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As we travelled west through South Dakota I was intrigued with signage along the highway, so we stopped and check out this "old west town". It's located on Interstate 90, exit 170 just 22 miles west of Murdo, South Dakota and worth the $10 per person admission. South Dakota's Original 1880 TOWN has more than 30 buildings from the 1880 to 1920 era, authentically furnished with thousands of relics, historical accounts and photographs, a Casey Tibbs exhibit, Dances with Wolves movie props, and fun activities for kids. Karen and I spent about an hour walking the exhibits and examining the artifacts. Well worth the stop and the admission. If you are interested in the history of the old western I would recommend taking the time to check it out.

After a two day stay visiting the upper peninsula (UP) of Michigan we began to journey back west. Lake Michigan is impressive, a literal fresh water sea that goes on for miles. It is the largest lake by area in one country. Located in the United States, it is shared, from west to east, by the states of Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan. Ports along its shores include Milwaukee and the City of Green Bay in Wisconsin; Chicago in Illinois; Gary in Indiana; and Muskegon in Michigan. Green Bay is a large bay in its northwest, and Grand Traverse Bay is in the northeast. We traveled along the south shore of the UP along the lake stopping at periodic rest stops and fueling. Before leaving the UP I indulged in a "Pasties" the local meat and potato pie of the region. This was a long travel day from St. Ignace, MI through Wisconsin to the Mississippi River border of Minnesota. Worked out to be ten hours by the time we reached the Rest Area in La Crescent, MN. I generally like to try and practice the 3-3-3 RV rule. No more the 300 miles a day, arrive no later than 3PM and stay three days minimum. Well, we missed that on this travel leg. We logged about 449 miles in about ten hours with stops for food and fuel. We were shooting to get to the Rapid City, SD area so we could have enough time to see the sights.

It's easy to see why a production company would select this venue to film "Somewhere in Time". This beautiful island with it's quaint Victorian village of shops, eateries and lodging is a short ferry ride from either St. Ignace or Mackinaw City, Michigan. Motor vehicles are prohibited on the island so transportation is by horse drawn carriages or bicycles. The iconic "Grand Hotel" and it's 600 foot long porch covered with Adirondack chairs overlooks Lake Huron. Karen and I arrived at 9 AM the day after Memorial Day and missed the crowds normally associated with the holiday weekend. After checking with the ferry company, we transported our E-bikes over for the day. Our first objective was to circumnavigate the eight mile long trail that circles the perimeter of the island. We stopped along the way at the Arch Rock and British Landing, ending the ride at Mary's Bistro Draught House for a "Dark and Stormy" and lunch. We continued our bike adventure after lunch by way of an inland route through the middle of the island passed an old 1814 battleground (now golf course), cemetery and eventually the massive Fort Mackinac above the village. From the fort we traversed above the village via a back road to the Michigan Governor's summer residence, island stables, Grand Hotel carriage house finishing the ride at the Grand Hotel's Sadie's Ice Cream Parlor. If you are ever in or near the upper peninsula (aka "the UP") of Michigan, do yourself a favor and see this magical island. You will not regret the journey or the experience.

Well, it's true! We had accomplished the two objectives we scheduled to do on this trip. With our Texas domicile process and the Alliance Rally event behind us, we now pondered which way to head back west. The original plan was to travel south and west from Holland, MI via Chicago, IL towards South Dakota to see the Badlands and Mount Rushmore. I wasn't keen on the idea of traveling through Chicago. After our visits with the Swain's and True's we considered their suggestion of heading north to the "UP" aka Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Longer distance but less a traveling headache and beautiful scenery along the way. We decided to take their advise and boy, so happy we did! Hands down, this has been the best part of the journey so far. Gumby (...to be explained later), Karen and I are all having a great adventure. After crossing the Mackinac Bridge we arrived late on Memorial Day in St. Ignace, MI and headed to our campsite in the Strait's State Park for two days of exploration. With the holiday crowds gone, we drove down to the Shepler's Ferry office to order tickets to Mackinac Island for Tuesday, May 31. We also purchased the additional ticket for our bikes. An eighteen minute ferry ride separates you from the dock at St. Ignace and the magical Mackinac Island. The island has significant history and is meticulously maintained. No motor vehicles are allowed on the island, except of course, emergency vehicles. Horse drawn carriages, carts and wagons abound. Bicycles are everywhere and the primary mode of transportation for many of the local "U-Pers". After a stop at the local Starbuck's for coffee, Karen and I started on the eight mile trek around the island. Guess what we found? The tulips we missed in Holland were in abundance on Mackinac island! Curious about the rest of the Mackinac Island adventure? You'll have to wait for the rest of the story in the next blog post. But here's a trivia question for all of you: What Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour movie was filmed at this location? Post your answer on the response tab.

