Category Archives: Sightseeing

Made it to Gulfport

My last day at Amazon was supposed to be 12/21 and was I ever ready for that. Then they offered an additional day on 12/22. What to do, what to do. My future plans included picking up my girlfriend Jean at the Nashville Airport on 12/25. Seeing that I didn’t have any other plans, I took the extra day, and the extra money.

We spent an extra day in the Nashville area to see the Zoolumination exhibit at the Nashville Zoo. They hired a team from China to put up a lot of illuminated decorations, kind of like they do for Chinese New Year. It was very impressive and I’m glad we went.


Normally when traveling from point A to point B, I try to do it in the minimum time possible. This time, with Jean and her dog, I planned for a 2 day trip. We left Smyrna mid-morning on 12/27. Less than 10 miles down the road I noticed one of my twist on valves bouncing on the pavement under the 5er. Pulled on to the shoulder to disconnect it from the sewer cap and stow it in the truck. Fortunately, that was the worst incident during the drive. We made it to Meridian MS that afternoon while it was still daylight. Got a level, pull thru site, very cheap at Bonita Lakes RV Park https://www.campgroundreviews.com/regions/mississippi/meridian/bonita-lakes-rv-park-4811

We even got there early enough to unhitch the truck and head into town for some inexpensive diesel. I need to interject something here. I’m a big fan of Gas Buddy and use it extensively but it does have its flaws. Twice in TN and once in MS, I went to stations with false prices posted. I corrected Gas Buddy each time and did NOT get diesel at any of those stations. I don’t know if it’s the owners or some jackass just messing with other people but I sure don’t appreciate it.

Early start the next day for the final leg of the trip, a straight shot down the Interstate and US 49 to the Naval base at Gulfport. Once south of I-10, we disregarded the directions coming from Google Maps and relied on the directions from the military campgrounds website: http://www.militarycampgrounds.us/

Again, it was an early arrival so there were people in the office. We were directed to a site in the new section and given a stack of papers to read. At first glance, the sites were very spacious, full cement pad. But, because of our deck that drops down from the kitchen slide, I had to do a lot of maneuvering to get situated just right. Even with all that, the outside legs for the deck would be in the grass. Before dropping the deck, I reviewed all the park rules and found many restrictions about things in, on, or over the grass. I requested someone come by my site on Monday morning before setting up the deck. Thankfully, they had no problem with the legs in the grass.

Since then, I’ve kept busy with doctor/dentist appointments, getting more repairs on the truck and checking out local buffets. I’ll get more into that in a future post.

So long, Rochester MN

My time in Rochester MN has come to an end. By the time I left, I felt very proficient with the zero turn lawn mowers. I even got to use an old Bobcat one day to repair some road ruts after a heavy rain. And for the second job in a row, I was treated to a Chinese buffet just before leaving. This time, it was just me, the owner, and my girlfriend. This was a lunch affair and happened at my second favorite buffet in the city since my favorite place had closed unexpectedly about 2 weeks before that. I also got surprised with an end of season bonus. Does 2 jobs in a row count as a streak when both owners would gladly take me back?

About a week before leaving, I noticed an interesting looking tree in the park. No idea how I could’ve missed this before but it definitely caught my eye this time.

We also managed to visit Niagara Cave in Harmony MN on a rainy day. One of the smaller caves I’ve visited but still interesting.

Yours Truly

Fossil in Cave Wall

Drapery Stalactite

Carrot Stalactites

 

If you ever visit Rochester MN, be sure to check out their extensive walking and biking trail system throughout the city. Also, wave at the ear of corn water tower on the south side of the city.

Marymere Falls

Here’s the description from Google: Marymere Falls is located in Olympic National Park near Lake Crescent in Washington, United States. The falls are accessed by a one-mile, well maintained, dirt trail through old-growth lowland forest consisting of fir, cedar, hemlock, and alder trees.

The trail was actually about 3/4 mile each way. There were stairs involved which could make it rather difficult if you have knee/hip problems or are just out of shape. There’s also a narrow bridge which would make it unsuitable for wheelchairs or walkers. The trail starts on the north side of highway 101 in a paved parking lot, then crosses under the highway via a tunnel. The forest was beautiful, as were the falls and the surrounding mountains. Lake Crescent is on the north side of the highway.

Into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul: 

And now for the rest of the trip:

It looked like the trail railings and the bridge were made from local trees that were just rough cut in place and smoothed out a little.

First Waterfall on the Peninsula

For lack of anything else to do today, I elected to visit the nearest waterfall. The weather wasn’t ideal, but it wasn’t terrible either so I headed west on highway 101 from Sequim, past Port Angeles, to the Madison Falls trailhead. It was an easy drive, and very easy to find. I used Google maps on my phone but I think the printed directions from the website would have sufficed. The last part of the drive was alongside the Elwha River. It looked like it could be a fun paddle, but definitely after it warms up. The rapids looked to be about Class 2.

The entrance to the trail was clearly marked at the trailhead parking lot and they even had a restroom. The walk up to the falls was literally 2 minutes on a paved trail which was wide enough for wheelchairs. There was 1 bench at the midway point and another at the end. That old tree stump was 9 feet across, the living trees were huge and I can’t remember seeing that much moss on trees before. Enjoy the pix. Even on a dreary, drizzly day, it was a great short hike.

 

Another sunny day in Sequim

I had every intention of doing another road ride today but, after checking the forecast temps, decided I really need better gear to ride in for this weather. Instead, I drove downtown for pics of the tiny lending library on one of the main streets.

It would really be nice if this idea was adopted in more places around the country. As a fulltime traveler, I frequently run into problems trying to get a book from the local library since I’m not a resident. It’s also a cheap way to try different authors/genres. Today I switched it up a little by picking out a sci-fi paperback.

Moving on, I drove to an Olympic Discovery Trail trailhead. On the way there, I spotted 3 of these cuties in a local yard.

The Olympic Discovery Trail is fairly popular up here. I saw people of all ages walking, jogging, bicycle riding and skateboarding. This section of the trail was all paved and sometimes shared space with local roads. It also crossed over the Dungeness River. Where is my kayak now that I could use it?