A timelapse of driving our RV, a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, 165 miles from Sullivan, Missouri to Rochester, Illinois.
Author: David
Travel from Sullivan, Missouri to Rochester, Illinois
We drove our coach 165 miles, about three hours of driving, from Sullivan, Missouri to Rochester, Illinois.
Here’s a map showing our route, heading northeast:
An interactive map:
Toading up:
“Impassable during high water”; it was raining, but not flooded yet:
Rain:
Nearby tornado warning:
Heavy rain:
Emergency Alert, flash flood warning; totally fine time to be traveling:
The other side of the freeway was flooded, with water up to the top of the barrier, and a (presumably) broken down car:
“Water over roadway”:
Flooding beside the freeway:
Rest area:
Roadworks with a narrow lane:
KOA on KOA Road:
One-lane bridge:
Narrow road:
Our site:
The best hose quick connectors
While in Red Bay I chatted with a neighboring Tiffin owner about plumbing bits (always a fun topic, for me anyway), and he showed me his Eley hose quick connectors. I was impressed; they were much nicer than the cheap ones I had been using, that I got from Amazon.
Better how, you no doubt ask with bated breath? Perhaps the most exciting thing for me is that one can just push them together without having to pull the release mechanism; that saves a lot of effort and time, milliseconds and milliseconds each time!
The release mechanism is much the same as most quick connects, pulling back on the outer ring. But the implementation is a bit better, with stainless steel bars holding the connectors together. And (one thing that confused me at first) they also have a safety feature where the connectors can’t be separated while under pressure, preventing messy accidents.
Another benefit is a wide aperture, so they don’t restrict the water flow.
The only downside of these connectors is that they are several times more expensive than the cheap ones, at about $27 for each pair (you can buy in units of 1-4 of each side). But you get what you pay for.
Based on that recommendation, I bought a bunch of them; each plug and socket comes in a cute twist-together container (that we gave to Mom to repurpose in some craft project):
A closer look at the plugs and sockets:
I also got a shut-off valve, a different design than the usual ball valve lever:
Here’s an example of them in use, with quick connects at the campground faucet (which makes it easier to disconnect), and before and after a 4-way splitter, and when connecting to the coach, as visible in the previous picture:
I use a 4-way splitter, with one outlet having a pressure gauge to check the pressure of the campground supply, one quick connect that I attach a second hose to for filling a bucket etc, a quick connect to a pressure regulator (and another quick connect after that), and a spare regular hose thread, often used to depressurize the hose:
I sometimes add a third gauge after the pressure regulator, to confirm the reading, also with quick connects:
Yes, I do enjoy my plumbing bits, and one could perhaps even suggest that I might get a bit too carried away, if one felt like being wrong. But hey, it’s a hobby. And useful! The quick connects etc make my life easier when moving campsites, as we do weekly on average.
Baseball: St. Louis Cardinals vs Chicago Cubs
We attended a game of St. Louis Cardinals vs Chicago Cubs, playing at the Cardinals’ ballpark, Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri.
An interactive map:
Center field entrance:
The ballpark:
Team store:
Birb:
Perficient Perch:
Chicken and fries:
View from our seats:
Mascot and cheerleaders:
Gateway Arch:
Views from elsewhere:
Our seats were in the sun on a really hot day, so we moved to stand in the concourse:
Then we left early. It was just too hot, and we didn’t particularly care about either of the teams playing.
Gateway Arch National Park
We visited Gateway Arch National Park in St. Louis, Missouri.
The NPS map:
An interactive map:
Map sign:
Old Courthouse, currently being renovated:
Gateway Arch:
Inside the visitor center, a model tram; eight of these go up and down each leg of the arch:
Exhibits:
A model of the observation area at the top of the arch:
Line to the top:
Boarding pass:
Waiting for the tram:
Our tram:
Looking through the windows in the tram doors to the inside of the arch:
Trams at top:
Top of the arch:
630 feet high:
Jenn taking a photo out an observation window:
Views from top:
Shadow of the arch:
Waiting for the tram for the journey down:
Selfie in the tram:
Inside the arch:
Out of the tram:
Tram waiting area:
Arch store:
Arch cafe for a snack:
Under the arch:
A rather unique national park.
Meramec State Park
We stayed at Meramec State Park in Sullivan, Missouri. (Campground Reviews listing.)
An hour out of St. Louis, with a very long road to the campground, and bad cell reception.
