Tuesday, 10 July 2018

Blue Springs Campground in Fleming County Park MO

Surprisingly, O and I sleep very well on our new sleeping platform in Vincent, despite the heat and humidity. We leave the side door open, but covered with our mesh Skeeter Beater and place our small fan atop two Useful Boxes to raise it to the level of the platform. This provides a pleasant breeze for the first half of the night. O turns the fan off in the wee hours of the morning as we actually get a bit too cool.

We wake early and head to the showers which are delightful. Our only complaint is that one has no control over water temperature. All taps – showers and sinks – are set at what would ordinarily be a pleasantly warm temperature, but O and I had been hoping for a cool shower.

Nonetheless, we are quite refreshed. We breakfast on raisin bran cereal with cold yogurt. It is already warm and humid at 7 am, and neither of us is interested in firing up the stove for hot coffee. Instead we wend our way back to I-70 and drive westward, hoping for a Starbucks along the way.

Thirty miles later we find our morning coffee in Effingham. I opt for an iced Americano. We arrive in St. Charles MO at 11:40 and meet Mike-the-Hiker as planned. We enjoy lunch and sharing travel stories together. All too soon it is time to bid adieu and hit the road. The sun beats in through our windshield. Outside, the thermometer tops 100 degrees F. As I drive, I try to conjure memories of all the times I have been too cold, but my icy memories melt in the relentless heat.

By late afternoon we arrive in Blue Springs. Following Jack’s advice, we exit I-70 on Route 7 and drive south. Never trust a GPS to get you to a county campground. We muddle our way around the entire perimeter of Fleming Park before we finally find the road to the campground. Our site is shaded by a single, large sycamore. It will be enough. Despite the continued high temperature, it does not seem quite as hot as last evening. The humidity is lower.

Since we had a larger than usual lunch, and since we do not want to add to the heat, we drive out to a custard shop (Custard’s Last Stand) for our “dinner.” I have a mudslide while O enjoys a triple chocolate.

And here we are, back in camp for the evening. The showers here actually allow the option of controlling water temperature. Despite that luxury, I think I will enjoy tomorrow evening’s stop at an air conditioned motel.