Saturday 12 April 2008

Leg 6 - April 12th - Joplin, MO to Eureka (St. Louis), MO

We decided last night that we would probably be staying mostly at KOA's on our way back as they are open (some RV parks don't open till May1) so this morning we stopped at the office and got the KOA card which gives you a 10% discount and collects points as well.

We left Joplin KOA at 8:45 a.m. under mostly cloudy skies and a temperature of 41F. Along the way we had a few very brief period of what seemed to be sneet (a mixture of snow and sleet) but they were fleeting and there was no accumulation. We had a crosswind most of the way so our mileage ended up at 12.7 mpg.

Here are some photos I took along the way. Definitely not as much green today, the grass is more yellowish brown as we were heading basically northeast and there's lots of water in the fields.


We didn't stop.

This guy has a thing about gas stations.

Branson advertising.


I had a question last night as to whether we use the truck calculation or calculate it manually and the answer is we go by what the computer in the truck tells us.

At 1:00 p.m. we arrived at the St. Louis West KOA and got checked in. I was astounded to find out that the cost for this site is $44.00/night. With our discount we wound up paying $42.80. They take the discount off the original price for the site then add the tax. It's a nice campground but it's not wonderful and certainly not worth $44.00/night in my opinion. We were led to our site and the gentleman took our empty propane tank back on the golf cart, filled it and brought it back. We were set up on site by 1:30 p.m. so I walked up to the office to pay for the propane - $25.78! That's what we pay in Canada or at least what we paid last year. The temperature inside the RV was 44F (7C ) so I got the furnace and the electric heater going very quickly.

Most KOA's have wifi at no extra charge but it's not nearly as good as the wifi at Council Road RV Park in Oklahoma City and the daily charge for the site was a lot less!

Here are some photos I took around the campground on my way to and from paying for the propane.

Our site.

Kamping Kabins at KOA.

The train, we're in the background.

RV sites.



I was tired when I woke up this morning and tired all day so when I got back to the RV I lay down with my book but couldn't go to sleep. Go figure!

After a shower we went out to Walmart again to get a few more things and found out why this KOA is so expensive. It's right around the corner from Six Flags Amusement Park!



Today put us over the halfway point on our trip home. It seems like we've traveled farther than that and that we're almost home but we still have a long ways to go!

Our high today on the road was 43F (6C) and it's supposed to go down to freezing tonight. I hate this time of the year!

For Gordon's day in review, click here.

4 comments:

  1. Anonymous6:19 pm

    Other than that Sandra how do you feel about the KOA? LOL I know about the KOAs. They are high everywhere and with a Six Flags out back I can imagin it would cost more. Everything is going up Sandra! What are we to do??? Be careful and tell Gordon I said Hey.

    Speedy

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  2. Yup, KOAs are pricey...I only stay in them when absolutely necessary. Glad things are still going well..be careful out there! Still lots of weird weather patterns around...

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  3. Thanks again for pictures, it sure looks clean and nice. My parents always stayed at a KOA, but I don't remember it. Stay safe. I see what you mean about the "train".
    Dee

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  4. Now you know why we only do KOA's when there is absolutely nothing else around - they are far too expensive for what you get!

    Try doing the mileage manually - i.e and miles travelled divided by gallons purchased, last time we did it the truck said 17 mpg when in actual fact it worked out to about 12 US and 14 Cdn mpg.

    Glad you are taking your time going back. Safe travels and glad Gordon is doing well.
    Carolyn

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