Kountry Air

Kountry Air RV Park Entrance.

While working in Montgomery, AL we stayed at the Kountry Air RV Park located in Pratville, AL which is owned by Gigi and Don who are some of the friendliest people you could ever want to meet.

Their park is very laid back and easy to relax in while Don and Gigi will do just about anything, within reason, to make your stay there as pleasant as possible.

We enjoyed their company so much, we invited them over twice for dinner and enjoyed good food, along with some of Gigi's homemade ice cream, and conversation.  

Gigi also helped entertain the kids by driving them around the park in her work cart and buying them a water sprinkler to play in and to help with the heat.

Kids enjoying their buggy ride.

We could not have had better hosts and so far they have been the best campground hosts that we have encountered on our adventure.

Courtney, Chloe, Tia, Avery, Gigi, Don, Ethan, & Ian.

After the work was finished in Alabama, we wanted to get back to Poche' Plantation in Convent Louisiana to take in some more plantation tours and visit Baton Rouge and New Orleans, so loaded up the RV and headed back west.

Discovery 40G ready to hit the road.

During our stay at Kountry Air I also ordered an electric Weber Q grill which I'm starting to like better and better the more I use it.  I can use wood chips with it to produce a good smoke flavor and it is much easier to use than a charcoal grill.  I would have went with gas, but to take advantage of the LP gas on the RV I would need one that could be used with both bottled and natural gas and they are harder to find.

Weber Q electric grill.

Even though there are more plantations in Louisiana than you can shake a stick at, the four below are ones we have or will have visited during our stay at Poche' Plantation.

Plantation Parade On The Great River Road.

So far we have been to the Houmas House, Laura, and Oak Alley.  We plan on visiting San Francisco either this Sunday or the following weekend.

There are still many other attractions in Louisiana to visit such as the Saint Joseph Plantation along with sights in Baton Rouge and New Orleans.

In order to save time and get a post out to everyone I'm going to stop here tonight, but promise to post our plantation visits on-line in the near future.

We are also praying that the power is restored everywhere and thank God no family or friends where injured during the storms that went through West Virginia and neighboring states last week. 

I did see on Facebook where one of our friends was bitten by a copperhead while cleaning up after the storm and so will be praying that they have a full recovery.  I think they will be OK though, since they are good country folk and know how to take care of themselves.

It should not be too awful long until I post some plantation visits, so please keep an eye out for them.

Thanks and God bless!

Don & Misty Lively with Kids.

Home is where the slides are out!

Poche' Plantation

Misty and kids chilling on the front porch. 

Friday we left Galveston Bay Texas for Convent Louisiana to stay at the Poche' Plantation RV Park.   It is an old tobacco plantation which was build by Judge Felix Pierre Poche' in 1870.

Historical marker for Poche' Plantation.

The current owner, Mark, was kind enough to take us through a tour of the house, which was a real treat.  He encouraged us to touch everything, sit on the furniture, and not be afraid of any ghosts.

Front view of the Poche' Plantation house.

While touring the upstairs I thought I got a picture of some ghosts in the master bedroom closet.  If you look real close into the glass right above the door handle, you can see their images.  At this point I was starting to believe the stories of ghosts in this house were true.

Picture of two ghosts looking out the closet.

But upon further investigation, I determined that these where not  ghosts at all. 

Tia & Ethan trying to scare their dad.

When asked whether or not the kids enjoyed the tour, the majority won with a vote of four out of six or sixty six percent.  Tia enjoyed the tour also, but was just being stubborn.

 Kids sitting on one of the beds in the house.

Behind the house is a beautiful water fountain with a patio.  The long portion attached to the back of the house is the kitchen and now garage.

Patio and water fountain behind the Poche' Plantation house.

Below is a shot of the well on the side of the house.  According to the current owner, this plantation was not one of the biggest or richest since it was a tobacco plantation and not a sugar cane plantation like the ones around it.  

