2023 A bit of a Family Reunion

 Sat April 29 from Foley, Al. The drive from Kerrville to Egan, La was uneventful and the route alteration worked perfectly as planned. Not a drop of rain and mostly blue skies all the way, with the weather staying in front of us. We spoke with Bob, my brother, during the run on Thursday and they were getting pounded with rain. He was checking in as a good brother would. We landed in the campground called Hidden Pines in Egan a little before 4pm and got setup. We went for a stroll around the grounds and discovered it was a really nice facility with 2 pools, one that had slides for kids. There was also a pavilion that was to have a crawfish cookoff over the weekend - the park for sold out Fri-Sun. Fri morning we were not in a hurry as the remaining drive time was a bit over 5 hours. The weather had completely moved through and we had clear sailing all the way to Foley and my brother's new home. This is a look of the front and back yard. They back up to open space and have a lovely v...

 April 26. Having concluded the blog entry on Monday after our visit to Sedona we decided we needed to check the weather for the next part of the trip. Good thing, the original itinerary had us going I-40 to Tucumcari, but the weatherman had severe thunderstorms and possible hail predicted for that route. We changed to Las Cruces, NM and and had a beautiful sunny day off the interstate on two lane road from Holbrook to Deming. Very enjoyable ride and a pleasant night in Hacienda RV Resort. Excellent facilities with private showers and other amenities. Deb was slightly less pleased because of the proximity to I-10, which I found as white noise that helped me sleep. On the road at 7:30 we planned for Kerrville, Tx again due to weather considerations. We are behind a storm and want to stay behind it rather than drive into it but we expect scattered thunderstorms tonight, clearing we hope by morning. I am in the campground, River Trail Cottages & RV in Kerrville. A bit pricey but w...

 Sat April 22 was a very relaxing day in Las Vegas with our good friend Mervin. We finally got to meet his lady friend Sue and the 4 of us had lunch at the newly established Big Bob Bar and Grill. It is a remake of the old Bob's Big Boy complete with the iconic statue. A quiet evening home before a good night's sleep and then an early rise Sun so we could Zoom with my brother and his wife, who we will be visiting in Alabama. Sun April 23 after the Zoom session we had a great send off breakfast of scrambled eggs and biscuits and gravy. Excellent start before hitting the road to end in Flagstaff, Az. US 93 to I-40 and straight to Flagstaff had us arriving at the Woody Mountain Campground around 2:00pm.  Once we got the site setup we took a drive around Flagstaff. The changes in 20 years are significant as you might imagine. Didn't recognize anything except the Campground, which is the same one we stayed at in 2002 when we came through on our National Parks Tour. Mon April 24 ...

 Thursday April 20, pre-departure day. The planning has gone as well as one could hope. The last item on the agenda is an oil change since I want to start fresh beginning a 7-8 thousand mile adventure. Crawl under the truck and do the change but discover the tire wear has gone faster than expected the last 30 days. A last minute decision to get 4 new tires prior to departure is successful and we begin the trip with new rubber all the way around, truck and trailer. Friday April 21, like most airlines today we are a little late leaving the gate. Hoped for a 4am start but it was 4:20 when we left the driveway in darkness. We are changing our route and going Hwy 20 to 80 and Reno. Then Alt 50 to Fallon and 95 south the Las Vegas. Having gone the southern route each of the past several years we wanted something new and google maps said the time difference was only 10 minutes. The thing that never ceases to amaze me is the spectacular beauty of this country. Hwy 20 through the Sierras Ju...

 Friday morning about 4am the Chevy Colorado and the Hubbard Hotel will once again depart for parts east. This years adventure will have a stopping in Las Vegas to visit the man the performed both wedding ceremonies for Deb and I more than 30 years ago. Then a stop in Flagstaff at the campgrounds we visited 21 years ago on our Western National Parks tour before we begin the easy pace trip across the south toward the fine state of Alabama. Once we arrive in Alabama we will spend a few days in the home of my older Brother and his wife. Then the 4 of us will join my Sister and her husband in a luxury Condo on the Gulf for a week before we will part company and begin the journey back west. A link to the unit we will be renting,  https://www.brett-robinson.com/search-results/?unit=1041&node=162/ That might include the visit of friends in Jackson, Mo. People I first met at a motorcycle even known as the Alamo Run back in 2003. Deb and I still have amazing friends scattered acros...