Places We Have Called Home In 2019

Home Is Where We Park It:   Harvest Host, Bar Z Winery, Canyon, TX

September 5, 2019

Temperature 92

Danger Will Robinson Danger!

Travel Day

Just before we decided to get up and go to bed from the back of the rig came a loud, shrill sound.  What in the world?  Back we went to investigate.  It was the LP alarm, which I’ve learned from experience sounds whenever there is any kind of noxious gas in the rig.  We immediately opened doors and windows, turned the exhaust fans on, turned the propane off and then sat down to try to noodle out what was going on.

We immediately ruled out a propane leak.  So what was it?  We finally figured out that the way we were parked and the way the rig behind us was parked, behind us but off our right rear, was the issue.  The wind was blowing down on us and the exhaust from his generator was being sucked into Graybeard.  Time to move.  We swung out and into the parking lot, several feet from the other rig, and facing the way we would have to go out the morning.  Problem solved.

The next morning we were so glad we had been forced to move.  If we had stayed where we had been we would have had to disconnect the car and back out.  This is because of the construction that is going on at the Museum and the fact that the construction crew shows up by 7 am in the morning.  The way they park and construction materials prohibits an exit to the front.  Still, because we were in the middle of the parking lot we needed to be out as soon as possible.  Can you believe we left at 7 am?  We can’t but we did!

Time to find a place for breakfast.  OK, exit 20 held a lot of promise.  Pilot with dedicated lanes for RV refueling.  A Denny’s for breakfast.  Perfect.  We both gained a place again in the clean plate club.  Refueling was a breeze.  Back on the road.

Under the heading of weird road signs we saw one today that said:

Beware Hitchhikers may be escaped inmates.

Really?

Soon enough we saw one of the more welcoming signs we were looking for.  Goodbye Oklahoma, Hello Texas!

Then a short distance down the road we saw. this sign  Yes, we were in The Lone Star State.

We also saw this huge cross alongside Route 40.  Looks small in the picture but trust me you can see it for miles.  It is in Groom, Texas.

One of the things I couldn’t understand on this trip – at least at first – was the fact that we were constantly climbing.  Not as bad as in the Ozarks, but in this part of the country Route 40 just seems to be forever climbing, long, long gentle upward slopes.  I was almost always in 3rd gear, taching around 3200 rpm.  Then I discovered that this part of the country is known as the high plains and now I understand why we were always going up.

A couple of hours later we were off Route 40, on a couple of county roads and then we saw it, the sign for our new home for the night.

One problem, this guy was in the driveway in front of us and the gate was closed.  But just like that the gate opened and we played follow the leader.

Here’s our destination for the night.  This is the Bar Z Winery.  Not to be confused with a vineyard Bar Z works with Texans High Plains vineyard owners and takes their high quality Texas grown grapes and makes them award winning full-bodied wines.

The winery is located, in what else, the high plains on the edge of the Palo Duro Canyon on the outskirts of Canyon, Texas.

At first glance as I pulled into the parking lot it appeared that there wasn’t a level place in sight to park.  Oh silly me.  I was directed to the side of  the building above.  I moved forward, dropped down into a bit of small bowl, hey we’re perfectly level.  Now how about that.  We have 50 amp.  The sun goes down on the drivers side so the refrigerator is not in the sun.  Yes, we’ll have to back out tomorrow but no big deal.

Look at the view we have out of the solarium window.

All settled in it was time for, what else, wine tasting!  Barbara had been looking forward to this ever since we got here.

She did the wine tasting and I took pictures.  Look at these neat table tops.

 I found this mirror interesting as well.

Since this is a winery, here is where the magic happens.

That brings us to the end of our day on The Road of Retirement.  We had a good travel day, we have a nice place to call home tonight, and we are cool and comfortable.  One more hop tomorrow and then by the end of next week we’ll be in the Escapees Park.

Thanks again for joining us today.  We always appreciate your company and your comments.  Catch you tomorrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before

See you on down the road!

Places We Have Called Home In 2019

Home Is Where We Park It:   Harvest Host, Stafford Air and Space Museum, Weatherford, OK

September 4, 2019

Temperature 91

Travel Day

So long, farewell, it’s been nice but now it’s time to go.  We’re back on the road today heading toward Deming, NM.  We’ll take it in three hops of about 3 to 4 hours travel time each.  Today is the first leg of the trip.

