Not about RVing at all….but a different kind of ticks

This one is about polly-ticks – arguably the “ticks” that draw the most blood.

Yes, I write about that despicable subject, too. I am as interested in government, news, and  politics,  as I am in traveling and RVing. It probably came from all my years as a newspaper reporter. 

So I’m transitioning this blog to cover more topics, since circumstances beyond our control have made it impossible to continue to live and travel full-time in our motorhome. And I can’t remember numerous passwords for different blogs.  But I still write in my pjs. And we still run away in our RV any chance we get for as long as we can.

What has me wondering today is just plain history, not even politics, but bare facts. 

Fact is, when Bill Clinton left office the country was in the black. The economy was fine. But when George W. Bush left office the economy was a mess. The deficit was staggering and most working Americans had suffered heartbreaking losses in their retirement investments. It was especially devastating for those of us near retirement. (We were in that group).

Why would people want to go back to losing their money by electing another Republican to ruin the economy? It’s a fact of this country’s modern history that every time a Republican has been elected president, the economy  has stalled and the middle class has become poorer. And every time a Democrat has followed a Republican administration, the Democrat has fixed the economy. It was best accomplished with Democrat majorities in the Senate and House.  Amazingly, the Obama administration has still advanced the economy the last four years with Republican majorities in both houses fighting to sabotage his every effort.  

That’s our money – yours and mine – Congress tried to keep us from regaining by opposing the president’s efforts to restore the economy. Sure, their aim was just to cause the president to fail, but a failing economy means we all fail – so Congress sat in Washington on our dime and did all they could do to cause our country’s economy to fail and our personal earnings and savings to lose?  And people would vote for any of them? They should be prosecuted for working against their country and the people they are supposed to represent.

Look at some things the Republican House & Senate control completely; Seniors, where are your Social Security raises? Workers, where are the laws to mandate your raises? Where are the laws to penalize big business for taking jobs overseas? Where is the funding to fight ZIKA? Where are the laws to help keep workers safe?  Republicans have the majority, they could have passed any of these laws and more.  They could have given you raises. They could have raised military pay.  They could have done any number of  good things for the people. 

Instead, Congress got a good raise, and you’re paying more for the products the 1% produce and sell, aren’t you?    What has the Republican-controlled House and Senate  done to help the average American citizen? What? One thing? Just one?

Under Republicans, the suffering poor suffer more. We all lose money. And only the tiny percentage of very, very rich at the top of the pinnacle prosper. Not us. Not even those with a million or so, not those earning a wage, not those barely getting by, not those on fixed incomes, not even those who own businesses and have made profits; none of us do well under a Republican administration in recent history. 

It is the economical, historical, truth. And why so many in this country want to vote to make themselves poorer while making the top 1 to 3 percent richer is beyond me to understand. People, we aren’t in that group. No one I know is in that group.

It’s illogical that so many are willing to keep giving the 1% what they want at their own expense. It must amaze the 1%, too. Is it because people want to fancy themselves part of the elite?  98-99 percent are not. One or two percent of the richest Americans and their big corporations own our congress. The Republicans quite obviously do what the richest of the rich tell them to do on every issue.

Stop voting against yourself. Sometimes it is most clear who not to vote for. Voting Republican is voting against ourselves, our children and grandchildren. Just stop it.

Best Laid Plans, And even the Not So Well-Planned…

Sarasota in January

We made it to Florida in January, but it was a very short winter trip for me. We’d only been in Sarasota a couple of weeks when bad news came from home. My mother had fallen before Christmas, but had X-rays and examinations and had been assured nothing was broken. She was doing ok, although still having some pain, when we left for the winter.

But things had gone south. She had called my sister in the middle of the night in intense pain and my sister had taken her to UAMS at Little Rock.  It turned out she had fractures the  X-ray machine in our small town hospital didn’t reveal, but which an MRI showed. She ended up in the hospital for 19 days.

Ray, our grandson, Ethan, and our pets stayed in Florida in the motorhome while I drove back to Little Rock to help with mom. The first night in, it snowed, causing me to be unable to get about two blocks up a hill and over to the hospital from the hotel where I was staying until they got the street cleared. Ah, welcome home. However, that turned out to be the only snow of the winter in Arkansas. 

View out the hotel window the morning after i arrived back in Little Rock.

 

Ray had stayed in Florida rather than coming back home with me because our daughter and her family were there from Australia for a rare visit. My visit with them was very short.

In late February Ray and Ethan arrived back here and the motorhome has been driven only for maintenance upkeep since.

And I guess we are no longer “full-timers” because we moved back into our house – minus all our stuff, of course, since we got rid of mostly everything when we made our ill-fared decision to go full-time. But the house isn’t empty. Oh, no! Our middle and younger daughters, who were to “rent” the house from us until we sold it have left what seems to be most of their worldly possessions here while moving on – one with a new husband and one …just moving.  

We sleep on a bed that belongs to our younger daughter that is not near as good as either our old bed or our motorhome bed. We sit on furniture we gave our middle daughter years ago when we got newer stuff. We do have Ethan’s bed & furniture.  We have various pieces of furniture of the style I call second-hand dorm. But it was live here among the stuff the kids left or live on the side of the interstate in our motorhome’s storage space at the local RV park.

No one was paying rent or utilities on the house but us. So why live on the side of the highway in our motorhome if we had to be “home” anyway?

At least we were here to see the lilacs bloom this year.

 
While living here last summer and fall our daughters were going to really fix up the place for us. They must have gotten busy or forgotten. It didn’t turn out that way. 

So, I haven’t been anxious to write in my blog about full-time RVing when it seems all we do full-time is put out fires here at home, in the stick and brick we thought would be sold by now. I guess it’s a good thing it isn’t. I’m glad, too, that we at least kept the lawn mower, though neither of us has much motivation to use it. That was just another thing we thought we were free of – lawn care. One of these days…

And to top off everything, the 13-year old who was once the first in the rig, loved homeschool, and didn’t care where we went or when, has become a junior high socialite and likes school, has a girlfriend, and lots of other friends, and doesn’t want to travel. Of course, it’s not his choice. But have any of you traveled with a sullen teenager? Oh, fun.  

Still, we hope to be back on the road again very soon. We told Ethan he is traveling this summer. Fall is yet to be decided. We’ll be going west again to pick up some areas we missed on our 8,000 mile exploration in 2012. This will be a shorter jaunt, but we will spend more time in each place. I’m almost afraid to admit to plans, for fear we’ll have to break them again, but our expected hit the road date is May 23. Pray we get to go this time!

We’re going out I-40 into New Mexico, then up to Santa Fe, Taos, then to Durango to leave the rig somewhere and up to Ouray, eventually to Four Corners, picking up as many National Parks and Monuments as we feel like. I know we will visit Zion and Arches. Then we’ll go over to Grand Canyon for a while. We’ve been there, so we may try the north side this time. After staying in Arizona and/or Colorado as long as we want, we’ll mosey back toward home.

