July 7 & 8, 2011
We pulled out of Shipshewana at 8:00 A.M. Thursday morning. We had fueled up the night before when we spotted diesel for $3.86 a gallon. I thought I could catch I-94 west after a short drive on the Indiana Toll Road. WRONG…the ramp for I 94 west was closed and the detour ended $14.00 and 25 miles later when we found ourselves on I-94 heading into downtown Chicago. Suddenly we were facing another toll of $14.00!! We pulled out an old I-Pass transponder I had used in 1997 and held it to the windshield. The light went green and we continued on our way. The traffic in Chicago is never easy, especially in a Dodge 2500 with a 33-foot 5er.
We made our way north and jumped on I-90 west towards Rockford, Illinois. By the time we left Illinois at the South Beloit toll, we had paid another $12 in tolls at 6 other toll-ways. Never again will we be on the toll roads of Chicago. In 2002, we paid .35 cents for each toll stop, for a total of $3.50. But to spend $26 in Chicago and another $14 in Indiana is outrageous I believe.
It has been nearly 9 years since we had been this way. Though I had traveled it more than 30 times in 1996, I had a difficult time remembering the route. We did remember the Cheese Shack we stopped at in December 2002 just as we were leaving the Madison city limits heading north.
As we were getting closer to the Dells, the landscape looked more like parts of North Carolina than the area around Janesville. We stopped just outside the Dells at a really nice rest area. We noticed immediately the Prairie School influence. Wisconsin’s native son—Frank Lloyd Wright, made this architectural concept famous.
Just as every maiden voyage looks like all is good, before things go bad, this was not going to be the exception. Now that the Coachmen was relatively happy, it was time for the Dodge to act out.
We had plans to spend 2 nights at Country Roads RV Park while exploring the Dells on Friday. After checking in at Country Roads, the Dodge decided it didn’t want to turn over. I thought for sure the batteries were toast. The engine S L O W L Y turned over—groaning with every turn. The great folks at Country Roads came to our aid and jumped started the Dodge. I worked the rest of the afternoon trying to charge the batteries (our park neighbors had a battery charger) and checking wires and alternator connections.
Today there was NO improvement in the Dodge’s condition. I managed to get it started with a jump, but the engine continued to resist. I now have it at Blain’s Farm and Fleet in Baraboo were they are putting in a new starter for $199 plus labor…OUCH…
Tim and Mary
In the Dells of Wisconsin
21st century American Nomads
Showing posts with label Wisconsin Dells. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wisconsin Dells. Show all posts
Friday, July 8, 2011
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Shipshewana, Indiana
July 06, 2011
Started off a cool day with a hint of rain. By 10:00 A.M. it was full sun and getting hot. Mary and I headed to the Shipshewana Flea market on SR 5. If you have been, then you know what we were in for. If by chance you have yet to see Shipshewana’s Flea market, well maybe you aren’t missing too much.
Yesterday we had dinner at the Auction Restaurant located in front of the flea market / auction house. After talking with some other folks, they all had arrived at the same consensus as we had--It’s a great place for breakfast, but they do not do a good dinner. Mary had the haystack, which was described as an Amish type taco salad without the shell but nacho chips crunched over the top--resembling a haystack. I went with the grilled chicken salad.
The haystack was lukewarm and lacking the haystack look. It was smothered in too much Velveeta cheese and turned out to be just a bed of wet white rice, covered in hamburger, topped off with a ¼ pound of cheese. Just a runny mess.
My salad was salad. But it too was lukewarm, not really chilled. Which lead me to believe it was fresh and not stored in the fridge for 4 hours. But even the bleu cheese dressing was room temperature.
Not a dinner place, we might be willing to try breakfast should we return to this part of America.
Back to today’s adventures. We arrived at the flea market around 8:30 A.M. which is way early. This is also the cooler part of the day. The flea market covers almost 10 acres and it is a lot of walking to get around to all the sellers.
Before we left, we walked through the auction building. Here at 9:00 A.M. 5 or 6 different auctioneers start selling various antique and Amish goods--ALL AT THE SAME TIME. You can get in early about 7:00 A.M. to peruse the items and stake out the areas you are interested in bidding on. It helps if there are more than one in your party and you can call on cell phones to confirm any purchases or current bids for items.
