That's just splendid......

6:47 am - Tuesday - July 14th - Spearfish, SD - 52° F, 94% humidity, wind - CALM....heavy cloud cover today (rained all night) with a forecast high of 68° F.....the view this morning.......↴

There is certainly no apparent drought here in our corner of South Dakota....'no siree Bob'....it rains three out of five days....sometimes more frequently.  It did not rain during the day Monday, but it did begin raining once again around 10 pm, and continued on through the night into the early morning....it just finished raining as I write.

We opted for two nights here at Spearfish Campground for one main reason.....we wanted to break in the new Splendide, and to make sure there are/were no leaks, or any other issues after our hasty installation Sunday morning.  Around mid morning I hooked up all three lengths of sewer hose I have to reach the sewer connection located at the very, very back of our site....just on this side of the fence that separates us from the bike path.  Once that was done I opened up the gray tank dump valve and we were in business.  I went outside to turn on the water for the washing machine and immediately heard TLE exclaim....."UH OH!", and I then retorted....."What do you mean by 'UH OH!'?" to which she replied "I can hear water dripping behind the washer".....UH OH!  I immediately turned off both water valves, and thus we began to unload everything from the pantry once again so I could see behind the washer, and hopefully what was leaking.  Within seconds it became obvious that the hot water connection on the back of the washer was leaking so I tightened that connection and had TLE open the hot water valve once again......success....no more leak....this was the first of several issues.....all self induced....with which we dealt over the next 5 hours......yes 5 hours!

The online instruction manual (more on that later) said to run the machine empty for the first run through, so we did.  All worked well, except TLE could heard loud rattling coming from inside the washer, so she turned it off and opened the door.  What did she find?  Well the instruction manual I had been asking her about a few minutes earlier, as well as two water supply hoses.....I had just purchased new, stainless steel braided hoses about 2 years ago so I didn't even think about where the hoses were that might have come with this new unit.  We retrieved the hoses and slightly damp instruction manual (TLE put it outside on a table in the sun to dry out) from the washer drum, and then turned it on again......this time all went well for the entire wash cycle.  

OK.....time for the real deal now.....TLE put in a modest load and turned on the machine to run through the entire wash/rinse/spin cycle again and all went well until the spin cycle started.  We were both reading at the time, and once again enjoying the sounds of our Splendid Splendide doing its job when suddenly the whole coach began to shake....the Splendide was going nuts.....we quickly turned it off and went back to the manual....what had we missed?  We had missed this large sign on the back of the washer telling us to remove the 'TRANSIT SCREWS/GROMMETS/TUBES....DOH!  These things keep the washer drum from bouncing around while it is being shipped anywhere, and protects it from being damaged.  So, once again we are emptying out the pantry, and removing the doors to said pantry so I can move the Splendide to the front of the cabinet and reach the 'TRANSIT SCREWS', etc........

....fortunately I was able to reach all four and remove them without completely removing the Splendide from the cabinet........

......of course, now that Mr. Jello has jiggled, Murphy's Law has been invoked, and the 'Hockwald Way' has now completely engaged you know that is not the end of the story, right?  Right.....while I was removing the 'TRANSIT SCREWS' I inadvertently knocked two of the brackets which hold the shelving in place out of their holes, and they were now on the floor underneath the washer.....the washer we had just pushed back into place.  I have one of those telescoping magnets people use to retrieve metal objects from tight, inaccessible places, but these brackets are not magnetic, so we had to completely remove the washer from the cabinet once again to retrieve them.  We found one immediately, but the second one was being illusive.....it was no where in sight....that's impossible....it has to be there on the floor near where it fell, right?  After ruling out every other conceivable scenario we finally decided it must have fallen behind a large metal plate affixed to the back wall in the pantry under which we could not see.....using a clothes hanger I fished around under that bracket and finally found it.....once the second bracket was retrieved we began to put everything back together.  As I put the last shelf back in place we both began to giggle, and then laugh out loud....five hours had passed, and we were still trying to do the first load of wash in our new Splendide Combo Washer/Dryer.....LOL!

We had no idea it would take us the better part of our day to wash one small load of clothes, but now we are really glad we booked to nights here at Spearfish Campground. That my friends was our wacky Monday....not what we had in mind at all.

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!th

Spearing fish......

8:38 am - Monday - July 13th - Spearfish, SD - 66° F, 46% humidity, wind 10 mph out of the west by southwest......cloudy today with a 68% chance of rain with a high of 78° F.