So, we’re still out here, still RVing when we can and still hoping a time will come when we don’t need to be tethered to a hometown. And I still hate packing and unpacking the motorhome enough for that alone to make me want the full-time life. For now, though, we’ll take what we can get because part-time RVing is better than none!

Great Service at Matheny Motors’ Freightliner Service Center

I could be wrong. Yeah, it’s unusual, but true.

It had become obvious something was not right with our Fleetwood Discovery’s steering. Traveling in the Appalachians for a few days made it abundantly clear – though not in a good way. Ray is pretty good driving it, but he admitted it’s a high concentration job that requires constant focus. I tried it once and said, “never mind, “ but it has galled me that I’m not comfortable taking the wheel. After all, I drove for a living half my life and I can usually drive anything that rolls.

In West Virginia, after miles of construction zones with narrow lanes, we’d had enough and decided to get to a Freightliner Certified Service Center, find the problem, and -whatever it was- get it fixed. We called Freightliner and were surprised to find several nearby service centers. First, in South Charleston, the shop manager told us to take it to West Virginia Spring and Radiator for front end work. We didn’t understand WVSR is owned by the same firm, Matheny Motors, which owns the Freightliner dealer, so got cold feet about taking it to a non-Freightliner Service Center for something as crucial as the front end. We opted to call Matheny Motors Freightliner in, of all things, the tiny town of Kenova, WV. The guy we talked to was friendly and said sure, we could bring it in that afternoon. That was a surprise.

Because it’s the way things go with RVs, as we started to leave Huntington/Fox Fire KOA, a “low water” warning lit up when Ray cranked the engine. Well, all the more reason to get things addressed. We added water and proceeded the short distance to Kenova. As I was following in the car, I saw water leaking out of the RV, but thankfully, he didn’t get a warning light and we made it to Kenova without incident.

We were pleased to be finally addressing something we should have addressed 4 or 5 thousand miles ago.  One of us wasn’t pleased for long.

First, they wouldn’t let us stay in the motor home while they looked at it, (like they did at Tom Diehl Freightliner in Jacksonville, FL) and secondly, they wouldn’t let us bring our cat and dog inside the lounge. It was hot and sitting outside without air conditioning wasn’t feasible for our old dog. As for the cat, “meow, MEOW, Mrrow,” she said, which means, “if you think I’m coming out from under this sofa without a fight, you’ve got another think coming, lady.” Our part-Siamese cat is very good at making her desires and dislikes known and we have the bites, scratches and shredded rugs to prove it. Well, she doesn’t scratch me anymore since I unceremoniously launched her across the room with a cuffing when she once attacked me savagely. Everyone else is fair game, though, and she routinely plots and carries out kill strikes on the dog, Ray and Ethan.

We dug her from under the sofa, and then with poor Teddy, our 14-year-old neurotic Bichon Frise, put them both in the car. The car is their least favorite place to be. The cat loses so much hair it looks like it’s snowing. The dog usually becomes ill. Oh, fun. Anyway, I had to sit in the car with them with the air conditioner running (good thing it’s a hybrid and only starts the motor when the battery needs charging). I tried to drink coffee, but cat hair kept getting in my coffee or going up my nose. Really.

We told them not to do any work without first giving us an estimate.   The estimate was $1800. It needed a drag link and an alignment. Labor was the biggest factor. It also needed a new water reservoir tank because the old one was cracked from dry rot (don’t buy a motor home if it sat unused for a long time, but that’s another story). The estimated time to finish the work was sometime between Friday and Tuesday, depending on how soon the parts arrived and whether they got “really busy with trucks”. It was Wednesday.

The worst part, though, was that we couldn’t stay in our motor home and would have to go a hotel. They told us we could stay in it if we wanted, but they would have to lock us in their compound – because their usually automatically opening gate was on the fritz and they were using a massive dump truck to secure the compound. Being locked in wasn’t an option for us. Or, we could take the motor home to a campground, stay in it, but have it back very early the next morning – like 7:30 or some other ridiculous time. I don’t do mornings well, and I couldn’t imagine moving out with the dog and cat at 7:30 a.m. Someone would get hurt.

None of it sounded good to me, especially since no matter what, I would be in the car all day with the animals, and maybe more than one day. So, we decided to get a hotel which allows pets, leave the motor home, and Ray could go in the a.m. to see what the story was on the rig.

Now, I hate hotels except maybe for the Ritz or something like that. No, not even that. I especially hate hotels which allow pets. They charge exorbitant pet fees, put one in a usually smoked in, peed in, often flea infested, “pet room.” Yuck!

However, the drag link issue could be a serious one, since it could fail us in a sudden event on the highway. And the motor home won’t run well without the prescribed amount of water and antifreeze, and won’t run at all if the reservoir fails totally and the water escapes.

Well, dang it. We went to a hotel. I hated every second of it and had a mini-breakdown once we were there. True to form, the pet rooms weren’t the nicest. Heck, the whole hotel (the only one for miles which took pets) wasn’t one I would normally have chosen. I was afraid of the bedspreads and afraid to lie on the pillows. I searched feverishly for bed bugs, found a hair on a bath towel that didn’t belong to any of us, and generally went into wacko-crazy lady obsessive compulsive mode. I wanted Lysol. No, I wanted to leave!

“I want to go home and I want to stay home! I don’t want to do this anymore!” I told Ray.

I guess I got on his last nerve, because he retorted, I thought rather grumpily, with, “you don’t have a home.”

I begged Ray to go there the next morning and tell them we wanted our motor home. I shared my concerns with my favorite RV face book group, Living the RV Dream, from my agitated perspective, and many agreed that this service center didn’t seem concerned about getting us back in our motor home or quickly back on the road. I showed Ray the responses. “Either Friday or Tuesday,” I kind of’ yelled. “I’m not staying in a motel until Friday and certainly not until Tuesday”!  I may or may not have said something about taking the car and leaving my dear husband, the pets, and the motor home in West Virginia.

But Ray, ever the cooler head, just went to sleep on the bed used previously by unknown occupants and told me we’d see in the morning. I spread a towel, (they disinfect those, don’t they?) on a pillow and finally fell into an uneasy light sleep.

Ray left for Matheny Motors without waking me. He was back in an hour and said he told them not to start work on it unless they could have it done at the end of the day. He was firm and they agreed. No more hotel nights. He assured me they’d get us out that afternoon. I made it abundantly clear to my dearly beloved that I would not be spending the day in the car with the animals. He and Ethan agreed we would take turns.

