GOSHEN TO SHEPHERDSVILLE: Family Time Ahead!

We wanted our route from Goshen, IN to Shepherdsville, KY to avoid  toll roads, so we took Indiana 15 out of Goshen, to US 24 at Wabash to US 31 south to I 465 around Indianapolis and on to I-65 southbound to KY.  We heard  bad reports on the road conditions from Indianapolis south and we found them to be true.  Many of the I-465 bridge joints were bone-shaking holes,along with other potholes you just can't avoid easily in a big rig, and the first part of  I-65 south of Indianapolis wasn't much better. But things smoothed out a little more as got farther south.

We didn't want to drive the whole route in one day so we searched by phone for Walmarts along the way that allowed overnight RV parking.  After being told "no" to our phone call several times, we ended up being welcomed at the Seymour, IN Walmart and found a nice spot along a side grass area. There were several big trucks for neighbors, but  that didn't bother us.

Our journey continued late the next morning. Because we were avoiding tolls, we exited I-65 at Exit 1 in Indiana to cross the Ohio River on the Geroge Rogers Clark Memorial Bridge.


We didn't know there was construction on the bridge that left only one lane open in each direction, and those lanes were very narrow. The speed limit was 25 MPH, and Hank drove  Little House in these tight quarters  with no problems. We drove a few blocks through downtown Louisville to find our way back to I-65 southbound and finished our journey to  Grandma's RV Camping in Shepherdsville.


We've stayed here many times when we/ve visited  Louisville, our old home town. The level campsites are very close together, but the owners keep the grounds very clean with good hookups.They've been almost full up the last two nights.

Our time here will be enjoying visits with family and friends before moving farther south.  At least the weather here is much warmer then where we've been the last month, and there's no freezing temperatures in the immediate forecast.

OCTOBER 17 - 22: Goshen, IN

The Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds in Goshen, IN was our home for this past week. We've been here many times for Rallies, but it's a little different atmosphere with only 20 or so RVs on the property. This time of year, it's a quiet place except when the many freight trains pass by the property day and night. The back field where we first camped has louder train noise and the front campground, where we are finishing our stay, has louder train horns. After a day or two, you get use to hearing them and on most nights the noise doesn't wake us.

The weather has been cold with lows near freezing or just below some nights. The days were mostly sunny until the end of the week, when rain showers took over.  The winds increased and by Saturday were blowing up to 50 miles per hour.  Rain and sleet mixed in with times of sun. Snowflakes were predicted. Yesterday and today it has been sunny with temps in the 50's.

Our stay here allowed us to sit back and relax for the most part as well as getting the front Aqua Hot unit back in operation.  Selene had lots of dirty laundry to catch up on.  Hank worked on several computer projects as his body recovered from the farm work. We enjoyed having full hookups again after 5 weeks of more conservative habits. Outings included Hank getting a haircut and routine blood test. One of the HHR's tires needed repair last week and again today. Our replacement Aqua Hot heat exchanger didn't arrive until late on Friday. Saturday, we met the repair tech in a parking lot for the 45 minute job. Afterwards, we moved to the Walmart next door and stocked up on supplies. Today we also picked up a prescription at the local CVS.

Tomorrow, we'll be heading south once again.

October 12 - Oactober 16: Harvest Wrap-up and Time to Move On

Hank worked a few days last week as we watched the colder weather and snow creeping toward us day by day. Pickers, packers and dock crews were getting as many orders filled as possible.  Saturday morning, Oct. 13, Mother Nature ended the pumpkin harvest with a deep freeze - low temps in the mid 20's.   The farm owners thanked us for our help, invited us back for next year's harvest  and told us we could stay on the farm as long as we wanted.  Since Hank had been working in cold weather the last couple of weeks, and the forecasts were for freezing overnight temps with possible snow, we decided to get Little House moving once again as soon as we could.

Our next long stay was to be in Goshen, IN.  One of the Aqua Hot heat exchangers in the front half of  the motor home had developed a leak, and we had made arrangements  for repairs in Goshen whenever we could get there.  Sunday, October 14 was getaway day. With a final horn blast and waves to the owners, we headed south.

Wanting to avoid any close proximity to Chicago traffic,  we drove south on I-39 to the Walmart in Ottowa, IL,  about 50 miles south of Rockford, for our overnight stop.  Monday we finished our trek to Goshen via I-80, and I-94, avoiding all the toll roads and missing some of the worst traffic. 

Many campgrounds this far north are already closed for the winter. We're staying at the 4-H Fairgrounds in Goshen  (open all year) for a week with full hook-ups, where we've been many times for rallies.

