CRATER OF DIAMONDS CAMPGROUND. Unexpected Joy. HDT Travel Plans. RV LIFE. Fulltime RV. RV Lifestyle

And we're gonna ride the line. This is called living life on the line. Should be able to get the slide out. Is he trying to get in? Got a peeping tom. For everyone who asks, where can you park that thing? Well, we can park it into some pretty cool places. Welcome everyone to the channel. Hey everyone. On our way to our next stop, which is part of our eastbound trek, but we've got to go south and west. Just making a little pit stop. That's right. And I had mentioned earlier that I was gonna take Sondra to some diamonds, but she's gonna have to work for it. That's no fun. And get dirty. I mean like like real dirt. We're gonna be digging for diamonds. That's right. Digging for diamonds. So you realize this week has been the week of diamonds because Monday we saw the diamond ring on the eclipse. Yeah. This trip, tomorrow, today, tomorrow, we'll be digging for diamonds. That's right. And we're gonna end the week on Sunday with the pit stop to see our precious little diamonds, our grandkids. Now it's only going to be for about an hour or two because we're driving through, but this is the week of diamonds. Our precious grandchildren are diamonds. Yes. Can we sell them? No. Priceless. Oh. We couldn't get a penny for them because they're priceless. That kind of diamond. Yeah. I see. Okay. Yeah. All right. And well, I could also say that that where we're gonna stay for the next couple of days is a diamond resort. Oh. Yeah. It's like not a star or five star resort, but a diamond. It's a diamond resort because it's the state park, Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas, where you dig for the diamonds. I'm gonna be boondocking too. Yeah. And depending on how many you find, it could be a five diamond resort. Oh, well, it's a good thing you have that little shovel. We'll all be using it on Voyager. Yeah. Orion. No kidding. Should be all paved on this trip. And speaking of that, this is a short trip today. 70 miles. Yeah. Yeah. It's been pretty. It's beautiful. Pretty drive, country road. Yep. Sunny, unlike a few days ago when we had like no sun because of the eclipse. Yeah. But there's no traffic. Yeah. And no, it really, it's really nice. Now there is a, I do have a concern though, because even though these sites are 55 feet, I'm hoping that we can actually get in to the site, that they're not 90 degrees. I think from what I saw, they look like they're angled and it looks like we should have enough room on the road. So, but when we get there. Yeah. And we'll have to get there a little early. We'll probably walk it and make sure. So yeah. That's always a good idea, especially with state parks and COEs because they have a tendency to be older parks and not really designed for RV friendly. Yeah. Yeah. Not always the biggest of sites, but these are actually like triple A rated premium five-star diamond kind of resorts. So how much is this going to be? We already spent a boat load at Kathleen landing. Yeah. It's only like 35 a night, I think. Yeah. It's a state park. So it's yeah. It's reasonable. Oh, okay. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. I know. So this, okay. So going back to when I went to school at Arkansas university of Arkansas, I was a disc jockey. And so one of my first radio shows, right? And I was from Hawaii. So one of my first radio shows I'm looking at, I'm doing the news, right? Cause I had music, I had news. And I looked at the, the name of this town in Arkansas, which is the town that we're actually going to go through today. And I really wasn't sure how to pronounce it. So I, no, no Washita. No, I pronounce this name and I'm going to stick that on the bottom here. I pronounced it Murfreesboro. Okay. Murfreesboro. Well, of course the producer, the producer, I was phonetically, right? The producer comes running into the studio. He's like, no, you dummy. It's Murfreesboro. I'm like, what? He's like Murfreesboro. So we're going through that. So I've come full circle. You have grown. This is the first time I have visited Murfreesboro since I mispronounced the name. Like, so have you ever been here before? Actually? No, I've never been to Murfreesboro before. All right then. Yeah. So hopefully they'll let me in even though I mispronounced it. That's right. Well, a little less than that. But we will be driving through Murfreesboro. Yes. So that's exciting. All right. We will check you guys later. On Washington Avenue. Okay. I mean, you're going right through the center of Murfreesboro. Yeah. That's kind of cool. And I like these signs on the side of the road where it says Arkansas rocks. This has got to be it. State Park Road. You know, with all this vegetation, it just doesn't. I'm thinking Craters of the Moon. You know, Haleakala. Yeah. You know, very volcanic. World's eighth largest diamond reserve. Wow. Wow. That's pretty cool. That is. North America's largest diamond was found here. The world's eighth largest reserve. That's cool. Visitor center up ahead. Oh, wildlife blind. Diamond Mine. This is pretty in here. Busy. It's very busy. Campers must register at visitor center before occupying campsite. All right. Okay. Well, that means they've got plenty of spaces for us to get in there. All right. It looks like everything is to the right, the left, right. My side, except for the River Trail Amphitheater. So maybe right here is where we pull in to register. Hopefully, that