Cindy: After leaving Cheyenne, all the pressure is off. We noticed that once we were 100 miles into Nebraska, that old familiar heat and humidity hit us with a vengeance. Having been in locations that either boast low humidity, or low temps, you can imagine our dismay when we stopped at a rest area and opened the truck doors! From then on, we simply drove a while, then found a state park. We are both thankful for the little travel trailer's air conditioning.
Our first camp after Cheyenne was near Kearney, NE, at the Fort Kearney State Recreation area. Being hemmed in on al sides by either corn fields or woods, there wasn't a breath of air moving and we spent most of our time inside. It's a pretty place, with a number of lakes for bank fishing.
After leaving NE, we camped 2 more nights, both in Iowa. The first IA camp was at Lake Anita State Park, south of Anita IA.
This was a more comfortable camp, because the breeze was coming directly over the water through the campground, and kept us more cooled. If you've ever camped in July/August in the midwest, you know that getting all hot and sweaty is the biggest challenge - by the time you walk back to camp from the showers you're hot and sweaty again. Though we were nearly out of propane for the water heater - we found that we didn't need it. The water in our tanks heated up naturally on the highway during the day, giving us warm, if not hot, water for short showers in the trailer.
We camped one more night, at the Geode State Park, just west of Burlington IA. I don't have a picture of that camp. It was, predictably, hot and humid, LOL. We rested well, ate leftovers, and headed for Springfield, where I'd parked my car on July 21st, and Greg and Gina's home (THANKS you guys!). At that point, Chuck and I were driving separately. I don't think I've mentioned what a new experience this was for me in a very special way. Chuck has done the math, and realized early on that if he drove 60 mph he'd save A LOT of $$ on gas. So no matter what the speed limit was over 60, we drove the entire way at 60. In the end, our average mpg was 10. Chuck has always said that someday HE was going to be the aggravating old man on the highway that went slower than the speed limit, and sure enough, he was. When I got in my car, can you imagine the shock of being able to go my accustomed 72 mph on the Interstate? Chuck had suggested I drive ahead and get the ac cranked up at home, and I didn't argue. Our last picture from this trip is of me catching up to him on the highway:
So for now - this trip of his dreams is over - I wonder where he's planning on going next?
