History of a 2003 Keystone Everest 363k

[CWtheMan]

1035-3

Located out on the banks of Lake Michigan just before it converges with Lake Huron there is a historical old fort known as Fort Michilimackinac.

All of the older buildings have been restored and since 1959 there has been extensive archaeological digs that have produced over 1,000,000 historical items. One university or another seems to always have an active dig going on there. It was interesting to see them at work.

Although it doesn’t look like its very large, it becomes so as you walk the grounds and explore the buildings. The girls got tired and played sleepy to get us to leave.

[CWtheMan]

1036

Our two weeks zoomed by and it was once again moving day. We would go on I-75 up and over the bridge and connect with US-2. It was a beautiful scenic highway and we would take it all the way to Minot, ND.

There was some maintenance work being done at the top of the Mackinac Bridge and we had to go down to two lanes right on top. Slowing down there gave us a longer time to view both lakes (Huron & Michigan).

Because we were meandering without CG reservations our travel days were short, maybe 200-250 miles. It depended on when and where we found a place to spend a night or two. Our first find was Summer Breeze CG at Iron Mountain, MI, about 200 miles from Mackinaw City. It was a typical country CG and a little haphazard with its layout. The sites were large, level and grassy and we had a FHU. It was very quite there during our two day weekday stop. Another camper parked close to us told me about a nearby stream that had some nice sized trout. I gave it a try but never got anything big enough to clean and eat. Worms and salamanders were easy to find. Just go to the streams edge and start turning over the rocks. The camp store had a selection of home canned pickles and sliced beats. They were very good and we took some to enjoy later on down the road. We had stopped at a small fish hatchery, took the little tour and info presentation and got a nice picture of us and the foliage.

[CWtheMan]

1037: Iron Mountain, MI – South Range, WI = 225 Miles.

It was a beautiful drive from Iron Mountain to western WI. We were about 20 miles short of Superior when we stopped to get fuel and saw a TT rig with WI plates. We asked them about CGs near Superior and they highly recommended Northland Camping and RV Park at South Range, WI. They were right, it’s rural, small and well managed/maintained. We planned on staying 5 days and exploring the northern most end of Lake Superior including a day trip to Duluth, MN. Our parking site was a large grassy pull thru with FHU services.

The park store is more like a club house. There is a beer and wine bar section, a store and a couple of other areas like a nice wash room and library. When we were checking-in there was an older fellow walking his pet, a black & white pot bellied pig. The park owner told us it was his only traveling companion and it ate mostly hard dog food. He was traveling in a large diesel pusher. The next morning I went to get pictures and he had already left, darn!

On a day trip down WI-35, a scenic ride, we came across some of the Walton family’s riches; a refinery and oil storage area. On our way to South Range we took some pictures of murals being painted on the side of an old JC Penny building at Ashland, WI. One day I drove all around the hilly Duluth, MN to get pictures of Lake Superior from that point of view. I also got some nice ones of the bridge complex from WI – MN.

[CWtheMan]

1038 – South Range WI – Grand Forks AFB, ND

The driving distance from our parking site at South Range, WI to the Grand Forks AFB, ND was about 270 miles. By the time we got there the weather was going bad. It started raining just as I finished getting the trailer hooked-up to everything at our nice, level, large and paved parking site at the AFB FAMCAMP. Sure enough, on our departure day it was again raining, so no pictures.

We put a lot of miles on the truck doing side trips from Grand Forks. We drove to Devils Lake, ND to check-out a highly publicized flea market and found a beautiful Indian casino by crossing the lake on a long causeway. The casino has a very nice RV Park. On another day we went to Rugby, ND to visit the geographical center of North America. The wind was blowing about 30 MPH and cool for July.

We saw a lot of canola fields and I went out in one and got some canola plants. Linda & Barbara probably still have some pressed in books.

The AFB was just about deserted as almost all of their tankers were deployed. However, the PX and commissary were open and we stocked-up on things we would need later.

[CWtheMan]

1039: Grand Forks, ND to Minot, ND

It was a short 215 miles from Grand Forks to Minot. The weather was clear and a little breezy. As always US-2 has wonderful sights, good pull-offs and smooth pavement, especially for the North Country.

