2018 Great Lake States Trip - Milwaukee, Wisconsin

2018 Great Lakes Trip – Milwaukee, WI

Photo link: 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/HhqKx4ovnbqsfob38

Wednesday June 27th – Sunday, July 1st

Milwaukee Fairgrounds RV Park, Milwaukee, WI

We next headed due north to Milwaukee Wisconsin. Our dear friends Diana and Tom had really enjoyed it there and advised us not to miss it, especially with the German heritage influence. We camped at an RV Park in one of the suburbs of the city at the Wisconsin State Fairgrounds. This RV park was nothing more than a parking lot setup, but we did have water and electric. It was suitable for our needs because we would spend most of our time in the city.

We decided to drive around the city and get our bearings. We took our bicycles down to the Lake Michigan water front and rode our bikes along the paved trail. From there we saw beautiful views of the city skyline and were amazed at what a modern city this is. There are several green space parks along the waterfront, marinas and beaches. The weather was perfect and we really enjoyed our time on the lakefront. We also stopped at a great beach side cafe and had a nice lunch.

The next day we drove to the north side of the city and checked out an area called North Point. We visited an historic lighthouse there and walked through a beautiful park. After that we headed down into the city to a tour of the Miller Brewery. We found out that Miller owns almost all the former American beer brands, including Kurt's favorite, Icehouse. The Miller Company was ultimately bought out by Molson from Canada. We were able to tour the brewery and check out the process and at the end we sampled several of the beers at a nice outdoor beer garden. Many of the buildings were original historic buildings that are still used for production and others were more for touring.

While in the city we found out about the traveling beer gardens, so of course we had to try those out. The traveling beer gardens were organized by the local craft breweries and the county. Beautiful, green County Parks were used as the event locations and local breweries would set up to sell their beer. There were food trucks and on certain nights live music. Each brewery would be at each location for a week. So on one evening we went to a traveling beer garden in McCarty Park and then a couple of nights later we went to another beer garden in Grant Park. This was so much fun as the beer gardens are set up with community tables where you would sit with other people, have some brews and meet friendly people. Thanks to the Germans for this tradition.

One evening we went downtown to the Lakeshore Brewery which was one of the biggest craft breweries in the city. They also have a wonderful restaurant. We did the brewery tour, which was quite unique, with a really funny young man who narrated the whole process from start to finish, including some historical background on the brewery. During this tour we drank beer at the beginning and throughout the tour, then we were ready to sit down for dinner. We were there for the traditional Friday night fish fry, which turned out to be excellent food. We also sat outside after dinner on the Riverwalk and had our final sample beers. It was a really fun evening and we enjoyed the tour.

We spent another day again down on the Lakeshore riding our bicycles from one end to the other. On the southern end we rode through Lakeshore State Park. From there we again saw the beautiful skyline and got up close with the Milwaukee Art Museum, which is a very unique architectural design. This modern designed building has winged shape flaps that open and close at certain times of the day to shade the building. We never got to see the wings move, but I am including a video here at this link to show you how it looks.  https://youtu.be/eGQJPkQL0fU?t=61

The beaches along the Lakeshore were packed as it was a gorgeous weather for the weekend and it was very hot in the city. Being on the lakeside with the winds coming over the cold water  was like a huge air conditioner blowing. It was a really fun day and we truly enjoyed the city again.

On our last day there we had planned to go back into the city, but there was a major electrical outage throughout the Milwaukee area.  We couldn't leave our dogs unattended in the camper without AC. This time we were stuck at the camper without AC in the extreme heat wave that had moved across the whole state. The temperature was around 95 degrees with a heat index over 100. The power actually came back on after 3 hours and then a couple of hours later and went off again so it was a pretty miserable day our last day there. 

I have to say I'm not really a beer drinker, but I did drink more beer there in the few days than I have in probably a year. Despite the power outage we really did enjoy Milwaukee, the wonderful atmosphere and the friendly people. We truly enjoyed our time in Milwaukee.

Our tour of Wisconsin continues!

2018 Great Lakes Trip – Chicago

Photo link: 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/M5koJB8t4BXCR6eP8

Saturday June 23rd – Tuesday June 26th 

Camp Bullfrog Lake, Willow Springs, Illinois

We headed toward Chicago and camped at a County Forest Preserve. From there we were able to drive to transit stations and take trains into the city. We went into the city on two days. We also hired a professional dog walker to come to the camper for those two days, so we didn’t have to rush back at a specified time. Rover.com!

