Our trip into Arkansas was pretty uneventful in that traffic was easy to negotiate. Our destination was Little Rock Air Force Base FamCamp just north of the big city. No reservations were accepted at the base – it was a first come, first serve thing which we were assured would not be a problem when I talked to the people weeks before about the facilities. GPS directed us into the back gate which would not accommodate a big RV. So we had to turn the rig around (no small feat) & figure out how to get to the main gate. Then we stopped at the Visitor’s Center for a pass – as directed by the guard at the back gate – only to find it wasn’t necessary since we both possessed military IDs. That was over an hour spent just trying to get in the base. We found the campground easy enough but another RV had snagged the last available spot minutes before we got there.
We parked the RV a the entrance to the campground & spent a good hour trying to find alternative accommodations. We ended up going back to the Little Rock perimeter highway to Burns RV Park, a city owned park. It was not full hook-up & the sites were very unlevel so we’d have to see about different accommodations for the next day.
We returned to Little Rock Air Force Base to snag a vacated spot before noon. The office said three campers were due out but they could extend their stay or depart at any time before 5. So we prepared to wait. However, another Class A motorhome came zipping in with great determination to get a spot ahead of us. We debated challenging his aggressiveness & then decided we’d just move on. A confrontation over an camp spot was not worth the aggravation when we could easily afford a regular campground (FamCamps are usually full hook-ups, nice parks & only cost $20 a night). So we got back on the web & called a slew of campgrounds in the Little Rock area, trying to get a spot for 7 days. It wasn’t going to happen. So we looked further out & then even further out. Our next destination was to be at another FamCamp north of Memphis. I didn’t want to go in the opposite direction so we settled on a State Park nearer to Memphis but still in Arkansas.
Village Creek State Park was beautiful. I’m not sure how we got so lucky but the reservation person got us into a HUGE spot right at the lake’s edge. It was pretty close to level so it was an easy set-up.
The next day we needed to make a Sams Club run so we looked up the nearest location on GPS. It was an hour away – in Mississippi! So we took off for the interstate, skirted the south side of Memphis & hopped into Mississippi. On our Roadside America app, we noted s couple things that would be fun to see along the way which just slightly altered our travel.
While reviewing my past FaceBook posts, I came across the following from two years ago (2019). I thought I’d add it here so Lily will be able to read it someday – after all, the Coddiwomple Capers blog is for her … a love letter of sorts to my granddaughter so she can see what her grandparents were all about when we are “all lived out” someday.
……… I had a little spill yesterday when I tried to “throw my leg over the bike” as directed by my husband. We were trying to determine if we would take the two folding bikes (that he got from his parents) with us on our great adventure – going full time starting in January. Well, I don’t “throw” well at this age (61) & I lost my balance, crashing onto the concrete, directly on to my left elbow. Yep, I knew it broke immediately. I laid there & held my arm for awhile. Perry kept saying he was going to help me up to which I replied with teeth clinched, “Don’t touch me!” I think he was scared. Then he got me a two step ladder to allow me to lift myself up. However, I was not doing so well, weak from the fall trauma & trying to pull myself up with only my right arm. I managed to get to my knees but had to ask him to grab my butt & hoist. I think we both laughed over that request. Or it was his response of, “Sure, baby,” said with a half smile/smirk. Perry wanted to cart me off to the ER but I’m tough, no tears, & said I’d wait to see my regular doctor today. This morning I made an appointment for this afternoon so I’d have plenty of time to get cleaned up & ready. The whole bathing episode was a disaster though. First, I couldn’t use my arm to assist in the gracefully lowering of my body into the tub of water so I created a tidal wave effect when I plopped down that had to be cleaned up. Then I couldn’t use my arm to help lift myself out so there was a lot of twisting & turning & repositioning before I managed to stand. All the water had drained out of the tub before I finally got up so what moisture that was left on me was sweat. Then I turned on the shower to wash my hair. Interesting but successful one armed shampooing. Next was washing of the body. Ummm, scrubbing the right arm pit with my damaged left arm was so dang painful but I did it! No stinky pits for me, no sir-y! The rest was awkward but doable. Didn’t get my hair very dry with the towel using only one hand & then I realized I would have to dry & style it in a limited state! Yikes! Got the undies on but the bra was awful! I had to enlist Perry’s help in getting the strap over the elbow & up the body. It twisted so he had to get me straightened out. That’s when I looked down to see my boob sticking out of the center dip in the bra. It made me cry in frustration. And tears are soooo not me. He helped get me straightened out & even reached in there with his big hand to lift the girls into place. I’m thinking I’ll need to adapt a bra-less existence until I’m healed. Perry also had to spray my right armpit with deodorant since pushing the sprayer button with my broken left arm was a no go. Surprisingly, I was able to blow dry my hair on my own. My arm could hold up the dryer, just not as close to my head as usual. My hair is sorta styled with more kinky curl than usual. Oh well, I was clean. And exhausted from that fiasco. Then it was on to the doctor’s where I got depressed over the verdict & possible surgery. An appointment was made with an orthopedic surgeon to have a look-see later in the week. All the purging of our “stuff” has come to a screeching halt until I can figure out a new plan. Next day: Today’s episode of getting dressed went MUCH smoother than yesterday’s. I had to get help from Perry to put the bra on again but we went about it differently & I didn’t melt down into tears due to a crooked look with the girls all jumbled & spilling out of the contraption. It did take him about 5 full minutes to get me buckled in from the back but we are making progress. I was even able to spray my own pits with one hand when I figured out I could aim & spray directly up. I am soooooo thankful I didn’t break my right arm! Lawdy would this be a whole different situation if that was the case!
