(click pictures to enlarge)
I left Itasca State Park early Wednesday morning in a misting rain with temperatures in the mid 40's. That didn't bother me as much as the predicted 20+ mile per hour wind gusts. I didn't empty my tanks before leaving so I would have the extra weight on Liberty to help with the wind. It seems I've been jinxed with troublesome weather ever since I left Michigan two weeks ago. The wind gusts were not as strong as predicted and we handled the ones that did hit us without a problem.
The trip was a short one of only 145 miles with a stop at walmart on the way. In addition to the groceries, I also picked up a healthy lunch because Mrs. Mc's 3rd grade class said I should be eating healthier. I got to the Glacial Lakes Campground about 2:00 pm after killing an hour or so at walmart. No one was at the office to check me into the campground. I checked my email to make sure of the date and location. I was in the right place at the right time and I knew my reserved campsite number. I noticed an "occupied" poster taped to the window of the office. It had my campsite number on it so I took it and headed to the campground. First order of business was to empty my tanks. It was the worst dump station I've seen. It was on a hill so my tanks didn't empty completely. There wasn't a water source to flush the area or backflush my black tank. I'm glad I had my galley tank full of soapy water from washing the dishes before I left. That cleans out the drain hose good. I then looked for the fresh water spigot. There was a spigot about 100 feet away from the dump site but there wasn't the usual sign saying potable water. I drove on into the campground. There was only one site occupied and it was the campground host. I stopped and asked about water and they directed me to a fresh water spigot inside the campground. While my fresh water tank was filling up, I went to my reserved campsite to check it out. I didn't like it at all. It had a pretty good slope to it and low hanging limbs that would be rubbing Liberty's roof. It would not be acceptable. I noticed the one next to it was OK so after getting water I set up in that campsite. I figured I would talk to the office people early the next morning.
The next morning I was up early to go see the Kensington Runestone which was the reason why I chose this campground. I'll write about it in a future post since I'm trying to post this before hitching up to pull out. On my way out of the campground I stopped at the office and told them I switched campsites. They said it wasn't a problem but I would have to leave on Friday instead of Saturday. That was OK with me, because I hadn't been impressed with the campground anyhow. When I got back from seeing the Runestone, I asked at the office about a State Park south of here where I had reservations. Their webpage said their water source had E. Coli and you had to bring your own water. I wanted to know if things had changed. She checked and said no, their water source still had E. Coli and "oh, by the way, ours tested positive for it today". Well crap, that meant the water that I filled up with yesterday was contaminated. I only drink bottled water but I do use the tank water for showers, washing dishes, etc. I disinfected the tank with Clorox and let it run until I could smell the chorine coming out the taps. I will also have to replace my water hoses and filters at walmart on my way to the next campground. I should be OK with the water in the tank, I just hope I didn't get any of it. I should know in a day or two .
I'll be hitching up shortly and head over to Big Stone Lake State Park near Ortonville, Minnesota which is on the MN/SD border. I lived in a town near there when I was 15 and want to see how things have changed. More on that later.
I wrote this post quickly, so if some of it doesn't make sense, ask me in the comments section.
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| 46 degree driving temperature |
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| Healthy lunch (Mrs. Mc's Class) |
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| Entrance to Glacial Lakes State Park. The hills are drift from the glaciers during the last Ice Age |
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| Road inside the park |
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| Campsite picture from late yesterday evening. |
Ya'll take care of each other. Cya down the road.
Some of the students said, "What about the corndog?". Others said, "It's ok because everything else is healthy!"
ReplyDeleteThey think it's ok you ate the corndog since you are walking around and taking these pictures!
ReplyDelete