The first day we toured the city in a double decker bus where you could hop on and hop off at various stops. It’s an easy way to get familiar with the city and move around easily. We toured for hours around the city and saw so much. We stopped at the Navy Pier and rode by many buildings and parks. The John Hancock building was one of the places where we stopped and took the elevator to the 94^th Observation Floor. The views are amazing and the weather was perfect as the skies were clear. We also walked along the Riverwalk, stopping at a nice bar for a drink. We also had a delicious Chicago beef sandwich at a famous Italian restaurant. Another stop was at Millennial Park where we walked around “The Bean”, which is really named Cloud Gate. This art work was designed to reflect the surrounding buildings. Its unusual shape allows for very strange reflections of people and buildings. 

The second day, we rode the bus to the pier where we had lunch and boarded the Chicago River Architectural Tour boat. This was the most informative and enjoyable thing we did in the city. Being on the water and seeing the buildings from a different perspective was awesome. There was a young man who narrated and described all the buildings along the tour. He was incredible with his knowledge of all the buildings, added humor and historical information of Chicago. We also walked around the Riverwalk to the Willis Tower (Sears tower) for the tour to the 104^th floor observation deck. Again, the views were amazing, even though the skies were a little hazy. We rode the “L” train back to our parking location.

Our last day there, Kurt was determined to drive into the city, which he did. He took his bike and was able to park near the Lakeview Drive and ride along the lake. Later in the day we picked up a famous Chicago Deep Dish pizza from a local restaurant, gosh it was the best!

I’m so glad that Kurt talked me into visiting the city, I had been there three times on business in the 90’s, but didn’t really get to see what a beautiful, clean city that it is. If you love cities, you should go there!

We loved Chicago!

2018 Great Lake States Trip - Indiana & Illinois

2018 Great Lakes Trip – Indiana & Illinois

Photo link:

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Monday June 11^th – Sunday, June 17^th 

Brown County State Park, Nashville, Indiana

Next we traveled north into Indiana, taking mostly back roads through agricultural areas with huge farms. We were heading to this state park that came highly recommended. This huge park has over 27 miles of mountain biking trails from easy to extremely difficult, with steep mountain slopes. This park is called the “Little Smokies” as it reminds one of the Smoky Mountains in N. Carolina. There are also more than 18 miles of hiking trails. We planned a week there at the mountain top campground. The weather was nice when we arrived, but it had been raining for the three previous days. The trails were still wet and not ridable, so we decided to do some hiking. We took the dogs on a 3 mile hike around Lake Ogle, which was easy to strenuous. 

The next day it rained some more, so we decided to go into the nearby town of Nashville. We walked around the cool little town and had lunch at a great Mexican restaurant. By the third day, we tried to ride some of the easier trails, but still found them to be wet and muddy in places. The following day the trails had begun to dry up, so we both rode a few miles. On one trail I hit a wet rock and crashed my bike. I fell on my right side and hurt my ribs, among other scrapes and bruises. I was okay but very sore with a lot of pain. So the remaining days I was not able to ride any more. We did drive around most of the park, checking out long view overlooks. The mountains are very beautiful and did remind us of the Smokies.

Maybe one day we will return here when the weather is better and we can really enjoy the trails. We keep hoping that the weather will be better at our next stop.

Monday June 18th – Friday, June 22nd 

Starved Rock State Park, Utica, Illinois

Next we headed into Illinois to this state park on the Illinois River, about 100 miles southwest of Chicago. The park was nestled among vast farmlands in central Illinois. Well, again it was rainy the day we arrived and continued to rain most every day. Between rain storms we did get out to explore the park. There is a lot of history here of the Native Americans and the pioneers that settled the area. 

We discovered that nearby Matthiessen State Park has some amazing hiking trails. Now we know what a “dell” is, you know the old song “the farmers in the dell”? The park has a one mile long canyon, called a dell. It’s forested with lush greenery and a stream running through it. The geology is quite interesting, as the water has worn down the sandstone in unusual rock formations that look like ripples. The creek was mostly shallow and there were rock stepping stones placed across the stream to allow crossing without wading in the water. There were stairs leading down into and out of the canyon. This was one of the most unusual hikes we have ever done. We took the dogs and let them run, they had so much fun playing in the creek. We enjoyed this hike so much that we went back another day.