Well before closing time, we had an invoice for $200 less than the estimate. But the water reservoir hadn’t come in with the drag link. They had lubricated the rig, the drag link was replaced, and an alignment was done. The front alignment was ok, but as we suspected, the rear alignment was way off and was the reason I’d noticed the motor home didn’t seem to track exactly straight when I was following it. It was so bad some kind of washers had to be removed and re-welded.

We drove only a few miles down the road before Ray declared it drove like a new motor home. I only wish we had addressed it sooner. Interestingly, several people, including our dealer, told us the loosey-goosey steering was normal, because “it’s an older motor home.”

Don’t let anyone tell you that!  It is not normal. If it’s hard to drive, there is something wrong and you need to find a Freightliner dealer like Matheny Motors, with front-end specialists willing to dig deep and take all day, if necessary, to diagnose the problem. I now feel like an idiot for fussing about the diagnosis time. If it really had been a week in the shop, it would have been worth it.

Usually, my assessments about places with which we do business are accurate, and usually, too, Ray goes along with me because I’m a pretty good (cynical, skeptical) judge of such things. I must have been having a bad day, because I couldn’t have been more mistaken about Matheny Motors. The unwillingness or inability to commit to a time to have the work done was a red flag for me. I wanted to bolt after that and many RV friends agreed. (Sorry, guys, I led you astray). It turned out that the time frame was negotiable.

Ray was right this time, but I’m only admitting just this one time. I’ve tried to teach him to just listen to me and everything will be fine, because I’m always right. But he hasn’t gotten that down pat yet. In this case – just this ONE case – I’m glad he hasn’t.

After getting our “new” motor home back, we went about 20 miles down the road to the next KOA. The next day, we wondered if our water reservoir had come in to Matheny’s. We called David, who said it had. After a short discussion with him about whether or not we could install it ourselves, we decided to go back and see how difficult it would be to do. Driving 600 miles with a crucial part of the cooling system cracked was not appealing. David said, “come on back and get it and if you want to do it here and you have trouble, we’ll help you.” He added that they’d had a bunch of trucks come in, so they were very busy, but they’d do what they could for us. Now, that impressed me.

David and another technician whose name I didn’t get, carried our new water reservoir out to us. We had the back open and were surveying the situation. It looked a little scarier than I expected. The guys said they had all the necessary tools and if we needed a tool, they’d loan it to us. Again, I was impressed with the service and the helpful attitude.

We hadn’t started, other than to clean up the ledge behind the motor so we could get to the job without getting filthy, when David reappeared. He had good news! Jeff, the general manager had said the guy who worked on our motor home the day before could take time to install our new water reservoir as soon as he finished the job he was doing. Whoopee!

As it turned out, getting the old one off was quite a chore, it had many cracks, and the tech sure earned his money.

Despite my initial misgivings, Friday afternoon we were happily on our way in our “feels like new” motor home, and with a brand new water reservoir to boot. This business of addressing and fixing stuff and enjoying the relief it brings could be habit-forming.

I would highly recommend Matheny Motors in Kenova, West Virginia, or any of Matheny’s locations. They take very good care of business. Their techs know what they are doing.

The only downside, and we told them this, was that they aren’t what Freightliner calls “an Oasis Center,” so they aren’t set up to handle full-timers. Hopefully, they will consider changing this. The lounge has a huge TV, big overstuffed recliners, free snacks, soft drinks, coffee, etc., and is extremely comfortable for working or relaxing.   There is excellent free WIFI.

If only pets were allowed. We were told the “no pets” in the lounge rule came about because someone brought in a flea-infested dog and caused major flea problems in the lounge. They do ordinarily allow RVers to stay in their rigs overnight. Once the gate is fixed to allow ingress and egress, it won’t be a problem.

Not only would I recommend Matheny Motors Freightliner Service Center to others, but we would go out of our way to return to have our motor home serviced when we’re in this part of the country. Before we left, they felt like family, and they cared about our safety on the road. As much as I hated the night in the hotel, I admit it was worth it.   Their work was great, their prices a little less than normal, and they gave us a price break on the labor they expended to replace our water reservoir. Even without the hookups and provision for pets for those of us who ply the highways full-time, I have no reservations in saying Matheny Motors certified Freightliner service is great.

Ask for David.  He’s one of the good guys we too infrequently meet while obtaining services these days.

Part Two: A Great Day at Niagara

Yesterday is on my list of best days.  We took the famous boat ride on Maiden of the Mist to the base of the falls.  The day before, we had watched from the top of the falls as the boats entered the whirlpools, rapids and current at the base of the falls. But watching from above is nothing compared to actually being aboard.

Rainbow at the base of American Falls

We waited until about 6 p.m. to board, and were surprised to find there was no wait at all.  Maybe the chilly late afternoon discouraged people or maybe it’s just a good time of day to take the 20-minute cruise.  Whatever the reason, we were pleased, since we had previously noticed long lines.

The buildings, roads and landscaping around Niagara Falls may be worn and in need of maintenance – but there is nothing wrong with the falls! They tumble, rumble, create both mists and rainbows, and generally create a huge natural ruckus, just as God intended.

Surreal so near a rainbow nearing the bow of Horseshoe Falls

Ray and I were both thrilled by the boat ride.  If we hadn’t taken it, we would not have really seen and experienced Niagara Falls.  If we hadn’t waited until late in the afternoon we probably would have been crowded on the boat.  We saw it so loaded earlier in the day that it appeared people had trouble finding a place to stand by the rails.  As it was, we weren’t the least bit crowded and could walk around freely on the deck, although near the falls walking was a bit of a trick.  I did not fall on the wet deck; praise the Lord, even though I walked across it several times.

When the skilled captains and their crew bring the open boat as close as possible to the roaring mighty falls, it’s a drenching, with the boat rocking and rolling and the falls at a deafening roar. I was sticking my wet iPhone up in the air in the general direction of Horseshoe Falls at one point, but I had no idea if I was getting photos, and at the time, I was so excited I didn’t much care.  The experience is so awesome it’s a miracle I remembered to shoot photos at all.  Amazingly, they came out much better than I expected.

We had seen from the top of the falls that the boats use what seems to be full power from two engines to remain at the base of the falls against the raging current.  When the Maiden starts to turn, it’s amazing to watch the panorama that unfolds as the plucky little boat turns her side to the falls. It seems almost impossible that a couple of motors would provide enough power to come that close to so much power – 600,000 gallons per second falling from a height of 176 feet.  Niagara is the second largest falls on the earth – second only to Victoria Falls in South Africa. One feels very small.  At the very closest point to the falls, deep in the bow of Horseshoe Falls, the narrator on the boat announced over the roar, “Ladies and gentlemen, THIS is Niagara Falls.” It gave me goose bumps.

Soon after we began the trip upriver we began seeing rainbows over the falls.  I don’t know if it was the time of day or if they’re always there, but the rainbows – so close and bright amidst aquamarine water and white mist, and below a bright blue sky dotted with white clouds -were incredibly beautiful.