Our friends, Don & Betty Doole were about a day behind us, time wise. They were coming from CA in their new Montana. They would come with us to Dickenson, ND and then take I-80 all the way to Peoria, IL.

We had all planned on spending about 10 days at the Minot AFB. However, there were no FHU sites available so we looked around until we found the Roughrider CG. It was our first time parking in side by side sites. That’s where every other RV is parked in a different direction. Up north I guess it helps keep the plumbing costs down. The really nice thing about Roughrider was free fire wood delivered to your site every day if you wanted it. Bringing fire wood – any kind – to the CG was prohibited.

We were there for the 4th of July and the weather held for our entire stay. We took a long side trip up into Canada where we entered in one province and departed from another. When we got back into the USA we couldn’t find restrooms or pull-offs. We found a lake with a dirt road and some tree coverage and went in there. All were smiling after that. Our Dodge had the largest cab and six could ride in comfort. Good thing, there was a lot of squirming around just before we found the lake.

I want you to look at Don preparing his hamburger. He smothers it with peanut butter. Kitchen areas in fivers are just not large enough to prepare large meals so Linda and Betty each prepared half of the meal in their own trailers. Our Everest had a little bit of extra counter space because of an island serving area. There were 8 of us because we had made friends with a couple from GA and invited them to join us.

We found a couple of nice golf courses and the CG had a fresh water stream where fishing was productive.

The park had a REC building and its laundry room was clean and comfortable. Pin ball machines are popular in the North Country and Linda & Barbara love to play them. Right after “mail call” we packed-up and headed south.

[CWtheMan]

1040 – Minot, ND to Dickinson, ND

On the highways we chose use on the way to Dickinson it was just a tad over 200 miles and took us all day because of the many stops we made along the way. It was very picturesque and we stopped whenever possible to view lakes, and distant vistas.

The trip from Minot started by using US-83 down to ND-23. From there we followed ND-23 over to a wide section of the Missouri River where we headed south again on the very scenic ND-22 and followed it all the way to Dickinson.

We decided to we didn't want to stay out near the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. It was of prime interest to us but not the only one. Other side trips were planned and Dickinson was situated at a central point of all places we wanted to visit.

Because Don and I are both 30 year retirees from the USN, we are often offered really nice discounts. Because we also have Golden Age NP Passport cards we opted to stay at the North Park RV Park at Dickinson for 10 days for the price of a one week stay. Our sites were huge FHU back-ins.
I’ll add another post below (1040-1) with Theodore Roosevelt NP pictures. We made two trips out there and only “scratched the surface” of the sights to be seen touring that NP.









In Dickinson we visited the free dinosaur museum. We found a really nice Iron Horse Restaurant/Saloon where they served a delicious hamburger/cheese burger. The Bear/wine and Yum-Yum were extra.

[CWtheMan]

1040-1 – Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Barbara & Tommy were just plain awed at the different landscapes across our beautiful country. They had never been out of the south. When leaving Dickinson and heading back south we would travel through the “heart lands” such as NB, KS & MO. Stay “tuned”, we’re half way.

[CWtheMan]

1041 – Dickinson, ND to Rapid City, SD

The drive down to Rapid City, SD keep us on rural roads most of the way – a very comfortable drive. Out of Dickinson we took I-94 west to US-85 and then south all the way to I-80 then east to Rapid City. We were actually going to Box Elder where we had a two week reservation at the Ellsworth AFB FAMCAMP.
If you’re ever traveling south on US-85 heading to SD, there is a huge truck stop with everything at Bowman, ND. We stopped there for fuel and had a nice lunch in the trucker’s lounge/restaurant.

We were traveling without Don & Betty because they went east on I-94.

The Ellsworth AFB MWR office has a satellite desk at the FAMCAMP. They provide tour vans to all the major attractions. The van and its driver is with you all day and most are good talkers and know all about the sights you’re going out to see. The vans pick-up and return all patrons to the FAMCAMP. It’s wonderful to leave the driving to others and enjoy the attractions along the way.

