Niagara Falls Passage

 

What an awesome time we had in Niagara Falls, we were there 2 full days and made the most of each day! The falls were absolutely spectacular. We took the Maid of the Mist boat tour which, gets you right up next to the American Falls and the Canada Horseshoe Falls, there is no way not to get wet, therefore everyone receives ponchos to put on before you board the boat and even with that you still get wet, but it was so worth it, such an awesome experience. We also, did the Cave of the Winds which you take stairs right into the American Niagara Falls and the rush of the falls are so powerful it feels like you're in a hurricane, so crazy (see pictures)! We took a beautiful hike along the Niagara Falls river, walked the Niagara Falls Park (such a beautiful park), checked out some cool antique shops along with a little tourist shopping. The falls were not at all what I had expected, such a great place to see!
Now off to New York...more to follow!

On the Maid of the Mist boat tour 

Heading up the stairs to the Cave of the Winds

The American Niagara Falls

A view from the top of the Niagara Falls - cool rainbow

The beautiful hiking trail

At the top of the falls 

Jerry in the "hurricane" at the Cave of the Winds

The Canada Horseshoe Falls

In the "hurricane" at the Cave of the Winds

A view of the river while on our hike

Michigan Passage

Arrived in Michigan on Tuesday the 13th, Jerry's old army buddy Brent greeted us at the end of his drive which ends at beautiful lake Louise that he lives on and had a nicely mowed green area for us to park and stay on. We enjoyed a wonderful 4 course meal at Brent's former wife Patty's home with the entire family. Had a great time seeing everyone and catching up that night. The next few days we enjoyed shopping and a little bar hopping at some of the must go to bars in Traverse City, had a awesome bon-fire at Brent's place, learned/played several different poker games every night at Brent's (as they are all poker players), Brent took us for a nice drive to see some beautiful views of Lake Michigan. We had an awesome time with Brent and his family!!
Saturday we headed out to Niagara Falls, NY...more to follow!

Here we all (Patty and Brent with son Robert and  girlfriend Amy) are in Traverse City having a cocktail on the balcony of one of the must go to bars in Traverse City overlooking Lake Michigan (which looks like an ocean to me lol) 

Jerry and I at Lake Michigan

One of many gorgeous views of Lake Michigan

The night of the wonderful 4 course meal at Patty's house

Adorable 4 year old Savannah (Sam) Brent's grand-daughter - she is too much fun!

One of the many beautiful creeks in Michigan

Chicago Passage

We made a short stop in Chicago however, we made the most of it. Stayed in a nice secluded RV park near a town called Crete about 40 miles outside of Chicago. We took a ride into Chicago to spend the day, we had a couple of tours scheduled, a city bus tour which took us around the city we went through China town, toured a lot of the different architecture downtown, stopped at Lake Michigan, went by Obama's house twice...our tour guide suggested video taping the drive by so he drove around it twice however, no one was video taping or seemed to be very interested lol. It was a pretty good tour, glad we had the opportunity to see quite a bit of the downtown area and learn a little history. We then took a riverboat tour on the Chicago River that flows through downtown. We had a great tour guide on this one, she provided a lot of information on the fire that burnt down the city of Chicago in 1871 which, brought in architects from all over the world to redefine the architecture of the city. Learned that the river has been polluted for many years which originated back from the cattle stock market era where they dumped the cattle waste into the river. The river once was rated highly toxic, it has since improved slightly and is now rated highly polluted. Not a river you would want to take a swim in lol. We learned a little history on quite a few of the downtown buildings, definitely a tour we would recommend taking. After the tours we went to the Famous Harry Caray's restaurant for dinner, we must say it was quite tasty!

A view of the little lake at our RV Park

Our RV Spot

Another view of the lake at the campground

Lake Michigan with downtown Chicago in the background

Downtown Chicago

On our Riverboat tour - Guess what building sits along the river

This is a apartment building along with parking garage along the river

The Sears Tower

This building actually looks like a champagne bottle 

The Famous Harry Caray Restaurant

On a bridge that crosses over the Chicago River 

Missouri Passage

Made it to the famous Oklahoma Joe's BBQ in Kansas City and met Steve and Lisa (Jim Elliot's brother/girlfriend) there for dinner, it was excellent just like Jerry said it would be! We had a very nice dinner and great company, wish we had a picture to share!

The next day we headed to St, Louis, MO to visit Jerry's brother Kevin and wife Jody, had a wonderful visit plus toured the Arch (Gateway to the West), walked the Farmer's Market (which has been opened since 1779) in the Soulard District, they had excellent produce at awesome prices...couldn't help but pick up some goodies! Visited the Montelle Winery in the hills outside of St. Louis, unbelievable views! Even got a little thrift store shopping in, right up my alley :)

This morning we were back on the road and in Crete, IL at a very nice secluded RV Park surrounded by trees and even have a little lake to enjoy! Perfect place to kickback for a couple of days. Tomorrow we will be heading out in the morning to explore Chicago for the day, we have a city tour along with a riverboat tour planned and from there we will decide where to land for dinner and entertainment. More to follow!

