I hadn’t seen another teardrop camper, let alone another T@b, since Assateague, so imagine my surprise when, walking the dogs on my final evening here, I spied a T@b 400 that had just come into camp! 

It was already dark, so it took me a minute to see the man sitting by the fire, but I introduced myself, and we soon were comparing campers (they saw mine, too) and camping stories while he petted Scooby. He and his wife had traveled from Michigan to Florida, and were now headed back home. They stumbled on Lake Glendale just by chance, but were considering staying an extra day because it was so nice. I encouraged them to try out the trail around the lake, and offered to pass my trails map on to them before I left. 

[I did see them just before I left the next morning, and saw the inside of their camper. Although theirs is only one year newer than my 2018, the interior styling is completely different, with all rounded fixtures rather than the rectilinear style of mine, and though theirs is bigger overall, there seemed less flexibility in the arrangement of seating and sleeping areas. Just sayin’.]

After that, the day went downhill. A raging thunderstorm moved in as I was negotiating the dump station. By the time I was done, my pants were sodden and had to be changed (to be clear, that was from the rain, NOT the dump station). The rain was gone as suddenly as it came.

I headed toward the Mississippi River, and that’s when I realized something: ALL THE WATER BETWEEN THE APPALACHIANS AND THE ROCKIES FLOWS INTO THIS RIVER. I get the idea of a river drainage system, but seeing the physical reality of it, as I crossed endless rivers, creeks, streams, rivulets, and drainage ditches, all swollen from last night’s rains, really brought it to life. There is a HECK of a lot of water moving toward this central point.

Unfortunately, it also meant that finding a campground, here in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, was complicated by that same excess of water. Several of the campgrounds I’d hoped to find were under water. By 5:00, tired, hungry, and in a bad mood, I grabbed a spot in a featureless gravel area right above the road, fed the dogs, and headed off to the local bar and pub to grab dinner and a calming drink or two.

And I STILL haven’t called my baby brother, Jeff, on his 62nd birthday! Happy birthday, Jeff! I promise to call when I get back to the camper!