is not indicative of the size of the campsites. Yeah, I'm hoping not either. No, that's just a pavilion. Whoa. Is that possible? Make a U-turn and take the first left. So visitor center right over there. Oh my gosh, look at these roads. I hope they're open. We're not supposed to park somewhere in there to register. Man, it is packed. Is there RV parking for registration? Here we go. Go to left. Oh, we've got a, oh, this is a cul-de-sac. Yeah, registration parking. All right. Well, we are checked in. Now it's time to get to the campground. And there's this nice big cul-de-sac right here, but there's always got to be that one tree. So I'm going to spot David, and we're going to ride the line. This is called living life on the line. David? Yeah, I can hear you. Okay, I just want to make sure I, okay, you're about one inch. You're right on the line. Go that way. Good job ducking beneath that sign. Oh, thanks. Okay, you've got this much road, yeah. I just go straight. The line is straight. So, okay, a little bit too much. Go this way. A little bit more. At the tree with the axles. Yeah, I'm watching it. Okay, so we're good. We have ramps. Oh, just drive it down? Just drive it down. So this is one of the times that we needed to use the mics. The headsets, yes. The headsets, yeah. Man, I was squatting. Man, you were squatting. You got some exercise in. I'm not walking the line. Yeah, so we weren't as close as I thought we might get, but that's because we were right on the edge. Yeah, so which was good. Inches a mile. She has some t-shirts made up like that. Yeah, really, that should be our motto. Inches a mile. I lost the map. Dump station. That's really nice. Yes. This is nice. Yeah, really pretty here. Man, it is busy though. It is. So the lady at the check-in said this was a carryover from the eclipse. Yes, and everyone who was in the area saw this and said, oh why not? Yeah, it's pretty much what we did. Yeah, that's exactly what we did. All right, so go straight ahead. Pretty trees. Good thing they have electric because we would not be getting much solar today. So where's the dump station? This map is not, because that says do not enter. Did we pass the dump station? No, there was nothing. So maybe they don't have a dump station. This might be a road that they have not listed. Or this road is not, it's not to scale. Yeah, yeah, I'm thinking it's definitely not to scale. Campers register. We've done that. We have done our due registration. Excuse me. Bless you. Are we gonna both be able to fit? No, not the way he was so wide on the on that road, but I can slip by him. Yeah, there's a dump station. Okay, so the map. That is a nice dump station. Not to scale. That is a really, really nice dump station. And we could even actually get in there. Yeah. So one through 30. So we are to make a right hand turn past the dump station. Yes. Looks like it's pretty wide. It's a lot wider than Fort Wilderness. Yeah, it is actually a lot wider. Just as many trees. And of course they put the poles, the numbered signs, right on the edge. Yeah, of course. But there's a, there's also little drop-offs by it too. Yeah, so that's good. But some of these are coming back the other way, I think. So campsites four through nine, ten through 22. And then there's the trail to the business center. All right, so 23 through 30. But I think we go straight. Yeah, we don't want to cut. No. The sites look pretty good size. Yeah, they do. These are little trees, not big trees. So if we happen to run into one, we can be able to knock it over. Yeah, really. Everybody cuts this corner. Oh yeah. It's a good thing he's not parked right on the edge. Yeah. Smart man. Smart. Smart camper. Yeah, just like our Mexico trip. Smart camping. Yeah, are we smart camping or are we camping smart? Well, yeah. Being in here with this rig, I'm not so sure certain yet that we're smart campers. We'll see. There's 21. So the next one passed the parking lot. So here's 22. So 23 is up here on the right. Yeah. Oh, that's right on a curve too, David. That's almost like a straight back end. Almost. That's what I saw online. I was hoping for this. Oh yeah. We just have to be a little careful with that. Yeah, because there's a bit of a drop off right there. Yeah. So we got a drop off, no leaning trees, and the signposts. So really that's it. We just only have two obstacles. Yep. For everyone who asked the question, where can you park that big thing? Well, we can get to some pretty cool areas. This is what a 55 foot site can really hold. We are stuffed in here. Should be able to get the slide out. In our site, ready to dig for diamonds. Well, as a lot of you guys have seen, I have my Starlink up on a pole sometimes, back on the corner of the trailer. I've also got a mount that's sort of midway up on the top of the trailer, and I can mount it there. And usually I'll switch it between those two places depending on tree cover. And if it's clear sky, then I can put it on the pole. That's the easiest. I don't have to climb up holding Starlink while I'm going up the ladder. But the third option, and the reason I like to keep Starlink mobile, is that sometimes there's a lot of trees and I've got to put it in other places, like the top of my drum box on the truck. So I know the flat dish is really nice for a lot of people, but I like having my Starlink being able for me to put it where I need to based on trees. At the end of this little Missouri River trail, there are