We had our choice of sites in two areas and we're in site 270 near the rear of the property. The nicer Northwest camping area at the front of the property is closed for maintenance.

 There are about 20 other RV's here. This stay will give us time to rest up, and get caught up on laundry and a few chores.   Our heating system repair should take place on Thursday, and we'll hit the road again by Monday, Oct 22 as we continue our search for warmer weather.

SEPTEMBER 20 - OCTOBER 11: Working on the Farm

It's hard to believe that we've been at the Wallendal Farm for a month. The time has passed quickly.  Selene has not worked very much, but Hank has more than made up for that.  Ten to 13 hour days, starting before dawn and ending after dark, were not unusual. Thank goodness for at least 2 off days per week so he could have time to rest up and relax until his next shift.  The people we work for, and work with, have been helpful and caring.

At this farm, over 300 acres were devoted to growing  different varieties of pumpkins in many sizes and colors. 



Migrant workers from Mexico make up the crews who pick and pack the pumpkins, according to size and type. Each pumpkin  is run through a cleaning/disinfecting rinse, dried and readied for  shipping in very large cardboard bins, then stacked 2 or 3 high until needed.

 Sixty of these bins will fill a semi trailer.  Before loading, each bin is labeled with code stickers that track the source of the item and the destination.  This can be a 7 day per week operation depending on incoming orders.  Many of the pumpkins grown here end up at big box stores such as Walmart, Trader Joe's, and Aldi.  There are many FDA regulations that must be followed during the whole process.

Hank's job was to drive tractors or pickup trucks pulling large wagons, or driving gutted school buses, for loading by the pickers as he moved along the pumpkin rows.




 He also hauled the filled pumpkin wagons from the fields to the packing house for processing. He did some of the "stickering" of filled bins as well.  There has been a lot of rain during our stay, especially the last two weeks, which occasionally causes vehicles to get stuck in the muddy fields, adding to the job's challenges.  Most of the migrant workers speak little English, and we speak no Spanish,  so sometimes there were language issues.

There have a been a few hot days during our stay but the last couple of weeks have been very wet with daytime temps in the 50's.  Yesterday was a high wind day with snowflakes yesterday morning! This morning we're down to 35 with a hard freeze predicted for tomorrow morning.  Once there is a hard freeze, the growing season on the farm  will  come to an end.  Shipping will continue into early next week.  The migrant workers have to go back to Mexico by the 18th and another year's production will be history.  We'll be leaving whenever the farm owners no longer need us.

During our stay, we've had a 50 amp hookup by grain elevators 1/4 mile from the farm headquarters. There is a portable water tank next to us with non-potable water so we use bottled water for drinking and cooking. The last 3 weeks, we've had a local septic service empty our tanks instead of driving 26 miles to a county park's dump station ( much more convenient and well worth the cost).  Limiting our water usage so we don't fill our grey tank quickly has become second nature.  TV reception has been good thanks to stations in Madison, WI south of us. Our Verizon phone and data signals have been strong. 

We've had time to do a little exploring in the area. When needed, we've gone to Adams, WI.....15 minutes away.... for various errands and mail pickup. Our 52nd wedding anniversary was October 8 and we celebrated by sharing a pizza at Bucky's Brick Oven Eatery in Adams.  

It will soon be time to say good-bye to Wisonsin and start our journey south for the winter.

SEPTEMBER 11-20: Down On The Farm

Ever since we started fulltime RV living in 2012, we've talked about workamping. Our other plans always got in the way of setting aside time to do this. Three weeks ago we saw a request for workampers on a farm near Grand Marsh, WI for a 4-6 week period. This location was only 110 miles southeast of Osseo, WI, and we had no definite plans for that time period. A long phone call with Meaghan, co-owner of the farm, convinced us to give this opportunity a try.

Grand Marsh itself is a very small unincorporated town (2010 population was 127) and is east of La Crosse, and north of Madison.  The town has Myrt's Handi-Mart with gas pumps, a post office (only open a few hours a day), an elementary school, fire deparmtent, The Wooden Nickel Bar,  and  some homes.  Adams, about 15 minutes from us, is the nearest town with shopping, restaurants and other services.

 Three miles from Grand Marsh is Wallendal Farms, a 3100 acre family farm growing many different crops and Wisconsin's largest pumpkin grower. Now is the time for the pumpkin and squash harvest. Hank's job is to drive the various farm vehicles back and forth from the fields as well as operating a fork lift in the packing shed. Selene works part-time as needed with shipping paperwork and office data entry. Our campsite is a spot about 1/4 mile away next to some short grain silos on the edge of corn fields. We have a 50 amp electrical hookup and non-potable water available.  Verizon phone and data signals are strong.

