We really enjoyed our time in Canada and can’t wait to return, hopefully next year. Our goal is to do all the Provinces East to West.
We made a planned return visit to Elkhart Indiana to get some minor repairs done on our “Hale” at Thor Motor Coach. As usual, they completed all the repairs with expertise! We enjoyed going to the outdoor market in nearby Shipshewanna. It’s an Amish community market with the best cheeses around and horses and buggies galore.
We spent Labor Day weekend in Indianapolis and were amazed there were no special events happening.
We spent a couple of days in St. Louis Missouri, saw the Gateway Arch, but it rained really hard, so we didn’t go up it… something to look forward to next time. We also had a lunch date with friends Connie and Herb.
We had to spend time at The Harley Davidson Factory Tour at the Vehicle & Powertrain Operations Plant in Kansas City Missouri. It was really enlightening and neat to see how they produce these wonderful bikes. Mike M… we thought of you while we were there.
A big reason we came to KC was so Sallie could take Sue to a KU game (so sad they lost to Memphis). It happened to be band weekend, so we saw a cute parade of bands down Mass. Street that morning. We had great visits with Nora, Eric, Pierce and Anna. Plus we got to see Carrie, Diane, Michele and Nora’s parents for dinner. Thank you to Eric for the best ribs ever!
After we left KC we just wanted to chill by the water at the Lake of the Ozarks and that’s exactly what we did. We sat by the fire, watched NetFlix, read books, magazines and communed with a family of funny looking ducks.
The next stop on our itinerary was Memphis near Graceland. We took a city tour to St. Jude Children’s Hospital, the hotel where MLK Jr. was killed, passed by Sun Studios and Gibson guitar factory, stopped on Beale Street for some shopping, and saw a parade of motorcycle riders raising money and awareness for breast cancer. We also went to the largest Bass Pro Shop in the country at the American Pyramid. It has a hotel, several restaurants, bowling alley and skywalk at the top of the pyramid.
We couldn’t miss watching The famous Ducks at the Peabody Hotel in Memphis with honorary Duck Master Jerry Springer. Sue got a selfie with “Jerry, Jerry, Jerry”! Kinda corny, but cute.
The Ducks at the Peabody Hotel
We then spent a few days in Chattanooga Tennessee. While there we went to Lookout Mountain. We started at Ruby Falls, where the caverns have the largest underground waterfall in the nation. Just magical!
Our next stop was “See Rock City” and the lookout where you can see seven states at the top of Lover’s leap. We had a really nice lunch at the top of the mountain with glorious views. It was a lovely afternoon.
The end of our day was going up the cog train of the Incline Railway. This is the nation’s steepest railway going up and down the mountain. We guessed this was a day of the nations best adventures.
We also visited the Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel Historic Site (once the terminal station for the Southern Railway line).
Sallie really wanted to go to Pigeon Forge, Tenn to go to Dollywood. She had a good time riding some really cool roller coasters. We also went to Gatlinburg and rode the tram at Ober Gatlinburg to their Ocktoberfest celebration and while up there Sallie rode the mountain coaster. I guess she loves coasters, no matter where they are.
Love your adventures! We had a great time visiting with you guys!!
Nora, Eric, Pierce and Anna
It was great seeing you guys again. Thanks for feeding us and let’s stay in touch!
Sallie & Sue