Well on the side of the Poche' Plantation house.

Next to the Poche' Plantation is the Saint Michael's Church, which is a very beautiful and historic church.

Saint Michael's Church.

Down the road from the church was Jefferson College which was a nonsectarian institution and was very instrumental in the education of surrounding youth at the time.

Historical marker for St. Michael's Church.

As you can tell from the below pictures, it is very magnificent and beautiful inside.  Of course my pictures do not do it justice for the ornate details of its woodwork and decorations.

 View from the vestibule of St. Michael's Church.

Its pipe organ is supposedly the oldest one still in use anywhere in Louisiana today.

 Picture viewing the back of the church.

Below is a nineteenth century olive jar that was sent to Jefferson College from France full of olives in the mid 1800s.  It is now used to hold Holy Water in the Baptistery.

Holy Water jar. 

Jefferson College which was just down the road from Saint Michael's church and is now the Manresa House of Retreats used by the Jesuits for a three day retreat based  upon the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius Loyola which includes the practice of silence.


I think I'm going to start a program for the kids that includes a vow of silence too.  They might not grow spiritually, but I'm sure Misty and I will.

Historical marker for the Manresa House of Retreats.

One reason I post this is that the evening we first arrived at the Poche' Plantation, we were ready to eat dinner.  To get to any food we had to drive six miles one way or thirteen miles the other way in order to find eating establishments.  

While talking to some other campers in the park, they told us they saw a plantation just down the road, which looked very nice, that was full of people eating and so must be popular.

When we drove down past it there were cars parked all down its side which did look like a dinner crowd.  It was getting dark, so we could not really see the historical marker or any other signs giving us any details.

But after some research we soon discovered that we would not be eating there anytime soon.

It is a very beautiful location and according to individuals who have made a retreat there, it has been very beneficial and they plan their year around their pilgrimage there.

Front view of the Manresa House of Retreats.

The next plantation we visited was the Houmas House located up the river from the Poche' Plantation.

Historical marker for the Houmas House.

This plantation was known as "The Sugar Palace" and is very beautiful with its gardens and ponds.  The grounds are breathtaking with six hundred year old Living Oaks, colorful flowers and plants.


Below is the view from the front gate toward the house through the majestic Living Oak trees planted in rows in order to direct the cool breeze off of the Mississippi River into the house to help keep it cool during the hot months of the year.

Front view of the Houmas House.

Below is a shot from the second floor balcony towards the mighty Mississippi river in front of the house. 

View from second floor balcony.

The map below dated 1847 was one of four and listed all of the plantations in the state of Louisiana at the time to include a census of population.  The map was found hidden in the floor joists of the house in the 1970s while they were doing some renovations.

The reason it was hidden was due to the Civil War and this map would have been invaluable to the Union Army if found.  With it, they would have know the population and exactly where all the plantations were located.

It is sort of amazing how, back then, such a piece of information was so powerful when today we can get information on about anything by Googling it.

Louisiana Plantation Map with Census.

I know it has been about two weeks since I last posted, but with me having to work on-site in Alabama this week, I just have not had the time to devote to our blog.  I'm hoping work slows down here in the near future, but get the feeling it is only going to speed up.


If we have time we want to go back to the Poche' Plantation and spend some time with some of the families we met who are staying there the entire summer.  The kids played well together while Misty and I had some good conversations. 


Don

Home is where the slides are out!

Baytown Texas

Front view out of the RV with Courtney doing a cartwheel.

Today we left Houston for Baytown Texas and are staying at the Galveston Bay KOA RV Resort.  As you can see we have a spot right on the water which is very nice.  We were told that the sun will rise to our left over the water, which could make for a beautiful view to enjoy in the morning.

The kids are having a good time just playing in the yard and will have a better time once we take them to the pool to swim.  There is also a very nice playground that the kids will love too.