We stopped at a roadside bakery on the way out of Shipshewana. Two young girls were selling cookies, pies, breads, and cakes. We purchased an apricot and raspberry single serving pies. They were “day old” and were 50% off the original price of $3.00. Needless to say the raspberry barely survived once we were in the Dodge. Our next stop is Elkhart to see a few surplus RV sales outlets.
Elkhart is about 24 miles from Shipshewana out SR 120. We were going to see Surplus RV Factory Sales on Bristol Street. We are looking for a sofa / recliner to replace the current sofa sleeper. We also would like very much to dump the blue sofa for a neutral or tan colored sofa.
There is a lot of stuff at the two outlets. But the majority of prices are higher than Camping World. No deals here. They had some nice sofas, but starting at $800 isn’t our idea of surplus outlet pricing.
We were told the best outlets were in Branson and Sturgis, just across the state line in Michigan. Maybe next time we visit we will make it a point to see the outlets in Michigan.
We leave tomorrow for a 7 hour drive to the Wisconsin Dells. We will also be looking for two 4-inch U-bolts that are approximately 10 inches in length to mount the PVC pipe, that is being used to house our sewer line, on the 4-inch square rear bumper.
Tim and Mary
On the road to Wisconsin.
Started off a cool day with a hint of rain. By 10:00 A.M. it was full sun and getting hot. Mary and I headed to the Shipshewana Flea market on SR 5. If you have been, then you know what we were in for. If by chance you have yet to see Shipshewana’s Flea market, well maybe you aren’t missing too much.
Yesterday we had dinner at the Auction Restaurant located in front of the flea market / auction house. After talking with some other folks, they all had arrived at the same consensus as we had--It’s a great place for breakfast, but they do not do a good dinner. Mary had the haystack, which was described as an Amish type taco salad without the shell but nacho chips crunched over the top--resembling a haystack. I went with the grilled chicken salad.
The haystack was lukewarm and lacking the haystack look. It was smothered in too much Velveeta cheese and turned out to be just a bed of wet white rice, covered in hamburger, topped off with a ¼ pound of cheese. Just a runny mess.
My salad was salad. But it too was lukewarm, not really chilled. Which lead me to believe it was fresh and not stored in the fridge for 4 hours. But even the bleu cheese dressing was room temperature.
Not a dinner place, we might be willing to try breakfast should we return to this part of America.
Back to today’s adventures. We arrived at the flea market around 8:30 A.M. which is way early. This is also the cooler part of the day. The flea market covers almost 10 acres and it is a lot of walking to get around to all the sellers.
Before we left, we walked through the auction building. Here at 9:00 A.M. 5 or 6 different auctioneers start selling various antique and Amish goods--ALL AT THE SAME TIME. You can get in early about 7:00 A.M. to peruse the items and stake out the areas you are interested in bidding on. It helps if there are more than one in your party and you can call on cell phones to confirm any purchases or current bids for items.
We stopped at a roadside bakery on the way out of Shipshewana. Two young girls were selling cookies, pies, breads, and cakes. We purchased an apricot and raspberry single serving pies. They were “day old” and were 50% off the original price of $3.00. Needless to say the raspberry barely survived once we were in the Dodge. Our next stop is Elkhart to see a few surplus RV sales outlets.
Elkhart is about 24 miles from Shipshewana out SR 120. We were going to see Surplus RV Factory Sales on Bristol Street. We are looking for a sofa / recliner to replace the current sofa sleeper. We also would like very much to dump the blue sofa for a neutral or tan colored sofa.
There is a lot of stuff at the two outlets. But the majority of prices are higher than Camping World. No deals here. They had some nice sofas, but starting at $800 isn’t our idea of surplus outlet pricing.
We were told the best outlets were in Branson and Sturgis, just across the state line in Michigan. Maybe next time we visit we will make it a point to see the outlets in Michigan.
