July 11, 2005

Acadia, Maine

Union River Lobster Pot Restaurant in Ellsworth, at 8 South Street (207-667-5077)

Probably the best seafood platter I have ever eaten!  Restaurant is right on a curve of the river, and has inside and outdoor seating.

Koji Osakaya Japanese Restaurant

Gresham, Oregon

Life can be very serendipitous, and finding this superb restaurant was one of those times.  This was only their second day open, although they do have 4 other locations in Portland, OR, and 2 more in Seattle, WA.  But to us, they already had the place running like a clock.  The menu was very traditional with large selections of sushi meals, but many seafood, chicken, beef, or pork dishes too.  Kate chose the katsu shrimp, which were HUGE.  I had a combination dinner with HUGE tempura shrimp and vegetables, and teriyaki chicken and green onions on skewers.  Both had side dishes of noodles, California rolls, soup, and salad.  The service was outstanding and extremely friendly, portions large, prices very reasonable, and the food excellent.  As we were leaving, EVERY employee we passed, including those busy behind the sushi bar counter, stopped what they were doing and thanked us for coming with extreme sincerity – very uncommon for most establishments today… 

Elmer’s

Portland, OR

This turned out to be a pretty good place to have breakfast.  Kate had a poached egg on crab cake and cheddar potato pancake, topped with a hollandaise sauce, which also came with a side of mixed fresh fruit.  I had the farmer’s omelet, which was stuffed with ham, sausage, bacon, peppers, onions, cheddar, and topped with country gravy, a side of hash brown potatoes, and wheat toast.  Both were excellent and had large portions – I couldn’t finish all of mine, which is very rare, and Kate could barely finish hers, which was a half portion…  The tab was reasonable, the service friendly.  We sat next to one of their gas log fireplaces, which added to the very pleasant atmosphere.  Elmer’s has around 5 different locations in the area.

Bandanas: Several locations in the St. Louis area.  Good BBQ!!  Tin washtubs around the light fixtures, corrugated sheet metal wall dividers, rolls of paper towels at the table, sweet tea not as sweet as in the South.  Liked it so much that we went back for more the next day!

Texoma City Park, Dumas, TX

30 April 2005

600 W 1^st St, which is also US 87 just west of 87N/287N split.  FREE – yes FREE.  This is an excellent little city park with plenty of room for big rigs.  It has a dump, and access to good city water.  The 24 sites are on a large parking lot and only electric, but it is 100 amps, with other connections for 30/20 amps, too.  It is right near the railroad tracks, but not too much activity at night (or we were just too tired!).   Best to pick the far row just in case though.  Dumas is a decent sized town, including a Wal-Mart Super Center.  A great stop anytime.  They allow a 24-hour stay, and have a donation box to help maintain the grounds and utilities.  We are going into town for breakfast to help thank them for such a great service!  Sure beats $25 or more per night for just an over-nighter.  No pool, rec hall, etc, but wouldn’t be using them anyway.  Well done!

Lewis and Clark RV Resort, Kamiaha, Idaho

This is rated a “5-Star” resort, and we DO have a comfortable site, with 30-amp service, water, and sewer.  However, this resort exemplifies the neglect that many Coast-to-Coast campgrounds suffer from.  There are so many trees, and they are so untrimmed that we were not able to occupy the first site assigned to us, although we would have had a complimentary phone line there.  There were many other sites in that row, with phone line, but they couldn’t be used because the sewer line there was clogged.  There was a nice, clean pool, but this is mid-September…so we were looking forward to the advertised hot tub.  However, this isn’t working, due to vandalism.  The campground is twenty years old, so in it’s prime, it could very well have been a 5-star.  Now, however, most of the sites no longer are graveled -- just weeded.  And, it has been a while since it has been mowed.

Tievoli Resort (Coast-to-Coast): Clarksville, MO about 75 miles to the northwest of St. Louis.  Beautiful grounds with many nice amenities, but the resort has gone through several bankruptcies, and is in need of some TLC.  Now in the hands of a new owner with plans to fix the problems.  Staff was friendly and helpful.

Lewis & Clark State Park, Onawa, Iowa

Nice park with a new section, which had long, pull thrus w/asphalted sites and full-hookups (50 amps) down the center of the new section.  The rest of the sites were electric only.  We stayed in site 110.  The only complaint was that their sewer pipe had a 6” screw cap to remove, but no adapter to fit normal 3” or 4” connectors used by RVs.  The sites were fairly level and open, with reasonable space between sites.  The Lewis & Clark keelboat and pirogue replicas were excellent, and you are allowed to climb aboard to explore.  There is a boat ramp for a large oxbow lake access.  They are in the midst of building a new visitor center, which looks very nice.  Full-hookups were $19, electric only were $16.  No park entrance fee.

Ponca State Park, Ponca, Nebraska

Very nice park, which we wished we could have stayed at longer.  Fairly level asphalt sites with 30 amp electric only.  Mostly back ins, but some pull thrus.  We stayed in Oak Bluffs section at site 53, which was a nice, long back-in, and wide enough for truck and car to be side-by-side in front of RV.  Site 45 looked very like a nice pull thru, but occupied.   Bathrooms were okay, and had free showers.  Park was very hilly with good roads, though windy.  Nice Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center with stone patios, outdoor benches, flower garden, lots of bird feeders, etc which provided a calm and relaxing atmosphere.  Also in the park were a swimming pool, river boat access, stable, golf, scenic overlooks onto Missouri, hiking trails, etc.  Park entrance fee was $3 per vehicle per day.

Offutt Air Force Base FamCamp, Bellevue, Nebraska

Completely new addition was added a few years ago, to include fairly level gravel sites with full-hookups (50 amp), some are pull-thrus.  Sites have reasonable space between RVs, and were adequately deep enough for our 5^th wheel and medium duty truck (MDT).  We didn’t use their restrooms, but they were also built at the same time as the expansion.  RV park is adjacent to base lake, which has canoes, paddle boats, fishing, etc.  A 9-hole golf course is on base, and an 18 –hole course is off base near Capehart Housing area.  Offutt has all services found at a large base, including a great Sunday Brunch at the Offutt Club (formerly Officers Club).

Lewis & Clark Rec Area, Resort & Marina, Yankton, SD

Gorgeous campground right on the lake created by the Corps of Engineers Dam.  $13/night, electric (30 amp) only.  Nice, flat, open sites.  Many trees.  Very nice bike path running along the water.  On site lodging, restaurant, boat ramps, swimming, Nature trail, Equestrian trails.  Site 42E.  Park well-maintained, but not enough bathrooms and showers for the number of campers.

Katys Trail -- a 185-mile rails-to-trails bike path that follows the course of the Missouri River across most of the state, starting at the St Charles waterfront area.  Several access points we have used include:  Weldon Springs Conservation Area, MO, 3 miles West of US 40/61 off MO 94;  Near the town of Herman on MO 94 and 19;