We did take some scenic drives along the Illinois River up to some nearby towns. I’m not so sure how scenic they were, but we were getting outside and out of the RV. We were all ready for a break from the rainy weather. As we go forward to Chicago, we are really hoping for drier, cooler weather!

2018 Great Lake States Trip - Tennessee & Kentucky

Photo link:

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Friday June 1st – Tuesday, June 5th

Fall Creek Falls, Spencer, Tennessee

This beautiful state park sprawls across 26,000 acres on the Cumberland Plateau in south central Tennessee. There are numerous waterfalls within the rugged gorges of the park. Fall Creek Falls, at 256 feet, is one of the highest waterfalls in the eastern US. Besides forested campgrounds, there is a lodge, inn and conference center, cabins, restaurant, swimming pool and amphitheater. There are over 15 miles of mountain biking trails and 56 miles of hiking trails. 

We had a great campsite in the forested campground. We were happy to have great weather; however, it was warm. We took the dogs hiking and visited the main attraction, Fall Creek Falls. There were a lot of locals at the park to witness the unusually powerful falls. Later we hiked the trail to Piney Creek Falls, crossing one of the suspension bridges to get to the other side of the gorge. All of the falls were still raging due to the recent rainfall. Our next hike was to Cane Creek Falls, which we were able to view from an overlook. The next day, we hiked the Woodland Trail, which meandered through the forest and crossed over the brink of Cane Creek Cascades on a suspension bridge.    This bridge was much longer and wobblier. Luca became so freaked out that Kurt had to carry him across the bridge. I have to admit, it was kind of scary crossing for me with Kody on a leash (who was unaffected at all). After crossing the bridge, we were able to hike down to the base of Cane Creek Cascade Falls. This hike also returned to the Fall Creek Falls Overlook,

There were some mountain biking trails within the park. We drove to one trailhead the first day to check out the conditions. As we expected, the trails were wet and not maintained. There were some downed trees, but were easy enough to haul the bikes over. So after about a mile, we turned around and thought we would try the other biking trail. Kurt took his bike the next day to check out the other mountain biking trail and it was in worse condition. No riding here!

So the next day we thought we would ride the paved trail that followed along the north side of the lake. We started off on this trail, only to find major downed trees blocking the pavement and no way to get around it. It’s a shame that this park was not active in cleaning up the trails. It would have been a beautiful ride. 

The last day there we decided to try the Cable Trail, which was described as a rugged hike down to the base of Fall Creek Falls. The beginning of the hike was as expected, but once we got to the “cable” we discovered this was a 25 foot cable over huge, rugged rocks, requiring the hiker to hold onto the cable to get to the bottom. Wow, neither of us wanted to “repel” downward on this hike. So we headed back to camp. 

Overall, we enjoyed this park, the hiking and the beautiful falls. We were ready to move northward to Kentucky and revisit the “Land Between the Lakes”.

Wednesday, June 6th – Sunday, June 10th 

Land Between the Lakes, National Recreation Area, Grand Rivers, Kentucky

We decided to stay at this federal recreation area, which we visited last October on our way back to Florida (where we stayed during the remnants of Irma). We enjoyed this place since there was so much to do. There were hiking and mountain biking trails, the lakes, and various attractions. These include an Elk & Bison Prairie drive-through, a planetarium, historical “Homeplace Working Farm”, multiple beaches and picnic areas. 

This was a convenient stop-over where we could relax and have some fun. We were able to ride the mountain bike trails and hang out at the lake. It did rain a couple of days and was very hot most days. We thought we were escaping the heat of Florida, but so far it’s been almost as hot, humid and rainy as back at home. Next trip northward, we will move quicker toward the northern states. Hopefully, that will make a difference in getting to cooler climates!

Next on the agenda is Indiana at a great state park. Looking forward to some cooler weather and great mountain biking trails.