We leave tomorrow for a 7 hour drive to the Wisconsin Dells. We will also be looking for two 4-inch U-bolts that are approximately 10 inches in length to mount the PVC pipe, that is being used to house our sewer line, on the 4-inch square rear bumper.
Tim and Mary
On the road to Wisconsin.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Where are we going?
June 26, 2011
We are beginning to appreciate the full time life. Since starting our journey, our travel plans have changed 3, may be 5 times. We are still heading towards Shipshewana, Indiana July 5th. Today Mary thought about heading west. She looked at the mileage to Black Hills, South Dakota and West Yellowstone, Montana. But, she decided a 4,500 mile round trip might be too much for a maiden voyage. Mary started looking at a 1,000 mile trip originating from Indiana and ending in the Detroit area by July 25th or there about. We have to be back in North Carolina for the new school year on August 16 and would like a few days to relax from our vacation.
After looking over several destinations / routes, Mary thought we could retrace our 2002-2003 route through Wisconsin. It didn’t actually take a year, but we did it over Christmas break 2002 and celebrated New Years 2003 in Escanaba, Michigan. We would stop at the Wisconsin Dells first. Mary hasn’t seen the Dells in the summer. We did see the Ringling, Barnum Bailey Circus Museum in Baraboo, Wisconsin in 2002. Mary would also like to do a DUCK ride through the dells. Green Bay would be our next destination. We stopped briefly in 2002 and saw the stadium. We also did lunch just down the street at an old railroad depot converted to a restaurant. Neither of us has been to Door County. It is said to be the most beautiful pace on earth to spend an autumn day. From Green Bay we are heading into the Porcupine Mountains. It is just a short trip from there to Copper Harbor, Michigan. There we would get to explore Michigan’s rich mining history. Then it would be off to Mackinaw Island to see the Grand Hotel. Remember that crowd favorite movie Somewhere in time starring Christopher Reeves? It was filmed there. Mary’s youngest daughter was just there for her honeymoon. They told us it now costs $50 to sit on he porch of the Grand Hotel. There is always a big box of fudge to bring home as a souvenir. Not sure if it is cheaper than a Grand Hotel porch squat…
After the island, we would mosey on back south towards North Carolina and hopefully be there before August 01. That is if our plans don’t change again.
We are beginning to appreciate the full time life. Since starting our journey, our travel plans have changed 3, may be 5 times. We are still heading towards Shipshewana, Indiana July 5th. Today Mary thought about heading west. She looked at the mileage to Black Hills, South Dakota and West Yellowstone, Montana. But, she decided a 4,500 mile round trip might be too much for a maiden voyage. Mary started looking at a 1,000 mile trip originating from Indiana and ending in the Detroit area by July 25th or there about. We have to be back in North Carolina for the new school year on August 16 and would like a few days to relax from our vacation.
After looking over several destinations / routes, Mary thought we could retrace our 2002-2003 route through Wisconsin. It didn’t actually take a year, but we did it over Christmas break 2002 and celebrated New Years 2003 in Escanaba, Michigan. We would stop at the Wisconsin Dells first. Mary hasn’t seen the Dells in the summer. We did see the Ringling, Barnum Bailey Circus Museum in Baraboo, Wisconsin in 2002. Mary would also like to do a DUCK ride through the dells. Green Bay would be our next destination. We stopped briefly in 2002 and saw the stadium. We also did lunch just down the street at an old railroad depot converted to a restaurant. Neither of us has been to Door County. It is said to be the most beautiful pace on earth to spend an autumn day. From Green Bay we are heading into the Porcupine Mountains. It is just a short trip from there to Copper Harbor, Michigan. There we would get to explore Michigan’s rich mining history. Then it would be off to Mackinaw Island to see the Grand Hotel. Remember that crowd favorite movie Somewhere in time starring Christopher Reeves? It was filmed there. Mary’s youngest daughter was just there for her honeymoon. They told us it now costs $50 to sit on he porch of the Grand Hotel. There is always a big box of fudge to bring home as a souvenir. Not sure if it is cheaper than a Grand Hotel porch squat…
After the island, we would mosey on back south towards North Carolina and hopefully be there before August 01. That is if our plans don’t change again.
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