It's Raining Walnuts In Brazil (Indiana, That Is)

October 9, 2009

We are currently in Cave City, KY after an enjoyable two week stay in Indiana. It was my home state until ten years ago and I enjoyed returning for the Fall foliage and visits with my daughters and grandson.

But before I explain our trip through Indiana, I would like to share a story.

Several months ago Deb awoke to say she had a dream in which I told her we should name our motor home Howie. At that point I was on my first cup of coffee and, not being fully awake, my brain could not register how the name Howie made any sense at all in the grand scheme of things. "Howie?", I ask. "What is that supposed to mean?"

With a smile, she said that I told her Howie stands for 'House On Wheels Is Excellent'. So from that point forward we have fondly referred to our home as Howie; a reference that feels much more comfortable than RV or rig. RV immediately implies a recreational connotation, which does not properly apply in our case. Howie is our full-time home, our full-time transportation and, in his own way, our constant companion. For many of the same reasons, rig doesn't fit because it sounds too much like a semi-truck. Besides, Howie turned 25 years old this month which in itself deserves the respect of a more formal name. Depending on the source, Howie can now be considered either an "antique" or a "classic". Either way he has been very good to us through 14 states and numerous campgrounds over the past four months.

We left Ohio on September 20th and made our way West primarily on U.S. 30 through central Indiana, then North on U.S. 31 into the South Bend area. It was a very smooth trip and much less taxing than our previous months of driving through steep mountains.

If you've never driven through Indiana, here is a overview of what you will see: corn field, corn field, bean field, farm buildings, corn field, woods, corn field, wheat field, stoplight (in the middle of corn fields), farm buildings, stoplight, McDonalds, corn field, bean field, McDonalds, corn field, woods, silos, corn field....well, you get the idea. There are some beautifully wooded hills in the area South of Bloomington, but the majority of the state is overwhelmingly flat farmland.

During our first week we stayed at the Beaver Ridge Family Campground in Lakeville, just on the outskirts of South Bend. My oldest daughter Shannon, son-in-law Tom and grandson Collin live in South Bend so the site was both comfortable and convenient. We would have liked to spend more time there, but any trip to the area had to be planned around Notre Dame home football games; it is almost impossible to find a motel room or campground opening within a 60 mile radius of the town when they play at home. They had an away game at Purdue that week, so we were able to obtain a nice spot. We spent most of our time enjoying the Fall atmosphere, visiting with Shannon and Collin (who had just turned two years old) and taking a picture of the family football trophy at the hallowed Notre Dame stadium. Our thanks to the gracious hosts of Beaver Ridge who made our stay very comfortable and enjoyable. It is a campground we would recommend if you are ever in the area.

On the 27th we headed back South on U.S. 31, then West on U.S. 41 into Brazil, IN for a week stay at Fallen Rock Parke Campground. My youngest daughter, Jennifer, and her husband, Trent, live in Terre Haute, but we were not able to find a campground there that wasn't insanely expensive. As it turned out, Fallen Rock proved to be a comfortable, scenic stay that was not too far from Jennifer's workplace. We had a very quiet week, enjoyed a nice visit with Jennifer and attended a Saturday evening music show at the campground restaurant. I can't say that the musicians will ever make it big in Nashville, but the evening was a nice change of pace. The odd part of the experience was that we were the youngest people in attendance.

The only down side of the stay was that Howie got continually pelted by falling walnuts. The campground was filled with mature trees and several strong winds caused the nuts and shells to drop on the roof like small bombs. As a result, a few cracks developed in the front roof seams and a major hit was taken by an overhead vent. Luckily, the vent is directly over the shower so, until I was able to patch the break, there was no real water damage.

Our current location is only two miles from Mammoth Cave National Park. We are here for a full two week stay and look forward to visiting the caves next week. Will update you later on that experience. Until then, Happy Trails!

copyright 2009 Lane A Geyer

photos by Deb