Rainbows abound at the falls

So, yes, I liked the Maid of the Mist a lot.  The men and women who get those boats up there safely again and again every day and make it possible for so many to see the falls from that magical place, have all my respect.

I also enjoyed the observation deck we crossed to access the elevator down to the boats. Ray didn’t share my excitement that I could look straight down at the churning, whirling river.  He claims he has no fear of heights – only a fear of falling.  My strong, silent, and stoic husband didn’t whimper or show any reluctance to walk with me on the narrow walkway high in the air, but he stared straight ahead and walked as far as possible from the edge.

Other things during our afternoon adventures included the Cave of Winds and the Hurricane Deck.  We got wet again.  Really, really wet.  I managed, with my old creaky knees, to make it all the way up to the Hurricane Deck to get pounded by the falls. It’s much more than mist, as parts of Bridal Veil Falls are above and “raining” down upon the deck, and other parts are flowing beneath the deck and sending up mist and splashes from below.   It was fun and we laughed and acted like two children playing in the downpour.  Just like on the boat, my rain hood wouldn’t stay put, but kept falling over my face, so I pulled it off and looked like a drowned rat as a consequence.  And I couldn’t have cared less.

After our water adventures, we rode the trolley back to the Discovery Center where we had parked. We chose the back car, which is sort of like a little trailer, probably without shocks. Oh my aching bones, it was a rough ride.  At the Discovery Center we saw a short piece about the formation of the falls.  Later, at the Niagara Adventure Theater we saw a more detailed movie about human history in the falls area.

In retrospect, we’d skip the cheesy simulated elevator ride at the Discovery Center.  It’s boring, with poor video, so we could have saved the 8 minutes it took to experience it.  It’s narrated and is supposed to be like a ride on a failing elevator.  It’s not.  It’s like being stuck in a slightly dirty overcrowded room with a bunch of strangers watching a 19-inch TV.

I hate to say it, but watch out for the bathrooms, too, in and around the Discovery Center and in several other areas of the park.  They’re nasty with peeling paint and floors that look like they haven’t seen a mop in days – or weeks. Maybe the jobs that included picking up trash or cleaning bathrooms were eliminated by budget cuts.

We visited the aquarium and saw an entertaining sea lion show and some aquatic exhibits, but being from Florida and having visited many aquariums, it was very small by comparison.  My favorite critters were the poison dart frogs which are, as the exhibit information noted, beautiful but deadly.

Poison Dart Frogs

Hurricane Deck

There’s a beautiful spot along the river just upstream from the falls in front of the theater. We noticed lots of people settling in there on blankets and benches right before dark.  I’m sure they were waiting until dark; when the lights come on to illuminate the falls.  I’m equally sure it’s beautiful, but we’ll save that for another day.  We were exhausted.

We’re glad we came here now rather than later.  There’s a lot of walking to see Niagara Falls State Park, and the trolley stops in general areas, but considerable distances from the falls and attractions.  There are many steps or ramps, so I’m not sure we would have been able to see it all if we get much older or creakier.   Niagara is a place to visit while one is still young – like us.

Wet on the Hurricane Deck

My knees are bound to complain tomorrow.

Oh, New York State, How Could You?

We arrived yesterday at Four Mile Creek State Park, about 14 miles from Niagara Falls, and although the falls are one of the most beautiful, breathtaking, glorious things I’ve seen in my life, the trip through Buffalo to get here was one of the ugliest, most difficult, and bumpiest we’ve experienced.

Actually, it was so bad that before we arrived here and got settled into this very beautiful campground on Lake Ontario, I was ready to give and go home and I think Ray felt the same.

Buffalo, NY, along the river is not pretty and not easy.

Buffalo – or at least the part we traveled through to reach Niagara – is ugly.  There’s no other way to put it.  It’s ugly.  The port area where we came in is littered with abandoned industrial-type businesses.  One was a steel mill which appeared to have been abandoned for decades.  Along the port are several hulking abandoned buildings which appear to have once housed various industries. Their windows are broken or boarded and their paint is peeling.  Graffiti adorns their outer walls and warehouse doors. They remind me of skeletons or of the old buildings featured in action/crime movies where the villain puts the hero through all kinds of dangerous and deadly old machines, rusty walkways, and dark ambushes before someone is finally forced out a broken window up five or six stories.  Why don’t they condemn and raze them?

Old, abandoned buildings alongside the water litter the waterfront coming into Buffalo.

The roads were terrible.  To be fair, many were under construction, but it was obvious not a lot was being done and virtually nothing has been done for many years.  We thought the motor home might literally jolt to pieces and didn’t even want to think about the beating our little car was taking as we alternatively fell into and bounced out of one concrete lined pothole after another.  There were a number of interesting buildings, and I’m sure it would look much better in many areas of town – but the face Buffalo shows to a visitor coming in near the river is far from fetching.  I did, however, appreciate this brewery and grill’s attempt to dress up the drab and ugly landscape.

We finally turned on Robert Moses Parkway, which takes one up to Lake Ontario’s shores and to the park.  I was expecting it to be better.  After all, it is the main route to one of the nation’s biggest attractions.  The falls are second only to Victoria Falls in South Africa in size, so they are rather a big deal. One would think there were be a decent road to them.  Not so.

Tomorrow, I’ll talk about the falls, even though their glorious beauty is indescribable, but today I’m still overwhelmed by the conditions on “our” side of the falls.  When I announced that we would be coming here, a friend said the American side is “deplorable,” and I thought surely he was exaggerating.  But he was not.  New York should be ashamed, and the whole country should be ashamed, that a gem like Niagara Falls should be in an area of such deterioration.

Even the Niagara State Park and the areas closest to the falls have haphazard construction areas, fences and idle equipment.  Obviously there were to be improvements and even more of a mess has been made by starting a construction project right on the banks of the falls.  If there was evidence of progress being made, I think we, like most others, wouldn’t mind the construction, the closed areas, the fences, the ugly sandbags to keep mud off the walkways and the narrowed paths.  However, equipment sat idle today (a Tuesday afternoon) and there was no sign of anyone working on anything.  Beautiful old buildings were obscured by construction equipment and ugly temporary fences.  Niagara Falls State Park is the oldest state park in the nation, and one of the most visited.  Surely New York can do better by it. People are visiting from all over the world, and God forbid this is all they see of America.

Trash is everywhere, even on the banks immediately over and around the falls.  It appears no one  picks up trash and no one is concerned about littering.  Cigarette butts, paper wrappers, bottles and cans litter the whole park.  It made us sad.  If New York can’t do better than this, the treasure that is Niagara Falls should be taken away and given to the National Park Service to run.  At least the National Parks are by and large not covered with litter.

