Yesterday we packed up, jumped on I-80 east and made the 306 mile run to Elm Creek, NE. See there everyone, we can drive more than 250 miles in a day! We stayed at Sunny Meadows Campground, a no-frills Passport America park there for $15.
Since we only had 207 miles left to get to Offutt AFB, NE, we took our time and left Elm Creek about 10 AM arriving at the Offutt AFB Famcamp around 3 PM. The driving directions said in order to avoid the sharp turns in the town of Bellevue, we needed to take a less direct route than was indicated by our GPS. Shortly after making the first turn we started getting some light rain and then ran into road construction with mud all over the road. Of course, a lot of that mud mad it's way onto our truck and rig!
After checking in and getting situated in our parking site, we hosed off the trailer and then headed into town to do some laundry. Joyce had hoped to use the laundry facility at the Famcamp but only one washer and dryer was working and the other was being used. Although it usually costs us a few more dollars, we have found that using a commercial laundromat is much more convenient when we have several loads to get done. Our Splendide machine in our trailer just isn't up to the task of doing that much laundry.
We are going to be here for three days and then we'll make our way down to Ozark, MO to visit my youngest brother and family.
08/23/2012
On the 19th we visited the Strategic Air and Space Museum located in Ashland, NE, about 30 miles from Offutt. We decided to take a guided tour of the and are very glad we did. Our docent guide was very knowledgeable about the different aircraft on display but added a lot of color with the interesting stories he told.
After dragging Joyce around looking at old airplanes it was my turn to follow her on a tour of the International Quilt Study Center and Museum in Lincoln, NE. I had no idea that there was such a thing. We also took a guided tour and again, the docent told us little tidbit about the quilts on display, the folks that owned them and the artists who made them. Very interesting.
On the 20th Jake Polski and his beautiful bride Diana drove over from Waukee, IA to see us. I was stationed with Jake at Loring AFB, ME in 1976-1978 and had not seen him in over thirty years. We had a great visit catching up on the lost years.
08/24/2012
Yesterday we drove down to Branson to visit the Titanic Museum. Both Joyce and I have been fascinated with everything Titanic for a long time, having seen the museum at the Luxor in Las Vegas and reading a lot about the accident over the years.
This museum tops the one in Las Vegas with many more artifacts, films and other displays. One of the displays that we found fascinating was the bowl of water that is kept at the temperature of the sea at the time of the sinking. We stuck our hand in, set a timer and tried to leave it there for at least thirty seconds. I lasted about 20 but Joyce didn't even go that long. I can't even imagine what it must have been like being that water for as long as some of the survivors were.
There is also an entire gallery dedicated to Margaret "the Unsinkable Molly" Tobin Brown which contains some of here personal possessions, very rare photographs and the dress that Debbie Reynolds wore in the musical, "The Unsinkable Molly Brown".
Branson is all about music, especially country music. Several artists have theaters there including Mickey Gilley, Jim Stafford and others. However, Branson has seen a decline in the past few years caused by our failing economy and the tornados that came through the area a couple of years ago. Several hotels are not being repaired or rebuilt and several theaters, including the Grand Palace have closed their doors. We were here a few years back and in the Historic Downtown we had a very hard time finding parking. These days there is no problem at all.
08/27/2012
On Saturday we drove over to Joplin and visited with Buster and Linda Warner. Buster was a member of the 7th Military Airlift Squadron when I was at Travis and went on to serve at Altus AFB, OK and then at Scott AFB, IL. Buster was the last remaining active duty C-141 Flight Engineer in the Air Force and was a crew member on the final flight of tail number 66-0177, the Hanoi Taxi, to the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB, OH. We had a wonderful time reminiscing about the "good old days". Buster and I did a few check rides and dodged a few thunderstorms on Saturday night.
Buster Warner
This is Buster's helmet signed by Vietnam POW's that atended the last flight of the Hanoi Taxi to the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB, OH
08/28/2012
Yesterday I toured Wilson's Creek National Battlefield near Springfield. This was the site of the first major Civil War battle fought west of the Mississippi River and the scene of the death of Nathaniel Lyon, the first Union general killed in combat.
Although the Southern's won the battle of Wilson's Creek, the battle caused more focus to be placed on Missouri by the North. This led the Union to continue it's hold on Missouri throughout the war.
