There’s no place like home.

Friday, November 25, 2022

If the weather was going to remain nice for a few days, we would have stayed longer at Meriwether Lewis Campground. The drive along the Natchez Trace Parkway has some nice hiking trails and we would have taken advantage of that. However, the weather was going to be OK for just one more day. Even more important, we looked ahead to the weather at home. If we made it back home by Sunday, it will be a nice day to unpack. Tackling that chore on a decent weather-day became our driving force.

So, off it was to Oak Point National Campground in the Shawnee National Forest of the southern tip of Illinois. This is another rare national campground with water and electrical hookups. Even rarer, it is entirely a first-come/first-serve campground. Getting a campsite during the summer season is difficult. Last year, in early October, we got the very last opening when we arrived. But the camping season wanes as November takes hold. Last year, on our return home trip at the end of November, the campground was empty.

It was the same today. We were only one of about 6 campers at the campground. Although the water was shut off, the electrical hookup was working. Best of all, the showers were decent. The shower room was only heated to 55º, but that was enough once the steam from the the hot water warmed up the little shower stall.

We pulled into the campground early enough to hunt for a laundromat. All but one of the nearby laundromats were closed for Black Friday. Closing for Thanksgiving I understood, but Black Friday? I didn’t get that, but we did manage to find one open. We had a mountain of laundry. We could have waited until we got home, but it is so much faster to wash all the loads at one time. We will still have the bedding left to wash when we arrive at home.

This laundromat didn’t take credit cards. We used up our last $15 in bills. We left the laundromat with just one quarter - perfect for a shopping cart at Aldi.

Between the long drive to Illinois and the trip to the laundromat, the day was shot. Unbelievable, I had hoped to walk the 2-mile hike around the lake at the campground. The forest at Oak Point is gorgeous, with some giant trees and even some cypress trees. Yes, the Shawnee National Forest has some amazing cypress stands. I believe these stands are the most northern extent of cypress in the US.

Oak Point National Park has wonderful level campsites with water (not in the winter) and electric hookups. It is open year-round and is entirely on a first-come/first-serve basis.

Saturday, November 26, 2022

Today was our longest drive since our very first day on the road back on October 1. Our drive from Oak Point National Campground to Illinois’ Hennipen Canal Lock #21, just a mile from Wyanet, Illinois, took 6 hours.

This is our third time staying at Lock #21. It is boondocking and only costs $8. It is our go-to campsite when we are driving through the long state of Illinois. It is also only a 1/2 hour from Starved Rock State Park, a nice hiking park with canyons and gorges. Canyons and gorges in Illinois? You bet.

I emailed Kevin, an Illinois DNR guy that collected our fee the last time we stayed at #21. He is one of those great guys that you meet on the road. Unfortunately, he didn’t get the email until after we had left. Actually, nobody from the DNR showed up. We didn’t know who to pay and ended up not paying. Kevin, if you are reading this, let us know where to send our fee.

We hooked up at Oak Point at sun-up. This was about the earliest we got going on the whole trip. There was a little fog rolling in over the lake.

This was our stop at Hennepin Lock #21 in central Illinois. We didn’t unhook V-Jer from the van. If you notice, we drove the back wheels of the van on yellow wheel levelers. This raised the tongue of the camper. The camper was perfectly level. In the morning, all we had to do was to drive forward 1 foot, stow the wheel levelers, and head north toward home.

Sunday, November 27, 2022

Yesterday we arrived at Lock #21 so late, and we were so antsy to finally get home, that we never unhitched V-Jer. So, this morning we got up around 6:30 am, brushed our teeth, hopped into the van, and off we went. Lock #21 was about 4 hours from home, not counting gas stops.

We arrived home at noon. It was 43º and partly sunny. It took the whole afternoon to unload everything and put V-Jer to bed in her special spot in the big metal garage in the field out back.

Wanda thinks our big walk-in shower is the best part of our house, and she just might be right. That first shower was glorious.

What is next? We go to Bucerias, Mexico, on New Years Eve. We have a little over two months scheduled at an airbnb. The landlady is a very special person and we are so fortunate to have access to the house. I made a commitment to play once a week with my friend, Jeff, at the clubs in Bucerias. I will practice the whole of December, mainly to get my callouses back. I let my callouses get soft during the trip. Without callouses, playing guitar just plain hurts.

I am not sure about the Spring. We are kicking around the idea of touring rural Pennsylvania and Upstate NY in May. My sister and brother-in-law from Germany are coming for nearly 2 months this summer. Then we will go to Europe in the late Summer and stay until my sister tires of us. That may take a few days or a few months. We’ll see. She is excellent at devising an itinerary and has thrown out some wonderful ideas from Portugal to the Czech Republic.

We put V-Jer to bed.

Glossary of terms used for newcomers: 1) V-Jer. The name of our camper. 2) Saturn. The name of our Van. 3) Duende. Our mischievous gremlin that breaks things. 4) Tata. The good gremlin that helps us fix Duende’s dirty work. 5) The Black Hole. This is what we call Walmart because every time we go in for just a couple of items, we come out spending way more than we figured. 6) QT. Quaint Town. 7) Little Buddy. This is what we call our Dyson cordless stick vacuum.

Dave and Wanda

Get Vaccinated To Save Lives.

Virtual Business Card

North America . Europe . Mexico . Asia . Product Reviews . Books & Maps

Please send us your thoughts and any errors we may have missed. We're on the road and cellular service is intermittent in the remote areas. As soon as we get online, we are eager to read all of your messages.

Message us: 715-252-6664 | 715-252-3326

Email: alloverthemaptravelventures@gmail.com