After the Alliance Rally ended in Goshen in Indiana on May 27th we headed north to visit some friends in Michigan for the Memorial Day weekend. Two hours away lies the quaint community of Holland, Michigan where Jay and Elaine True live on the shore of Lake Macatawa. The much-photographed Big Red Lighthouse stands by the channel that connects this lake to Lake Michigan. Nearby, the beachfront Holland State Park shelters deer and migratory birds. Windmill Island Gardens is home to De Zwaan, a centuries-old windmill. May’s Tulip Time Festival, recalling Holland’s Dutch roots, sees tulips blooming all over the city. Unfortunately, we arrived too late and missed the tulips by about three weeks...bummer! Saturday afternoon we rode our E-bikes from our campsite out to see the Big Red Lighthouse and the Lake Michigan beach just north of the channel. And instead of tulips we got to see old friends. Later that evening we had a great visit with two couples we are close to from our days at Redwood Covenant Church in Santa Rosa. Jay and Elaine rode over in the afternoon. They only live about a mile and a half from the fairgrounds. Our other friends, Dick and Nancy Swain drove about an hour from Hastings, MI to see us. All six of us had a nice visit at our campsite at the Ottawa County Fairgrounds in Holland for a too brief a reunion. Jay and Elaine had family visiting over the holiday so we went to dinner that evening with the Swain's before they left town. Made plans to attend their church services in Ada, MI on Sunday followed by brunch and a tearful goodbye. Sunday afternoon we did laundry before heading over to Jay and Elaines. We rode over on the E-bikes to see their home on Sunday. Beautiful home right on the lake! Had a great visit while drinking Margaritas on their back patio. Definitely will be back to visit next year; earlier in May and for a longer stay.

After visits with family in Dallas, TX it was onward to Goshen, Indiana for the Alliance RV Rally, May 25 to 27, 2022. We drove by way of Little Rock, Arkansas, Charleston, Missouri and Kickapoo, Illinois to get to our final 3 day destination. Our stay in the Kickapoo State Recreation Area was too short. It is a definite return destination and a longer stay will be on order when we return to the area. The 2022 Ally Rally was well worth the time, cost and effort it took to make the trip to Indiana. We initially thought we would get some minor repair taken care of on our rig. Boy did we under estimate the service we would receive from Alliance! We had a list of a dozen minor to major issues we hoped to get addressed and they took care of everything, I mean everything was fixed. I give their service department an eleven out of ten! The Alliance company is an amazing story. I would strongly recommend their product to anyone interested in purchasing a fifth-wheel or toy hauler model of RV. We attended some excellent workshops, met some wonderful people (new friends) and enjoyed some great social fellowship. Karen and I are already planning on attending the next Ally Rally tentatively scheduled for May 31, June 1 and 2, 2023.