The city of Niagara Falls one goes through to get to the falls is no better.  Seedy is a good word.  There are many empty buildings and lots of messy, dangerous looking areas right near the park.  We took a wrong turn and ended up in a scary slum just a few blocks from the park. It was a large area of littered sidewalks, empty buildings and storefronts, crumbling houses, and a few pathetic stores and restaurants, none of which I would have willingly entered.  And again, the streets were obstacle courses with potholes big enough to swallow a goat.

Later this week, we will go over to the Canadian side of the falls, which we are told, is well-kept and pristine.  We’re looking forward to it, but I’m sure I will still feel sad about the condition of our side. It says nothing positive about the U.S.

The falls are wonderful and the American side has a lot of the water and access to seeing both the American Falls and the even more impressive Horseshoe Falls.  I could stand and look at the actual river and its white and aquamarine swells, ledges, and rapids all day – but I have to look out beyond the litter to enjoy the beauty of one of the world’s awe-inspiring wonders.  It’s inexcusable and the government of New York State should be ashamed.

It turns out my friend’s description was apt.  Deplorable is a good description of the conditions of the park and the town of Niagara Falls – not to mention the route through Buffalo.

The falls, though, the gorgeous falls…I’m still processing their effect on me and the sight of them I’ll no doubt never forget.

Dyersburg is Beautiful, But Not Our Favorite

A very nice pocket park with electrical outlets, restrooms, and maybe even wifi, is across from the courthouse square next to a very old hardware store.

I was determined we were going through Dyersburg, Tennessee. I’m a history buff and a nut about pre-civil war houses. When I read there were 45 places on the National Registry of Historical Places in and around the town square I knew we were going to travel too close not to visit.

Dyersburg, Tennessee’s historic courthouse was burned in the 1800s by a confederate soldier (the marker doesn’t tell anymore of the story), but built back even grander just a few years later.

We pulled in and it looked as if they’d put a shiny new Wal-Mart  Supercenter there just for us. The parking lot was huge. There were several trucks parked and no signs indicating we weren’t welcome. Way over to one side, there was even unused space with shade and a grassy area. Figuring we better stay out of the old town square area with the rig, we made ourselves at home among some big trucks. No jacks or slides were deployed, of course. I hate it when people do that on parking lots!

We hadn’t been parked long when we realized we’d parked in the local kids’ donut-cutting range. We didn’t feel we could complain since we were parked for free, so we settled down hoping we wouldn’t loose any pieces of the Discovery or our car because of some kid’s miscalculation of the skid. All their parents must own stock in tire companies because it seemed there was a contest to see how much rubber could be burned.

1864 Church in Dyersburg. It’s an amazing building.

The other development was a circling of the wagons, well, mostly pickup trucks, with one or two BIG confederate flags flying.  The group was maybe just local kids out for summer and hanging out together – but it had an “in your face” feeling to it which caused me to feel slightly uncomfortable.

Later, when we visited the town square and the beautiful & impressive courthouse and grounds, we got an idea what may have riled up the group at WalMart .

There’s an empty flagpole. I suspect it was the Confederate flag which was missing, because the American Flag, Tennessee Flag, and several others were still flying.  I’ve been out of touch with news lately since we’ve been on a “destination” run. Did Tennessee order the rebel flags down? I don’t know, but if so, it appears some of the locals are not happy about it.

It’s hard to see here, but one flagpole has no flag. We suspect the confederate flag is missing.

The whole square is dedicated to veterans and the town even has a Veterans’ Museum. I’d like to visit the museum. I bet it is interesting. One thing is certain, it’s a very patriotic place and a locale where veterans are deeply respected.

By far the biggest monument to veterans among many was the one homoring Confederate Veterans. I know it’s their heritage and an important part of our history, but I’m not sure I would have felt comfortable either on the Walmart parking lot or at the square if I was not caucasian.

Monument to Confederate Soldiers is the most prominent monument on the square.

I’m sorry to say that among some of the most beautiful historic architecture I’ve seen in any town, wild kids with big pickups flying Rebel flags will still be my main impressions of Dyersburg.

I don’t know the town – and before anyone gets upset about my first impressions – realize we were only there one night.  I’m not saying anything is wrong – just saying I’m afraid this will be my memory of the place.

As for the historical structures, which include churches, public buildings, commercial structures , and, oh yes, the magnificent homes, Dyersburg is a treasure. The classic revival courthouse alone, with its dome, clocks on four sides, and huge stately columns  surrounded by monuments memorializing our veterans, is a great sight to see.

Cannon on the square near the monuments honoring Veterans.

All in all Dyersburg is a lovely town filled with many historically significant buildings. As for the culture, I’m not so sure I care for it.  And it may only be a rowdy few.  But, bottom line, it’s their town and I’m just an observant passerby.

Moving On…Finally

For the first time since March, when we got home from Florida, we’re finally about to fire up our Fleetwood Discovery and hit the road. It seems its been years instead of months! Unfortunately, while we’ve been dealing with one crisis after another here in Arkansas, my blog had to be put on the back burner.

This will be our first outing since our motorhome became our only home. It’s different. For one thing, I won’t be up all night loading the RV. When we were half-timers the night before leaving was terrible. We’d always leave exhausted. Tonight, I’m just stowing things away, basically battening down and putting away clutter. Compared to loading and unloading when we had a house and an Airstream travel trailer, this is so easy.

Ray, who doesn’t share my night owl tendencies, is in bed at his normal time. Dishes are put away, storage boxes hold loose stuff (not that we have much anymore) and the lawn chairs are back in the bays. Awnings down. Jacks will go up in the morning, satellite dish will come down.

Those who have never had a  “stick & brick” and an RV and moved back and forth, living in each a few months at a time, will never understand how much easier this is. No more, “are you sure the griddle (or weather radio, shower shoes, printer, etc.) is in the RV or did we bring it home?” No more wondering what clothes to take. What we have is in the motorhome. No more phone calls to stop the papers, put cable on vacation mode, arrange for lawn mowing, etc.  I still can’t believe it’s this easy!

What is not easy is leaving my mom, 85, and newly widowed.  My precious and cherished stepdad passed away two weeks ago. The illness and passing of my stepdad was and is sad.  He was my mom’s heart – her best friend and constant companion.  They had a good life together and she is lost and lonely.  She will miss him terribly.  We will, too.  We may be going back through Arkansas a little quicker than we normally would – just to spend time with mom.

It also has not been easy either physically or emotionally to sell, give away, or finally, just throw away most of what we own.  We were pretty ruthless and I can’t honestly say I haven’t had some sad second thoughts about some of the “things” that have been with me most of my life. But they were just things and I’m getting over it so fast I’m now throwing stuff out of the motorhome, too.  As other full-timers told us, it is very freeing to unload a lifetime of debris.