Dates:
- Check in: 2024-07-13
- Check out: 2024-07-16
- 3 nights
- We were originally going to stay 4 nights, but left a day early as the cell coverage was very bad
Weather:
- Partly cloudy, some overnight rain
- High temps 90-96°F, lows 71-76°F
- Some wind, gusts to 24 MPH
Noise:
- No road noise
- No train horn noise
- Lots of neighbor noise on weekend, fairly quiet during the week
Site:
- #2, back-in, asphalt
- Needed to disconnect toad, parked in front of coach
- Unlevel site, high on passenger side and front; used hydraulic leveling
- Asphalt driveway about 70 feet long by 12 feet wide
- 40 feet to neighbors on both sides
- Picnic table
- Fire pit
- Tall trees
- Somewhat clean site; some small trash
Utilities:
- 50 amp power, conveniently located
- 60 PSI water, inconveniently located
- Loose sewer connection, inconveniently located (2 10-foot pipes needed)
Internet (in usage priority order):
- Verizon: 18 Mbps down, 0.5 Mbps up, 60 ms ping (okay the first couple of days, then got unreliable)
- T-Mobile: 4-13 Mbps down, 0.01-0.3 Mbps up, 60-700 ms ping (unreliable)
- AT&T: negligible service
- Starlink: not used, too many trees to see the sky
- Campground Wi-Fi: none
Amenities:
- Garbage dumpsters
Our review on Campground Reviews:
Beautiful state park, busy on weekends
This is a beautiful park with lots of trees and green spaces. The two major downsides for us were 1) the access road inside the park was long and twisty and uncomfortable for a big rig to navigate, and 2) the cell coverage was spotty at best, and we work remotely. None of the 3 major carriers got decent speeds, and all the trees made Starlink impossible. Our site was flat, and the hookups were decent, so that was fine. Be prepared for the campground to be party central on the weekend. We camped at Meramec State Park in a Motorhome.
Campground map:
An interactive map:
Our site:
Entrance:
Deer:
Other sites:
We wouldn’t mind staying here again, but the lack of decent cell reception is problematic for us.
Video: Elberfeld, Indiana to Sullivan, Missouri motorhome travel timelapse
A timelapse of driving our RV, a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, 255 miles from Elberfeld, Indiana to Sullivan, Missouri.
Travel from Elberfeld, Indiana to Sullivan, Missouri
We drove our coach 255 miles, about five hours of driving, from Elberfeld, Indiana to Sullivan, Missouri.
Here’s a map showing our route, heading west:
An interactive map:
Water lilies:
Heading on to I-69 North:
Pulling up a yellow stripe:
Love’s fuel stop:
87.122 gallons of diesel for $367.57; we saved $58.42 off that pump price via our fuel discount card:
Bridge roadworks:
Wabash River:
“Welcome to Illinois”:
We haven’t seen a pump jack for a while:
More bridge roadworks:
Rest area:
Crossover roadworks:
An interestingly shaped trailer (a mobile stage):
Another rest area:
A sign that says “After 11 hours driving, you need 10 hours rest”; we prefer to drive only two hours, but will go up to six on interstates, and stay at least one night when “sprinting”, preferably one to two weeks:
Our first glimpse of the Gateway Arch:
“Missouri Welcomes You”:
Six Flags theme park, yep, with six flags out front:
Approaching our destination, Meramec State Park:
Our site:
Miles Landing Campground
We stayed at Miles Landing Campground in Elberfeld, Indiana. (Campground Reviews listing.)
A one night stop on our journey home, but we would have been happy to stay here longer.
Dates:
- Check in: 2024-07-12
- Check out: 2024-07-13
- 1 night
Weather:
- Cloudy, light rain
- High temp 89°F, low 70°F
- Negligible wind, gusts to 11 MPH
Noise:
- No road noise
- No train horn noise
- No neighbor noise
Site:
- #4, pull-through, gravel
- Didn’t need to disconnect toad, and didn’t
- Mostly level site, a little high in the front; used air leveling, since only one night
- Gravel driveway about 70 feet long by 15 feet wide
- 20 feet to neighbor on passenger side; about 50 to neighbor on driver side
- Picnic table
- Fire pit
- Some small trees
- Clean site
Utilities:
- 50 amp power, conveniently located
- 60 PSI water, conveniently located
- Didn’t use sewer connection, but conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe would be needed)
Internet (in usage priority order):
- T-Mobile: 60 Mbps down, 50 Mbps up, 70 ms ping
- AT&T: 160 Mbps down, 60 Mbps up, 90 ms ping
- Verizon: 11-70 Mbps down, 2-25 Mbps up, 30 ms ping
- Starlink: not used
- Campground Wi-Fi: none?
Amenities:
- Garbage dumpsters
Our review on Campground Reviews:
Lovely spot for a quick stop
This is a nice campground not far from the interstate but far enough away that you don’t hear it. Our pull-through site was long enough that we didn’t need to disconnect our tow vehicle, which was very convenient for a short stay. We also enjoyed the nice view of the pond and wetlands below the campground. We camped at Miles Landing Campground in a Motorhome.
Tip for Other Campers: Your GPS will lie to you about the road leading to the campground and where to turn….
Campground map:
An interactive map:
Our site:
Other sites:
Pond view:
A nice campground; we would be happy to stay again, and for longer.
Video: Park City, Kentucky to Elberfeld, Indiana motorhome travel timelapse
A timelapse of driving our RV, a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, 165 miles from Park City, Kentucky to Elberfeld, Indiana.