I'm looking forward to the hottub next to the pool for my relaxation.  I love hottubs so much that Misty bought me one for Christmas this past year and of course the house sold the very next month!  I like to think it helped in selling the house, so I can justify the cost.

While we were in Houston we missed our chance to visit the Downtown Aquarium, but will drive back there this weekend to check it out.  It is only thirty three miles away, so not too far away.

We will also make it back down to Galveston Island while we are here to check out some more of its attractions and play on the beach.  I want to try my new metal detector I also got for Christmas this year and see if I can find some lost treasure on the beach.

As you can see from the kids' picture below, there is a nice wind coming off of the bay which feels very nice compared to the 90 degree plus temperature.

 Courtney, Ethan, Tia, Avery, & Ian enjoying the brisk breeze off the bay.

The RV resort also has a 500 foot lighted fishing pier which we probably will not fish from since I do not feel like buying a fishing license here, but you never know.  I do plan on doing some fishing while on our adventure, but will probably wait until we are staying somewhere for a longer amount of time.

 Shot of the RV from the fishing pier out in the bay.

Fishing pier lit up at night.

We will be here until next Thursday or Friday and then head to Louisiana for a couple of days on our way to Montgomery Alabama where we will be until around the 3rd or 4th of July, Tia's birthday.  After that, our future is a little cloudy as we are not sure where we will end up!

That is one thing you need to do is plan your stays out way in advance, especially in the summer months since all the RV parks seem to be booked solid due to everyone being on vacation.  It seems one or two night stays are not too hard to get, but weeks or longer require prior reservations.

Most Wal-Marts and other major stores will let you stay in their parking lots for free, but RV etiquette dictates that you do not put your jacks down, slides out, or run your generator, so it makes for an uncomfortable stay, even though it is free.

I'm sure we will get better at the planning and scheduling of our RV spots after we are on the road for some time.  Another source of invaluable information for RV parks and such are the other campers around us, who have been doing this for a while.  

Just yesterday I met a gentleman who, with his wife and four children, travels over 100 days a year in their RV.  He was also very helpful in giving me some good information on some RV parks.  I hope to hook up with them again later on this summer so the kids can play together.

I hope you are finding our posts interesting and keep us in your prayers.  We are truly blessed to be able to take this adventure and thank God that he has allowed us to do so.  

Don & Misty (She helped!)

    Home is where the slides are out!

Ready For Towing

We are now set up for dingy towing, which is great since Misty and the kids can now ride with me in the RV and not have to follow behind.  Our "toad" is ready for the road.

Just so you know the vehicle you tow with your RV is referred to as a toad.

We came from WV to TX driving two vehicles, which was not fun and will not be missed.

As I have mentioned in earlier posts, we had to have a drive shaft disconnect put on our Yukon since it had a single stage transfer case which could not be put into neutral.  So the only way to tow it all wheels down was to disable the drive shaft so the transmission would not turn.

We had the job done at Smitty's RV and Welding located in Houston, TX.  They are a family owned business, very friendly, and answered all of my questions.  They made it easy to get the Yukon set up for dingy towing and installed one of the best combinations for the job.

 Tow brackets.

The drive shaft disconnect is manufactured by REMCO and was the answer to how we would tow the Yukon.  The Yukon user manual states that our model has to be dolly towed with the rear wheels up and the front wheels down.  First off, I could not find a dolly big enough for our Yukon.  Second off, our steering column does not lock, so the vehicle would sway back forth if we did not find a way to stabilize or lock down the steering wheel to keep the front tires straight. 

Drive shaft disconnect at the rear of the drive shaft on the Yukon. 

To use it, you have to either pull out on the control knob (located in the driver's compartment) to disengage the drive shaft and then push it in to engage the drive shaft.  Pulling it out is pretty easy, but you have to have some coordination to get it to engage.  After some practice though, it becomes pretty easy. 

 Drive shaft disconnect control knob.  Pull it to disengage and push it to engage the drive shaft.