Four days after my arm was broken Perry had a tree fall on him while doing some volunteer work at Fort Yargo. It snapped his upper arm bone into three pieces but it didn’t cut through the skin, thank goodness! He was carted off by ambulance to the ER where he had X-rays & was evaluated. They put a splint on his arm & wrapped it up good. Robby brought him home & our friends Mona & Daniel came to the hospital & then over to the house to feed us & commiserate for a bit. Our sweet neighbor Alana brought down a couple hearty meals for us to heat up the next couple of days so I think we are set. I’ll be taking Perry to the ortho doc on Monday for surgery which should be pretty extensive. I’m giving him the prescribed meds as directed by the ER doc to keep him comfortable. A big ole shout out to Donna Cannon & Ned Cannon, camp hosts extraordinaire, who lent moral & physical support at the accident site & to Julia Autry, the park manager, & the staff & volunteers for all their concern & help as well. Perry was covered with prayer & protection by these people & our sweet friends, family & neighbors who we appreciate more than words can express.
There is a bit of a silver lining here … I broke my left arm on Tuesday but I’m right handed so I’m not totally limited in my abilities. Perry broke his right arm & he’s left handed. Hopefully he will be able to function fine once he has surgery. 🙂. Life throws us hardballs sometimes & we pitch ‘em back!
Now, back to our Arkansas adventures … The city of Wynn, Arkansas was relatively near the RV park we were camping at & we visited a couple restaurants while there.
Because we had not made reservations in advance (late summer/early fall are popular camping times so parks are booked) we had to move to another spot in the park for a couple days. Someone else had reserved our site (site specific park) for the weekend. We pulled in the slides, lifted the stabilizers & moved over to a pretty site in the equestrian camping area. The new site was pretty short & was not level. So we put two boards under the back tires which still didn’t lift it enough to get it right. And the wheels would not roll up onto three boards, no matter how hard Perry tried. So, he used the back stabilizers to lift the wheels & I was to slide another board under the dangling wheel once there was room. Well, that caused the stabilizers to max out & they quit working! A look in the manual explained this was never a good idea. We were stuck, dangling all crooked in the air with no way to lower the back of the RV. YIKES!
Keeping in mind we were WAY out in the country where cell service was spotty at best, we could not call an RV repair person without a 20 minute drive into town. And the two we managed to reach by phone would not be available until Monday at the earliest. So we returned to camp & Perry broke open the manuals in hopes of finding a DIY solution.
The books had graphics & written instructions that involved using specific wrenches to loosen little screws & turn them in certain ways & then spin a certain bolt, etc … all in the quest to release the hydraulic pressure so the stabilizers could be disengaged. It took a lot of sweat, grunts & an inordinate amount of greasy hands but Perry managed to do the deed. He also had to figure out how to make ALL the lights on the stabilizer control stop flashing. It was disconcerting! Once that was done, he pushed the buttons & the stabilizers retracted, lowering the tires onto the blocks. Thank goodness!
After he got the stabilizers down we found the entire hydraulic system was out of wack. When he pushed the button to lower the front stabilizers, the slides would move out. Then the back stabilizers would not work but would instead lower the front stabilizers even more. It was so stressful! Another look through the manuals explained that once the stabilizers had been disengaged, one must tighten those nuts, bolts & screws back up as they had been to begin with. Once that was done, all systems were good to go. I’m glad Perry was able to fix the situation on his own – a repair service would have cost us at least a few hundred dollars. YIKES!
Over the two day period we were stuck in the equestrian area, we drove by the campsite we had vacated at the lake. The people who had reserved that spot NEVER SHOWED UP! That was insult to injury! People – if you are not going to use your reserved space, call the campground & let them know! Geez!
On our last evening at Village Creek State Park, we drove into Wynn & had dinner at a very nice Mexican restaurant. The little city didn’t have a lot of choices but those it did have were pretty good!
On Tuesday we buttoned up the RV & headed up the road a piece to a new adventure in Memphis!
Not All Who Wander Are Lost! #whereswaldocamping