. It seems like we can only handle one project during the day, although it also seems like we're busy all the time. And keeping house sure doesn't take long. I do manage to get my hands in gardening and maintenance projects just about everywhere I go. Last week I pruned the shrubs at my brother's house and have been working on cleaning up a weedy iris bed.

There are so many birds around here and our motor home is facing the feeder and a bluebird house, so we get to see a lot of the activity. The old barn that we're parked next to has a lot of knot holes in it and many of the holes are filled with swallow nests. Those things come close to dive bombing us now and then, although I think they are just hunting for insects.

Today's project was to go to Babcock Park in McFarland to empty our holding tanks. In the evening, Pat, Tracey, and Savana joined us for dinner.

Wednesday, June 14. We went for a drive to the Black Hawk Memorial Park in Woodford, WI. Pat suggested that we go camping there this weekend, but we wanted to check it out first because he wasn�??t sure if our motor home could get through there. The park is a 1 ½ hour drive from Stoughton through the beautiful cheese country near Monroe. After seeing it, we decided that it was a wonderful choice and plan to spend the weekend there. We stopped at Lelle�??s Bar for a wonderful pulled pork sandwich.

The park is the site of a battle fought with the Kickapoo Indians during the Black Hawk War in 1832, where 17 of the Kickapoo party were killed. The site is better known as Bloody Lake because of the battle fought there.

Friday, June 16. After morning doctor appointments, getting groceries and gas, we stopped to pick up Savana and headed for the Black Hawk Memorial Park campground at Woodford ($10/day on weekends and $5/day during the week). There are 38 very large sites with no hookups or showers, but there are bathrooms scattered throughout the park that are maintained by volunteers only. I think it is truly a hidden gem.

The day is beautiful, mid 80s and it is supposed to remain hot for the weekend. We arrived at the park at about 4:30 and selected our campsites, right along the Pecatonica River, a fast moving brownish colored river with rather muddy looking banks. Directly across from us is a farm, although the view of the buildings is obstructed by the high banks on the opposite side of the river. We were surprised when we heard cows, then realized that their pasture is what we see on the other side of the river, so we got to see them and heir calves throughout the weekend.

Pat and Tracey arrived around 6:30 and got their campsite set up, we had some dinner, started a campfire and sat up talking until near midnight. The stars were bright and the fireflies were many. There are a few other campers, their campfires could be seen from our site, but the park is pretty quiet. A nice breeze was blowing, so the mosquitoes haven�??t been bad.

Saturday, June 17. Pat and I were the early risers, so after some good percolated campground coffee, we put the canoe in the river and paddled upstream for a while, then back down to the campsite. It was quiet and we didn�??t see much wildlife along the way. When we returned, we did the usual campground activities; a hike, flew the kite, paddled the canoe, played dice games, talked a lot, and just hung out. Thankfully, we had a nice breeze all day long and there were a few times when the weather looked kind of threatening.

For dinner, we had buffalo burgers (very lean and tender and flavorful). Just as we were finishing our dinner, Pat�??s friend, Roger stopped by and hung out with us until around 10:00. We sat around the campfire drinking beer and telling stories.

Sunday, June 18 (Father�??s Day). Early in the morning, a storm came through and managed to get everything soaked enough that Pat had to pack everything wet. Mike and I decided to stay for another night. Since everything was wet and we were awakened by the storm, we took naps. In the afternoon, the sun came back out and it was another beautifully day. We took a walk along a nice mowed path next to Horseshoe Lake that led to the park entrance, where we paid our fee for Sunday night. We saw turtles sunbathing, geese, and lots of birds.

A few cars drove by today and a fellow was fishing along the banks of the river, but I don�??t think there are many others camping here �?? it is really quiet. In the evening, we played a game of Scrabble, then ran the generator and watched 60 Minutes on TV.

June 19-25
Monday, June 19. Our plan for today was to return to Stoughton, but to park at my cousin Dawn's house to tend her garden and house-sit while they are on vacation. When we arrived, we found that the street in front of their house was under construction and we couldn't get into the driveway. So we changed the plan and went to McFarland to Babcock County Park ($22). The park is very nice with large mature trees, lots of shade, clean showers and restrooms, boat access to Lake Kegonsa, but it is located right on Highway 51, the main route through McFarland. When we lived here, we traveled past it every day on our way to and from work and we often marveled at why the folks would want to camp right next to the highway. For us, it is a matter of convenience.

Tuesday, June 20. Today's plan was to drive to Wyocena to visit with Mom, but they are predicting severe storms today, so we will stick close by and make the drive tomorrow. We did go to the mall and shopped for clothing for upcoming dress-up occasions. Tonight, I went to Monona to watch my friend, Patty's softball game.

Wednesday, June 21. We drove to Wyocena, met Dan and visited with Mom. While she was having lunch, we went to the Caddy Shack in Portage and had a wonderful burrito for lunch. We went back to visit Mom for a while, then followed Dan to his favorite auto repair garage in Portage (the Suzuki is making some very loud, clunking noises that must be checked out). It turned out that the U joint shot, the mechanic said we might not make it another mile. We left it there and returned to McFarland in Dan's truck.