Smitty's RV and Welding also installed an air brake system on the Yukon that is one of the best available.  All you have to do is hook up an air hose from the RV to the Yukon and your brakes are enabled.  You do not have to put a brake buddy or anything in the driver's compartment and hook it to the brake pedal.  

The brake system they used on the Yukon is manufactured by M&G Engineering out of Athens, TX.  It is their air brake system with a patented air cylinder that applies the Yukon's brakes the same time the RV's brakes are applied.  It is very efficient with the manufacture claiming that it will reduce the towed vehicle's stopping distance by one-third.

   

Air hose hookup on the Yukon for the air brakes. 

Air cylinder installed on Yukon.

Vacuum cylinder used with air brake system.

Another option that was installed on the Yukon was the wiring of its lights so that I could hook up the Yukon to the RV through its seven pin trailer light plug and have the Yukon's tail lights work off of the RV's tail lights.  This way I do not have to have the removable signal light systems used on some towed vehicles.

Tail light plug on Yukon. 

Now that all this is done, we can easily tow our Yukon using our Blue Ox Aventa LX tow bar and know that we are doing it safely.  It will also be nice for all of the family to travel in the RV now, rather than being split up between two vehicles. Our son Ethan said, "Now, no matter where we drive, we are always home!" 

Blue Ox Aventa LX tow bar, air line, break away line, safety cables, and wiring harness. 

Of course I was a little nervous about driving the RV with the Yukon being pulled behind, but it really is not that hard and the only time I feel the Yukon is when it hits a big bump or something similar in the road.  Other than that I can not tell any difference in driving the RV with or without the Yukon.  I do have to allow for more room when changing lanes on the highway, but I will get used to that too.

Yukon viewed in rear view camera from inside RV.

Another thing that I learned very quickly when unhitching your vehicle from the RV or tow bar is to make sure you either set the emergency brake or re-engage the drive shaft so that the vehicle does not roll away.  Luckily we were not on a hill and there were no other vehicles close to us.  I just hope there was no one else watching.

Don unhitching the Yukon for the first time.

We will finally leave Houston on 14 June and drive over to Galveston Bay RV Resort and stay for a week.  We are pretty excited since we will be on the bay with our lot facing the water and there will be plenty of sites to see to include the Space Center Houston. 

I hope you enjoyed today's blog and that you keep coming back to see what we are up to next.

Don

Home is where the slides are out.

Sunday Dinner

As I stated in my last post, Misty was going to make pan seared tilapia covered with a lemon basil butter sauce for dinner tonight, so I though I would share it with everyone on-line.  It was very delicious!

Pan Seared Tilapia

She also made a strawberry walnut salad, which also tasted very good.  Between me and the kids, there were no left overs of the fish or salad.  

Strawberry Walnut Salad

Don's 1st bowl of salad

When it comes to food, both Misty and I are pretty good cooks with my speciality being grilling, while Misty does most of the indoor cooking and baking to include cookies and cakes.  She made some banana nut bread this morning, which also did not make it past lunch.  If I had been on the ball I would have taken a picture of it, but was too late.

Misty could grill if she wanted to, just like I can bake when I really want too, but if you do not like doing it, then you probably will not be as good at it either.

Today has been a very lazy Sunday for the most part with Monday creeping up around the corner.  I have May end-of-month processing to work on first thing in the morning, which will take up most of my day, so will be pretty busy, but that is better than not having anything to do.  That makes for a very long and boring day.

I am really hoping that I get a call from Smitty saying everything has been ordered and that they will be ready to fix up our vehicle Tuesday or Wednesday.

Well Misty took the kids to the pool, so I thought I would get on the laptop and do a quick post, but my time is running out because I still have to clean up the mess from dinner.  Sometimes Misty cleans up after she cooks, just as I will do, but then other times I clean up if she cooks and vice versa.  I need to get off of the laptop and start cleaning or I will run out of time.

Dishes to wash

Don

Home is where the slides are out!