Ellsworth AFB also has a very large indoor/outdoor aircraft museum at the main gate. They also provide van rides that take patrons on a tour of the base, including the flight lines.

Our parking site at the Ellsworth AFB FAMCAMP was grassy, on a slab. It was a large, level back-in and right across the park street from the office. The laundry room and a few other rooms were in another building away from the office.

I’ll have to use a couple of extensions of this post to show many of the attractions we visited.

There was a huge fire burning west of Rapid City when we were there. Sometimes we had heavy smoke and very red clouds from the setting of the afternoon sun. Some of the fields were being used as staging places for fire fighter personnel to come and go via helicopters.

We were very surprised in the much higher temperatures there compared to what we experienced at Minot, ND. Wild rabbits were trying to get into the shade from our trailer as soon as we stated set-up. It was 105 degrees. Just across the street from our parking site rabbits were taking refuge from the heat under some small trees that provided very little shade.

[CWtheMan]

1041-1 - Rapid City, SD Attractions

All of the MWR tours are a full day long including a lunch stop. Our first one was to Crazy Horse. It was still under construction but the entire infrastructure was complete. On our way there we passed through Custer State Park.

I took the first picture in this series at Custer State Park. All of the others were taken at Crazy Horse. We guys were not much for shopping but as you can see, the girls loved those trinket shops. Souvenirs and mementos were brought for everyone. One of the big deals was they could be mailed from there with a Crazy Horse post mark.

[CWtheMan]

1041-2 Down Town Rapid City, SD

We spent an entire day exploring around the city. It provides tributes to famous Americans. The hotel Alex Johnson is a national land mark and beautifully appointed.

We ate lunch in a unique basement setting where the year round temperature is 72 degrees.

Tommy is a watch & clock man and there is almost always a shop he wants to explore. He shipped some heavy stuff home from his visits. He has told me he made nice profits on all that he sold after making repairs to restore them to their original appearance and working order.

[CWtheMan]

1041-3 – Ellsworth Aviation Museum and Rushmore trip

On a beautiful clear day we drove out to the Ellsworth main gate and visited the very large aviation museum, inside and out. Then we drove out to one of the flight lines to watch their operations.









The next day MWR posted a special late afternoon van trip to Mount Rushmore. They were going to have a special veteran’s presentation at the amphitheater. It was recommended to take extra clothing for the night time presentation. Crazy Don and I didn’t. The smart girls did. We didn’t know any of the speakers but it was all very patriotic and we were glad we took the time to attend.

[CWtheMan]

1042 - Down the road, working our way east.

Because this is about the Everest and its travels I must point out that we were traveling very heavy. Our Dodge had 23,500# GCWR with 4.10 gearing. We were traveling nearly maxed out with the truck and just a few hundred pounds below max with the trailer. To this point on this trip I had not experienced overheated brakes. The tires were new when we started the trip and had plenty of load capacity reserves. However, I did go over the tires speed rating on the interstates. The truck’s speed/cruise control worked best at our loads at 67 MPH. When we left Rapid City I noticed the hydraulic pump reservoir for the slides was a little low. It used automotive transmission fluid and being a lifelong mechanic I had some onboard. I searched and searched and could not find even a hint of a leak. For the 14 years we had that trailer it needed a few ounces of fluid every 6-8 months. Part of my aviation rating was aircraft hydraulics so I’ll bet you can figure out how frustrated I was not being able to find a cause for the fluid loss. I finally just chocked it up to evaporation.



The first leg of our eastward journey out of Rapid City was almost 300 miles to Camp America at Salem, SD. It was all on I-90. We had a 22-27 MPH tail wind all the way and got the best fuel mileage recorded for any leg of our entire 14 state trip.

Camp America was just an overnighter. However, we did unhook to find a place to eat. The parking was flat and level and we had a FHU with pretty good CATV. Even with four people onboard we seldom put out our bedroom slide. The bed, bath and shower are all accessible with the slide in.





