Day 9 - Wapakoneta to Van Buren

This was an interesting day ... it started with sunshine, a stiff breeze and a chilly wake-up. Clouds moved in and the temperature reached 55°. The wind was really cold.  Fortunately, the wind died down by sunset.

We traveled 132 miles as we visited Lake Loramie, Grand Lake St. Marys and Van Buren campgrounds.

The town of Anna is on I-75, just south of Wapakoneta. It caught our attention because it reminded us of Carol's granddaughter, Anna Winslea.

We honor Anna today.

Lake Loramie State Campground was the surprise and delight of the day. We'd never heard of it. It seemed to just pop out of an area where neither of us had been. We were greeted by enthusiastic camp office volunteers and nicely maintained, scenic campsites.

We passed through Fort Loramie, Minster and New Bremen on OH-66 as we traveled from Lake Loramie to Grand Lake St. Marys. All three towns were charming. They reflected prosperity through cleanliness and nicely maintained homes, yards and businesses. We'd like to visit them again.

Some camera fun ...
We're experimenting with a new Sony DSC-HX300 super zoom camera.  The 50X telephoto sure helps us get up close and personal.

No zoom

A closer look from the same distance as above.

Observations ...
We're doing this trip out-of-season for many state campgrounds. Only 9 of 22 camp offices have been open. Campground size seems to have nothing to do with the closures.

We're still trying to figure out how to make our observations useful to others.  Basically, what do ratings of "exceptional", "nice" and "not so nice" mean? Why do we select one rating versus another? More to follow on this subject.

Tomorrow ...
We're going to P&S Trailer Service in Helena. They specialize in Airstream repair and restoration. They're going to look at a problem we're having with separation of the floor covering.

We'll also try to visit Mary Jane Thurston, Harrison Lake and Maumee Bay campgrounds.