Sunday began with the promise of a hot one, and did it ever deliver....well over 90° F at its peak, but that story will come later.  I started the big Detroit Diesel 6v92 around 8 am, disconnected the shore power, and stowed the cord.  Next up was to do a 3 point turn in order to back up to our trailer in order to drop the tongue on the hitch after 2 weeks disconnected.  We were on our way within 30 minutes heading back north up US-16A for two short miles before merging with US-16 which took us the rest of the way to I-90 in Rapid City.  

I might mention at this point that we did NOT insert the VW into the trailer since we only had 30 miles to drive to Campingworld situated about 9 miles west of Rapid City just off I-90.  Why you might ponder?  Well, we had a date to pick up our new Splendide 2100xc washer/dryer combo.  TLE had one of our walkie talkies in the VW with her so we could communicate instantly should the need arise.  About 10 miles out from Campingworld TLE came on the radio to tell me she had checked the internet to see when the store opened, and had determined that the store was NOT open on Sunday....wait, what?  I acknowledged her transmission, but still determined to push on anyway.  We arrived at Campingworld to a mostly empty parking lot around 9:30 am.  I quickly disembarked the Newell and walked over to the store doors to see what the daily schedule was.....the sign on the door indicated the store hours on Sunday were 10 am to 5 pm, so I breathed a sigh of relief....only 30 minutes until the store opened.  

Our friends Claude and Gail were already at Campingworld by prior arrangement, awaiting our arrival....they had spent the evening before at the local fairgrounds in Rapid City, so only had a 10+ mile drive to Campingworld.  They were down in Kansas the last two weeks allowing Gail to visit with her son, and Claude to fly home to Oregon to attend the 100th birthday party of his mother.....

She doesn't look a day over 80....amazing!

......TLE snapped this picture of our rig west bound on I-90 just before we exited for Campginworld......

....well, contrary to what the internet said (just because it's on the internet does not mean it is true), the store employees began arriving just before 10 am.  Within minutes I had made arrangements to purchase one of the 6 units in stock, and made arrangements for their warehouse guy to use his forklift to extricate the defunct Splendide 2000, and lift the new 2100xc into the Newell door.....

.......from beginning to end it took us just one hour forty-five minutes to make the exchange, and complete the connection of the new Splendide to hot and cold water, drain hose, vent, and power....

......as well as reinstall the pantry doors, and shelving....there she is, our new Splendid Splendide......

....we were back on the road before 12 pm, and by 1 pm we were parking in our reserved sites at Spearfish Campground (city park)....they actually had one back in site that would fit us without dropping the trailer......

.....we are back up against the local bike path with Spearfish Creek just a few feet beyond that......

.....Rich and Marnie recommended this campground, which I never would have found without their local knowledge.  At the time we arrived the heat of the day was reaching its zenith at around 95° F.....by and far the hottest day we have experienced since we left Wittmann 2.5 months ago...by the by the temps in Wittmann have been exceeding 115° F lately.....glad we are where we are!

As soon as we plugged into the 50 amp pedestal we had both A/C's running to cool the Newell interior.  Within a few minutes I was cooling down in our shower.  By 5 pm we were driving over to downtown Spearfish in search of good draft brews, and good food, which we found at RedWater Kitchen, which sits directly next door to Spearfish Brewing Company....Spearfish Brewing does not sell food, which we wanted so we opted for alfresco dining at Red Water Kitchen, who also had numerous local brews on tap, including a few Spearfish Brewing offerings.  Yelp gives them 4 stars on 61 reviews, and we would be right there, too.

TLE ordered a local blonde ale, and I a coffee bean stout....both where exceptional.  For our entrees TLE ordered their Citrus Grilled Shrimp (a rather large appetizer), Claude and I their Shrimp Pasta, and Gail a hamburger.....it was the perfect alfresco setting with great food, adult beverages and even better conversation.  By the time we had paid our bill it was going on 7 pm.....where did the time go?

 The requisite 'usie'....

....and 'footie'.......😉

....it was a great day with a lot accomplished in spite of the heat....and the heat story continues.....we initially turned off the rear A/C around 9 pm, and went to bed around 10:30 pm....by 11:30 pm we tired of the hot, hair dryer like air coming in the bedrooms windows, and turned on the front A/C as it was 90° F in the bedroom.....we left the front A/C running until almost 4 am when it finally began to cool, so we turned off the A/C and opened up all the windows....thankfully it will be only 78° F Monday.....whew! Got to get further north ASAP!