The next day we went south another 300 miles on US-81 all the way through the NB grasslands to KS. Right after entering KS we saw a sign advertising a free city RV Park at Concordia. Free? “We would just have to check that out”. We couldn’t see the park from the highway. The entrance road was well paved so we decided to drive in and take a look. WOW! We were surprised. Long level paved parking areas, trash containers at every site, FHUs with 50 AMPS and the parking in the section we selected was tiered. A city police officer stopped by to welcome us and to tell us the park was regularly patrolled all night. We unhooked and stayed two days and left a generous donation in the drop box on departure. There was a super Wall-Mart right across the park entrance street.

[CWtheMan]

1043 – Headed for Branson, MO

Our next scheduled major stop was going to be at Branson, MO. We had a two week reservation at a downtown RV Park on the water. However, it was too far for a single day trip so after leaving Concordia, KS we would just meander on until we found a place to spend a night.

From Concordia we took US-81 to Wichita, took the KS-254 bypass to US-54. While on KS-254 we spotted what turned out to be a large building with numerous attractions just to interesting to pass-up. So we found a place to turn around, went back and parked in their huge parking lot. At that time it was known as Benton Antique Mall. They also restored old cars and had a 1950/1960 soda/snack shop. The antique and flea market sections were on two floors and loaded with stuff. An hour lunch stop turned into a 3 hour exploration. Inside the main building there were three automotive restoration stalls and a few old cars in various stages of being restored. Old cars were parked all around the building and out into the parking area. I’ve never seen another place quite like it.









Good thing it was a short traveling day (220 miles) to our overnight stop at Iola, KS. It’s another place not in any of our RV catalogs. It was small but very useable with nice level pull-thru sites and FHU. The owner manager lived on site and was very helpful and talkative. He told us about a nice place in town to get a “meat & three” meal so we unhooked and went there. It was as he said, very good and reasonably priced.

[CWtheMan]

1044 – Branson, MO

We had made reservations in advance and paid for them. We were headed for the Lake Side RV Park right on the river downtown. Back then we didn’t have GPS so we followed the directions given in one of our catalogs. That was a mistake. We had to make several really tight turns, leaving rubber on the pavement and having to get left lane cars to back-up. But, we got there unscathed.



It was a great location with really good fishing from the cool clear waters of the river. We had not set an itinerary for the things we wanted to do or places we wanted to visit. We would just “play it by ear”.

The driving distance from Iola was right at 200 miles so we got to Branson early I should have taken pictures of the park after set-up but didn’t and never took the time to do so afterward. The one I’m using for the RV Park is from their web site.

The Oak Ridge Boys were performing in town and the park office had discounted tickets so that would be our first show. We had very good seating and I must have taken well over a hundred pictures, of which about 25 were clear. Here are a few I picked out.

[CWtheMan]

1044-1 – The Presleys’

Everyone we talked to said we should add the Presley’s Country Jubilee show to our Branson Bucket list. So we did. It’s a wonderful family entertainment show done by 4 or 5 generations of the Presley family that has been a Branson entertainment staple for more than 50 years. They perform a mixture of comedy with great Bluegrass and Gospel songs and music. They are all very talented and all can play more than one musical instrument.

[CWtheMan]

1044-2 The Branson Belle

One of the most enjoyable things we did at Branson was to take a dinner cruise on the Branson Belle. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing. We were out riding around just eyeballing around and saw the Branson Belle billboard. So we decided to go and see what it was all about. When we got there we found out that they were having an early afternoon dinner and entertainment cruse. We went to see if there were any tickets available and were told all they had were a few VIP balcony booths available. While we were pondering the extra cost of $6.00 each an employee of one of the gift shops told us it was well worth the extra fees as it would be top-notch seating and services. We got the VIP tickets. The lady was right. We had a wonderful private balcony straight back from the stage which was on the lower level. Our dinner would be served before the regular passengers and would offer a couple of choices. Grilled steak or broiled seafood with all the trimmings including a decanter of white or red house wine. The ship’s captain would visit each VIP table. We would finish dinner about 15 minutes ahead of the other passengers giving us the opportunity to walk the decks while they ate. The whole experience was quite special for us and we enjoyed every minute of it. We went to thank the lady for the recommendation when we docked but her shift had ended and she had gone home.











