Prophetstown State Park and friends

Scene from an extension of the five-mile hiking trail

Roger here....  Our Indiana camping friends joined us during the second half of our week at Prophetstown State Park in West Lafayette, Indiana.  It was so good to spend time with Chuck, Cindy, Audrey, Pat and their dogs Sophie (the luckiest dog in Fishers, IN) and Ranger.  We shared meals (thanks to Cindy, Audrey, Pat, and Chuck) and had three great days.  The subtitles of this post are:  hike, games (with rain), beer, and wine.

Hike...

Since our last visit, the paved hike/bike trail has been extended to the Tippecanoe River.  Chuck (and Sophie), Pat (and Ranger), Dianne (and Poquita), (Bandido) and I hopped in the cars to check out the new extension.

The Prairie Pond

Wildflowers Everywhere Along the Trail

The trail ended at the Tippecanoe River (below) before it flowed into the Wabash River.  There were new additional hikes to the confluence of the two rivers and along the Tippecanoe.....

The Tippecanoe River.  I canoed this river a couple of times in my youth.

... but, Sophie let us know that it was time to stop :-).

Before returning to our campsites, we walked over to the Circle of Stones.

The plaques on these boulders represent each of the native American tribes that at one time occupied the land that is now Prophetstown State Park.  There is a great deal of history here.  

Games....

This is a game-playin' group of people.  On the first night we played a new game (for Dianne and me), Play Nine.

Chuck, Pat, me, Cindy, Audrey

On the second night we played hand and foot under a tent and in a downpour!  We lowered the tent, and that helped for a while.  Eventually, water saturated the tent surface where it found openings.  Wind blew a horizontal rain on us.  The dogs lying under the picnic table found themselves in a running stream.  We fled into Audrey and Pat's motor home. 

The game continued but, sadly, Chuck (my partner) and I did NOT win!  

Enough of these games!

On to the ...






... Wine...

Audrey and Pat told us about a local winery that they liked.  A little sampling was in order.  We all ended up buying a couple of bottles.  Kudos to the Wildcat Creek Winery!  On to the...

Cindy, Pat, silly Chuck, Dianne, Audrey

... Beer...

How does that saying go?  Wine and Beer, never fear?  Dianne and I treated the group to a round at the People's Brewery.

The picture below shows Chuck (Indiana University grad) enjoying a glass of Boiler Gold --- such a tolerant man!

Dianne's Teensy Weensy Trailer Tip...

I found these dandy collapsible pet food bowls in an RV dealership parts department.  When traveling, they fold up and are easy to stash away:

Then when it's dinner time, the legs unfold and they are good to go:

Notice anything odd about the photo?   

Yes, I prefer the pink bowl -- what of it?!

Bandido made it clear (by not eating unless we served it in the small pink bowl) that that bowl was his, leaving Poquita to dig deep for her food in the larger green bowl...

Don't worry, she finds every molecule of food!

Pet Picture of the Day...

On the trip north to Door County, Wisconsin, Bandido (Houdini)  managed to escape from both his car harness and his regular harness.  He then plowed between the front seats of the SUV and forced his way into Dianne's lap.  He was so proud of himself!  Poquita was not amused, nor was Dianne.