WE ARE HAVING A BIT OF BAD LUCK

Saturday, October 1 – We've spent the last three days at Doc's RV Park here in Gulf Shores, AL, and loved it!  We feel this would be a great place to spend a month. That's something we think we'll do in the next year or so.

We would have considered doing it now, but we've had a week in hell dealing with mishaps. “Times that try men's soles.” Since leaving Ohio a mere one-week ago we've had a few problems.

---First our new Tire Tracker tire pressure monitor died. Luckily it is under warranty and is being replaced.
---Then our fresh water hose splitter and short connection hose failed. Gave Paul a little bath. And our shower head was leaking and had to be replaced.
---The check engine light on our F350 came on indicating a need to service the exhaust filter. We finally were able to get the truck into the Ford dealer here in Gulf Shores where they were able to clean it instead of doing an expensive replacement. Cleaning was expensive enough.
---Our worst problem was our air conditioner/heat pump gave. Unfortunately they do not make Carrier any more and parts are no longer available. We decided to order a new Coleman from PPL in Houston and have it replaced when we get there. Of course with the hot weather here in the south, having no AC forced us to change our travel plans and head directly to Houston to have it replaced. $$$
---Gulf Shores, AL, is loaded with bike trails, so this morning we hit the trail for a little exercise. About 2.5 miles from the RV Park Paul's rear tire exploded. Unfortunately, the trend continues and isn't quite over.
---Marsha's less-than-a-year-old Kindle reader also died today. It just wouldn't charge. Luckily, it is under warranty and will be replaced.

So, hopefully that will put an end to our streak of bad luck.

As stated above, we love the Gulf Shores, AL, area and have enjoyed our stay here in Doc's RV Park. The park has gravel streets and RV sites, FHU, a nice swimming pool, very quite, sites are arranged in a nice park setting arrangement, connection to the city bike trails, and friendly management. We walked around the park last evening and marked down several attractive sights.

Looking right.

Looking left.

The beaches here in Gulf Port are amazing. White, sugar-like sand, warm Gulf water, and plenty of public beaches to spread out the crowds. Interestingly, we were here in 2010 when the oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster was coming ashore. It sure has recovered nicely. Although, in a conversation Paul had with the Ford Dealer, he said the area is still suffering economically from the oil disaster. Tourist found other areas to vacation at and haven't returned as hoped.

We had lots of friends join us on the beach.

Paul took a dip, and said it was great.

One of our favorite places to sit and look out over the Gulf.

We are leaving Gulf Shores on Sunday and heading to Bay St. Louis, MS, for a few days. We're staying at the Silver Slipper Casino RV Park – right on the beach – so maybe we can win a bunch of money to recover from our streak of bad luck!

Life goes on.....check back to see how we've recovered. :-)

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

A NEW GEM OF A CAMPGROUND

Tuesday, September 28 – We were on the road bright and early this morning traveling through Nashville during rush hour. Luckily, most of our route was away from the city so we weren't affected too much.

We pulled into Yellow Hammer RV Sales and Campground soon after lunch time. This is an unusual RV set-up. It is the typical RV Sales and Service business with a brand new campground out back. The campground recently opened for business on September 1, 2016. We are pretty impressed!

There are 50 very level FHU gravel sites situated near a pretty lake. The sites are nicely spaced with a third of them being pull-throughs. There is a grass strip between each sight with a tree, picnic table, and concrete patio. There is FREE cable TV for those without a satellite, FREE Wi-Fi, a beautiful laundry, gorgeous bath houses, a playground, dog run, a nice fishing pier, and a hiking trail. We even enjoyed walking through the RV sales lot checking out the trailers.

This is a Passport America Campground which honors the 50% discount on their normal $44/night price. Thank goodness! It is very convenient to I-65 and the town of Clanton, AL. The campground is located between Birmingham and Montgomery, AL.

We highly recommend this RV Park to our fellow travelers, especially with the PPA discount. The people that work here are all so very nice also. Each night two workers go to each site and ask if there is anything they can help you with or if you have any problems with the site. We think of all the campgrounds we have stayed in, this is the first to offer this service. Really a nice touch.

Site 28.

Looking right.

Looking left.

Beautiful stocked fishing lake.

Lounge for those waiting for their RV in the service bay.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

 

TENNESSEE’S CAPITOL

Tuesday, September 27, CONTINUED - With our tummies full from eating the delicious BBQ, we headed downtown to work off the calories. We had difficulty finding parking and eventually found a spot at a meter on one of the side streets several blocks away. We only had an hour (maximum permitted), so we had to hurry. We wanted to see the State Capitol building. It is a very nice building but not as large as many of the other State Capitols we've visited. They spent their money wisely. 

If you want to see the Capitol, you have to climb the steps.  Good workout for Paul’s new knee

The grounds are beautiful.

Andrew Johnson the 17th President of the US.

Andrew Jackson, 7th President of the US

House of Representatives.

Senate

Marsha did get an opportunity to bang the gavel in the Senate Hall.

Marsha loves to look at ceilings. The Capitol didn’t disappoint her.

On the way back to the truck, we stopped at the War Memorial for a quick look-see. It is across the street from the Capitol.

War Memorial: To The Great War 1914-1918

We enjoyed our short visit to Nashville and think it is a pretty nice city. We feel comfortable here. We'll stop back again on one of our many trips when heading south for the winter.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!