April 23, 2023, Sunday - Springfield, Illinois to Elk River, Minnesota

Today is the last leg of our trip home.  We left Springfield around 6:15 a.m. and were on the road.  

We are amazed at how road conditions change.  Certain stretches of road are so bumpy it makes a person feel sick to their stomach - some are nice and smooth.  

Because we had to move things around before we left (to make sure stuff didn't roll around or bang into things in the boat) the boat is a total mess, along with the bed of the truck.  We can't find things and are tripping over everything.  

Around 8:00 a.m., in the town of Peru, Illinois, there was a loud bang.  Our rear-right tire on the trailer blew and the trailer fender also blew off.  Kip walked back quite a way to get the fender.

You will need to zoom in to see Kip walking to get the fender!

Kip loaded up the damaged fender and we slowly made our way about 3 miles (on the side of the road with our hazard lights on) to a Love's gas station.  They removed the tire but didn't have new tires there to purchase, so we unhooked the boat from the truck and drove to Walmart for a tire.  Kip got a new tire and the Love's maintenance man put it back on the trailer for us.  He did not charge us for the help, but we tipped him (and he seemed really surprised about receiving a tip).  Kip said he had trouble on a previous trip and the same thing happened - they helped and did not charge him.  We are sold on Love's gas stations and will stop there on all of our trips.  We are also thankful that it happened in Peru, Illinois instead of Atlanta, Georgia!

We got back on the road by 10:30 a.m.  Let me tell you, it is a looooooooong drive from Florida to Minnesota.  Driving to Florida seemed easier (probably because we were excited to go) but going back to Minnesota to the cold weather was hard.  I think the other reason it is hard is because we created to-do lists and know that we have lots of things to take care of (instead of spending the days at the beach or reading).  The biggest bonus is seeing our family and friends again.  

As soon as we got to Minnesota, we saw the flooding.  We stopped at Lake City, Minnesota to check out the marina.  We know for sure that we won't need to worry about putting the Roamer into the water any time soon.  They are taking trailers and boats off of the point and moving them inland and there is no way we will get the Roamer out for now.  

This is looking down the street in Red Wing to the river.

St stopped at Nick and Mary's house to pick up our mail and then continued to Elk River.  Everything at home looked fine.  We unloaded a few items but were too tired to unload the entire boat/truck mess.  We had dinner (listening to the Wild hockey game), showered, and sat in our chairs until bedtime.  We are happy to be home.

We will be leaving for Florida again in January 2024.  We appreciate all of you for reading the blog and supporting us throughout our adventures.  

April 22, 2023, Saturday - Springfield, Illinois

We had a leisurely morning - drank coffee and talked about what we were going to do today and how we were going to get through the 40-degree day.  Yes, I know... I never thought we would have this issue, but we do.

We are moving to a new spot, so we unhooked the power and took off.  We went to Menards to get pink winterizing fluid and a 4-step ladder.  Kip is going to winterize the boat today, and the 4-step ladder will make it easier to get onto the boat from the ground.

We parked in a grassy area and went to work.  Kip did the hard stuff and I just looked for pink liquid coming out of the outside drains and turned buttons on and off for him when he needed them.  

After winterizing the boat, we rode our pedal bikes over to the horse barns to watch the Clydesdale sale and a few riders going through standard horse maneuvers to pass some type of test.  

The Clydesdale horses were huge and really beautiful.  The auction was fast and intense, and the prices people paid for the horses were between $2,500 and $23,000.  Some had mane ribbons, some were very calm, and some were excitable.  We kept our hands on our lap, so we didn't accidentally bid on something.  Can you image us buying a horse?  Yikes.

We hurried back to the boat.  We decided the wind chill had to be below zero (even though it probably wasn't).  We both tucked into our sleeping bags and took a long, warm, nap.  We cleaned out our refrigerator when we left Stuart, Florida, so we are having a carb-filled supper tonight with whatever we could find in the cabinets.

We had expired instant mac and cheese, SpaghettiOs with meatballs, toast, and dry Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal.  Yum.

There isn't a Wild game tonight, so dominoes will have to do (along with some rock n roll music).  We should be pulling into Elk River tomorrow sometime, barring any issues.  

April 21, 2023 - Nashville, Tennessee to Springfield, Illinois

We left the Grand Ole Mall around 8 a.m. after having a quick cup of coffee.  Where we are heading, who knows!  But what I do know is that we will not be doing another long day.  It is cloudy, cold and raining. 

We stopped at Grand Rivers, Kentucky to go to Patti's Restaurant, but it was only 9:00 a.m. and they don't open until 11:00.  Some confusion going on there!  I asked Kip if he wanted to hang around until they opened, and he said no.  So we left.  

After much discussion, phone calls, and strife, we were no closer to finding (or agreeing on) a spot to rest for the night.  The State parks will not allow a boat on a trailer in their campgrounds, so ...  all of those are eliminated.  I made an executive decision that we will be stopping in Springfield, Illinois and stay at the State Fairgrounds campground.  

The campground has huge spots with power, and it is only $20 a night (senior discount).  There are some people here for a horse show and trade, but it has quite a few spots open.  Mike, the campground manager, asked our name and then came back with a receipt and told us that the Legion is having a fish fry tonight.  On our receipt he wrote "Gilligan and Minny" for our names.  

We got settled and took our pedal bikes and go to the Harley Davidson dealership.  Yep, I am able to ride my pedal bike now!  

