MEANDERING MOOSE

     When we first visualized full-time traveling in an RV, national parks were at the forefront of our thoughts.  It turns out that it is discovering the hidden gems which makes this adventure truly special.  A prime example is Arkansas.  Yes I was aware of the Ozark's, but I didn't realize how fantastic this place is. Found at the Ozark Folk Center State Park, Arkansas. Sounds like the teachers of today are completely out of control.      After leaving Tennessee we headed straight to Mountain View, Arkansas.  Mountain View is in the heart of the Ozark's and requires hours of driving on twisty, mountainous, narrow, backcountry roads.  Upon arrival, the first thing we did was score a campsite almost directly on the Sylamore River.  Almost immediately we became friends with our camping neighbors-Carrie, Dustin, Gabe (their son), and Frank (their dog).  They are a very friendly, wonderful couple from Indiana on a 1 week vacation. Of course, Carrie is a teacher, so..

     We finally started our journey to Colorado where we plan to reside for the summer.  It took us over a week to get through Alabama and 2 weeks to get through Tennessee.      Believe it or not, some of our most difficult driving since the start of our trip has been on the hilly roads surrounding 2 Alabama State Parks-Monte Sano & Cheaha (Chee-ha).  These steep roads with tight turns seemed out of character for Alabama and presented quite a challenge in our rig.      My favorite stop in Alabama was the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville.  This facility was at the heart of our country's original space program and still contributes important research.  The stars of our tour were the multitude of rockets on exhibit, the space shuttle, and a complete replica of Skylab.  We spent over 1/2 day touring this fascinating place.   For me it was sort of like a living museum as I can recall living through all the big events regarding our space program.  Now-on to Mars!