Meanwhile, one of our daughters (you know who you are), decided that while we were making a major lifestyle change would be a good time to stir things up with several calamities.  They moved, too. We only helped the first time – and that was silly of us, anyway.  They now rent our house, which seems to be working out well for all concerned – and will be even better once we’ve left town and will no longer be attending what our friend, author Nick Russell, calls “dog and pony shows”.  The prime (and often participating) audience is going to be missing for the next few episodes.

Seriously, we love and adore our kids.  But they are grown and their life expectancies far exceed ours.  After Ray’s heart attack last summer, and my stepdad’s passing, we are more aware than ever that it’s time to do what we want to do.

So we are sad to be leaving mom for a little while, but happy as larks to leave the two local daughters to do their own things. They occupy themselves with great outings –  like canoeing the currently almost raging Buffalo River National River, at FLOOD stage. Decisions to do things like that are best not known to parents until long after the fact – if at all.  And getting into any kind of trouble once one is over 30, also falls under the category of things we have no need to know.  The mom and dad rescue team has left the state. Ta-ta. We love you. Take care!

We do have a grandson aboard. But we’re headed to Ohio to drop him off with his dad. And anyway, he’s a good RVer, has been with us much of his life, and has yet to float the Buffalo at flood.  Basically, he has no dog and pony show yet.

So, finally, dang it, we’re off. Homeless except for this white behemoth! It’s high time!

We came in from Florida, stored our motorhome here, sold our stuff until there wasn’t a bed left in the house, and then moved into the motorhome – and  got stuck living in it parked where we usually store it, at the local Good Sam RV Park. Let me tell you, living in one’s Motorhome, on the side of the interstate, in one’s hometown, is not a lot of fun!  It kind of has all the disadvantages of full-time living and none of the advantages – like traveling!

On the good side, there are a lot of fulltimers, mostly young folks, who are parked here while they work construction jobs in the area and they tend to make good neighbors. They don’t have or care about smoky campfires!  And they don’t have noisy drunken parties.  Both are pet peeves of mine.

If I’ve learned anything it’s that nothing is certain, and tomorrow may completely change our lives.  We all must choose how we want to live and do it right now. My mom’s choice is to be at home where she’s lived most of her life.  For us, the choice is roaming around the country with no house waiting at home to be maintained.  We may not always want to live as nomads with no particular plans most of the time, but for now, it’s the right thing.

What is a Toad Suck?

“You’re staying where?” or “what is a toad suck?” were among the responses whenever we mentioned where we camped after arriving home from Florida.   It’s actually a very nice Corps of Engineers campground on the Arkansas River which is really named Toad Suck.  Nope.  I’m not kidding.  That’s the name of the park & campground and also the name of a very popular festival which is now held in nearby Conway but in the past was held on the riverbank at Toadsuck.

We’ve been home a little over two weeks and parked there so we could be near our RV dealer for some work on the rig and near our 2 children and grandchildren, who live in Conway.  We’ve moved on now to Morrilton, where our “stick and brick” house  is located and where my mother & stepfather live.  We got tired of the 20-something mile trip back and forth “home” to work on the house. Isn’t it amazing that whatever one needs when at the house is always in the motorhome?  Unless we are at the motorhome, and then the item we need is certainly at the house!  I will be very glad when we have only the wheeled house.  This shuffling isn’t fun.

But we had a good stay at Toad Suck and, it’s a good place to camp while in Central Arkansas and much cheaper than our state parks.  I saw some less than complimentary reviews on some sites, but the park has obviously been improved since they were written.  We found it to be a great campground.

It’s extremely convenient to Conway, which has just about anything anyone could need.  It isn’t far from Little Rock (about 30 miles) And it is a beautiful, peaceful, and inexpensive place.  It’s quiet at night except for the occasional siren from the dam, signaling a rise in the river or that the lock is closing.  There is some traffic from the fishing area.  We stayed in C3, which is a wonderful and roomy site, but it is situated where headlights from the boat ramp and fishing parking lot shined straight at us as many fishermen left the river after dark.  We heard there had been some trouble with unauthorized people in the park at night, and various illegal activities, but we didn’t see anything and all was well during our stay.  There are more people in the park during the day, and there are frequent parties and get-togethers at the pavilions, but those end around dinner time if not earlier.

There are campsites both north and south of the bridge and up on a ridge away from the river, too.  The sites up in Section D, away from the river but huge shady spots and offering views of the river, are large and seem to be level.  Section A is north of the bridge/dam and has very small site – really more suited to tents, very small trailers or popups. Many of them do not appear one could level a rig with more than one axle.  Sections B and C are both on the river south of the bridge and offer large, mostly level sites.  The sites across the road from the riverbank in both sections are larger and more level.  The sites right on the bank tend to be smaller and many of them are sloped ramps.  Some of the picnic tables are covered as our was, while others are open.  Some sites feature concrete patios, but not all.  All sites have grated fire rings and campfires are a very popular activity. There are lots of places to bike and best of all, there’s a little store at the entrance to the park.  It’s Toad Suck One Stop and has gas, some camping goods, and typical convenience store finds.  It’s really handy for forgotten items.  It also makes sandwiches to order, and has a deli counter as well, where there’s a good variety of lunch meats.  If you stand around a while, you’ll quickly hear what baits the fishing are biting and a lot of tall fish stories.

It’s very hard to see, thanks to my iPhone camera, but this is my meager proof. That is an American Bald Eagle mid-photo, slightly to the right, sitting on a jetty in the river. He stayed there almost an hour.

 

There are lots of stories about how the name Toad Suck came about, but historians disagree and no one really knows.  There was a tavern on the side of the river during ferry boat days where river workers were said to hang  out.  Some say the name came from people in the area, none too happy with the hard-drinking river workers, who would say the river men came to the bar and sucked on alcohol until they swelled  up like toads.  There’s a historical marker where the tavern once stood.  It was destroyed by a tornado in the early 1900s.  One historian says Toad Suck is an Arkansas version of a French name once given the place.  Others have different stories, including one about a “toadly” built ferryboat pilot who drank himself into oblivion most nights by “sucking” on a bottle in front of the tavern.  No matter how it came to be, Toad Suck it is.  I lean toward the distortion of a French name.  After all, nearby is the state’s crown jewel park, Petit Jean State Park, which is known and pronounced in Arkansas as  “Petty Gene.”

Historical marker where the Toad Suck Tavern once stood.

 

No matter how it got its name, its a neat place and a good campground.  We had a damp and dreary Easter Sunday while there with four of our grandchildren and two of our daughters.  But even in the rain, we had a good time and the heavy rain held off until after the Easter Egg hunt, although the picnic had to be held in the motorhome and the kids didn’t get as much bank-fishing time with Grampa as they would have liked.

