We have completed the first segment of the Second Trip West. Time for a wrapup.
7 hops covering 27 days. 1439 tow miles, 2936 truck miles. Total campground cost: $1,344.68 ($49.80 per night). The most expensive stop was at the Niagara Falls KOA where I paid a premium for the not-very-premium premium site – nearly $100 per night.
#36 – Wisconsin
The highlights:
- The 50th high school reunion. It was great seeing my old friends, some of whom I have known since kindergarten – over 60 years!
- Two really good graveyard trips, the first to the Ripon WI area where I had a very nice mini-reunion with some of my cousins.
- Two dinners – one sitdown, one takeout – at Paisan’s which is still, in my humble view, the best pizza restaurant in the world.
- My first trip on the Maid of the Mist at Niagara Falls.
- Boldt Castle in Alexandria Bay NY.
- Greenfield Village in Dearborn MI.
- The spectacular campsite on the Mohawk River (Arrowhead Marina and RV Park).
- Beautiful and spacious Haas Lake Campground in New Hudson MI.
- Indiana Dunes State Park in Chesterton MI.
- Adding 4 states to our map: Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin.
- Some really good photos.
There weren’t any horrible experiences, but there were some disappointments. The lowlights:
- A failure to learn much about Jett’s roots in Watervliet NY.
- An inability to find my ancestor’s graves in Mayfield OH.
- The very strange and rough-hewn Woodside Lake Park in Streetsboro OH.
- Getting charged $1.50 extra to pick sourdough instead of white for a sandwich at the Koffee Kup in Stoughton WI.
- The miserable nearly 5-hour trip through Chicago.
The second segment of the trip west – STW2 – will take us from Madison WI to and through Yellowstone National Park. The plan has us traveling almost 1700 miles over 20 days in 9 hops. We will add Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming to our map, raising our state count to 42.