This evening, Patty came by for dinner, then I went with her to watch her play ball again, this time in McFarland.

Thursday, June 22. Today was laundry day, then the Farmer's Market, then back to Portage to pick up the Suzuki. Can't believe it is a completely different feeling ride now. I had begun calling it "Pipsqueak" because of all the noises it was making, but may have to change its name once again.

In the evening, Pat came by for a while. For dinner, I fixed a great salad with all of the goodies I got at the Farmer's Market and some "free range" chicken breast. The flavor of the chicken is so much better than the grocery store varieties.

Friday, June 23. I spent the morning in Stoughton; checked on Dawn's garden, picked up prescriptions, and went to some garage sales. In the afternoon, we just hung out at the campground, walked with Lucy, and talked to folks in the park. Most of the campsites are now filled, mostly young families with teenage girls, maybe there's a volleyball tourney going on.

In the evening, we went to our old friends, Jim and Sue's house for dinner. Jim is an avid fisherman, so it was wonderful local fish for dinner. We had a great time visiting and catching up on the new of our families and reminiscing old times.

Saturday, June 24. After a nice, long walk with Lucy this morning, we took care of our holding tanks and traveled back to Portage to spend the next week there. On the way north, we stopped to visit Mom, took her out to show her the motor home and sat in the shade under a big tree to visit.

When we arrived at Dan and Sharon's house, we were kept busy by their grand-daughters, Brooke and Elizabeth. In the evening, Mike was tired, so went into the motor home to rest, but the girls got the best of them. They kept activating the sound on a purple "oom pa loom pa" toy, he pretended to wake up and dance, and they just giggled and giggled. We enjoyed the evening sitting around a bonfire.

June 26 - July 2
Monday, June 26. We got up early this morning, unhooked the motor home and headed to Portage with Dan and Sharon to pick up Becky and the girls in Sun Prairie. We then drove to Beloit, IL to watch Ron race his motorcycle at the Black Hawk Racetrack. The morning started out kind of rainy but the prediction was for clearing. The weather didn�??t stop the race, although Ron didn�??t run the 1st heat after we arrived because the track was too wet. It ended up clearing by about 1:00. The facility is set up so you can watch the race from any of the 8 curves and can walk around the infield to see what�??s going on and talk to the drivers. There are lots of big trees around and is very park-like.

The event was a track day where the cyclists can get out on the track and race, but there is no purse. Ron no longer races, but during this event he can drive fast and do wheelies. There were three categories of races; novice, intermediate, and advanced and each category raced for 20 minutes each hour. Ron raced in the advanced category and made it around the 2 mile track in about a minute and 17 seconds, with high speeds on the straightaway of about 145. The intermediates were coming in at about 5 seconds slower.

In the middle of the day, the drivers all took a break for lunch, so Ron and several of his friends joined us at the motorhome and we cooked out and had ham and turkey sandwiches. We spent the afternoon watching the races from different areas. It was a fun day, we got back to Portage around 7:30.

Tuesday, June 27. The movie, Cars, was the activity for today. It was a great animated film and was fun to watch. We did a little bit of shopping after the movie, then stopped in Wyocena to visit Mom.

Wednesday, June 28. Today was a 'stick around the house' kind of day. We helped with lawn work, did some house cleaning, and visited with Becky and Cody in the afternoon. Sharon and I went to the laundromat to do rugs and blankets. I stayed at the laundromat while she went to the grocery store.

While sitting there, I learned a lot about the history of Portage including the fact that the name comes from a strip of land used to portage canoes between the Fox River that flows north and the Wisconsin River that flows south. This area was a major trading influence at the turn of the century.

Thursday, June 29. Another stick around the house day except for a drive to Wyocena to visit Mom. We sat outdoors on the patio and played Farkel with her. She seemed to enjoy the game and thought the name was funny too.

Mike and Dan went shopping for a TV for our bedroom, something that we have never had in all of the 38 years we've been married. I think it will be nice because we will both be able to lounge in comfort while watching TV.

Rachel and Reanna came over in the afternoon and the girls went to the farmers market.

Friday, June 30. Sharon and I went to garage sales in the morning. I have been searching at all of the big stores for a dish pan that would fit in the sink in the motor home, to no avail. But today was my lucky day and I had to pay a whole $.10 for it.

Mike and Dan worked on electronics, getting our new TV and DVD player to work. Dan bought a DVD recorder and they worked on connecting it. They were able to get it to record from the TV, but it would not work from the satellite. Both were confused and frustrated over that.

In the evening, we met Pat and Roger at Hooker's Resort, along the Wisconsin River, for dinner. We had a *bleep*tail outside by the river, then had a wonderful Blue Gill dinner. After dinner, we returned to the outside lounge and visited until almost 10:00. It sure is nice to have such wonderful friends to hang out with.

Created on 06/06/2006 07:08 AM by bridge
Updated on 07/02/2006 07:30 AM by bridge