2018 Great Lake States Trip - Alabama & Georgia

2018 Great Lakes Trip – Alabama & Georgia

Photo link:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/lXtWmMqv1LJfGlEF2

Friday, May 18^th – Thursday, May 31^st      

Oak Mountain State Park, Birmingham, Alabama

This was the third time we have stayed at this state park, and we really love it. Even though there were a couple of days of some rain, it was not enough to keep us off of the hiking and biking trails. The mountain biking trails here are excellent and we enjoyed riding them again. We took Kody and Luca on a great hike to the Eagle’s Nest Overlook. This is a 3 mile round trip, steep, moderately strenuous hike up to the top. The weather was great and we all enjoyed the afternoon on the trail. Each time we hike up there we have never seen an eagles nest, but the hike was still great. Another day we hiked the Yellow trail to a point called Maggie’s Glen, then continued around the White trail for a 2.5 mile loop. The dogs always enjoy stopping at the creek crossings to get in the water and get a big drink. 

One afternoon when the weather was beautiful, so we took snacks, drinks, and the dogs to the smaller lake (Beaver Lake) to just relax and hang out. At this lake is a watersports park called “Flip Side”, with cable tow lines for wake boarding. There are obstacles in the water to maneuver. They teach wake boarding and host competitions. It was very interesting and unique to see.

Oak Mountain State Park is one of our “go backs” and we always stop there when traveling through Alabama. After eight days of fun, we were ready to move north to NW Georgia.

Cloudland Canyon State Park, Rising Fawn, Georgia

After spending a night at a Walmart along the way (Saturday night on Memorial Day weekend there were no campsites available anywhere), we arrived at this state park and got settled in our site. This is a park where you can pick your site of any that are available. We found a great one where we were even able to get a satellite signal though the trees! This park is on the Cumberland Plateau on Lookout Mountain in northwest Georgia.

One of our main interests in this park was mountain biking trails, we were so excited to try some new trails. The first day there was great, we drove around and did some small hikes along the canyon rim to overlooks. The next day we took the dogs hiking down to the lower falls. Half way through the hike it began raining and we encountered stairs down to the canyon that were open metal grates. The dogs were not able to walk on them because their feet would get caught in the grate. Oh well, we then headed back to the campground after we were all soaking wet!  The next day, Kurt went on his own to hike down to the two waterfalls in the canyon floor. Despite the rain, he made it through the hike and got some decent pictures of the falls.

So with the rainy weather, we were not able to ride the mountain bike trails. We drove to the trail head and walked back into the trails and found they were too wet and slippery to ride. We were so disappointed to not be able to ride these trails as they were highly rated.

During the five days that we were there, Alberto storms rained on us for four days. We were all getting cabin (RV) fever and were not able to get out and be active. What a bummer. So we just decided we will have to come back here another time when it’s not hurricane season. We did have fun watching the hummingbirds at our feeder, despite the rain they were still visiting!

So on to our next adventure in Tennessee at a great state park.

2018 Great Lake States Trip - Florida

2018 Great Lakes Trip – Florida

Photo link:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/rHGRBC5H8oaD1NhR2

Sunday, April 29^th – Friday, May 25^th     

Alafia River State Park, Lithia, Florida

Our first stop was at one of our favorite State Parks with amazing mountain biking and a great campground. This park is located near Lithia, Florida, just 10 miles southeast of Tampa. Alafia River SP has some of the best mountain bike trails in the state, which are built on a naturally reclaimed phosphate mine, with radical elevation changes. After the mining was completed, the land was donated to the state by the mining company decades ago. The trails are highly rated by the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA) and draws mountain bikers from around the world. We also love the campground with natural, spacious sites. The land within the park is dotted with small lakes and creeks, thus allowing for all types of wildlife. We have even seen alligators on the trails! We spent six days there, mostly riding the trails. We took the dogs on a couple of hikes, which they just love. While there, we were visited by some longtime friends from Kansas. Rusty and Debbie were staying in Tampa on a job and were able to take a day off work and come over for some special time reconnecting. As always, we truly enjoyed our time there with terrific weather.

