Spent yesterday lazing around camp, doing a little house cleaning and watching the car races on TV. Got to sample some of Ronald’s cooking skills at breakfast with some venison sausage with milk gravy and at supper when he fried up some flathead catfish. The sausage was forgettable, but that darn catfish was good. Ronald’s coating recipe was as much a part of that as the catfish itself. I watched the boy cook, and he doesn’t measure one darn thing. It all just gets sprinkled on, or dumped in the pan.
Moving day today. Looks like that might be my pattern for a bit as I am looking for some cooler weather. Seems like 300 miles in a day is a good pace with a day or two of rest in between. So far, you can see a change in scenery and ecosystems in that distance, yet it gives me sufficient time to stop and do some sightseeing along the way. Even if it is just to stop at a road side park and have lunch.
Arkansas roads have been the worse so far in my short experience. Four segments of I-40 is constructed of concrete rather than asphalt. My little rig has a definite issue with concrete roads. It gets into a rhythm with the expansions joints where you just get jolted up and down so violently that you can’t perform any kind of function with your hands, like changing radio stations or even reaching for the turn signal. Don’t even think about taking a sip of coffee. Newer concrete roads do not seem to have that issue.
I am headed to Ozark AR to camp at another COE Campground. The young lady at the Welcome Center was very excited to hear of my destination and buried me in pamphlets and maps. Apparently Ozark is a destination . . .
Camping at Aux Arc Park just across the mighty Arkansas River from Ozark. As with all COE camps, this one is very neat and tidy with paved sites. All sites have some kind of view of the river. There is a dam and one set of locks here, and a double set of tracks just across the river.
Ozark has the #16 most beautiful bridge in the world. I am not sure who the sanctioning body is for a thing like that. It is striking at night with all of the lights. Funny thing is that I had to cross it on my way to the campground and did not really realize that this was the bridge in question until I got here and looked through the literature. Once I saw it at night I had a better appreciation for the local excitement.
Severe thunderstorms rolled in this evening and we took a major lightening strike here at the camp. Popped several circuits, the GFI and my UPS/Surge Protector. Took me a while to find all of the right switches and buttons and get everything reset and back on again. I can tell you; it was loud!!! Brought me right up out of my seat.