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Rest Stop News (Texas and Missouri)

July 14th, 2009

Not all states are created equally.

TEXAS

Several months ago we wrote about the new Texas rest areas in “Out of the Dark Ages“. The specific rest area was southbound in Bell County, Texas. On the Northbound Bell County rest area we noticed even more.

The landscaping is nicely done.

There was even an workout area for drivers to enjoy.

A little closer view.

In Walker County the rest area is in the East Texas forest.

This one has its own lake out back.

With walking trail and pavilion.

We’ve found these rest stops to be quite interesting. So far, it looks like Texas is doing a good job revitalizing their “Safety Rest Areas”.

MISSOURI

Now, Missouri is a different story. We stopped at a rest area on Interstate 44, eastbound, about 80 miles west of St. Louis. They had your standard restroom near the top of a hill. Apparently when the laws changed requiring easier access to facilities for handicapped people, they came up with a novel solution. Near the parking lot we found a uni-sex “outhouse”. Here we had two locking stalls with toilets over a pit in the ground. I will say that they were extremely clean and were pleasantly deodorized.

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Branson Misc.

July 13th, 2009

Our time in Branson was short, but we could have filled several more days.

The Pea Patch RV Park, where we stayed, ran another business on the property called Ball Knockers. They had removed a few RV sites from the rear of the property and built a half tube shaped pathway down the hill from a building at the top. The object is to put a person inside the ball and roll it down the hill. The people are removed from the ball and the balls are loaded on this trailer for the return to the top of the hill.

We didn’t have enough time on this trip for a try at it. Maybe next time.

We did, however, have enough time for a free tour of the the Stone Hill Winery. The main facility is located in Herman, MO., about 70 miles west of St. Louis. Stone Hill was one of the three largest producers in the world prior to 1920 and prohibition.

There are only a couple of wines bottled in Branson. We tasted about a dozen different wines but decided not to buy any of them.

A trip a few miles south of Branson, on the Missouri/Arkansas border, you’ll find a fabulous recreation area, Table Rock Lake.

Here is the dam that makes it possible.

Below the dam, there were huge fish hatcheries and fishermen were wading in the river fly fishing.

Back in Branson, we were fascinated by the go-kart tracks. There were at least 6 tracks in town. This track is a combination go-kart track and roller coaster. They were really busy. We never drove by when there weren’t carts zipping up the circular ramp.

We mentioned all of the shows in town. Here are a couple of their venues, The Presley’s and The Twelve Irish Tenors.

This is a fantastic place for families. Most of the shows and other attractions offer family packages where basically you pay for two adult tickets and you can bring a number of children with you. We saw coupons that allowed up to 7 kids as part of the package.

Patience is required for you to work your way through the main street traffic. All shows seem to let out at about 10:00 PM and this “rush hour” traffic is miserable.

You can find just about anything you want in Branson.

The most unique structure was the building that holds Ripley’s Believe It or Not. It makes us want to run right out and set a record.

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SIX

July 9th, 2009

We had asked around to find out what should be our second of two shows we should see during this visit. Nearly everyone answered — SIX. Some even went as far as saying that once you see SIX, you’ll be spoiled for every other show in the area. It turns out that they were right.The theater offered a 6:30 PM dinner prior to the 8:00 PM show. We opted for the dinner that was served at tables in the balcony of the theater. We remained in those seats through the show. It turned out to be a good decision because the regular seats below looked like they could have come from a junior high school auditorium. They were small and close together. Once again, our position will explain the quality, or lack thereof, of the photos.

SIX is a group of brothers that perform “music” without the aid of a band, orchestra, or any instruments of any kind. That is, except for the instruments that are their voices. They can make instrument sounds with their mouths. Oh yes, each one of them is a fantastic singer.

The SIX brothers performed music attributed to dozens of artists. If you weren’t looking at them, you’d swear that the original artists were on stage. We had a few favorites, the performance of several Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons offerings.

Another favorite were The Beach Boys.

During intermission various articles were available for sale, for example, CD’s, and T-shirts. The group came out to autograph the items and programs for the fans.

Then back to the show.

I couldn’t resist snapping a shot of my beautiful date.

The brothers finished with a fabulous rendition of Lee Greenwood’s “Proud to be an American”. Their performance was astounding. You soon forgot that there was no backup band.

When in the Branson area, don’t miss the opportunity to take in the SIX show.

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Jim Stafford

July 8th, 2009

Last night we went to see Jim Stafford at the Jim Stafford Theater. This is his 20th year here in Branson at his own theater. He is known for his guitar playing and earlier comedic songs such as “Cow Patty” and “Spiders and Snakes”

We had pretty good seats and the large theater was about 80% full. The parking lot is on the side of a hill and they have golf cart shuttle service up the hill.

All of the photos were taken without flash and set on “theater”. That setting doesn’t lend itself to very good zoom shots.

Jim is now 65 years old and is breaking in his kids as part of the show. His 12-year old daughter Gigi demonstrated her proficiency with both the piano and the harp.

Son, Seth, shown above playing the piano with his sister and below with his father, is only 16-years old.

He was fantastic on the piano, but his work on the fiddle or violin was unbelievable.

Basically this is a variety show with a pair of very talented dancers.

And a girl, (forgive me for not catching her name) that did a wonderful job with a Hank Williams song.

She also did pretty well with a comedy skit with someone from the audience.

We enjoyed the show and appreciate the fact that he is trying to break some new stuff into the act now that he has reached the ripe old age of 65. I’m sure that he is tired of doing some of the same stuff for all of these 20 years.

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Branson Arrival with stop at Bass Pro

July 7th, 2009

It is a beautiful drive through the Ozark Mountains before arriving at Branson, Missouri .

Just a note regarding our location. We are staying at the Pea Patch RV Park and Campground in Branson. They are located very close to the action just off Hwy 76. We have excellent power, water, sewer and free Wi-Fi. Their information indicates that they can handle rigs up to a combined length of 70 feet. Don’t bet on it. We just barely approach 60 feet and found that making one of the turns inside the park was nearly impossible. Getting out of here is going to be interesting too.

We plan to go see the Jim Stafford show tonight and the performance SIX tomorrow night with dinner. We’ll report on that beginning tomorrow.

Today we decided to make a trip back up the road to Springfield, MO and check out the original Bass Pro Shop.

On the way, we decided to stop at the world famous Lambert’s Cafe in Ozark, MO. You can see by the parking lot that this is a popular place. It was 11:45 and the wait was already about 30 minutes.

The crowd lined up outside.

We elected to wait inside. The walls covered with license plates and memorabilia.

They are famous for their huge portions and also for their “throwed rolls”. If you want a roll, you hold up your hand and a waiter tosses a roll across the restaurant to you. No lie. Here’s a shot of a waiter (with red suspenders) in action.

When I said that the portions were large, I wasn’t kidding. Here is Tinka’s lunch arriving in a skillet.

That’s not all, they kept coming around with okra, rolls, potatoes, molasses, and other items. Needless to say, we were stuffed.

When we arrived at the Bass Pro Shop, we were amazed at the size of the place compared to the other stores scattered around the country. Even more impressive was the decoration. Some areas had low ceilings with beautiful lighting.