The following day we had tickets for the Dolly Parton’s Stampede. That never happened. That morning I got word that my Brother Richard had died. I had two younger brothers. Richard was the second. More than a brother he was by best friend in this lifetime. We were very close and had almost everything in common. He was 62 when he died. His long time girlfriend was visiting her daughter – a Las Vegas hotel manager – and Richard was alone. However, nothing would have saved him. He died in his recliner watching the morning news on TV and drinking his first cup of coffee. When he didn’t show-up for work his friend called to see if he was up. No answer so a couple of them drove out to his house to see if he had fallen or something in his garage/workshop and couldn’t get to a phone. When they got there they tried the front door but it was locked. Peering in the window they saw him watching TV. He had suffered an instant death and was still setting upright in his chair. I got the call from my younger brother soon after he was found.

Barbara and Tommy flew home and I took our rig to Fayetteville, NC. It was a little over 1000 miles so I had to stop and rest at an overnighter. The people at the RV Park were very helpful. They got Tommy & Barbara and their suitcases to the airport and gave us the money back for the three days left on our reservation. By the time we got to Fayetteville my younger brother had a 30 AMP elect pole installed in his back yard and rigged a gray water hose into his septic system.

It was a very sad ending for our journey. Looking back at all the pictures of the places and things we encountered in those 14 states is a great reminder of the good times we had throughout our travels. I will always miss my brother. He was the most even keeled person I’ll ever know.

After leaving Fayetteville, NC we went to Greenville, SC and unloaded the rest of Barbara & Tommy’s belongings and then headed for FL for the winter. The Everest journey will continue from there.

[CWtheMan]

2001 – Meandering

After wintering in FL again, Linda and I set off meandering. The time line is good but some of the places we stayed at were not recorded. They are just vague memories. Coming up out of FL on US-19 we thought about spending a week on the beach at Destin, FL. We called ahead and were told they had a 38’ back-in trailer site available. What they didn’t tell us was we couldn’t stay on the beach if we had animals onboard – we had a cat – and would have to take a site just off the beach up against a cinder block wall. It was like being in an unlevel sand box and sand fleas were everywhere. One night and we were out of there.

We had decided to go up into the Tunica, MS area to investigate the booming Indian gaming casinos that were being built all along the Mississippi. We also decided to travel state and rural roads.

From Destin, FL we traveled up state and rural roads to Ozark, AL. It was just a 150 mile trip but we stopped frequently at roadside yard sales – where we could find parking – looking for the find of the day. Fort Rucker is near Ozark and they have a very nice USA aviation museum there. After visiting the museum we went to the PX and commissary and stocked-up.








While there we stayed at the Ozark Travel Park. We got a nice level but short drive-thru with a FHU. The park was well managed and clean. It’s right on US-231 and easy to get in & out of.

[CWtheMan]

2002 – Frog Level

From Ozark, AL we took rural roads all the way across (AL-10) Al to Meridian and then took MS-19 to, of all places, Philadelphia, MS. It wasn’t a long trip, about 275 miles, but it was slow because of all the gawking we did. We didn’t know there was a Philadelphia in MS and when we got there we found that the Choctaw Indians were building the Pearl River Casino Resort. Like most places we find to park, we found the Frog Level advertised on a billboard as we entered town. And like its name, the sites are all level. You get 50 AMPs FHU with CATV. It’s a smallish RV Park and just a few miles from the Silver Star and Golden Moon Casinos. By calling the valet parking number at the Golden Moon you can get free van service to and from the casinos. We had only planned for an overnight stay but because of the casino action and another very pleasing and coincidental meeting with an old friend we stayed 5 days.

