Rain, Cold Fronts, Fall

September 13, 2007 -- Prairie Island Campground near Winona, MN

Last night we had dinner with Jim and Sue at the Bonfire Grill in Savage, MN., and there was general agreement that it was a place we'd come back to again. After dinner and another great campfire at Jim and Sue's home, we said our good-byes and made tentative plans to meet next summer. Thank you again, Jim and Sue, for a wonderful visit.

Our plan this morning was to get up whenever we got up, take our time getting the camper ready for travel, hook up the toad, and take off for Winona, MN. It was a good plan, spoiled only by the wind and rain that accompanied a cold front racing through the Twin Cities area in the late morning. Once we saw the clouds and the radar image, we picked up the pace and had everything done except hooking up the toad -- when the sky opened and the rain came down. Some time, oh, maybe 10 or 15 minutes, is required to get the toad hook-up done correctly and double-checked, so we decided, in order to keep dry, to start our travels today without hooking up and have Dar drive the car separately. The rains followed us, on and off, all the way to Winona. This cold front is bringing a touch of fall with it -- I actually heard the "s" word in the extended forecast for Northern Minnesota for the next few days.

Our site at Prairie Island Campground in right on the Mississippi river. Our front "picture window" is only 50 feet from an arm of the river. There aren't many people around so it's very peaceful. We'll be here for 3 nights. A very informative campground host gave us the low-down on things going on here in Winona and I can assure you we won't be bored or in need of entertainment. On Sunday, the plan is to rendezvous with my brother and sister-in-law, Jerry and Deb, at Devil's Lake State Park for a few nights.

Oh, by the way... had to fill the fuel tank today. Ouch! The good news is that the bus is getting good mileage (for a bus)... between 7 and 8 mpg. I'm told that after the big diesel breaks in a little more it should consistently do better than 8. Considering the weight we're hauling around, over 32,000 lbs., we're happy with it so far.

T