 

Other days were sunny and warm and the kids enjoyed the three playgrounds and the many places to ride bicycles.  The bathrooms in the section we stayed in were clean and appeared to be new.  The trees in the campground are really interesting and some almost seem to be waiting to be climbed.  Many trees are so big they must be hundreds of years old and undoubtedly weathered many floods before the dams were built that made the river navigable and allowed the Corps to control flooding.  I’m unable to identify most of them, although I did see sweet gum trees, oaks, and some pine, but mostly hardwood.  When we arrived the trees were still bare.  When we left a little over two weeks later the park had turned fully to spring and the new leaves on the trees were a study in wonderful fresh shades of green.

It was only in the mid-1960s that the ferry at Toadsuck was replaced with a high bridge.  The crossing was scary to me as a kid and the river still scares me a little bit.  This is no place to go for a swim and is only for experienced boaters with boats worthy of the currents and hazards of the river.  I saw some boats put in at the busy launching ramp that appeared too small for the river, and I would not have wanted to go out on them.  The water coming out of the dam is sometimes a frightening deluge, and boaters are warned to stay away by relatively infrequent alarms and sirens that can be heard on the campground.  The fishing must be very good, because there are always boats being put in and usually people are fishing on the banks and jetties.  At night, the lanterns of the people fishing for monster catfish (and the river has them in droves) dot the jetties and banks on both sides of the river.

It has been a busy, sometimes frustrating time since we got home, but we finally seem to be making progress.  Along with the work on the rig, driving back and forth between house and rig, and the celebration of Easter, we’ve also had an orthodontist appointment for Ethan to get his lower braces, got him ready and took him for his 6th grade assessment test, torn up a brand new Michelin tire on a road hazard, (subject of another blog)  and believe it or not, helped our daughters move to their new place.

Oh, and did I mention we’ve helped our daughters move during the time we’ve been here?  I know I repeated myself, but it just bears repeating since I’m still tired and my writing time has been non-existent.  Of all things we didn’t want to have to do, helping anyone move was probably near the top of the list.  But, they’re our kids… and we love them madly.  Well, most of the time, anyway.

I’m about ready to  hit the road again and put all this work off until the next time we come home.  But it’s spring, and not too hot like it will be in a month or two, and sooner or later, we have to do this.  I feel like I’m stuck in a cage…and not a clean cage, either, but a cluttered, overfilled, and overwhelming cage with too much stuff!  And the bed isn’t as good as the one in the motorhome.  But the pets love their pet door and the freedom to go in and out at will, and we like being here with my mom and stepdad.  And the grandchildren make it all better.

On a good day at Toad Suck Campground, this was my glorious view from a reclining lawn chair. Now, that’s living!

The contractors should be around in a day or two to give dreaded estimates on what we need to do to get the house ready to sell, and the boxes are mounting, as well as the stuff piled on the carport for the dreaded yard sale.  Did I mention I hate yard sales and once uttered a string of those silly words that always have to be eaten? I think I said something along the lines of, “I will never have another yard sale as long as I live!”  That’s not going to be a true statement (I hope) unless I keel over before the first of May.  If I’m lucky I can haul our stuff/junk out there and get those same daughters who were assisted with the move (I swear they waited until we got home) to come sell the stuff.  I don’t do well at that and sometimes have a tendency to be less than sweet to the most annoying of folks. Among my aggravations are those who bring 6 or so kids and stay an hour or two and those nincompoops who bring their dog and trip everyone on its leash.  I’ve been known to just call a charity to come get it all so I can end my suffering.  People in my hidey spaces make me nervous.

Maybe no one would notice if I sneak out to the motorhome and hide during the dreaded event.  I could hide while the work gets done in the house, too.  Aw, I try that all the time, but Ray always finds me!  The great thing about having a motorhome is that if things get too hairy, we can just get in it and flee for the hills – or the beaches, or anywhere but here.  I’m so good at procrastination and it takes on a whole new level when I can put it off until the next trip home.

Way Down Upon The Suwannee River…

We loved the rocking chairs and the quaint office.

We’ve found a new favorite campground!  It’s a peaceful old Florida oasis amid the noisy, over-crowded, congested areas that make up of most of Florida from November until just before Easter. This is a place we could (and may) spend months.  I would almost like to keep it to myself. But it’s too great not to share.

Nice deck on the Suwannee is a good place to spend quiet time.

We’re at Suwannee River Hideaway Campground, located northwest of Old Town – but only about 10 miles from Chiefland – which makes it convenient to about anything one could need.  It’s also within driving distance for day trips to Fanning Springs, Manatee Springs, Cedar Key, and many other destinations.

Loved the boardwalk, but it’s apparent why small children shouldn’t be on it alone. Or clumsy ole women like me, either. But it was worth the slight scare!

I’m so happy here I wish we could stay longer than we will be able to, since we have appointments in Arkansas. This would make a wonderful winter retreat – especially for writing. There are five miles of trails, including a long, long boardwalk over true natural Florida swamp. We went down the boardwalk to the Suwannee this morning, and it was a magical experience among the cypress and ferns. The black water swamp teems with life and one can almost feel the high oxygen content amongst the tangle of trees and vines above the water.   Alligators abound, as do all kinds of birds and other wildlife.

As we were coming out of the trail to the river, we passed a primitive campsite where an artist was at work.  One of the camp hosts said he came to stay overnight, and has now been here a week.  I understand.

Last night I was out stargazing and could have stayed hours if the mosquitoes and I could have come to an agreement.  There were no mosquitoes bothering us on our morning hike although I’m sure that will change as Florida summer threatens.

There are no lights down here except those lighting the showers, laundry room, etc. The stars are so bright!  I haven’t seen night sky like this in a long time.

The park is far from full, as many snowbirds have already headed north.  Sites are large and our neighbors are not close.  No one here seems fond of lights or noise – no porch lights or bright awning lights.  Generators are not allowed. Our windows were open last night and it was cool and comfortable.  The only sounds were crickets, frogs and the occasional night bird or alligator grunt. It’s mating time, and they’re on the move – even into the ponds in the campground.

This really is a “hideaway” and feels heavenly after our recent stint at Whitey’s Fish Camp, which is on a busy road and is great, but a busy, busy place with tiki bars and a famous restaurant.  We’re only a few miles off Highway 19-27 – the main non-interstate highway up the peninsula, but it isn’t the easiest place to find.  One needs either good directions or a good GPS.  We stopped on the long driveway/road in planning to unhook the toad, but a friendly fellow camper stopped and told us there’s plenty of room here and no need to unhook.  That’s the truth!

