The trip out of Kansas was so much better than the trip into the state! We got onto I-35 North in less than 2 miles out of the front gate of the base. Well, there was ONE little incident that caused “butt pucker” for a sec. The GPS took us north on I-35 into Topeka. There we were to transfer onto I-70 over to Kansas City. Most of Kansas was toll roads so we had to go through the pay booth on the left & then swing hard right & across traffic to an exit ramp. Then we were to go to the first light & make a U-Turn to get onto I-70 East. No problem with a car. But a 38 ft motor coach is a whole different matter. Perry attempted the U-Turn – it didn’t work. So he had to back up toward the cars that were following him into the U-Turn & then turn tighter. Thankfully, he didn’t squish anyone & no one honked either. We followed the GPS directions around Kansas City & headed north, past St Joseph & then into the town of Maysville.
I had made reservations at a park through my planning app – RV Trip Wizard. I called & spoke with the owner several weeks prior & she said payment was due when we got there. That’s the case about 50% of the time & I always call the day we are on the move to be sure they are expecting us. I did & she said all was good. Now, RV Trip Wizard is a wonderful app & has many bells & whistles I love. One is written reviews by folks that have stayed at a given park, along with a listing of the anmenities available, estimated pricing & more. The reviews for this park, unfortunately, had not been added to since 2017. They were okay reviews but I know now more current reviews are more telling. We drove on the dirt road into the campground & stopped at the “office” to be directed to our assigned spot. The owner was busy with another project at the moment & told us to drive up the road & pick out whatever site we wanted & she would take care of the registration later. Well, the road through the campsites was BADLY potholed, the “fishing pond” was stagnant water with a solid green algae on top & the further we drove through the road the worse the sites became. Every three RVs were set up to use a single electric pole & single water outlet (most parks have only ONE RV hook-up per site. And all sites were terribly unlevel, badly overgrown with grass & weeds & had so much trash on them we’d have to clean them up before we dared to back in. I lead the way in with the car so I stopped & went to “discuss” the situation with Perry. We decided we would just drive on out of that hot mess & go back toward Kansas City to a Cracker Barrel to regroup. It was one of the worse campgrounds we have come across – a surprise given the amount we were quoted for a night’s stay!
Once back into civilization, I got on the app & found another park not 30 miles away. That was The Pony Express Ranch & RV Park. Not only was it clean, well laid out & full hook-up, it had a restaurant on premises. We had tacos for dinner with another couple who happened to be checking in at the same time & were camping right next to us. Also, the owner of the park (Terri) gave us a discount for our Veteran status! Unfortunately, she only had two nights available – the upcoming weekend was booked.
We frequently watch YouTube videos by other full-time RVers who generously share their experiences, screw-ups & achievements. The “How-Tos” are incredibly valuable. One couple we particularly relate to is Phil & Stacey of “Today is Someday”. They recently shared info on an app to find the unusual roadside treasures – or oddities. I downloaded the app & we loved it! Small town treasures, statuary, parks, tours, historic buildings, etc – they are in abundance across America! We started using the app in this state – oh my goodness was it awesome!
On the day after our arrival I again went onto the RV Trip Wizard app & found another RV park a short drive away in Hamilton. We drove over to that park to check it out. CUTE park but small. There were only 13 spots & they were close to one another but all the occupants were nice looking big rigs which made us feel it would be safe. This was A Country Charm RV Park. We paid for a four day stay that would begin the next day.
We moved the following morning after a nice, leisurely breakfast & were set up in our new spot by 1pm. The park was in the city limits of Hamilton so we drove the short distance into town & had lunch at a cute cafe. Then we walked around a bit, sticking our heads into the shops & buying a couple unique gifts for family. Hamilton is the place JC Penny began his business that became a huge franchise. His first store still stands & is now a quilt shop. If I’m not mistaken, the original name for the JC Penny store was “Golden Rule.” The city has preserved the tiny four room house Mr Penny grew up in & has a small museum with lots of memorabilia of his in the building where the library is located.
On the day we visited the downtown shops, a good many vintage campers were parked on a side street in town. These belonged to some quilting enthusiasts, gathered for a mini convention. The city has LOTS of quilt stores but I think it’s actually a singular enterprise, just scattered into many store fronts. The ladies were having a grand time setting up their campers & socializing. I loved the commeradary!
The following day we drove over to Marceline, the hometown of Walt Disney, not an hour away. Walt Disney was not born in this city – he moved there with his family when he was just a boy – but he always referred to it as his hometown. There is a very nice museum with tons of artifacts, documents, displays & treasures that were Mr Disney’s & those of his younger sister Ruth. The closeness of his family was what resonated so soundly. Walt & his three brothers & one sister, along with their parents were a singular unit who always cheered each other on through life’s adventures. Walt loved the feeling of belonging in this little city so much that he created a similar looking place in his Walt Disney Land in California – a mini city mock up was one of the displays in the museum. This museum was well worth the stop!
We wandered into a small restaurant in town & had a great burger & shopped at a little antique store before heading back to our camper. It was a fun day!
On Saturday we drove over to St Joseph to find the home of Jesse James. It’s located in a rather run down area of the city & there wasn’t a lot of folks touring it that day. It was a tiny house, only four rooms, & didn’t take long to wander through. In the front room is a hole in the wall where a bullet lodged after being shot through Jesse James head. Over time, people picked at the small hole making it quite big so the caretakers covered it with a glass picture frame. Jesse James only lived in the house for a short while before two of his gang members killed him, intending to collect the reward. However, they were charged with murder instead. And the house was moved to the current site, next to a much bigger museum, many years later.
We visited the bigger museum – the Patee House – & it was wonderful. A large carousel was located in the entrance room – perfectly preserved. Guests could wander for hours, over three floors, to see displays of historic stuff. I’m not sure how long we were there, just that my feet hurt when we finally found our way back to the entrance. Here are some pictures – very random in order as this museum seemed to have had every historic subject represented.
After we left the VERY large museum, we stopped in at an adorable lunch spot called Belle Époque Cafe & had some wonderful little sandwiches & peach tea. I loved the architecture on the corner of the building so I snapped a picture.
On the way back to the Campground I took another picture of the fascinatingly simple windmills & a picture of a 20 ft tall firecracker perched on the side of the highway.
The last evening we were in Missouri, we drove over to Chillicothe, a larger city where we could get groceries. We had dinner in a Tap House & then walked around the charming downtown area to admire the murals & such this town had in abundance.
They also had a wonderful memorial display in front of the courthouse …
On the drive back to the campground I had to take a picture of the stunning sunset. I wish my windshield was bug free but I was happy to capture the image anyway.
Missouri was a great state to visit. So much so we will be returning in a month or so to discover the treasures in St Louis & Branson!
Not all who wander are lost. But if they are, it’s an opportunity to find the treasures in our great country! #whereswaldocamping