When someone makes a career out of military service, they are going to meet a lot of people from just about everywhere in the USA. In 1963 while living at Cradock, VA we befriended Robert and Sylvia Johnson. They had a young son and daughter about the ages of out two boys. We were next door neighbors and had a lot in common. But we were only there for 9 months and they were off to Japan and we went to Millington, TN where I attended some advanced aviation training. A few years later while stationed at NAS Cecil Field, FL the Johnsons returned from Japan and Robert was on a ship out of Mayport, FL. We lived there for 4 years and our friendship continued. Then I got Sea duty orders at a fighter squadron out of San Diego, CA. At the Silver Star Casino 40 years later I was getting a cup of coffee and a sandwich when a well dressed young man in his early to mid 40s sit down next to me. He was a pit boss and his name tag had Robert Johnson on it and he did resemble his dad. I asked him about his name and told him I had once had a friend with that – common – name. Well we just about fell off our chairs when we found out that he was in fact the son of our long ago Navy friend. His dad had died of a heart attack a few years earlier and his mother had moved to Philadelphia to be near him. He had to go back to work but gave me his mother’s phone number. I went and found Linda, told her the extraordinary, by chance meeting I had with Robert Jr. She called Sylvia and a little while later they were swapping stories and tears. Over the years since that meeting, we visited Sylvia a few more times before she was afflicted with Alzheimer’s and passed away.

Back in the days without fancy phones with cameras we just didn’t carry cameras around with us when around casinos. They were just not allowed to be used there. So we never got many pictures. On the way out of town it was raining and the picture of the Golden Moon isn’t very good. As you can see there was a lot of construction going on. The people carrier crossing MS-16 was built but the highway had two more lanes to go.

Tunica, here we come!

[CWtheMan]

2003 – The Grand Casino, Tunica, MS

From Philadelphia, MS to Tunica, MS it was about 200 miles. We went up MS-15 to US-54. From there we went west to the very scenic US-61 and on into Tunica.

Because in the past we had been frequent visitors to the Grand at Biloxi and had Grand players cards we got camped for our whole two week stay at the Grand, Tunica. At the time of this visit the casino complex was owned by the Grand. However, in a few years Harrah’s would purchase the whole complex including the golf course.

The RV Park was large with mostly pull-thru sites having FHUs with CATV. The sites were mostly quite level and the whole place was paved. The park office had everything needed on a daily basis. They also had a full sized Olympic pool and tennis courts. At the site number post there was a red flag that could be extended. When up you could expect a van to pull-up and take you to the casino in at least 15 minutes. Rides back were the same vans and left from the valet parking area every 15 minutes. If you wanted to visit other Tunica casinos free bus rides were scheduled all day. Just hop on one and get off at any casino on their traveling list.

The office also had a nice sized lounge area with large screen TVs for watching sporting events. There was a quiet room for reading. It had a nice large book trading selection where you could trade one for one. OH! The RV Park was very quiet.

There was no place close by to do any fishing but there sure were some nice golf courses to While Away the daylight hours.

[CWtheMan]

2004 – EOC

About the same time we started traveling we joined some RV forums. At that time there was a smallish start-up calling itself the Everest Owners Club. The site was privately owned and almost all members were Everest owners. Shortly after Keystone quit building the Everest the club folded.

When we left Tunica, MS there was going to be an EOC gathering at a huge State Park in TN. Natchez Trace is the name and the amenities are so vast I’m providing the park link. The driving distance from Tunica was about 150 miles and once in TN we used I-40 east.

The SP entrance we used was about a dozen miles from I-40 near Wildersville, TN. When entering, a park ranger provided us with a map to the CG. They all have names and ours was Pin Oak. Probably because it was available for the 15 – 18 trailers that would be in our group. The gathering lasted for a week but we stayed another few days, mainly for the fishing and we still had not explored the whole park – we never did. The receipt for the parking site was also a pass to fish in any of the waters within the park boundaries. I could walk across the park road and down a path to the banks of Pin Oak Lake where the fishing was very productive.

As you can see in the pictures the sites were very large, had FHU 50 AMPs and were mostly level. The first Everest rig in the pictures below is ours. You can clearly see the vastness of the site and CG size. There was no office in our CG but there was a centrally located pavilion that had hot water showers and bathrooms. Park rangers came by daily. They would recommend driving directions to other sections of the park. They were very helpful.







If you’re ever in the area and have the time we highly recommend a week stay at the minimum. This link is a must for the first time users.

https://tnstateparks.com/parks/natchez-trace