State Parks – OsteoPraxis on the road

Heading for home and a bit of wind….!!

John James Audubon State park totally lived up to expectations…what a beautiful place……but now….having reached the northwest corner of Kentucky and with a quick jump into Indiana, the journey home became a bit more earnest.

Our State Park stops in Kentucky and Tennessee had been such lovely experiences that I mapped out a few more for our journey west.

As we hit the highway we noticed that we were carrying a passenger……he(she?) valiantly held onto the hood for most of the journey.

When we stopped for gas he was nowhere to be seen …. I admit I was a little sad….!!!

Our first stop was an overnight in Finger Lakes state park Missouri. We made the mistake of taking I-70 to get there…..a very busy and desperately in need of resurfacing Interstate…..not the best for towing a trailer.(or transporting a stowaway..!!)

But the park was no disappointment.

And to my delight our little stowaway had moved back behind the cab for a better ride…he reappeared as we were setting up.

I checked to make sure katydids were also present in Missouri and found him a nice bush to settle in. I hope he is happy in his new home…

Back to the journey and an upside of a slight northward jog to get to this lovely state park was that the next part of the drive was on smaller and better roads…

Next stop Lake Manawa State Park in Iowa. It’s almost on the southeast corner of Omaha Nebraska and you can see the city not too far in the distance.

Lake Manawa was another lovely campground……and the sunset was truly spectacular….

Our next days driving took us into South Dakota….I was not finding any state parks in a convenient location so I picked a campground that was about the midpoint between Lake Manawa and our destination for a few days in Custer South Dakota.

As we pulled in we were the only trailer in the grounds….nicely laid out sites with shade trees…..and some interesting old tractors by our site.

A few more trailers pulled in through the evening…..and then a huge storm hit us overnight.

In the early hours of the morning the thunder and lightning was almost directly overhead and then a strike…and we lost power. As we drove out we were surprised to see one of the trees at the other end of the campground had met its demise (it was quite the storm…!!…..and the cat was not a big fan of the storm either)

Back to a familiar stomping ground in Custer, South Dakota…and a favourite campground at Broken Arrow Horsecamp. This would be our 4th time in this campground, it’s far enough from town to be quiet yet central for all the amazing sights and sites of the Black Hills area.

Although we have hiked many times within the park, the cave tour at Wind Caves National Park was a box yet to be ticked. We had never been enthused by the thought….but based on the surprising success of Mammoth Cave...and previously Jewel Cave National Monument…we decided it was worth a shot.

I would have to say…it was not as scary as I might have previously thought….and it was interesting…..but a pale shadow of the Mammoth Cave experience. The rock formations were varied and impressive but the scale of Mammoth was on another level.

There are some fantastic rock and mineral formations….

….and as always….the rangers were superb.

I guess that’s us done with cave tours…we will stick to the high plains hikes and bison sightings.

Tennessee 3. Cedars of Lebanon

As I said before, we were scheduled to be in Knoxville for a week…but between the torrential rain and the crummy campground I had landed us in…we decided to leave early. After a search around some of the state parks nearer to Nashville I made a reservation at Cedars of Lebanon State Park.

My hopes were not high as there were a couple of other state parks in the vicinity that were completely booked. Cedars of Lebanon was mostly empty…..but when we got there…what a beautiful park. From the main gate to the campground office is just under a mile and a half …but it felt much longer. It was a beautiful treelined roadway that got quieter and quieter and felt wonderfully secluded……so far off the main road that the only real noise is the cicadas and the katydids.

Lots of lovely shade trees and recently renovated so the power and the water is pretty much new. …lovely friendly staff…level sites what more could you ask. Cat was happy …!!!!

Well the showers were in dire need of upgrading…but given the work that’s been done on the park that may be next on the list. (😬)

There were a few trails to hike around the park. We picked the longer one……Hidden Springs trail………

…..a five mile loop trail…….

Compared to many of the trails we have trekked…this one was an easy level loop…

….so the blogtographer entertained himself finding some of those fantastic little details to satisfy his photo taking needs…..

This spiderweb picture is one of my favourites……

The trail description said there were multiple sink holes along the way…..and they were referred to as interesting. I may be a big fail at geology….they were mostly vague holes or depressions in the ground….

Around the halfway mark the trail turns and then follows a dry creek bed….revealing a more interesting landscape briefly

….and then a more impressive sink hole shaft…..

….and one that looked almost like a carefully drilled well. It was fenced……. Mr Photography still has to scare the bejeezus out of me by leaning in there to ‘get a better shot’..LOL

The rest of the trail was much as the first half. A pleasant stroll through the forest…(if a little on the hot and humid)…..but he does take good pictures….

Just as we were finishing the loop we started meeting more people heading out. Seems to be a ‘thing’…we like to hit these trails early and be heading home as the temps start heating up around midday. The crowds are often beginning as we finish up…either people cook themselves out on the trails …or they are far more heat tolerant than me.

It was an easy trail…and most importantly got us out and moving.

Further adventures on the Pacific Coast, Salt Point and Fort Ross

One of the best benefits of being in Santa Rosa was the chance to spend some time with a long time friends who have made this area their home.

On this day it was a trip to the seaside with my good friend Paul, who knows the area so well, and the roads. (The roads in these parts are not for the feint of heart..!!) While we were away for the day our truck was being dismantled, repaired and rebuilt just in time for our return.

With Paul driving us to one of his favourite spots it was an opportunity for both of us to sight see…..and this was such a great road for sight seeing. (Editor. Being chauffeured around is rather rare for me and the world is fascinating out of the side windows)

The first stop was a long drag up a very windy hill to reach a fabulous lookout point with a view down into the reservoir at Lake Sonoma overlook.

It’s quite sobering to see the black from previous years wildfires.

From there we followed the Pacific Coast Highway, No 1 up to Salt Point State Park…all the while feeling very glad we were not towing.

Salt Point State Park is a little piece of heaven on earth.

There is something about being by the ocean that is simply good for the soul.

The power and random beauty of waves crashing on the rocks just never loses its thrall.

Looking south…the rock outcrop you see may be familiar to anyone who was a fan of ‘The Goonies’ . The sandbar gave us a spectacle of a sealion colony. This is the mouth of the Russian River which drains 1500 Sq miles of Sonoma and Mendocino Counties in Northern California.

For us, after the last months of being boiled alive, the coolness of the ocean breeze had an extra special delight.

We walked the cliff path through the park with many stops to examine almost alien looking rock formations, watch the birds….or just simply stare at the crashing surf.

In our youth Paul and I were part of a group who often hiked seashore paths or forest trails. It was a joy to be able to lapse back into such easy company.

It would be easy to spend a lot of time here……a comfy chair, a flask of tea and a good book…!!

Following the coastline south again…the next stop on the agenda was Fort Ross.

Fort Ross is an intriguing place to say the least…..and we don’t usually do the selfies….but here goes…!!!

Russian ships came down from the Alaskan colonies in 1803 and settled at Fort Ross from 1812 to 1841. It is a very well preserved site, has a fascinating history and is well worth the visit. The aforementioned Russian River is named for Ivan Kuskov of The Russian-American Company who established the Fort Ross Colony.