Gothenburg, NE (KOA)

20 Aug 2010

Lat/Long:  40.91167, -100.17030

Location:  KOA Gothenburg, NE

Electric Hook Up:  Yes

Water Hook Up: Yes

Bathroom: 50 yard walk

Shower:  Free, Free, Free

Reserve on web at: http://www.koa.com

Site:  56

Trip number two.  We traveled and met my brother Jason halfway across Nebraska in a little town called Gothenburg.  Since neither of us knew anything about the area, the KOA was the safest option for us all. 

However, that being said – we thought safe meant, showers, electric, WI-FI and maybe, just maybe a pool.  Due to recent flooding, not much was happening except the showers and the electric – which is still a.o.k with us.  We’re pretty easy to please.  The place is owned by a British lady (odd to run into such an accent in nowhere, NE). 

The town doesn’t have much.  Has a gas station, grocery store, some all purpose kind of store, a farm store (which came in handy) and…that’s about it.

Jason brought his canoe and we hoped to do some fishing.  Not a line was thrown due to an unfortunate event down at the “Tri-County creek”.  Kayle decided to launch herself off a steep little hill – on her way back up she got about 500 burr’s in her.  I’m not blowing things out of proportion either.  We HAD to come back to camp and do something about it.  After 2-3 baths, combing, cutting…we all decided – we’re going to have to shave her.  I was devastated.  So, drove down to the farm store to get some clippers.  The lady who works there saved me – gave me some sort of spray that they use on the sheep to get stuff out.  Dag gum if it didn’t work.  Collision avoided.  After bath number 4, 3 hours of brushing and more cutting…she’s still Kayle.  Just a little patchy is all.  I am so glad I didn’t have to shave her, that would have been awful. 

Trip went great.  It’s wonderful to see Jason, meet his new little dog Dandy (who is adorable).  We ate well…as always-thanks to the Chef!  Campground was full of lots of older people.  A family of four checked in really late last night...and then immediately lost their dog. They walked around the campsite for hours screaming..."Willy, here Willy".  They never found the dog, they were at the KOA store this morning still looking for that dog.  Guess Willy is free...for good.  We had quite a few people want to come see the trailer.  This morning I was laying down talking to Karon as she made breakfast, an older lady came right on in and said, "Let me see this thing -- oh, how cute!"  If we charged every-time we opened the door at gas stations or at campsites...we'd make some money.  ;)  

Trip home went fine.  We thought we were having a very SERIOUS problem about 80 miles from home.  Had a very very strong smell of gas in the car.  We stopped the car, smelled the car, popped the hood…..nothing.  The smell in the car even went away.  Drove another 15 miles…same thing – out of the car, smell, lift the hood….we are freaking now.  Really freaking.  We kept driving until we got home…just imagining what was wrong.  At one point we were convinced that the silicon spray we bought for the awning had exploded.  In fact we were 80% convinced.  But…can was in tact – all was good – but stench was bad...I had a headache it was so bad.  After dropping all our stuff at the house, we went to base, washed the trailer, washed the car….washed my Chaco’s (flip flops)…low and behold, the smell went away.  I had gas on my shoes, the AC blew full blast on them…filling the car with GAS FUMES.  Idiot move. 

 

Good trip, minus Kayle’s burrs, her awful haircut and my nasty shoes.  Safe travels.  Next trip – Yellowstone/Grand Tetons!  

Lake Jackson State Park, CO

Lat/Long:  40.40026, -104.09440

Location:  Lake Jackson State Park, CO

Electric Hook Up:  Yes

Water Hook Up: No, but water is within walking distance for washing dishes, etc.

Bathroom: 100 yard walk

Shower:  75 cents for about 5 min. (If you can keep it under 4.28, your good to go)

Reserve on web at: http://www.reserveamerica.com/

Site:  237

Our first journey in the T@B.  We left home anxious, not having towed it a lot and not knowing how we would do on the interstate…but alas…70 mph is a.o.k, trailer handles perfectly. 

Got to camp and was relieved to see that the reserveamerica.com was spot on accurate.  The site looked pretty private and away from most…and it is.  I wanted to be able to make sure Kayle and Chase didn’t have much to bark at and still have a view of the lake.  Honestly…I think it’s the best spot out here.  We can see down onto the “masses” and enjoy the quietness of our spot all in one shot…group pulled up yesterday and had a projector screen displayed on the side of their camper, so glad we’re not down there. 

Talk about learning experience.  I thought we had a few “epic fail” situations, however – those were only due to my unknowing.  First…the water will drain from the sink, if you unscrew the plug below the trailer-duh.  Second…the awning is not missing, it’s in the secret cubby below the couch-duh.  Third the stove DOES work, you just have to turn the gas all the way on, don’t just “half ass it” (as my Dad would say). We’ve also learned that the AC gets its air from the arctic circle and then it pipes into the vents—thing works like a charm! 

Dogs have done well, this is Chase’s first camping trip and the camper seems to fit him.  He does fine outside, but he enjoys to pull his security detail from the window…but mostly curled into a small ball in an extra blanket. 

We ate wonderfully, beenies and weenies Friday night (this was my request), Saturday night, the chef got down to business -- had bbq chicken, potatoes, squash, we had breakfast bagels for breakfast with a token cup of instant coffee.  Needless to say, we ate very well.  I don't think eating like we're camping is going to be an issue.  ;)

All in all, what a wonderful experience for a first trip.  We look forward to many more.  

Thanks for a cure to our disease this weekend!  We'll see you next time around.  

Def: Magic Bullet

magic bullet (plural magic bullets)

1. (idiomatic) A simple remedy to a difficult or complex problem, especially a cure for a disease.

Recently we (Karon and I) acquired a T@b camper.  Reading thru blogs and posts and facebook updates -- everyone names their T@b, I thought to myself "I'm not going to do that."  However, I feel to be "part" of the community I should.  So..let it be, the Magic Bullet.  The hopes of this magic bullet is simply stated above; "a simple remedy to a difficult or complex problem....cure for a disease."  What difficulty or disease do we have?  The same one that every other working American has....the need for escape.  That's just what the T@b will do.  

I'm active duty Air Force, stationed in Denver, CO and keep a very hectic schedule.  Karon is currently an unemployed chef, but we are both avid lovers of the great outdoors.  We plan to travel with our beloved golden retriever Kayle and on a few trips our little Yorkie Chase.  I'm also an amateur photographer and hope to utilize the T@b for photo trips.  All in all -- we're thrilled to get on the road as soon as possible!  

America...here we come...in our Magic Bullet -- a cure for our disease.  

Happy Trails.