Branson, Missouri (Post #294) 6/6/2012

I had never been to Branson, Missouri before this last weekend. I have never had any interest in going to Branson before this last weekend. And sadly, after visiting, I still don’t.

My wife and I needed some alone time. We’ve been through a lot in the last 8 months and decided to treat ourselves to a trip. My wife has been trying to get me to “stay in a cabin by the lake” for 15 years. I’ve told her a dozen times I stay in cabins by lakes all the time and that she should come with me some time. But my kind of cabin is not her kind.

We didn’t do any shows, or theme parks or even any restaurants. So maybe if I had I may have a totally different opinion.

The Inn.

So Mrs. OkieRover found a place called Crystal Cove Bed and Breakfast. I will now tell you about it. I didn’t like the bed, way too soft for me. Another couple mentioned the bed softness at breakfast on Saturday.

This was our first Bed and Breakfast, so we didn’t know “how it worked”. We showed up to breakfast 5 minutes late on Saturday. I was embarrassed. The innkeeper was serving when we managed to walk the 25 feet to the dining area from our room.

We are lazy travelers. We usually don’t even have a schedule when we travel. The fact we had to be somewhere “promptly” was going to be an issue.

We chatted politely with the other guests. My wife is painfully shy so this is not in her wheel-house. I can talk to a mailbox for two hours so I carried us. We ate and it was wonderful. Thick cut bacon, scrambled eggs, biscuit, juice, hash browns. We were the last to sit and the first to git. We had a loose plan to visit my brother in Springfield which was an hour drive one way. We were expected for lunch, so we got up.

We went down to the lake and took a few snaps and then got on the road to Springfield. We were almost immediately halted by the ridiculous traffic heading to Silver Dollar City. I won’t bore you with how there weren’t enough lanes to carry the traffic or the 15 minutes we sat in traffic waiting for people to turn left. We should have gotten more intel about this. I blame myself.

We visited with my brother and nephew and after a little forgetfulness on my wife’s part we headed back to our room. We were both pretty wiped so we just napped. Then we watched the Oklahoma City Thunder put it on the San Antonio Spurs. So much for your sweep Spurs. As of this writing the Thunder is one win away from playing in the NBA Championship.

That was a HUGE “Keep Right” sign
Our “cabin”
Sunlight through the prism of a lamp.
Koi pond. Not big enough to eat  yet.

Water fall on the koi pond near the dining area.
Scenic Overlook

Sunday came and I rolled Janie out and told her we needed to be early for breakfast. We got down there at 8:45am. Unfortunately for us…breakfast on Sunday was at 8am. UGGGGH! So we tried to excuse ourselves as the innkeeper was telling us he was just getting ready for church. He insisted we eat. French toast. Again, delicious, but maybe too rich for us. Once again we were totally embarrassed. I mailed a letter of apology today. (I know, old school, but I felt it was necessary. We are not “those people”.)

The route.

We took 412 out of Tulsa and wandered through Arkansas to Southern Missouri. The trip home we took all secondary highways. It was a nice drive home.

On the way home we ran across this interesting gem.

He had just pulled in to the gas station ahead of us and I had to stop and talk to him. It was a Series 2 but with a twist. The frame was totally roached out. They had a Ford that had rolled and was a solid frame but no body. So he and his father married the two. It even still had the Ford steering column. The frame was a bit longer so they added the stretch in front of the windscreen just behind the bonnet.

He was really enthusiastic and said they had a great time working on it. That’s the spirit. He had Mastercraft tires on it and I asked him how he liked them. He said they weren’t all that loud and had a nice narrow look which is signature to these vehicles. I hope he reads this and contacts me. I’d love to know more about this unique rig.

I took this last picture of the Series and we were back on the road. I did not see even one Range Rover Classic the entire weekend. We saw a few Discovery’s and a two Range Rover second editions.

All in all a good trip. I’m not sure I have any more interest in going back. But for a 5 hour drive, it was very scenic and a nice change of pace from our normal routine.

Thanks for reading and Happy Rovering.

2 Replies to “Branson, Missouri (Post #294) 6/6/2012”

  1. Hi guys! This is Bob with Crystal Cove. We really enjoyed having you stay with us and enjoyed talking with you. I enjoyed reading your blog. Beds are a difficult thing for anywhere you stay. Its one of those things. There is nothing like your own bed. We just purchased these new beds and have had a great response to them for the most part. They are a latex mattress and are a mix of a hard and soft mattress. I wish you would of mentioned this to us while you were here. We have a mattress that is a really firm bed on stand by for guests that prefer a hard mattress. We strive to make sure every guests has a great time and is comfortable. This is one reason Bed and Breakfast in general are a great way to stay. If your not happy, we are not happy. If you ever decide to stay and Branson again, we would always enjoy the chance for you to stay with us again. Have a Merry Christmas!

    The Offutt Family!

  2. Bob! You were an excellent host. Seriously, I didn’t know what to expect and you blew us away.

    Beds. You said it brother.

    If we are ever in your neighborhood again, I guarantee Mrs. OkieRover will have us staying with you on the strength of breakfast and your location alone.

    Thank you again for having us.

Comments are closed.