This trip our first stop is in Willoughby, Ohio to see our friends Bill & Barb, after that we just want to get to Tucson so we won’t stop anywhere else to see the sites. We took the same route that we did last Spring back to Newfane. However, I did take pictures of our first stop and where we stayed overnight on our way back west.

Our first stop Willoughby Ohio, which is along the Chargin River. Here’s a brief history of the city. Willoughby’s first permanent settler was David Abbott in 1798, who operated a gristmill . Abbott and his family were said to have had close relations with a band of Indians along the banks of the local river, which the Indians called the “Sha-ga-rin” meaning “Clear Water.” This river was later called the Chargin River, though the origin of the name remains in dispute. Of course it does, right.

We got to Bill & Barb’s on September 20th. We had a great site by their house and we had all the hookups, etc. just like a fancy RV resort.

We had a really good time hanging out with our friends. On Wednesday night we took a walk through Historic Downtown Willoughby seeing the old buildings that are now shops and restaurants.

Thursday morning Dave & I took Cooper for a walk at the:

The park is about a mile from their house and it has nice walking trails throughout.

The Holden Arboretum, in Kirtland, Ohio, is one of the largest arboreta and botanical gardens in the United States, with more than 3,600 acres including 600 acres devoted to collections and gardens. Diverse natural areas and ecologically sensitive habitats make up the rest of the holdings. Holden’s collections includes 9,400 different kinds of woody plants, representing 79 plant families.

The arboretum is named for Albert Fairchild Holden, a mining engineer and executive. Mr. Holden established an arboretum in memory of his deceased daughter, Elizabeth Davis Holden. When he died in 1913, at age 46, He left everything to his sister and her husband to take care of.  In December 1988, 75 years later The Holden Forests & Gardens finally became a reality.

A nice guy we past walking on one of the trails.

They have everything laid out perfectly to make the walk enjoyable with various flowers and trees blooming at different times of the year. Beautiful scenery with benches, fountains and butterfly gardens.

The Emergent Tower is 120 feet (or approximately 12 stories) tall. It has 202 steps, with platforms every 30 steps or so. When you reach the top you get to see a 360 degree view of the surroundings. We saw all the way to Lake Erie. It was the perfect day to go to the top of the tower and see the views.

The Canopy Walk is a 500-foot-long elevated walkway that rises 65 feet above the forest floor. It was really neat to walk the canopy among the treetops.

Next we went to Squire’s Castle – A Historic Castle in North Chagrin Reservation, located just off of River Road in Willoughby Hills.

The Gatehouse had several bedrooms and living areas, a large kitchen, and a breakfast porch. All of the Castle’s rooms had white plaster walls and elegant woodwork. Leaded glass windows looked out on the property. One of the most beautiful rooms, according to the Cleveland Metroparks, was Squire’s Library or Hunting Room. It was a cozy room located just right of the driveway and featured books, trophy cabinets, actual stuffed animals, and paintings. The Castle was constructed of silt stone, which is also known as Euclid bluestone, and it was quarried in a location that is now a part of the Cleveland Metroparks’ Euclid Creek Reservation.

His wife, Mrs. Rebecca Squire never liked the country and it’s quietness or the sounds of animals. So she really didn’t like going there. So if they went it was only on weekends. Some say that the castle is haunted by Rebecca. She was said to have gotten scared late one night and got a red lantern for light, then Mrs. Squire went alone into the trophy room carrying her red lantern. While in the room, something frightened her and some that believe that Mrs. Squire looked into the face of something unearthly that night. Regardless of what it was, she became so frightened that she attempted to flee the room. In the darkness, she fell and broke her neck. Some say that isn’t true at all!

When Feargus B. Squire retired in 1909 he seldom visited the castle and he sold the property and his family moved to a new mansion. Over the years through vandalism and partially for safety the inside of the castle is nothing like it once was but it was still really neat to check out. It’s become a popular spot for picnics, hiking, weddings and photography.

Our friends Barb & Bill and their new big beautiful garage. We had an awesome time with them, seeing the sights and visiting with our great friends who happen to be good cooks too. We’re so very happy to have met them work camping at Florida State Parks a few years back. As Barb said “when people ask me what is the best thing about working in a state park is, I tell them it’s the people you meet.” We definitely agree. 💖

2nd Stop Richmond, Indiana

3rd Stop, Vandalia, Illinois Perfect place for the night and we got to see “The Fire Breathing Dragon again!

4th Stop, Springfield, Missouri. We stayed for two nights. I forgot to take a picture of our site so this nice drawing is in it’s place.

5th stop, Yukon, Oklahoma

6th Stop, Amarillo, Texas

Here we are again at Cadillac Ranch.  When we were here in the Spring it was really muddy so we couldn’t  both participate in the fun.  But we did this time!

Here’s the scoop about Cadillac Ranch: Four guys in 1974 decided to put a row of 10 Cadillacs, faced nose-down and half-buried in the ground. They wanted a unique, one-of-a-kind-work of art an eye-catching display of public art now known as “Cadillac Ranch.” Its original purpose was to show the evolution of the Cadillac tail fin. Ten Cadillacs, starting with a 1949 Club Sedan and ending with a 1963 Sedan de Ville were in the ground in a straight row. When people started to visit the site some of them would spray paint and rip off pieces for souvenirs. The four guys who made the piece of art weren’t mad about what was happening and actually encouraged tourists to take pieces with them and spray paint the vehicles.

Over the years, Cadillac Ranch has become a  kind of a ritual site ” for passing travelers according to Roadside America.  And people have come all over the world to spray paint.  It is a neat experience so if your ever in the area  grab your spray paint,  or most likely someone has kindly left one behind, your camera and capture the experience of Cadillac Ranch.

My Mind is thinking Cadillac and I just heard . . . .

Yeah, heel toe, docie doe, come on, baby, let’s go, boot scootin’
Oh, Cadillac, Black Jack, baby meet me outback we’re gonna boogie
Oh, get down turn around go to town boot scootin’ boogie

A brief musical interlude, sorry I can’t get it out of my head.

7th Stop, Edgewood, New Mexico for 2 nights.

8th Stop, Deming, New Mexico, our last stop before we get to Voyager!

On last stop Voyager, Tucson Arizona.

A 10 day trip lots of driving and not stopping, but we made it here safe & sound yesterday, October 1st.

Now we can take time and settle into the lighthearted beat of Arizona.