Have you ever wondered if a city or town has your last name somewhere in the USA? I had heard of a town called Teague, Texas some years ago but had never known much about it until recently. About 132 miles north of Livingston, TX, just two and a half hours from where Karen and I established our new address, is the town that bears my last name. So, as we travel north to visit my cousin Dina outside of Dallas we made the pilgrimage to this small, proud Texas town. In 1905 this town was a drowsy country village called Brewer - named for the 1835 land grantee Green Berry Brewer. It had been settled in the 1870's. Prosperity rolled into Brewer in 1906, however when the Trinity & Brazos Railroad selected it as a site for the railroad shops and as the main division point between Houston and Fort Worth. The town was speedily renamed for the Teague family, relatives of the noted railroad builder B.F. Yoakum. In August, 1906, promoters held a town lot sale. Customers arriving on a special train were met by a band playing "Dixie" and before the day was over, they had consumed 5,000 pounds of barbecue! By 1907 Teague was transformed, dozens of brick building were under construction, population soared and the ten thousand club advertised "10,000 by 1910". Teague's first opera house was soon projected, and citizens once watched two merchants struggle happily to the bank carrying large baskets of "greenbacks". Our middle son, Erik Teague worked for BNSF as a conductor and engineer so the irony wasn't lost on both Karen and I as we walked the sleepy streets of this train town. During the first decade of the 1900's, population hovered at 5,000 but then momentum decreased. With the decline of passenger train service, Teague began to dwindle. Today it is again a quiet town and the railroad depot-office building is a museum. We had to find some suitable souvenirs before we left town. If you're ever traveling between Dallas and Houston on Highway 45, make sure to stop by my small, proud Texas town.

Well, it official! As of Monday, May 16 Karen and I are now domiciled in the town of Livingston, Texas. We started the day getting the truck and trailer inspected and then registered at the Polk County tax office in town. It was then to the Department of Public Safety to get our Texas driver's licenses and registered to vote as Texans. Everything was completed in about six hours. Stopped by Escapees RV Club to pick up three packages and miscellaneous mail before heading back to the Lake Livingstone State Park, site #2. We booked our stay for five nights and with the official work out of the way we can relax and spend some time really relaxing and recreating. We have been out on our RAD power bikes twice to explore the park. It's a beautiful state park with multiple RV loops. We are already scoping out our next sites for the future. We've got a dozen noted on the lake shore loop for our next trip to Livingston. The park is busy on the weekends, but nearly empty during the week. The park environment is quiet, clean and our trailer pad is on concrete with 50 amp service, water and sewer connections. We've met the host at site #1 and got information from them about volunteer hosting in the Texas State Park system. Certainly something to consider for the future

Our first stop was in Sweetwater, Texas for an overnight stay on Wednesday, May 11 at the Bar J Hitching Post RV Park right off Interstate 20. Easy on and off but noisy due to the traffic coming into and leaving the Love's service station across the street. Had to try on a couple of appropriate hats. What do y'all think? No, we didn't buy them; just used them for props for the occasion. We left the next morning for Horseshoe Bay, TX to visit Karen's Auntie Ann and stayed 3 days in the RV park not far from her home. A great site but some tight turns and a water hazard we didn't expect. Couldn't have done it without my co-pilot guiding me in on our walkie talkies. At one point we bottomed out on the bike hitch attached to the rear of the fifth wheel trailer. This is a flood wash we had to cross to get to the RV sites. Looked treacherous but was only about 6 inches deep. Once across we had to turn around to enter to RV park due to a tree too close to the entrance. I was glad to get into our site after the white knuckle approaches. We got a great visit in! Cousin Nina and Frank drove over from the Austin area to see us. A family trifecta! Ann surprised Karen with her mother's wedding dress she had at the house. Ann wore the same dress for her wedding in 1956. Karen tried it on and it almost fit! Sunday morning we were off to Lake Livingstone State Park.

