During a three week stop at Rapid City, SD we parked at the RV park at Ellsworth AFB just east of the city. The recreation department at the AFB ran all sorts of tours to all of the nearby attractions. They had a fleet of passenger vans and drivers that were excellent tour guides as well. They would pick us up at the RV park and return us there at the end of the day. It was very convenient and much easier than driving around rubber necking.
http://www.militarycampgrounds.us/milcamps/33-south-dakota/172-ellsworth-afb-famcamp
Our train ride on The Black Hill Steam Train started in Keystone and went to Hill City and returned. It was an all day affair and very enjoyable with a nice layover in Hill City that allowed enough time to do some shopping and have lunch.
http://www.1880train.com/
There was a singing group that met the train in Hill City. One of the conductors had served on the USS Midway and saw my hat and we had a chat. There was a clear stream close by so I looked for gold. No luck. Just about everyone took a picture of our head conductor. There was a long line at the snack station but it moved alone quickly and everyone that wanted a snack got served. As depicted in the pictures it was a beautiful, clear, summer day for sight seeing.
We took lots of pictures and here are some of them. Clicking on them will make them larger. The links are active, just click on them to browse.
The FastEagles
Cal & Linda
When you’re full time RVing around the country with no particular place to go you are probably going to visit Branson, MO.
We arrived in Branson early in the season - before school got out for the summer - and had no problem finding a place to stay. We decided on the city park called Lakeside RV Park. It’s not expensive and has an outstanding location right on the river. You can walk to the mall. There is an IGA grocery store less than a mile away and the park office has discount tickets to a lot of the attractions. And, of course, you can catch some nice trout in the river. For us, it was an exceptional base camp for our visit. The internet link is listed below.
http://bransonlakesidervpark.com/index.php
This posting is really about the Branson Belle and how we ended up with VIP seating. Linda’s sister Barbara and her husband Tommy joined us for our stay in Branson. After a few days of being like tourists we took a day off from the attractions and went riding around the rural area. Crossing a bridge we saw the billboard advertisement for the Showboat, the Branson Belle. We decided to go over and check it out and have a late lunch. While walking around the shops and reading some menus we decided to go and see about making reservations for the Showboat dinner cruise. While talking to the ticket agent another employee working in a little shop close by recommended we check out the VIP availability. The upgrade was $6.00 per person and she said it was well worth it. Well, that triggered the ticket agent to inform us that the afternoon cruise only had four tickets remaining and they were VIP tickets. We still had not eaten lunch so decided to go ahead and take those remaining tickets. That was an outstanding recommendation and gave us a wonderful cruise experience. We had a personal four person booth on the front row of the balcony. We had a choice of meals, desert and drinks and our service was before the serving on the main floor started, so we had the entire outside railings to our self while they patrons on the main deck were being served. To top it off we had our own personal waiter and the captain visited all VIP patrons. All-in-all the entire experience, including the dinner show was outstanding and we talked about it for days. So, if you’re in Branson and schedule a dinner show on the Branson Belle we highly recommend upgrading your tickets to the VIP section.
http://www.showboatbransonbelle.com/
Here are just a few of the many pictures taken that day. Clicking on any one of them will start a slide show.
The FastEagles
Cal & Linda
Sternwheeler>>>>>>>
When wintering in Yuma, AZ there are all sorts of things to do to keep you busy. Everything in Yuma changes when the winter residents and visitors show up in droves and increase the population ten fold.
This is about a sternwheeler boat ride on the lower Colorado River that departs out of Fisher’s Landing out on Lake Martinez. The ride is down to the Imperial Dam and back. It’s just a relaxing ride on the river with lunch and a chance to see the wild life along the way. Here are a couple of web sites to help describe the ride and launching area.
http://www.yumarivertours.com/sternwheelercruises.htm
http://www.yumarivertours.com/fishers.htm
The USMC has a recreation facility right on Lake Martinez. There is a small office/store, some boat rentals, a pier and last but not least some RV parking with facilities. If you have military or DOD identification cards you have access to the facility. Great place to go and do some fishing. Here is a web site that gives the particulars.
http://www.militarycampgrounds.us/milcamps/15-arizona/38-lake-martinez-recreation-facility
Probably the crème da la crème of the RV parks with access to the lower Colorado River is the Hidden Shores RV Resort. We went out there and toured the place. It’s gated but they will let just about anyone in during the day time. There is always something going on there and people come from near and far to attend some of the activities. And, right across the river is a huge federal land area open to boondockers. Here is a web site to browse.
http://www.hiddenshores.com/
Here are a few of the pictures we took on the day of our ride on the smallish paddle boat. They were a little slow on loading but once we got going everything ran smoothly. Lunch was OK and the weather was beautiful. If you have military connections, discounted tickets for the ride can be obtained at the Marine Corps Air Station in Yuma.
Click on any of the pictures to start the slide show.
The FastEagles
Cal & Linda
The FastEagles
