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Air Hamel · 04-30-2009, 05:00 AM

Hey all,
I am not going to be able to be there. Sorry I am going to miss all the fun. Be sure to enjoy, eat way too much, then sit back and let it settle. See you somewhere along the road.

AirsDream · 04-30-2009, 09:05 AM

I'm on my way, through rain and fog and ... well, maybe only through rain!

Ryanh

soldiermedic · 04-30-2009, 01:27 PM

Just got in from work. Finishing the loading, and hopefully be at the campgrounds by 7 or 7:30.

Steve

76sovereign · 04-30-2009, 01:40 PM

I wish we could have made it! Take lots of pictures and keep us posted.
Have fun and eat well

soldiermedic · 04-30-2009, 02:19 PM

It's going to be small, but spirits will be lively enough with the bunch. Looks like things are out of hand already since I was told to bring bail money already by Maccamper

.

Just kidding. It seems I picked the absolute WORST weekend in May for a rally since almost everyone had something going on.

As long as I have BBQ and aluminum around me...I'll be just fine.....and donuts....lots of donuts.

Steve

maccamper · 04-30-2009, 03:03 PM

We're at Whittington Woods and just finished setting up. We've decided that setting set up our camp site in the rain is the norm in Southern Illinois in April.

We were warmly greeted by our hosts -- and we invited them (Mary and Reed) to join us for potluck Friday and Saturday nights. They are anxious to see what in the world armadillo eggs are. We also told them about Steve's bacon explosion. Plus they are anxious to see Overlander64's vintage trailer and vintage tow vehicle -- and, to see everyone else in our group.

Mary and Reed have really been putting in the hours to make the campground a place that makes you want to return -- again and again -- and it is working for us.

We had an easy trip most of the way south -- except for the occasional shower.

All the sites reserved for our group are close to the pavilion so we can have a great time in spite of the occasional rain.

Travel safely everyone ...

maccamper crew of 2

CaptainJones · 04-30-2009, 03:17 PM

OK. I have decided to make this one in spite of rain or whatever. My wife and I and our partially/never finished trailer will arrive tomorrow evening hopefully before dark.

Greg

soldiermedic · 04-30-2009, 03:40 PM

Hey Cap'n,

Nice to see you can join us. Fortunately, we can bounce ideas off one another since we both have early 50's Flying Clouds. If you can nail down a closer time tomorrow we can ensure you some food. Of course I am sure there will be plenty of food as always, and we'll all likely be up anyhow.

Heading out soon...rain isn't bad here at all and is spotty at best.

Steve

maccamper · 04-30-2009, 03:43 PM

Greg, we'll keep a light on in the window for y'all.

maccamper crew of 2

soldiermedic · 04-30-2009, 04:17 PM

Wow...I just got a PM from Mc Camper suggesting tackle Nerf football in the muddy areas of the campground

. Those Macs are quite the courageous bunch.

Don't worry...I'll bring the Nerf ball, but I I'll leave Amy to the first aid.

Steve

maccamper · 04-30-2009, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by soldiermedic

Wow...I just got a PM from Mc Camper suggesting tackle Nerf football in the muddy areas of the campground

. Those Macs are quite the courageous bunch.

Don't worry...I'll bring the Nerf ball, but I I'll leave Amy to the first aid.

Steve

just saw your note -- had to go get maccamper in from the rain -- he's got his high water pants on and is looking for crawdads to grill tomorrow. saw a special on crawdads on tv the other night and thought they'd go good with your smoked shrimp, steve.

maccamper's our name -- muddy camping's our game! (maccamper is asking if crawdads are the same thing as crawfish) .... maybe they're frogs and we'll have frog legs.

Actually, to be fair to Mary and Reed (campground owners), they have some great gravel on the camping pads so mud isn't an issue. We're not getting on their new grass so it will continue to have a chance to grow.