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

Until next time.....

6:47 am - Sunday - July 12th - Keystone, SD - 52° F, 80% humidity, wind 5 mph out of the north by northeast......cloud cover this morning with a forecast high today of 87° F.....the view this morning......↴

....the past 2+ weeks have flown!  Here we are at July 12th and it is time to roll our wheels once again.  We will be, and have been saying our 'until next times' the past couple of days, and within 2 hours Keystone will begin to fade in our rear view camera as we head back north to the I-90 corridor.

Saturday was our last full day in Keystone as we finalized the putting away of our stuff, organizing the interior of the Newell for travel, and the trailer as well.  Around 11:30 am we walked south on US-16A to meet Rich and Marnie at Halleys West (Yelp gives them 4.5 stars on 16 reviews....we'd be around 4) for our last lunch.....

 Last lunch.....Halleys West

......you can get a Buffalo Burger with fry's for $8....pretty good deal....TLE and I split one of those, as well as a 'side salad'.  The conversation, as always, was wide ranging with just a tad bit of bitter sweetness thrown in for good measure.  We spent 9 months working for Rich and Marnie at RORVR, and became good friends.  Being able to spend these past two weeks with them has been a real tonic, and we are so grateful to have had the full hookups in exchange for a few hours of work.  Rich had to be at work by 1 pm, so around 12:45 pm we began to walk back north on US-16A.....we took our last 'footie' next to a bronze statue in front of one of the hotels......

Last 'footie'....

......by 8 pm (after the sun had passed behind Mt. Rushmore) we stowed all the awnings, and I disconnected our sewer and water.....all that keeps us connected to site #3 is our electrical umbilical cord......

 Our site for two weeks will soon be vacant once again

.....we have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know this little community over the past two weeks, and look forward to returning again sometime down the road....who knows where that "long and winding  road" will lead us?

As we slowly edge toward 1.5 million views of our blog we thank you for stopping by each day for the last 8.5 years!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

Eating our way through Keystone.....

6:41 am - Friday - July 10th - Keystone, SD - 62° F, 83% humidity, wind - CALM......partly cloudy today with a forecast high of 85° F.....rained most of the night until about 90 minutes ago.  On this day in 2016 we were in Carson City, NV having lunch at the In 'N Out Burger.......↴

After enjoying one of the best Mocha Frappuccino's ever at 'Grapes and Grinds' the other day we decided to walk over to this fine establishment again Thursday morning after I finished composing my latest post for coffee and pastries......a scone for TLE and an 'everything' bagel for moi.......

 I never tire of TLE's turn down smile....

.....it was still in the 60's as we commenced our 1/8th mile walk so I wore, for the first time in a long time....a long sleeved T, and a pair of Addidas pants.  The coffee house was jumping at 10 am, and it took a while for us to place our orders, and then receive them, but, as I always say, good food (in this case coffee and pastries) is always worth the wait, and it was.  Because it was overcast most people were consuming their specialty drinks inside, so we had the pick of several umbrella shaded tables, ending up at the same one at which we drank our frappuccinos the other day.

We were home again around 11:30 am watching more previously recorded English Premier League Soccer matches, and reading.  Around 1 pm I received notice that the replacement high mounted brake light for the VW had been delivered so I walked over to the convenience store to retrieve it, and install it.  Rich, who has a 2002 VW Beetle, gave me a brief tutorial on how to get at and remove the old cracked lens (damaged in the first hail storm we experienced here in Keystone)......

The new 'high mounted' brake light installed

....the quite old, original lens was damaged on the left side by hail.  While it took a little longer than planned to replace the lens (another minor hail storm moved through Keystone while I was in the middle of the R&R job) I got the new one (purchased on Amazon for $55) installed.

Since I didn't have to work Thursday evening (I'm going to work Friday morning for a couple of hours instead helping receive the weekly grocery delivery at the convenience store) TLE and I had plans to have dinner at a local fine dinning restaurant called Powder House Lodge (Yelp gives the 4.5 stars on 41 reviews, and it is totally earned).  By all accounts this place is reputed to serve mighty fine food at a decent cost.  They don't take reservations, but said to call about 30 minutes before we were to arrive and they would put us on the 'LIST'.  It's only about 2 miles up the hill on US-16A....we've passed it going and coming from Rapid City numerous times, so we knew it would only take 5 minutes to make the drive.  TLE called around 5:30 pm to get us on the 'LIST'......we were there by 5:55 pm......

