The Trip Northward Continued.

Eureka KOA

Day one on the road to Wisconsin started at 5:30 in the morning. We pulled out of the driveway in  complete darkness with 70 degree weather. Our neighborhood has only few street lights and they are about as bright as a birthday candle. In addition there is not a single light at the entrance to the subdivision. This made exiting the subdivision difficult because, as a driver, you can’t see the median as you swing wide to make the turn. Fortunately Tammy could get a bearing on her side and told me when to crank the wheel to exit our neighborhood.

The ride for the most part was uneventful with the exception of a semi driver that decided to come into our lane. Tammy said she could have easily handed him a cup of coffee without spilling a drop. After blaring my horn at him, he straightened out and about a mile down the road he ran a red light; it was just fortunate no one was in the intersection at the time.

About three hours into the trip we ran into a pretty strong thunderstorm but were able to skirt it. Later , we slowly pulled away from the storm as we moved north. It’s amazing how crazy some people will drive when the visibility is terrible.

We got surprisingly good gas mileage for going 65 mph, averaging a little over 9 miles per gallon for the 600 miles.  At one point in the early part of Missouri we were getting 11 miles per gallon. Usually we stop after about 150 miles to refill the tank; so there were three stops before we stopped at the Eureka KOA. There were also additional stops to let the puppies out for potty and water breaks.

It is only supposed to reach 84 degrees in Eureka, Missouri.  That will be our stop for tonight; the Eureka KOA.  However, by the time we pulled into the campground it had reached 90 degrees.  I don’t like traveling with the dogs in that temperature.  So we open the back window and turn the air conditioning on for them.

Since this is just an overnight stop, we just hooked up water and electric; there was no need for sewer and no need to unhook the truck.  Unhooking the truck for just and overnight stop is not a necessity,  Had we pulled in at noon I might have considered it.

Unique setting for a campground.

We have never stayed at this KOA.  My first thought was that it was pretty decent.

While taking the girls for a walk I noticed that the campground borders the Allen Cemetery.  One of the KOA employees told me that if they ask a customer during the check-in process if being next to the cemetery is an issue, they always say “no”.  However, if they don’t mention the cemetery and the customer is taken to an RV spot next to it; the customer always states “THAT is going to be an issue!!!”.   I think it adds a little something to the campground.

We were not camping next to the cemetery but I would not have a problem with it.  Sometimes a little creepy can be fun too.

This is a nice KOA with a decent store, really friendly employees and wooded sites.  The bathrooms and showers are immaculate but the shower stalls are very narrow, making it a little hard to maneuver after you shower.  They also have a very nice dog area with two separate fenced areas.

The only downside is the gravel pads, and they are not level; at least ours is not.  I’m not a big fan of gravel sites because everything gets tracked into the camper.  Gravel, dirt, grass, and leaves all end up inside.  We track it in and the dogs track it in.  It’s a little noisy here but that’s what you would expect being close to highway 44.  I wouldn’t hesitate to stop here again for the night.

Tomorrow we have about 350 miles to go, which should be an easier drive for all of us.

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