TinLoaf · 04-30-2009, 06:21 PM

Maccamper and TinLoaf are set up and dry. Currently it's not raining. The campground is nice and the fire pit is fantastic. Get ready for a great weekend even if it does rain.

Steve

CaptainJones · 04-30-2009, 08:01 PM

We are getting lots of rain right now. I hope it lets up tomorrow. I am figuring we should make it by about 7:30 or so tomorrow night. Looking forward to getting out for the weekend.

Greg

CaptainJones · 05-01-2009, 08:57 AM

When I called the campground I was told there are plenty of sites left if anyone else wants to join in last minute like I am.

Greg

76sovereign · 05-01-2009, 09:17 AM

Ths camp ground looks awesome! Thanks for posting the picture. Hope to see many more..We miss U all...

Kani

overlander64 · 05-01-2009, 09:37 AM

I am anxiously awaiting my mechanic's call that the Cadillac is ready. Murphy's Law visited this morning and the Cadillac decided that it didn't want to start -- on hour's worth of tinkering later it started with a screech of the power steering pump. It is now at my mechanic's being checked-out to be sure that it is road-ready.

Hopefully the Cadillac will be given a clean bill of health, but if it isn't I will be making the trip with the Suburban -- it has been towing the Airstream all over Southern Illinois getting preparations done (new blackwater tank and new tires with new aluminum wheels). If the Cadillac needs to stay at the automobile hospital, I should be on the road with the Suburban by 2:00 p.m.

Looking forward to a great Rally!

Kevin

maccamper · 05-01-2009, 10:22 AM

The weather has been pleasant this morning. The campground really is a nice one. TinLoaf has a campfire going in the new fire ring by the pavilion. Folks are running some errands to get food for tonight ... supplies and parts for their trailers ... doing some fishing and scouting out the area. maccamper crew of 2 is keeping the campfire going till the errand-ers come back and take over.

Reed and Mary are joining us for the potlucks and have agreed to be judges for the Armadillo Egg Throwdown.

We have lots of brochures about bike trails and things to do nearby. We're hoping the the rain that is in the forecast for this afternoon misses us. The pavilion will be a perfect haven if the rain does start.

Those of us who come in yesterday have had a pleasant time and are anxious for the rest of the group to arrive. The potluck is set to start at 6:30 this evening so we'll still be eating when captainjones and his family arrive -- and have a little leeway on timing for overlander64 if Murphy's Law rears its ugly head again or folks from Scott Air Force Base run into unexpected traffic on their way down.

Safe travels to all --

overlander64 · 05-01-2009, 03:15 PM

Murphy's Law has been busy, but I think that all is ready to go. Will have to miss out on the Friday evening activities. With the weather what it is (thunderstorm with pouring rain here in Union County), I am going to wait until early tomorrow morning to depart.

Will be looking forward to arriving about mid-morning Saturday.

Kevin

soldiermedic · 05-03-2009, 04:16 PM

What a great a rally. The park and the owners were awesome, the potlucks filling, and the company excellent. Pictures will be forthcoming once Tinloaf sets up his newest rally page.

We had a few folks even stop into the park wishing us well including the past Southern Illinois President.

We enjoyed the park so much, that an impromptu Memorial Day weekend is being planned as a buddy rally in three weeks. If you couldn't make this rally, you have another chance coming up! The new rally thread for Memorial Day is Here...MIDWEST Memorial Day Rally.

Nice meeting everyone once again, and glad to renew the cook-off rivalries as Amy edged a close victory against myself, Cosmotini, and Maccamper.

Steve

TinLoaf · 05-03-2009, 05:07 PM

As with all rallies I attend, I've built an online photo gallery where we can upload photos from the weekend. I took a ton and uploaded 87 already. You can download individual full-resolution photos or there's a button to download the entire gallery in a zip file. There's also a button to upload your own photos to the gallery for everyone to see and download.

Check it out: http://web.mac.com/skmentz/Airstream

Steve