Santos Campground State Park, Belleview, Florida

This is another of our favorite parks in Florida, located just south of Ocala. We love the trail system here, with mountain biking for all skill levels. The trails are mostly in the forest, with great elevation changes and technical challenges. This park is where we really learned to mountain bike. These trails lie within the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway, which traverses the whole state, east-west. This land was set aside for recreational use for the people. Recently, a paved trail was completed for road bikers. There are 80+ miles of trails that are maintained by the Ocala Mountain Bikers Association (OMBA), which includes trails for all skill levels. This is a place that I particularly love, as it has allowed me to improve all my riding skills. I’m proud to say that I have ridden all the trails, except for the black and red trails. They are so much fun and provide such great exercise. The Florida Trail also traverses through this park, which allows us to hike there with our dogs. A few miles away is another mountain bike trail system at park Balm Boyette. These trails are more technical, which Kurt loves to ride. We stayed here for six days and again enjoyed our time on the trails.

Coe Landing County Campground, Tallahassee Florida

As we traveled west across the state, we stopped near Tallahassee at a county campground that is on Lake Talquin. We had never been here before and were pleasantly surprised at the nice campground and the lake front sites. We spent three nights there, just relaxing, driving around to check out the area. Kurt did get his kayak in the water to fish and hang out with the gators! It was a nice stopover along our way.

Blackwater River State Park, Milton, Florida

Our last stop in Florida was Blackwater River SP. We have stayed here twice before and just love the campground, the river, hiking trails and biking nearby. We were only able to get four nights reserved, so it was a brief stop. While there we were able to ride the mountain biking trails nearby, Red Rock Trails. These are simply fun trail riding, nothing technical. We also took the dogs down to the river to run and play on the sandbars. Again, we enjoyed our time there.

On to Alabama!

2017 Pacific Coast Trip - Tennessee & Alabama

Photo link:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/Kv6Ylll4YAqMuOGc2

Thursday, September 14^th – Sunday, September 17^th  

Pickwick Dam Tennessee River RV Park, Savannah, Tennessee

We headed south towards Tennessee, taking the back roads again. Upon leaving Kentucky, we have now RV’ed in all states; except for Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We plan to do the Great Lake states next summer.

This stop in Savannah, Tennessee is at another riverfront RV park. The campground is managed by the Tennessee Valley Authority, (TVA), which runs the Pickwick Dam. The campground was very nice, shady and spacious sites. The managers were very friendly and helpful. There were not a lot of activities in this area, mostly driving around and visiting local sights. Kurt sat on the riverbank for many hours watching the barges go up and down with their cargo. We also met some really nice RVers that had two pure bred basenjis. They were so adorable, but such different personalities than our mixed basenjis.

We visited the Pickwick Dam up close and were amazed at the size of this dam. This dam facilitated a major electric generation plant on the Tennessee River. Kurt rode his bike across the dam and watched barges go through the locks.

After four nights there we were anxious to head to Alabama, where there are some great mountain biking trails.

 

Monday, September 18^th – Sunday, September 24^th

Camping World/Good Sam RV Campground, Oxford, Alabama

We drove south to Anniston, Alabama. There were mountain biking trails that we had researched and they looked great. We camped in the town of Oxford, just south of Anniston. The campground was actually owned and managed by Camping World, which was right next door. The RV park was very nice and well managed. We are finding that Camping World has begun buying campgrounds adjacent to their retail/service stores. How smart!

The city of Anniston is a very historic area. We drove into town and viewed the historic section and the old brick buildings. It is a very quaint town with lots of industrial areas. Oxford seemed to be a newer area, with all the shopping that anyone would need.

Over the last couple of years, other mountain bikers had recommended Coldwater Mountain biking trails and they were right! We biked there for 5 days and truly enjoyed the great, well designed and managed trails. So much fun! And we met some very nice local people on the trails.

One day we took a break from biking and drove 25 miles south to Cheaha State Park in the Talladega National Forest. Wow, what a beautiful drive up into the mountains! We learned that this forest is called the “exclamation point” on the most southern end of the Appalachian Mountains. The highest peak in the Park is also the highest point in Alabama. We took the dogs and a picnic with us. We hiked on two different trails which went out to amazing overlooks. It kind of reminded me of some trails in the Smoky Mountains. This is such a different state park; they have cabins, hotel rooms with a pool and view from the mountain top, full hook up campsites, primitive camping, group and banquet facilities, swimming and fishing lake, two museums and picnic areas. We really enjoyed our day in the park and so did the dogs.

Anniston is another one of our “go back” places. The mountain biking trails make this a great place to stay and play!