A blog about exploring North America in a Camper Van and a Sailboat.
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North Carolina to Wisconsin – Day 2
14 June 2023 Today we travel from Beckley, WV to FMCA Headquarters in Cincinnatti, Ohio. We were up early investigating options for a replacement propane hose. The mining heritage here helped us out. Mining requires heavy equipment with hydraulic hoses, so there is an infrastructure of shops that can make hoses on demand. We called…
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Sparta to Elroy Rail Trail
01 July 2023 – Saturday 0937 56,471 74°F Leave Camp Sawaka 1002 56,479 76°F Norwalk, Wisconsin Parking for the 32 mile long Sparta-Elroy Rail Trail. Here’s the text from the official state sign… ” This 32 mile state trail was formerly the mainline of the Chicago and North Western Railway. The conversion from “rail to trail”…
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Tiny Sturgeon and Oversized Creatures
30 June 2023 – Friday Dinosaur Fish and Giant Fiberglass Molds 0830 De Soto, Wisconsin Blackhawk Park First bike ride of the year! Rode 4.8 miles. Pedaled to the head of the island where we read this sad history of events here in 1832. note: You can double-click any image to make it larger. Yielded…
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Making Mussels at Blackhawk Park
29 June 2023 – Thursday 0753 56,299 79°F Leave Potosi, WI under smoky skies. This was our view at sunrise as one one of two campers spending the night at Potosi Brewing. The Mississippi River is 635 feet above sea level here in Potosi 0830 56,316 Cassville, WI Cassville Park was our first morning stop.…
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Unexpected Grotto
28 June 2023 – Wednesday After enjoying the morning in downtown Dubuque, we drove south to find a good hiking spot. 1443 56,272 81°F Dubuque, Iowa Mines of Spain Interpretive Center A small bird and butterfly garden on the grounds serves as an example for folks that might want to have a garden of native…
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Iowa Isn’t Flat
27 June 2023 — Tuesday Well, it isn’t all flat. Sharyn Jackson, in the Dubuque Register, wrote that Iowa “ranks as the 18th flattest state.” Here’s a link to the full article: Iowa Isn’t as Flat as You Think. Can you guess what the flattest US state is? The answer is at the end of this…