Week 261 - On the Kentucky - 08-14-2011

Our Kentucky Derby

Dar, we get it now. If you press down harder on the accelerator, you go faster! Typically, we follow Craig's 2-2-2 Rule. "Never go more than 200 miles in one day. Always get there by 2:00 pm and stay at least 2 days." Craig says that if you do this, you will be refreshed and never tire of the travel. And Craig is right! We actually changed our rule to a maximum of 150 miles per day, as we rarely drive on freeways. So our weekly maximum is about 450 miles. But, this week we went 1298 miles in four days of travel. Craig was right. We're worn out, tired and traveling has less appeal. But, we're here in London, Kentucky.

We started our trip from our campground at Cedar Shores, Oacoma, South Dakota on the Missouri River. The Missouri had major flooding this year, so several of the RV sites were still not functional.

1) Somewhere along I 29 between Sioux Falls, South Dakota and Sioux City, Iowa this Rancher-Artist hammered out some very unique statues. 2) The Missouri River is still flooded in some areas. The I 29 was closed south of Sioux City to Kansas City, Kansas. So, we left the interstate and took the side roads to Des Moines, Iowa.

1) Our photos can be very artistic when changing lanes on the scooter. 2) Using the web, we found that the cheapest diesel in Des Moines was downtown. So, we worked our way through the city streets to find this QT station, but no diesel. Don't believe everything you read on the Internet. Leaving here it was amazingly hard to find diesel. Most stations we passed did not carry diesel. We finally found it at a Walmart in Oskaloosa when we were down to five gallons remaining.

1) Does anyone in Iowa drive cars? 2) We take our turn at driving the slalom course. No problem, we had two feet to spare.

The corn fields were everywhere in Iowa and still going strong here in Illinois.

We wondered what date was on the papers in the news paper rack?

Crossing the Mississippi River into Missouri and staying in Illinois in view of the Gateway to the West arch.

The beautiful countryside of Indiana as Ellen drives over the Ohio River into Kentucky.

Heading into Kentucky, home of the Louisville Slugger.

1) Frisch? Who are you and what did you do with Bob? 2) The Louisville Elks Lodge #8. Of the 77 Elks lodges we have visited, this has to be the friendliest. Folks introduced themselves when we came into the lodge. Then they made a point to introduce us to every member that came in after we did.

Berea, Kentucky is home to Berea College. The college is a 4-year liberal arts college with a large number of majors. One of their focuses is traditional arts and crafts. The billboards for Kentucky Artisan Center caught our eye and we stopped. We neglected to take photos of all the art inside this building. But, there are thousands of high quality statues, paintings, wall hangings, carvings, books, photos, etc.

1) This very artistic Berea building is an elementary school. 2) One of many buildings on the Berea College campus. Annual tuition is about $25,000 per year. Every student is supplemented to add to their scholarships and grants to cover the tuition. In some cases, room, board and fees are also covered. Students work 10 to 15 hours per week creating crafts and art in exchange for their tuition.

In many areas of the country, when roads are cut through the hills, the result is not often pretty. In Kentucky, the end result is more beautiful than if the road never existed. We have also seen this kind of rock near Branson, Missouri, so it probably exists throughout the Southeast.

1) A very typical suburban house in Kentucky with nicely manicured grass covering everything. Even in the towns the lots are large, and grass covered. 2) Larger homes like these are plentiful as well.

Lake Cumberland in central Kentucky is the 9th largest reservoir in the US. It has 1255 miles of shoreline and holds enough water to cover the state of Kentucky with three inches of water. It was created in 1952 to control the flooding from the Cumberland River. Our campground in Bronston, KY is about one mile from the lake.

This photo near the lake would make for a good picture puzzle and drive you crazy with all the blues and grays.

Okay, so we're in Kentucky. Next week, we'll let you know for how long and why we are here.

Until then, be blessed; we are. Love, Pete and Ellen

Photos from Aug 2011