There’s a small pool, pond, white sand inner roads, a big clubhouse, a quaint office and “store” featuring products from days long gone. There are also lots of flowering plants and some of the friendliest camp hosts we’ve encountered.  There are miles of hiking and biking trails, many big live oak trees with curtains of hanging moss, and palms and palmetto complete the natural Florida look.  Most of the campsites are shady, but not so shady one can’t get a satellite receiver to work.  Our new Direct TV is working great in. Others say Dish also works well here, and the park has cable, too. There’s wifi only at the clubhouse so I’ll have to go there to publish this blog. I have a hotspot, so I have some wifi in the RV, but not a lot. Telephone service isn’t great from the campsite with our AT&T, but we’re able to make and receive calls although the service is spotty.

Prices are reasonable – from $15 to $30 depending on what kind of hook ups one needs. They have everything from big rig 50 amp sites to primitive no-hook up sites and even tent sites. Prices by the week and month are very reasonable.

Morning sunlight filtering into the swamp.

The secondary roads off Highway 19 to Suwannee River Hideaway are all paved until one reaches the campground driveway.  After that it’s hard-packed sand for about a half mile.

We’ll definitely be regular visitors here when traveling to or from South Florida and maybe we’ll even travel here as a destination.  I wouldn’t recommend it in mid-summer, of course.  But I wouldn’t recommend any part of Florida other than the coasts and keys in the summer since inland areas become, in my opinion, almost uninhabitable with humidity, insects and various reptiles.  In fact, this campground shuts down during the midsummer months and reopens in the fall.

It is a Good Sam Park and has a website, www.riverhideaway.com and an email, camping@riverhideaway.com. The address is 1218 SE Highway 346, Old Town, FL 32680

Oh, and they’re looking for camp hosts if anyone is interested.  Compensation includes a free site and free electricity.

Clark’s – An Unusual Place to Visit

Our brother and sister-in-law, Rick and Karen, took us to the most unusual and fun place last night. I’ve not seen anything quite like Clark’s, and I doubt many tourists find it, but it has plenty of customers. We arrived around 5 p.m. and were immediately seated (well, except for me, because I wouldn’t sit down until I explored the place) but there were people waiting to be served by 6:30 or so.

Karen drove us there, and other than gazing at the St. John’s River as we crossed Buckman Bridge, I didn’t pay a lot of attention to the route. The address is 12903 Hood Landing Road, Mandarin, Florida. We went into a residential neighborhood and down a road toward a swampy river bottom. On first view, across a huge parking lot, it appeared to be a rather ordinary looking building. But that changed quickly as we walked closer.

Live alligators and huge turtles are the alternate view if one isn’t mesmerized by the driftwood sea life pieces.

Once you enter the restaurant you’re immediately treated to a huge aquarium holding live fish, turtles, and yes, a live alligator. The rattlesnake seems to be the art of a great taxidermist, thank goodness.

Yep, it’s alive, and inside the quirky restaurant.

Some thought the five-foot alligator waiting in the aquarium to greet (or eat?) diners might be another taxidermist piece. I didn’t think so, especially when the thing’s eyes followed me as I walked by toward the ladies’ room. When we turned to go back to our table, he had moved into the water. Probably, he takes care of complaining snowbirds and unruly children in an unseen part of the aquarium. Just kidding, of course. But if I ran the place and it got too rowdy over by the bars, I’d threaten to free the gator and run them all off into the brackish water. I betcha’ any drunk who fell in would make a quick exit.

View from our table of the St. Johns River close to where it flows into the Atlantic Ocean.

The whole place has an atmosphere that is difficult to describe, so I’m using a lot of photos although even those cannot really convey the feel of the place. There must be hundreds of stuffed and realistically posed animals. I’m not usually much of a fan of dead animals, but one could show a child a lot of species in this place. Some are so realistic they are a bit scary – especially the big cats ready to spring from limbs above one’s head as one is seated at the dinner table!

This driftwood chair is a focal point upon entering..

 It’s a jungle in there. Or, a zoo…no, not a zoo because there are no cages. Given the live alligator in the aquarium and the live alligators outside and beneath us, I kept my guard up for any other quite alive critters that might have mixed in with the stuffed ones. A large part of the restaurant is outside, wide open to the rest of the restaurant, and over the water, I bet there have been incidents. Snakes come to mind, as they aren’t restricted to the water. Dang, I always think about snakes! And, in fact, there is snake on the menu. And gator tail, like it is all over Florida. 

Big cats rest on real limbs, big horn sheep, antelope, deer and many other animals are everywhere! I don’t know if I’m more sad that they are dead or grateful they aren’t alive. If they were alive…we’d be on their menu!

The  menu is huge and an item of interest in itself. We found seafood gumbo offered, as well as the snake and gator. All the usual seafood offerings were available – crab, mahi-mahi, shrimp, lobster, flounder, oysters, salmon, etc.,- but there were also other even more interesting and, uh, some would say unsavory items, like mountain oysters (identified on the menu as Bison Testicles). Hey, and they had catfish – although down here they often serve it whole and I’m not crazy about whole fish..

For folks like me, there were many vegetarian options, as well as chicken and beef, and believe it or not, burgers and fries or French dip sandwiches. I’m not a vegetarian, but I’m not a huge seafood fan, either.

Interesting features included an antique cash register, photos of all the dishes on the menu on a wall leading to the dining room, cool bars both inside a and outside, and I swear, the faint smell of monkeys. I wanted to ask if they were sure the plethora of monkeys, baboons, chimps, lemurs, etc., were all house trained. Walking around the place meant walking under some realistic looking monkey butts, too, and resisting the urge to hurry!

The food? I thought it was good, but I didn’t have seafood. I had the French dip mozzarella smothered sandwich that looked more like a philly and was delicious. Fried onion rings served as an appetizer were scrumptious, and our grandson, Ethan, thought his Mahi-Mahi was even better than that served here at the legendary Whitey’s Fish Camp where we are parked. Karen and Rick and their children, Mike and Tina, didn’t think the food was as delicious as the last time they’d visited. But we had no complaints. Out of that huge – I mean giganticornomous menu, I’m sure just about anyone could find something to like, and if not, that picky person doesn’t belong in a place like this in the first place.

The place is diverse, and includes tattooed young folks looking for a party, biker-types, gussied up snowbirds, locals just off work and still in business attire, whole families and singles who look like they live on the river and have all their lives. Somewhere in the mix might be the artists who did some of the amazing driftwood sculpturing and amazing décor.

I’d love to interview the people that created and run Clark’s and learn how it came to be. There must be many thousands invested in taxidermy alone, not to mention a huge aquarium, a huge kitchen, a basically floating eatery subject to incoming tides and floods, etc.

Interesting place. I highly recommend a visit. It’s as much an attraction as a restaurant. It’s highly subjective whether one finds it tacky, beautiful or something else, but it’s different. Like the great line in Alice’s Restaurant, you can get (most) anything you want at Clark’s Restaurant in Mandarin, Florida – down on the riverbank.

Karen and I, looking beautiful, of course….well, Karen is!