no otters. Just down from our campsite, there's a sign. It says otters. That's right, and wood ducks, and a kingfisher, and so on. But I don't think, I mean, it's really pretty here, and they've gotten a lot of rain. That river's muddy. Yeah. I don't think we're seeing any river otters. No, I think, so the question is, do we have a better chance of sitting here all day tomorrow looking out for a river otter or digging in the dirt trying to find a diamond? Actually, my bet is on the diamond. I think you're right. All right, so we were just checking it out today because we just got into our site, and we always like to get information under our belt before we actually jump into something. Yeah, so we got the info. Opens at 8 a.m. With a line. With a line, and it's $15 per person to go out to the field. To work. To work, like back breaking, digging, sifting work. But they've got quite an operation here, so we'll be here tomorrow. So the last diamond found was on the 7th, and it was like, I can't remember how big it was, but it was a reasonable amount. Yeah. So there's still stuff out there. Oh yeah, yeah. It's just a matter of finding it. It's just incredible. The eighth largest diamond reserve, natural diamond reserve in the world. And some of the largest, well the largest diamonds in North America were found here. Yeah. And this is probably the only place in North America. Only place in North America where you can find diamonds. Yeah. Isn't that weird though? That's just crazy. That is. Crazy. We are armed with enough information to be incredibly dangerous tomorrow. All right, so the weather's going to be really nice. We are gonna go digging for diamonds tomorrow. Yeah. Yeah, which means I'm getting up early to get in line. Yeah, because get some tickets. Get the tickets, and then we can rent some stuff. But we've got a few things, so we're gonna bring a few things with us. And yeah, we're gonna, we're gonna dig for diamonds, man. We have this rule, this is pretty funny, is when we, you know we love our National Park t-shirts and everything, but we have to earn the shirt. So if I see a shirt that I really like, and let's say if it has a bear on it, I don't earn the shirt unless I get to see the bear at the place where I bought the t-shirt. I know that's true. So there were some really cool t-shirts in there, but unless we get a diamond, I can't get it. Not getting it, you know. But the stickers are okay. Yeah, so they found a diamond about a week ago, actually four days ago. So there is the possibility. Yeah, I mean, it seems like they find a diamond at least every week. Once a week, yeah. A couple of times a week. But based on the parking lot, there's thousands of people that come through here. So yeah, anyhow, we're gonna, yeah, we're gonna do that tomorrow. So stay tuned. It's gonna be interesting. We might strike it rich. We might. Good morning. It's about 7.25 in the morning, and it's our first morning here at the Crater of Diamonds. And okay, so before I get to the other part, I just got to say that walking through the campground in the morning and the smell of bacon, that's just cruel. Something about bacon in the morning in a campground, man, now that is a good smell. But anyhow, so what we found out yesterday, Visitor Center opens at 8 a.m., and that's when the minefield opens. And that sounds just wrong to say the minefield, but that's what it is. So you got to buy tickets, one for each person. Lady said, one of the rangers said, it gets busy. You want to get there earlier, the better. Well, at eight o'clock, Sandra is not gonna be there at the Visitor Center. So what we're gonna do is I'm gonna get there at eight. I'm gonna buy our tickets, and then I'll come back. We'll gather our gear, and she's gonna make like a little lunch, some snacks and stuff, or actually snacks and drinks. And then we'll come back after whenever, lunchtime, and have lunch. And then we'll go back the minefield, take a little break. So it's about a quarter mile from our campsite to the Visitor Center, and then we'll rent our equipment once we go back in there. Yeah, so that's the plan. We watched a few YouTube videos last night, so we kind of have an understanding, enough to be dangerous, about where we think we want to start looking in the minefield. So we'll see what happens today. But right now, I'm going to the Visitor Center. It's about 20 till, and there are a few intrepid miners, prospectors here at the Visitor Center already. All right, that's miner gear. Today we are prospecting. We're diamond hunters. You know, I realized just in the last nine months, in less than nine months, we have gotten gold, garnet, and now diamonds, just within nine months. Man, yeah, you'd think we're rich or something. All that you could probably fit, like, in a little thimble. Oh, way less than that. All right, so let's hit it to the diamond field, and let's see what happens. I think calluses and dirt is what's going to happen, but it's going to be fun. We need engine brakes on that. Yeah. All right, well, we have our stuff, our bucket and our sifter. So that's the easy part. Yeah, well, I know it's pretty hard trying to figure out what we needed because we have no idea what we need. So I think the difficult part is where to start. In this huge field, where do you start? So two diamonds have already been found today. Yeah, and what, four yesterday? More than that. Very small ones, though. Yeah, and two of which were found at