We are again using a COE Campground only this time on the Arkansas River.These campground are among the very best to be had. Not only are the sites large and the campground spacious but the price for the seniors is 1/2 the regular price. In this case it was $9.00. That is pretty hard to beat. The sites must be 50 to 80 feet wide and almost 60 feet deep. Sure beats those private campgrounds that crowd you in to 1/4 that amount of space.

I don't mean to sound down about the private RV Parks. For those who enjoy all the amenities this is a great way to travel. As most of us know there is something for all the travelers it just depend on what you want out of your trip.

The Arkansas River is a navigable river so it also has the Locks and Dams up and down the river. Some of this is for flood control for sure. It is a blue water river and not so muddy as the Mississippi River.

We have crossed the Mississippi River for the last time. Pretty sure that we will never venture east of that particular river again. Not sure what part of the USA we enjoy seeing the best. All has its own beauty. As the saying goes beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Bar none my favorite city's were St Augustine, Florida and Charleston, South Carolina. There are many more city's that we have enjoyed over our 27 years of travel, but the wide open spaces are always the most enjoyable along with the mountains. The pacific northwest has the least adverse weather. It is also a very much 4 season climate.

I know we have been using the secondary roads going east but now that we are headed west it seems as tho the freeways have become our choice. So far we have had real good roads and the traffic not to bad. If it seems as tho we have changed our stripes, so to speak, we really haven't. It is just the closer we get to the west the sooner we would like to get there. Therefor the faster and most straight line is using the freeways. Now if the roads turn rough we will again find ourselves on the secondary roads and at a much more sedate pace.

This trip we have used mostly COE campgrounds, Elks Lodges, Passport America and a couple state parks and also a couple of private parks, and always some free parking at different locations. Wal-Mart certainly caters to the RV'er. This is really not a free parking spot by any means. It does get you off the road safely and the shopping we probably would have stopped to do anyhow. If you are not looking for all the extra amenities for some travelers this fits the bill. Wal-Mart has a 48 hour policy most of the time. Always check with security or the manager for there rules and park away from the car traffic.

Onward west we travel.