Disclaimer While I mention and review many products, services, campgrounds, etc. in this blog, I do not receive any form of compensation for them. These are solely my opinions or thoughts. Should I ever receive anything for them, I will disclose that fact in the post. I am affiliated with Camping World and Amazon.
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By Katrina, on August 21st, 2007%
Not a lot of fun here this week. I traveled more of America’s crumbling infrastructure (I80) across Illinois to Elkhart, IN. The toll road cost me $8.70 and was as bumpity bumpy as the other roads.
I stayed at the Elkhart Camprgound this week. Tad more expensive than what I am used to but very nice with lots of grass and trees, excellent swimming pool, a laundry room that is more like a full-size commercial laundromat including the soda pop machine and magazines, long pull-through sites, volleyball, miniature golf, basketball, decent WIFI, and very nice, helpful owners of Indian (as in India) descent. There seems to be a large Indian population here and many of them own businesses. They were very good to me and have many full-timers who return over and over. I can see why with their excellent customer service and close location to an equally excellent RV repair facility and the RV Hall of Fame.
I pulled in here because my RV needed the front skin repaired That bumpy road out there shook the staples right out of it. What better place than the place where 50% of RVs are made? Lots of others in the campground appear to have come for the same reason. A little asking around the campground and I found Chargers on CR6 which is also in the Good Sam book. They were able to fit me into their schedule quickly and the repair looks pretty good and solid.
Chargers also discovered my battery holder on the front was not secured so they screwed that down, changed my battery cover straps, caulked the back window and roof rack to hopefully stop a leak that just started behind my bed last night, and changed the end plug on my main power cable which was looking pretty bad and I had already purchased the new end for at Walmart. The new end has a handle built in for easier pull out and good solid strain relief. Good people and great service. I highly recommend them. $380 bucks later and I’m ready to hit the road again. 
Continue reading Elkhart, IN
By Katrina, on August 10th, 2007%
Time for a station break to report more of what I have learned as a full-time RVer.
First, the dang cat is upset about being ignored and upstaged by George so here she is in all her glory again.
 
Cat mollified.
More of what I have learned:
1. Just because a campground says they have wifi, does not mean it reaches the whole park or is particularly strong.
2. Wifi may mean satellite provided which is slower but useable or may mean DSL or better which is faster. If you work over the Internet, it matters and you must ask, though RV park personnel rarely know what you are talking about or what they have.
3. During the cooler months you can go a long time between tank dumps. Really hot weather though makes it real stinky real fast so you need to dump once a week.
4. Disconnect your towing chains before pulling the car out from under the hitch. Don’t ask…
5. Keep lots of fuses for the power hitch jack on board.
6. If you have South Dakota plates on your car and RV, everyone knows you are a full-timer.
Continue reading More tips for the RVer
By Katrina, on August 10th, 2007%
Next stop, Kieler Wisconsin. Why you might ask? Because it is right next to the Iowa state line and as close to Dyersville as I could get to go to the Field of Dreams and still have wifi for my work. In Kieler, I am staying at the Rustic Barn Campground. No sewer hookup here but strong wifi, excellent showers, lovely countryside views of surrounding farms complete with cows and corn, very nice owner, quiet with no trains or freeway noise for a change, good store and laundry, very nice “loafing” room in the barn and front porch with rocking chairs and chair swing. Lots of trees here and many cement patios though I chose a sunnier site for my satellite TV reception. Giving me directions in the first 5 minutes on what to do in case of tornado did make me a little nervous. Give me a good old fashioned earthquake instead anytime!
  
I went through Dubuque to the Field of Dreams in Dyersville yesterday. You have to have some clue where it is and watch closely for the signs since the owners do not want to commercialize it with big gaudy signs. First thing I did was buy a baseball to play with (they don’t supply equipment or organize anything for insurance reasons). I sat on the bleachers and watched fathers having a catch with sons and daughters or pitching to their little sluggers. Lots of giddy people, including myself, went out into the corn in the outfield to meditate which isn’t easy when a group of kids start talking about the movie, “Children of the Corn”. LOL.
   
Continue reading Field of Dreams – Heaven (aka Dyersville, Iowa)
By Katrina, on August 10th, 2007%
Headed on over to Wisconsin to what I can only describe as one heck of a party town, Wisconsin Dells. It is home to numerous amusement and water parks all within a mile of each other as well as lots of quirky places to tour, other fine attractions, an active downtown even at night, the Wisconsin River, and Lake Delton which is a water sports enthusiast’s dream.
I arrived at 7pm, setup camp at American World RV Park, and hit the tours nearby on foot until 11pm. The park is well situated in the heart of things and in fact is just a fence away from an amusement park which does mean there is some noise though it didn’t bother me. They have a fun outside pool with slides and a very large indoor pool and hot tub. Their wifi was excellent with very strong signal. Across the street is a big seafood buffet at Crabby’s. This is a Passport America park and a hotel. The bathhouse is a bit far away from where I was but I did like their pavilion in the center.
I only had two nights and one day in my schedule so I made the most of it. The first night I walked over to the Top Secret attaction which is a tour of an upside-down Whitehouse with a goofy guide. She did her best to scare us and we got to scream for fun here and there. I especially liked the revolving black tunnel with flourescent spots that we had to walk through on a wooden bridge. It killed my sense of balance so I was hanging on to the bridge tight and laughing even though the bridge wasn’t moving. Going through with teenage girls in the party made it even better since they scare easy. Well worth the money.
Next I went next door to the Ghost Outpost, a haunted house, one of the best I have been in. I went through with a scared young couple. Since I have a few years under my belt, I took the lead and found them clutching my shoulders even though we were strangers. It was great. I managed to avoid the floor surprise but they did get me with a blast of air from the side.
Continue reading Wisconsin Dells, WI
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