Our bike tires were flat, so we stopped at three gas stations for air.  The first two didn't work, and the last one finally did the trick.  We hadn't eaten except for donuts this morning, so we stopped for the fish fry, which was really good.  Then we went to Walgreens for pop and other items to bring back to the boat.

There are people practicing and setting up for the horse show tomorrow, so we walked around and watched people riding and practicing with their horses.  Kip explained all the intricate details of horses since he was around them when he was really young.  😂

We went back to the boat, tried to find what we needed in the mess from going over the bumpy roads, and then settled in to write the blog and listen to the Wild playoff game.

Kip decided that we should stay here for another day or two.  He wants to winterize the boat before we head back to Minnesota.  The temp here is in the 40s, and the temp in Minnesota is getting close to going below freezing.  

So, tonight, we have our heat on in the boat.  

April 20, 2023 - Thursday - Buc-ees in Calhoun, Georgia to Nashville, Tennessee

We didn't sleep that great last night due to noises and being in a parking lot.  Kip made coffee and we took off.

On the way to Nashville, we made a quick decision to stop at Ruby Falls in Chattanooga.  Little did we know that it was way up a rock hill on a skinny 2-way road with huge drop-offs.  We were able to park our big rig and went inside.  We had no idea what to expect, but it was well worth the stop.  We went down and elevator 300 feet and walked to the waterfall, which was over 1,000 feet down.

After the cave, we walked up to a lookout above the gift shop.  The view was beautiful.  

Walking back to the truck and boat, we realized we could not turn around and go back down the hill.  We had to go UP the hill, turn around, and then come back down the hill.  Holy buckets!  Talk about scary.  

Once on our way to Nashville, we saw Hale's Dam Bar on the river and snapped this picture.  We really enjoyed staying there a few years ago.

We decided to go to Nashville and get tickets to the Grand Ole Opry.  After buying the tickets, we now had to worry about how we were going to get there without unhooking the boat and taking the truck.  Kip found a shopping mall that was .6 miles from the Grand Ole Opry.  We ate at Johnny Rockets and walked over the Opry.  

We really enjoyed the Opry.  Before the show, they were playing videos of older performers, which was really fun to watch (since I remember them from when I was little).  The show was really good.  

We were especially impressed by Charlie McCoy.  He is 82 years old, and he can really perform.  His harmonica playing skills were amazing.  After the show, we walked back to the boat and were ready for sleep.

April 19, 2023, Wednesday - Stuart, Florida to Buc-ees in Calhoun, Georgia

We were up early today, had coffee with Doug and Gwen, and got a ride to our truck and boat.  It was a very difficult goodbye, with lots of tears.  We will miss them very much.

Our plan is to take our time, sleep on the boat at rest stops, and be back in Minnesota by the weekend.  Well, things don't always go as planned now do they.

At about hour 10 of driving, I suggested to Kip that we stop somewhere.  I suggested several options, to which Kip either didn't hear me or didn't like those options.  We passed them by.  Hour 11 of driving, same thing.  When we stopped for gas without any ideas as to what we were going to do, I was done.  There was "tension" in the truck - Kip was tired and shouldn't be driving that long and I was tired, frustrated, and hungry.  

Eventually Kip decided we would stay at Buc-ees gas station / store.  There are many ways people make up - we had make-up shopping at Buc-ees.  I had to be careful what I picked up to look at because it ended up at the cashier.  

It was loud and very bright from the lights here, but we eventually got some sleep.  

April 18, 2023, Tuesday - Stuart, Florida

April 17, 2023 - Monday

Kip and I went to Stuart Beach this morning - our last walk on the beach before we leave.  It was cloudy and rainy today, so we stayed close to the boat after that.  

April 18, 2023 - Tuesday

Kip got up early and drove to LaBelle to pick up our boat trailer.  It will take him about 4 hours round trip.  When he got back, we trailered the boat and begin the process of removing (scraping) the barnacles from the bottom of the boat and the dinghy.  

I worked on scrapping the dinghy until Kip was done getting the boat ready to put on the trailer.

We trailered the boat a bit crooked so we could put it back into the water, rinse it, and put it back on straight and finish the scrapping.  It was completely disgusting!  They were caked everywhere and hard as rocks.  The bow thrusters were so caked they wouldn't even spin anymore.  We scrapped for over an hour, cutting our hands up from the sharp edges and barnacles, and they still didn't come off.  Kip did underneath the boat and I worked on the back and sides.  Kip's clothes were black, and his arms were red from all of his cuts.  The smell was terrible.  We did the best we could and will have to address it again once we get home.  Kip said there is some chemical that will get it off.  

Once we got our fill of scraping, we put the boat back into the water to wash it off.  Then we put it back on the trailer and took it to a car wash to power wash it.  We pulled the truck through and got the boat in as far as we could without the top hitting.  The man at the car wash was yelling "you're going to hit".  I had to walk over and explain to him that we are aware of that, and that we are going to wash the front and then back the boat into the car wash to wash the other half of the boat.  He was then satisfied that there would be no crisis.

Doug told us that many people park overnight near his house, so we met him in the parking lot of the strip mall, parked the boat, and went into the bar to meet up with his friends.  We then went to Doug and Gwen's house where we swam, showered, had a wonderful Italian dinner, strawberry daiquiris, salad, and coconut cake.  We tucked in around 9:00 p.m. and had the luxury of sleeping in the King size bed in their guest room!