Kevin and Jerry doing a little fishing at the RV Park pond.

At the Montelle Winery

Enjoying the Montelle Winery

View from the winery from the balcony

On the Riverfront in St. Louis - on our way to see the Arch

At the Arch (Gateway to the West) Pretty Cool!

Lewis and Clark bronze statue of their return from their expedition at the Mississippi River 

Picture of us at the bottom of the Arch 

Us at the entrance to the Historic Farmers Market

The guys in their "Make America Great Again" hats 

At the RV Park us on the left and Kevin and Jody on the right

Kansas Passage

Arrived in Medicine Lodge, KS with no issues along the way. Enjoyed our time visiting with Bobby and Dorothy. The guys got some shooting in at the ranch and got somethings done around the gun shop. Dorothy and I got some shopping in along Main Street and also took a little drive to Pratt to check out their Main Street stores, always fun looking for treasures. In the evenings enjoyed a dinner at the local Bar and Grill, a nice steak BBQ and of course a easy night of pizza! Ending the nights catching up while hanging out at the Grande Hotel bar. Not sure if anyone heard about the earthquake that happened in Oklahoma but was felt in 7 surrounding states... well I can tell you that it happened at 7 a.m. and we were still asleep, we bolted out of bed Jerry thinking that someone was shaking our trailer while I thought someone was hooking us up! What a way to start the morning lol.

We left Medicine Lodge on Monday, we enjoyed one last lunch with Bobby and Dorothy at a local Mexican restaurant in Pratt and then hit the road to Wichita, KS to meet up with all the cousins the following morning at Cracker Barrel. We parked the trailer at the old farm where Jerry's cousin Connie still lives. Had a great turnout at the cousin reunion, there were 10 of us all together, everyone enjoyed seeing each other and catching up. Always fun to hear about past stories! Really enjoyed our time with Connie at the farm, did a lot more visiting, walking the farm, taking pictures and even had the pleasure of meeting her son Alex for dinner a excellent gourmet burger place in old downtown.
Headed out this morning after feeding Buddy the donkey some carrots and apples, oh how he loved that!
We are staying in Kansas City, MO tonight and plan to eat at Joe's BBQ (as seen on Man vs Food) Jim Elliott's brother Steve and his girlfriend Lisa will be meeting up with us for dinner, so should be another night of good food and friends!
Tomorrow we are off to St. Louis, MO to spend a few days with Jerry's brother Kevin and wife Jodie, we will keep you posted!

Enjoying the evening at the Grande Hotel Bar with Bobby, Dorothy, Ron and Rita  

At Cracker Barrel with all the cousins

Jerry standing in front of his grandparents house on the farm that he lived in for a couple years as a child.

Jerry standing in front of the barn/workshop where his uncle Raymond would help him repair is go-cart

Jerry standing in front of the fuel tanks where he would fill up his go-cart...thinking fuel was free haha

The old chicken coop where Jerry would help his Grandma gather eggs daily

Buddy the donkey enjoying the apples we gave him this morning before we headed out

Our cousin Connie that still lives on the farm 

Leaving the farm down the old treed drive heading to Kansas City

5th Wheel Adventures - East Bound

As our summer at Mormon Lake has come to an end, it seems a little sad to leave. We had a wonderful summer here enjoying 70's during the day and 50's at night. We were lucky enough to meet new friends that we hope to keep in touch with and enjoyed visits from family and friends! We had wonderful times exploring the hiking trails, riding the atv trails, seeing wildlife, horseback riding (which wasn't Jerry's favorite lol), canoeing, campfires, dancing at the lodge to the weekend bands, and the pure joy of relaxation in northern AZ! Now off for our new 5th wheel adventure via many stops before we hit our final destination of Vermont to catch the changing of the colors!

We hit the road yesterday morning making it to Albuquerque, NM, getting up and making it to beautiful historic Guymon, OK lol. Our first destination of Medicine Lodge, KS we will make tomorrow mid-day to visit Jerry's brother Bobby and sister-in law Dorothy and of course the famous Gun Room and the Grande! 

For those of you that would like to follow us along our 60 day trip, please stay tuned for periodic updates as new events occur!

My son Zak along with his dog Duke visiting with us up at Mormon Lake before he heads out to Germany

Jerry and our Granddaughters out having a picnic when we went canoeing

Out enjoying one of our many hikes - love the views

Good times with family and friends

Grandma enjoying a yummy smore - it's been 60 years since her last smore...!

Getting ready to leave Mormon Lake for the Summer

Our set up for the night here in Guymon, OK