We pulled the motorhome out of our storage unit, just down the road from our house in Hiawassee, Georgia, and hit the road on September 7th. Our first night was spent in Nashville, TN at the Elm Hill RV Resort. This is a nice RV park right on Percy Priest Reservoir. Below are pictures of our site, and the view from right behind our motorhome. We had gorgeous weather, with temps in the low 80s.

Because the park isn’t too far from downtown Nashville we were able to just order an Uber. This allowed us to enjoy ourselves without worrying about drinking and driving. I was excited about experiencing the hoopla of the city, that is until I got into the midst of it and reality set in. I don’t really like Country Music. I definitely don’t like crowds and I hate loud ear-piercing music. Still, we did enjoy ourselves. We went up onto one of the rooftops for a nice photo of Lower Broadway.

We took a walk past the devastation created by the 2020 Christmas Day bomb that went off along Second Avenue. Amazing that nobody, except the bomber, died from this explosion.

We attempted to get into the Red Door Speakeasy, as that would be more up our alley. However, they were having a private event. Around the corner from there though we found the Supper Club Lounge, of the Twelve Thirty Club. https://thetwelvethirtyclub.com/supper-club/

The club is a relatively new establishment, less than a year old. It is considered to be the city’s swankiest music and dining venue. We loved the environment, as it seemed to be along the theme of a speakeasy. The Old Fashioneds were made perfectly. The music was great; not screaming loud and not country!

Nashville was a great start to our Fall 2022 Road Trip.

Our second night was spent at the Sundermeier RV Park in St. Charles, MO. This was our second visit to this particular small RV park. Its location is perfect for us to visit friends that we met back in 2015 on a Viking River Cruise. John and Debbie picked us up shortly after we arrived and we enjoyed a nice dinner, followed by, yes……Old Fashioneds, at their place. We had a great time catching up with them as we hadn’t seen them since our last visit, 5 years ago.

In the morning, Charlie and I enjoyed breakfast at a wonderful coffee/wine cafe in the quaint little Frenchtown district of St. Charles. If you are ever in that area we recommend La Bell Vie / The Cafe at Frenchtown.

Our next night was in Brookfield, Missouri. This was simply an overnight stop as we worked our way to Indianola, Iowa. Brookfield is a small town with a very nice city park. We found an RV spot in the park with a nice view. It was VERY hot, close to 90 degrees.

After we got settled into our site we jumped in the car and drove over to Laclede, MO to check out General John J. Pershing’s Boyhood Home State Historic Site. Pershing is the only American to be promoted in his own lifetime to General of the Armies, the highest possible rank in the United States Army. The historic house was done very well. It is open for free tours. There is also a nice monument to the general, as well as the local soldiers who lost their lives during various wars.

Our sole purpose for visiting Indianola, Iowa was so that we could visit the National Balloon Museum. Charlie has been flying balloons for over 40 years. The museum is very nicely done.

Our next destination was Theodore Roosevelt National Park. However, since we were only in Iowa we had to make a couple of stops along the way.

Our first stop was in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. We spent a couple of nights parked at the local fairgrounds so that we could see what Sioux Falls was all about. We visited the Sioux Falls, of course. They are located right downtown. Unfortunately, there was not very much water in the river and they are building a tall structure behind the Falls. So, it really wasn’t anything to write home about. The park surrounding the falls is nice though.

We toured the Pettigrew Home & Museum. The home was built in 1889 and Senator Richard Franklin Pettigrew purchased it in 1911. I really enjoyed the tour as I found some aspects of the interior to resemble a home that I lived in as a child in Petoskey, Michigan. The house I lived in was also built in the late 1800s.

Senator Pettigrew expanded the house, using Petrified Wood in some of the construction. Apparently, Pettigrew visited the Petrified Forest in Arizona and brought the wood back to South Dakota, before doing so was outlawed. I am a huge fan of Petrified Wood and loved the extension he added because of it.

We toured the Old Courthouse Museum and strolled along the Historic Street of Homes. We enjoyed both. Below are a few of the historic homes. These homes were either built in the late 1880s or early 1900s.

Our next stop was in Bismark, North Dakota for 2 nights. We stayed about 7 miles outside of the city, at Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park (https://www.parkrec.nd.gov/fort-abraham-lincoln-state-park). We really liked the park setting, right at the junction of the Heart and Missouri Rivers. The park is the oldest state park in North Dakota, established back in 1907. The visitor center has a very good Mandan Native American and Lewis & Clark museum. There are a number of good outdoor exhibits too and beautiful long-range views. Highly recommend checking this place out if you are ever in Bismark, ND.

On September 15th we arrived in Medora, ND for our visit to the south part of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. I point out the date because it is important to note that we arrived just a few days after the town started shutting down for the season. On the one hand, it was nice to have it quiet. On the other hand, we would have enjoyed the numerous activities that the town offers while in season.

We spotted wild horses, bison, elk, prairie dogs, and a pronghorn. We enjoyed a very nice sunset at River Bend Overlook. It was a great visit to another US National Park. I hope you enjoy the photos in the slideshow below.

We also spent one night in the northern part of the park. It is in a more remote area, and therefore, less frequently visited than the southern section. We hiked the Caprock Coulee Trail, a 4.2-mile trail that offers gorgeous scenery. After our hike, we sat by the river behind our campsite and watched the bison along the river.

Below are a few photos from our hike, wildlife, and the overviews in the northern part of the park.

Our next couple of weeks will be spent on a road / air trip to Churchill, MB. We hope to see some Northern Lights and some Polar Bears. Keep an eye out for that post soon.