When we awoke this morning it was already starting to warm up.  At 8 am we were already at 74 degrees.  We were in no rush knowing that we didn’t want to get to Weatherford much before 1:30 or 2 pm.  We had our breakfast, a couple of cups of coffee then we disconnected from the mother ship and were on the road at 10 am.

I really didn’t know what to expect this trip in terms of traffic, road quality and construction.  Several people had told me the last couple of days to expect the worse on Route 40 when going through Oklahoma City.  Time would tell.

So what happened?  No traffic the whole way.  Not even going through the city.   Some construction just before we got into the heart of the city.  The kind of construction that gives me the willies.  They bring the concrete barriers right up to the white line on either side leaving little margin for error.  That’s OK I take my share out of the middle and move over only when someone wants to pass me.  Road quality overall was excellent.  Finally a state that has decent roads.  I know three states that can take a lesson from them.

First and only stop was for gas.  No surprises this time.  Plenty of room to get in and out and back on the Interstate.

As planned we arrived in at The Stafford Air and Space Museum at 1:30 pm.

They have four large lanes for RV’s since they are part of Harvest Host. We’re in one and there is another rig behind us.  The lot is level, the jacks are down on this side only because we have the slide out; we have the generator running, and the AC going so even though it is 92 degrees outside we are comfortable within.  Tomorrow morning we’ll be able to swing right out and get on our way.

Yes, I toured the Museum and it is absolutely fantastic.  More about what’s inside in a future blog.  Here are some of the planes that are outside and on display.

This is a Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star.  Nicknamed the T Bird it was the first operational jet fighter trainer.  It’s development was critical for the training of military pilots to the higher performance and unique handling characteristics of jet fighters that came into service during WW II.  First flown in 1948 it would become the primary jet trainer for the USAF and the U.S Navy during the 50’s and 60’s until new trainers like the T-37 and T-38 came on line.

This is the Fairchild – Republic A 10 Thunderbold.  Because of its toughness and its ability to survive just about anything its pilots and crews nicknamed it the The Warthog or just simply the Hog.  

It was the only aircraft whose airframe was totally designed around a gun.  But it wasn’t just any gun.  It was a General Electric 30 mm cannon that made it so famous and so lethal.

How big was it?  Take a look.

The ammunition it fired was equally impressive.  The size of beer bottles!  200 rounds per minute, 70 of them per second!  Can penetrate 3 inches of battle armor!  I sure would not want to be on the receiving end.  If that was not enough it could also carry 16,000 lbs of hard ordinance under its wings and fuselage.

Next one on display was the F 104 Starfighter.  First flown in 1956 it was a revolutionary supersonic tactical strike fighter that would go on to break all previous speed and altitude records.  It was the first production fighter to exceed  twice the speed of sound in level flight and the first to fly higher than 100,000 feet altitude.  It’s performance was achieved in two ways:  by using the smallest possible fuselage for the engine used; and, by using the shortest and thinnest wing ever used on an aircraft.  In fact, crews had to be careful around the wings to keep from getting cut.  The wings also made it challenging to fly, sensitive to control and totally unforgiving of even the smallest pilot error.

Finally we have Boiler Plat #1210.  A full sized Apollo Command Module that was no more than a test vehicle.  It was an economical way to evaluate designs when an actual aircraft or module was not required.  This one was used for landing and naval recovery training.

That’s it for now.  More to come in future blogs.

That was our day on The Road of Retirement.  Overall, an easy day with no surprises and a great Museum waiting at the end of the journey.  We’ll take it.

Thanks again for joining us today.  We always appreciate your company and your comments.  Catch you tomorrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before

See you on down the road!

 

 

 

 

Places We Have Called Home In 2019

Home Is Where We Park It:   Onapa Campground and  RV Park,  Checotah, OK 74426

September 3, 2019

Temperature 92

Hanging Out and Packing Up

Well, it’s been great the past several days.  No pressure, nothing that had to be done, nowhere that we had to be.  Now, it’s time for a change.  It’s time to roll.  Tomorrow.