.....and seated at our table shortly thereafter.....it pays to be on the 'LIST'......

....we quickly selected a bottle of Norton Reserva Malbec (2018-Argentina) from their wine list to go with our meal.......

.....for our appetizer we ordered their bacon wrapped shrimp....a perfect choice!  For our entrees I ordered their House Special Filet Mignon, and TLE their Cornish Game Hen.....

.....the service was exceptionally good, and very prompt....the food and the wine were first class....everything cooked to perfection!  This is the first formal, expensive dinner out we have had since our 48th anniversary dinner last August 29th....if we were going to still be in town on August 29th we would definitely be celebrating our 49th anniversary it at Powder House Lodge, but who knows where we will be then?  I sure don't.....😊  

We were home by 7:30 and slipping into more comfortable clothing to aid in the digestion of our wonderful meal.  We watched another recorded episode of 'Alone' and I was in bed by 10:30 pm....I'm not sure when TLE joined me, but she was definitely there this morning.

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

The plunge.....

8:02 am - Thursday - July 9th - Keystone, SD - 59° F, 78% humidity, wind 5 mph out of the north.....partly cloudy today with a forecast high of 75° F.

We have had it in our minds to drive south from Keystone to visit Hot Springs, SD since we arrived, and finally Wednesday it was time to make that 55 mile drive.  We left around 11 am, and once we finished wending our way out of the mountainous surrounds of Keystone we hit the more wide open spaces......

......the drive took just over an hour, and soon we were parking the VW and walking into Evans Plunge, established in 1890.  The name of the town, Hot Springs, is kind of a misnomer as there are no 'HOT' springs......these are what is known in the popular vernacular as 'WARM'  mineral springs....the water stays at a constant 87° F winter, and summer, however, we are advised that in the hottest part of the summer the outdoor pool can get into the 90's.......

.....the indoor pool is quite large.....maybe 100 yards in length, and has a water slide, basket ball hoops, and other things to occupy one's time......

 
.....the cost for us with the senior discount was about $13.50/person.....we chose to spend our time in and around the outdoor pool on this mostly sunny day......

 

 
......we spent some time soaking up some vitamin 'D', but neither of us chose to test out the integrity of the tubular water slide......

......these warm mineral springs are quite therapeutic, and by the time we left two hours later we were both feeling quite relaxed, and less stiff.  Our initial plan was to do some junking in Hot Springs proper after our soak, and then have lunch at a local eatery, however, except for Evans Plunge, the town seemed to be shut down......we saw one breakfast place open for business, but all others were closed, including the thrift.  So, on to plan 'B'.....drive about halfway back to Keystone and have lunch in Custer, which we knew from driving through about a week ago had numerous eateries open for 'dine in' business.....

....the drive coming and going was quite scenic.  Soon we were entering the outskirts of Custer intending to head for the supermarket, but were caught up short when we noticed a micro brewery by the name of Mt. Rushmore Brewing Company.....TLE quickly looked them up on Yelp to find they had a 4 star rating on over 40 reviews, so we pulled into the parking lot and headed directly inside.....

....we chose their alfresco dining option and quickly began to peruse their draft options.....I chose their Rail Splitter, a London style Porter........

.....and TLE their Holy Terror, a whiskey barrel aged Porter.....

....we ordered an appetizer of deep fried pickles, which were some of the best of this type we have ever had.....

....for our main course I had their Fish 'N Chips, and TLE a Brat....both were quite tasty, and paired wonderfully with our draft choices.  Sitting outside in the shade of the building feeling the balmy zephyrs softly caressing our collective epidermises was the perfect pairing with the earlier 2 hour soak, and I think we both could have taken an hour nap right there on the spot, but we still had to do a small shopping at the local grocery store before completing the final 30 miles of our drive home, deferring the naps until then.

We arrived home sometime after 4:30 pm with big smiles, and new memories to cherish....a perfect day spent with The Lovely Elaine......you can believe I took a nice nap then!

Thanks for stopping by!

P.S. - I neglected to add about 11 pictures to yesterday's blog post (On the Town), but have done so now....check them out!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!