the surface. So, hmm. All right, well, we have no idea. This is the blind leading the blind. Yeah, I told David, I said, we just need to get a golf ball, throw it really high up in the air, and let's let it bounce, and then wherever it lands, that's where you start to dig. That's right. It's totally random. We're going to try a few spots and start sifting. So we don't want dirt, we want gravel. So just find a bunch of gravel. Yeah, this was on my wife's bucket list, so I'm letting her do the buckets. That's good. I like it. I just did this because I had a bunch of stickers I needed to get rid of. Okay, let's go find just a pile of gravel and dig it out. Yes, enjoy your day. Thank you, you too. Good luck. Thank you. That's kind of shiny, but it's, uh, oh yeah, that's shiny. What is that? It's just something disgusting. Yeah, I think so, but there's a lot of shiny flaky stuff here. Oh yeah, you can see a lot of little spark. Oh yeah, look at all those sparkles. All right, well, we got our first bucket. Now we've already carried it more than halfway. Yes. Or you've carried it. Yes. Now we got to go up to the wash station way up there. What's cool is that they've got some markers of where some of the major finds have been with the shovels. They're all over the place. Yeah, so I think it's kind of cool. How heavy is that bucket, do you think? I don't know, 30 pounds? It's not too bad. It's not bad. So diamond mining, there's a couple of processes. Well, the first one is finding the right spot to dig, but really it's pretty simple. It's you dig up gravel and then you wet sift it and then you without the dirt, the gravel, you put it in your bucket and then you go sort through that bucket later. So one of the things we found out was that diamonds will be the shiny stone, but everything shines when it's wet, so you got to let it dry after you've wet sifted it. So you let it dry, you go back and check it, the shiny stuff will be the diamond. Then also a diamond, you can partially see through it. So if it's opaque, then it's probably quartz. Oh man, there's white caps on here. It's getting windy. Yeah, it's kicked in. All right, so all different kinds of people find their way to Crater of Diamonds. For most, it's a hobby. Some, it's a little more than a hobby. It's definitely a passion and it's interesting. All different levels of experience. Some people, like us, just come out here to partake in the experience, something we've never done before, and just, you know, see what it's like to be a prospector, even if it's just for a day. It's good that we got that. It's nice that you're able to use it and not get Voyager unstuck. Exactly. Use it for something that's productive. Is this productive? Entertainment. Entertaining, yes it is. A new experience. Yes. All right, so we're definitely amateurs at this, and we really don't know what we're doing, but we're fast learners. So we discovered that you need the sun, so a portable table, and then a little stool for Sondra, because she's definitely going through the minutiae of all this gravel. Oh, so this is for me to dump all this stuff on? Yeah. Oh, nice. Yeah, yeah. Cool. So how's it coming there, Prospector Sondra? I'm ready to go home. I'm ready for a hot shower. I'm ready for a cold one. Oh yeah, I think so too. But it's been fun. It's been a new experience. This has been a lot of fun. I don't know if I want to do it again. No, no. But the weather was great. Oh my goodness. The temperature was perfect. I mean, it was really nice, and people are really nice here. They help you out. It was a lot of fun. One time. Now you're getting wet. Oh, so am I. Not a bad sight, huh? You did good. Very nice. Are we going to pop a cold one? We got our cold one. Probably not what you thought. Nor probably what most people might drink. Here at our site, we're taking a day to kind of chill. Took a walk up to the visitor center. As with any state or national park, there is the obligatory stamp, which eventually gets turned into a sticker. I really like this place. This is nice. It's so different from being in the desert, and I think that's, it's just the starkness. Now, ask us in about two or three months after we've been under the trees for three months and have to deal with all the stuff that goes with it. Tree litter and everything else. Sap. But this has been, this has been nice. Yeah. I love change. Yeah, which is, it's great because the weather is gorgeous. Yeah, low humidity. 70s. Man, clear skies. Oh, yeah. I mean, it's really nice. And, of course, the trees just leafed out, so everything is bright green. It's new. Yeah, so we, no doubt we caught it at a great time, but I really like this campground. It's crazy. For a state park, we can fit. That's the first crazy thing, and it has full hookup. So, when we leave here tomorrow, I'm going to be completely caught up with laundry. That's going to feel weird. It's crazy. We'll have full tanks, full and empty, and really just a couple of days on the road before we get out east to Georgia. But, man, it's, this is nice. I'm really enjoying it. So, yeah. So, another day here, and then, I guess it's tomorrow, isn't it? Yes, it is. Tomorrow we hit the road. It's going to be a long travel day. Yeah. We've got to rust up today. We're going to hit it hard. So, yes, today we're taking a break. It's a nice fire pit. It's got that grate on it. Oh, I know. It's really nice. We're getting ready to head out today. It's a big travel day. you