I’ve gone through my maintenance list and done what has to be done.  Tires have been scrubbed and treated with 303.  Tire pressure checked and found within acceptable limits.  All water lines and plumbing has been checked for leaks and none found.  Outside lockers cleaned and straightened up.  Vents vacuumed in order to remove dust and dirt.  Replaced the in house AC filter.  When we get to Roswell I’ll clean the condensers – the special cleaner I need has been ordered and should be there and waiting for me.  And the beat goes on.  I’m back in the grove and doing what needs to be done each and every month.

I’ve also spent time on the computer planning the remainder of our 2020 trip, in particular our trip back to Florida.  Yes, we’ve decided to come back home the end of next year.  It’s amazing how many hours it takes to get a route together.  Roads to consider, looking for state parks, free camping spots, what are the best possible private parks.  It’s challenging but also a lot of fun.  Sure, we could probably just wing it and hope for the best and in some cases we will.  However, I’m not wired in such a way that I can just drive and hope for the best.   Yes, I also know that the best laid plans of mice and men will probably change a hundred times in the ensuing weeks and months.  But, I’ve got the basics down and that’s good enough for now.

OK, time to get packing.  It’s high time we get back on the road.  Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona are calling to us.  So if you will excuse me.

That’s been our life the last several days on The Road of Retirement.  We’ve slowed way down lately, sort of our way of reminding ourselves that the life we’re living is not a sprint but a marathon.  There is no need to do it all or see it all in just a year or two.  We’ll do some sightseeing tomorrow.  The next day we’ll be hanging out at a winery.  And we’ll take it from there.   Life is good.  Thank You good Lord.

Thanks again for coming along with us.  We always enjoy your company and your comments.  Catch you tomorrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before

See you on down the road!

 

Places We Have Called Home In 2019

Home Is Where We Park It:   Onapa Campground and  RV Park,  Checotah, OK 74426

September 1, 2019

Temperature 89

Arkansas Air and Military Museum

Once again the storms rolled in.  This time around 1 am.  Lots of thunder and lightening, and torrential rain but thankfully no wind.  Which is really good since I didn’t bring the awning in before going to bed.  Why should I?  There was nothing in the forecast about not even one storm.  Go figure.

Last Wednesday our we stopped for the night at the Arkansas Air and Military Museum.

It was a very small Museum and most of the exhibits, planes, memorable, etc I had discovered before.  There were, though, a few new things that I would like to share with you.  The Museum is divided into two buildings.  The first building is the

 

One of the first planes I discovered was Sam Walton’s first airplane which is a Ercoupe.  It was intended to be simple to fly.  This safe, docile aircraft required only minimal flying skills.  Though it seated two people it soon proved to be too small for Sam’s need so it was quickly replaced with a larger plane.

Here’s a enlarged page from one of Sam Walton’s log books.

Under the category of I wouldn’t be caught dead in this are the next two planes.  The first is a 1930’s Pietenpole Aircamper.  It was designed to be a home built aircraft.  This one was powered by a Ford Model A engine which was the engine of choice in the 30’s.  It is still being used in some planes today – yes, they are still being built and flown today.

Plans and information for the construction of said aircraft were published in the 1932 Modern Mechanics Flying and Gliding Manuel.

The second aircraft was a 1935 Curtis Wright CW-1 Junior.  It had a pusher engine, pilot forward and passenger behind, and a high mounted wing.  Unfortunately, the depression era in which it was introduced and its unusual configuration ganged up to doom its production.

The next building was the

Walking in I discovered the Flying Banana.  Officially it was known as the H-21 and was a multi-mission helicopter.  It could be equipped with either wheels, skis, or floats.  It also had self-sealing oil and fuel tanks and could be equipped with external fuel tanks.  It saw extensive service with the U.S. Army transporting troops and supplies.

The cockpit from the outside and the inside.

The troop section.

There was a display of Army Ambulances from different wars.

WW II Nose art commonly used on bombers, transports and fighters.

A display of souvenir pillow cases that a GI could buy and send back home.

There you have it.  It was, indeed, small but interesting.  I’m glad I had the chance to visit it.

Our day on The Road of Retirement has come to an end.  The temperature is back up but we’re comfortable as long as we stay inside.  I worked some more on our route plan for next year.  Made a few more reservations.  Overall, it was another great day in paradise.

Thanks again for coming along with us today.  We always enjoy your company and your comments.  Catch your on the ‘morrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before

See you on down the road!