10/05/07 Branson MO

Captain’s Blog
10/05/07
Branson, Mo
City of Branson Lakeside RV Park
Odometer Reading : 11492.1

Packed up early and drove the 270 miles to Branson, MO. Once again the weather is beautiful, hot and sunny. We weren’t expecting to get a tan this trip but we are.

We arrived in Branson around 1:30 PM and secured a campsite right on the Lake with lots of wild geese and fishermen/women on the lake. Full hook-ups with Cable TV and WiFi for only $22.50. This is a city run campground similar to those in Michigan. It is unbelievable what they offer for such a low fee. The place is huge and almost full to capacity. They told us we were fortunate to get this particular campsite but we have to vacate tomorrow because it is reserved for the weekend.

Branson turned out to be completely different then what we had imagined. The marketing of Branson made us think that the structure of the city would be similar to Las Vegas but on a smaller scale. It looks nothing like Vegas and the infrastructure cannot handle the traffic. There is a strip 17 miles long with hundreds of eateries and just as many show venues all spread very far apart. Not a great place for walking from one venue to the other. The traffic was bumper to bumper and very slow moving. We were told that in busy season it takes several hours to get from one end of the strip to the other. They have actually designed time saver routes to try to decrease the congestion allowing people to get to there shows on time.

We did get to the Titanic exhibit, a permanent exhibit in Branson, which was well done but again the marketing of the exhibit was a little deceiving. Ron was under the impression the exhibit was free – Nope it was $42.00 for the both of us. Oh well!

With lots of restaurants to choose from we just picked one out with an unusual name - Shorty Small’s and stopped in. We experienced some of the best food we have ever eaten. Ribs that melted off the bone, home made baked beans and a cheese biscuit to die for. When I say this was a dining experience, it was. We highly recommend this restaurant to anyone visiting Branson.

We had a tough time deciding on a show to see and settled on the Presley Family Jamboree. The Presley’s are a large family of entertainer’s who have been in Branson doing their shows for the last forty years. On stage were four generations of Presleys’ from ages 83 to 17 months. The show was a mixture of comedy, rock & roll, country/western and gospel and very entertaining. Then back to the campground to plan tomorrow’s trip to Rogers Arkansas for a stop to visit my Nephew and his family.