2023 Mississippi River Rendezvous September 22-24

[GregWCIL]

Great to know. We are heading up Thursday

[brroberts]

We’ll be there later Thursday since we have sightseeing to do along the way from Pella.

[LeonW]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

Thanks for that Leon. Our fresh water tank is full but the water has been in there for
Two weeks so I was planning on draining it in the AM before we left and filling it as I came in. Now I’ll just fill at the site. Looking forward to the rally and the dog parade. Jake has new duds this year and is ready to hunt.
See you mid day tomorrow. PM me if you discover you’ve left anything behind. I’ll bring whatever it is down with us.
Iowa Dave

Louie-the-Dog had surgery a month ago. Unfortunately the incision kept on re-opening. Over labor day we took him to the emergency room and these stitches seem to be holding. but he is wearing the cone of shame and a "onesie" until Friday. I am sure he will be happy to see Jake.

[Iowa Dave]

Sorry to hear Louie is hurting. He’s such a good boy. Jake is looking forward to getting reacquainted with his Mississippi rally buddies after seeing his Algonace friends and Canadian companions earlier this months. It’s 5:00 AM and we’ve already been outside this morning. He had a moth for an appetizer so he will probably want his breakfast shortly.
Iowa Dave

[GregWCIL]

Bring your raincoats. Looks like a slow moving low pressure system may bring some much needed rain over the weekend. Doggy umbrellas optional unless you have a lab.

[Gregw]

Deb & I were looking forward to joining you all again this year but some things have come up that would make it hard to fit this in.


Lucy is sad to be missing the parade but we hope to join you all next year, Greg & Deb


I just canceled Site 75 on the .gov site so it should be available now.

[Iowa Dave]

Nice sized crew here already. Saw two common water snakes and a tree frog and three sand hill cranes already. It’s a nice evening. Love the crickets birds and all manner of evening creatures.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exwknWjpCUk

Iowa Dave

[Iowa Dave]

This boy needs a new dog.

[GregWCIL]

Big thank you to all those who organized the rally. What a great time Diane and I had. Reacquainted with old friends and made some new ones. We hope to see you all next year.

[Iowa Dave]

Although I’ve always insisted I would not attend an exclusive rally, I violated my credo and attended a “Flash Rally” today. It didn’t last long and was an Escape 21s exclusive. Here’s a picture of today’s event.
Now entitled “Mississippi River Crapfest” It was held a a Corps Of Engineers facility at no cost to the participants. Three trailers and one driver all full of crap.
Iowa Dave

[Sailor now Trailer]

Paul, Janet and all who helped with the 23 rendezvous, thank you so much. We bought our 16, 21C in April, joined the forum, saw and signed up for the rendezvous here, and happy we did. We'll thought out and organized. Pats on the backs to y'all.
Paul, please send us an email as we have some questions.

[WillyB]

We wish we could have made it this year. We had all the planning in place until we realized we had a family wedding on Saturday.

Next year for sure.

[Iowa Dave]

See you there then.
Sure was fun. Paul did a good job as the host. Several Campfires to visit at night as well as the one at the meet and greet. Mostly Escape trailers but a few others and they are always welcome. Plenty of activities, interesting bird life all around, great weather with a few sprinkles and mostly sun with a nice breeze most days. A close balance of 19s 21s and TAs. A few 17s and I think one single axle.
Good times
Iowa Dave

[oldwave]

We were sorry to miss it I even had a site booked. I got a good report from Perry and Terry who I will see at the music festival I am playing at on Saturday in Tennessee. If my health is good I’ll try again next year.

[Tony N]

Thanks to Paul and Janet for organizing, Dan and Martha for morning coffee, and Mimi and Bill for help with the movie. We met new people and had a great time, the good weather and birds certainly helped.
Tony and Darlene

[fudge_brownie]

Thanks to those who helped make this rally the easiest yet.

Dog Marshal Rita Smith

Fire Marshal Jim Lemens

Recycle Marshal Tom Haberski

Swap Marshal Leon Webster

Movie Marshal Tony Nowak

Swag Marshal Steve Marchfield

In addition Anita Marchfield, Eric Thompson and anyone I may have forgotten.

Special recognition to Dan and Martha, the Coffee Marshals and the winners of the Most Visited Campsite Award.

We had 41 units at the rally. I think there were some visitors for the day on Saturday that I missed. Cheryl and Kevin always sneak their family in, hoping we will not notice.

Thanks for coming and mark September 27-29 2024 for the next rally.

[Iowa Dave]

Thanks Paul for your guidance and recognition that a good rally is like raising a youngster. It takes effort from many sides to assure a well rounded outcome. My personal high point was the video Eric took of the 5 foot common water snake visiting our campsite, three sand hill cranes that were hanging around all weekend and all the nice folks who stopped by our site for a visit.
Iowa Dave

[GeorgeB]

A big THANKS to everyone who opened up their door to their escape. These escapes are amazing but not as amazing as those who reside in them. My wife and I are 96 days from retirement. We are looking into RVing for 2025. Having never owned an RV this rally gave us the opportunity to hear from the owners and not a salesperson. Thanks to Paul and many, many, others who gave encouragement, stories, advice, and an overall warm welcome. We walked away with laughter, old movies we must watch, escape knowledge, dog slobber, and great ideas about RV life. I am not sure what you all achieved in your past lives but you make retirement look like a success. :-)

Sami & George RV Virgins

[thoer]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

Thanks Paul for your guidance and recognition that a good rally is like raising a youngster. It takes effort from many sides to assure a well rounded outcome. My personal high point was the video Eric took of the 5 foot common water snake visiting our campsite, three sand hill cranes that were hanging around all weekend and all the nice folks who stopped by our site for a visit.
Iowa Dave

You mean this snake?

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by thoer

You mean this snake?

That’s the snake ok. There are several species in our area but they need protection. I’m still fantasizing about getting down to southern Illinois for a walk on snake alley. I’ve never seen a cottonmouth in the wild.
Iowa Dave