Here is a link to a satellite view of the farm headquarter, the owner's house across the road, and on the right side are the grain elevators where we're camped next to cornfields.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Wallendal+Farms/@43.9089272,-89.6753594,546m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m7!3m6!1s0x8800c84bec95da9f:0x35c2efecc49cbe4d!8m2!3d43.9087261!4d-89.6778491!9m1!1b1

When we arrived on the  afternoon of Tuesday, Sept. 11, we were warmly welcomed by the various family members and other workers, had a short tour of the facility and took care of paper work. On Wednesday, Sept. 12, we clocked in and received food-safety education, then started our first day of training which lasted about 4 hours. Hank learned to operate the 3 tractors, pickup truck, the forklift, and gutted school buses (for hauling pumpkins).



 Selene learned the shipping data entry protocol.  Hank's work day can start before dawn and can last until dusk depending on shipping needs. They will try to give us 2 days off per week, but  that is dependent on shipping orders.  The actual field picking and packing is done by migrant workers, mostly from Mexico.

They've harvested the corn since we've been here, and they were right beside our rig - a harvester and semi truck with open trailer driving side by side down several rows at a time with more semi's falling into place as the loaded one departed. They worked until after dark several nights. Since we're both born and raised city folks, this was something new to see close up.



There was another workamping couple parked at our location until 2 days ago when they left for an event, but they'll be back sometime next week.  The farm owner's home is the storm shelter for all workers during work hours,  and for us after hours.  The daytime temperatures were hot the first part of this week, but after the last two rainy days, there might be frost on some of those pumpkins Saturday morning and there should be much cooler days next week.

We'll share some more details of our life on the farm in the days ahead.

SEPTEMBER 6-11: RV Radio Network Rally

Our journey from Flandreau, SD to Osseo, WI was uneventful. We spent the night of September 6 at the Walmart in Hudson, WI, just east of Minneapolis. On Friday, Sept 7, we did some shopping before making our way to Osseo, WI after stopping at a rest area for lunch and at Flying J for fuel.   

The Stoney Creek RV Resort in Osseo was the location of the RV Radio Network's Fall Rally. The campground is a a full-service resort with many amenities including cable TV and Wi-Fi. They were having a final Family Weekend for 2018, so the campground filled up fast late Friday afternoon and evening. There were 16 people attending the rally with 3 members staying in a nearby motel. We shared daily happy hours, 2 dinners, 2 breakfasts along with other rally activities. The group went to dinner on Saturday night at  the Norske Nook Restaurant and Bakery in Osseo.

During our stay, the weather was beautiful with a couple of chilly mornings. The rally ended on Sunday night, but 8 attendees shared another Happy Hour on Monday. We left Osseo on Tuesday, Sept. 11 for our next stop - Grand Marsh, Wisconsin.

SEPTEMBER 3 - SEPTEMBER 6: South Dakota to Wisconsin

Our reservation at the Left Tailrace COE Campground near Fort Thompson, SD was to end on September 4. With rainy and windy weather due on the 4th, we decided to leave on Labor Day, September 3. We traveled east for 150 miles  to Flandreau, SD and the Royal River Casino and Hotel, owned by a branch of the Sioux Nation.

  Flandreau is one of the oldest cities in South Dakota and is located about 40 minutes north of Sioux Falls.


 There is a 20 site camping area for RV's only at the side of the property with paved sites, electric hookups, and a dump station. Potable water is also available.


 The price is $10 per night. We each got $5 in free play for joining the players club, and Monday through Thursday seniors can get the lunch or dinner buffet for $5. We stayed for 3 nights, played some penny slots and ate at the buffet once for lunch and once for dinner. No big wins for either of us, but we enjoyed our stay.

Wednesday we drove to Sioux Falls to pick up prescriptions at Target, then did some sightseeing at Falls Park near downtown. A five-story veiwing tower offers great views of the falls, the park, and the city.







Today, we traveled east through Minnesota and stopped in Wisconsin at Exit 2 on I-94. We're overnighting at the Walmart in Hudson, Wisconsin. Our original plan was to stay at the Woodbury Cabela's just east of Minneapolis. However, when we called them to ask about staying, they said the city had an ordinance prohibiting overnight RV parking, and would fine Cabela's $100 for each violation. They apologized for turning us down. The Hudson Walmart gladly gave us permission to park in their lot and we'll thank them in the morning with some shopping before we leave.

The weather during the last few days has been great - not too hot and gradually getting cooler.  Tomorrow we'll travel southeast for 87 miles to Osseo, Wisconsin for a rally.