Literally, on my left temple from a stinging insect that was in my hat while in Arizona and finally on the mend! Well the big one happened later on our journey a couple of days later. While traveling on Monday, May 9th going west on Central Avenue (old Route 66) in Albuquerque, New Mexico we were involved in a traffic accident. Fortunately no one was seriously injured, but we sustained body damage to the front passenger side of our truck. The good news was the truck was still safe to drive back to Kirtland AFB where we had left the fifth wheel so we could run errands and do some sightseeing. Honestly, both Karen and I were not impressed with what we saw of Albuquerque. Even if we hadn't gotten into an accident, the city is dirty, has a crime problem and serious transient issues. The place has a spiritually dark feeling to it. We couldn't wait to get out of town and back on the road. The biggest problem we had to work through before we left involved a detached passenger side towing mirror. I was able to reconstruct most of it from the broken parts with black duck tape and a couple of sheet metal screws. A large replacement mirror and a small convex mirror, totaling $15 dollars from the Auto Zone and we were good to go. So we safely continued onto our next destination, Roswell, NM. We are on the lookout for aliens as we camp at Bottomless Lake State Park campground. Hoping the aliens know how to do body work....on the truck! I ordered an after-market replacement mirror on Amazon. It is getting shipped to our Livingston, TX address and should arrive before we do. So life on the road is no different than in a stick and brick house. Things break and accidents happen. The new twist is dealing with this moving target! I have an appointment for an estimate on the truck's body work scheduled in Spring, TX while we are in Livingston. However, with the shortage of skilled labor, truck parts and the long waiting time for repair work we may be driving a damaged truck for a while. The unofficial USCG motto applies to this situation. Semper Gumby (literal meaning - always flexible). Is it me or do you see it too? Gumby looks like an alien?

Yes, after her work day Friday, April 29, 2022 she walked out of the office of Total Concepts (TC) for the last time as a full-time employee. After 18 years she is stepping down from her role as the company's controller to begin a new life on the road as a full-time RVer. I think the photo below, with her teammates Tabitha and Sandra from the TC accounting staff, expresses the joy of this moment. The photo was created on one of the many annual company trips to Cabo San Lucas. That evening, her employers John, Mark and Hank Rechin sent her off in typical "TC style" by throwing her a wonderful retirement party at Cafe Frieda's in Santa Rosa. Thank you TC for a incredible evening of good food, great people, fun roast and honoring stories of her time in the company. As great and exciting as the future appears to be for our new life on the road, this was a bittersweet event for her leaving this wonderful company and the day to day interactions with the TC team. These are great people, good friends and friendship is forever. We look forward to more fun together with all of them in the future when our paths cross again.

Sunday, May 8, 2022 was Mother's Day and we celebrated in windy Winslow, AZ. We arrived at the Homolovi State Park on Saturday, May 7 for two days of rest and recreation. Our campsite location is #9. Paved, level, 30 AMP electrical and water, with freestanding BBQ, fire pit and picnic table. Impeccably maintained campground for $25 a night. We will definitely return here again for a longer stay when visiting the area. Our only complaint was the windy condition during the two days we stayed in the park. I mean windy... like 15 to 25 MPH with gusts to 40 MPH! It made going to the archeological sites problematic, so we only had time for a visit to Homolovi 1, closest to our campground. The other site, Homolovi 2 is larger and contains an estimated 1,200 to 2,000 rooms. It is believed that these pueblos are where the ancestors of the present-day Hopi native people lived. Activities on these sites dates back to the 14th century. Homolovi or Homol'ovi (the Hopi spelling of the word) is a Hopi word meaning "place of the little hills". The park is located near the Little Colorado River just over a mile north of Winslow, Arizona. Sunday morning we attended church services at "The Well" in Winslow and shared in worship and fellowship. Then took Karen out to lunch to celebrate Mother's Day at the Old Town Grill on Second Street and had a great meal together. Tried their Beer-Battered Pickles...awesome with Ranch dressing! While visiting "The Well" we met another couple camping at the Homolovi State Park. We invited them over to the rig to hang out together. Roger and Vicki came to Arizona with members of their church community from Ohio to do construction work at a Native American school. We shared stories about our travels, families and our faith journeys with dark and stormy's, wine and cheese. Tomorrow , Monday, May 9th, as the song lyric goes it's, "On the road again...." We depart in the morning before the winds get gnarly for Albuquerque, NM with plans on staying at Kirtland AFB FamCamp.