July 24, 2012

July 24, 2012  

We left the motorhome at 9:00 to go into Memphis for some morning geocaching.  We had no luck finding any.  And the heat and humidity nearly got the best of us.

Our main purpose for going into downtown Memphis today was to find the Peabody Hotel.  That is the home of the famous Peabody Marching Ducks.

Many, many years ago, as a joke, someone put three ducks in the fountain of the main lobby.  They were such a hit with the patrons that it was decided to keep them.  An employee trained the ducks.  He was the first Duckmaster in the world.  For 50 years, the ducks were his responsibility.

Every day at 11:00' the ducks (5 now) ride the elevator from the rooftop down to the lobby and march on the red carpet to the fountain, climb the steps, and jump in the water.   At 5:00, they climb out of the water, walk back to the elevator, and go back to the rooftop where they live.  The fifth Duckmaster follows them as they perform.

To see them was well worth the trip downtown.  And we got to do the state line routine two times.  It isn't as much fun in the Honda with it’s wimpy horn.  The motorhome air horns can really make a racket.

We drove on I-55 and Hwy. 63 to the little town of Marked Tree. The tree showed the Indians where they could wade 124" feet to the other side of the river, saving an 11 mile canoe trip for then.

Before stopping for the night, we drove on to Blytheville to the Walmart.

Today’s Travel Totals: Today’s mileage, 91---Geocaches found, 2.