06/21 to 06/28 ABC Campground Branson MO

 ABC Campground

Branson, MO

June 21 to June 28

With the heat dome covering most of the northeast, Jack, Dan/Mel and I arrived around 2:00 p.m. With 90+ temperatures, we quickly connected and got the ACs running.

The ABC Campground certainly has earned "Best of Branson" and 2022 Trip Advisor's "Travelers Choice" Award. The campground was clean, spacious, well run. Being able to purchase our program tickets (with discounts) for the week through Kristina, the owner, was a huge plus; the alternative was to wade through the plastic bag of maps, booklets and coupon pamphlets and figure out which applied and what days and times were available. We were very fortunate to fill our week with entertainment each day and schedule each during the afternoon's 92+ heat. The shows usually ran 2 hours,  2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. with a short trip somewhere to dinner afterwards before heading back to our breezy campsites for evening cocktails. To make this blog post as short as possible, be sure to click on links

Our three sites were together. the following 360º was taken before Dan/Mel and Jack arrived; Jack to my right, Dan/Mel to my left. They each were full hookups with water, sewer and 30/50 amp service as well as a cable connection.

Click this link for Drone's eye view of the campground. To make the remainder of this blog of six activity packed days short and sweet, I've highlighted many links in red should you like to see more information/video clips of shows and restaurants.

Sunday:

Prior to our 2:00 Comedy Tour, we stopped for lunch at Scooter's Sport Grill. 

Don't know who that guy is.

Delicious

Red Neck Comedy Tour with Baby Joe, our tour guide/comedian and driver, Junior. It was very entertaining and lots of laughs...made even better because Baby Joe engaged with my seat neighbor, Jack. Those of you who know Jack, I can tell you he was right on with the comebacks that got Joey a lot laughs himself. Click Joey I.L.O to catch his routine on Dry Bar.

Half way through the tour we stopped and visited the Smith Creek Moonshine Distiller and had the opportunity to 'belly up' to the bar and sample (very small) 13 flavors of product. I had just three.

One of two showcases featuring their flavors. They didn't have butter pecan moonshine, so I purchased...

...Watermelon. I didn't care for it so I donated it to Mel. I should have gotten Peach Moonshine.

Another stop was at the Table Rock Dam with Table Rock Lake behind. We will be on a classic paddle-wheel boat for a dinner cruise here later this week. The White River which flows from the dam eventually flows into Lake Taneycomo. 

Jack, Mel, Dan with the White River behind and well below them.

Crossing the dam to complete the tour.

Monday:

A good day to stay out of the sun and go to an indoor concert. The lower indoor temperature was maintaining 75º inside Winne.

Today's concert was at the Pepsi Legends Theatre and featured tributes to The Blues Brothers, The Beatles and Elvis.

They gave a very energetic non-stop performance. Here's a one minute clip of another of their performances.

During the break they welcomed Q&A's from the audience.

Next presentation was a tribute to the Liverpool Legends, The Beatles. I couldn't video any part of their performance but click HERE for a minute promo. I did catch this little guy in the row in from of us getting into the music.

They presented a wide selections of hits and synched nicely with original footage of the Beatles in concert way back when on the large screen at the side of the stage. Here, they posed in the lobby after the performance.

And finally, Elvis. Although his performance was the shortest with two or three songs, his voice and facial features were fascinatingly similar.

Get your photo taken with Elvis upon entering the show.

More photo ops after the show in the lobby.

Another excellent show. Our after-show dinner venue was Waxy's Irish Pub.

Served by the nicest, friendliest young fella from Arkansas complete with that southern accent. The Fish & Chips hit the spot with a perfect portion.

Tuesday:

This 2 p.m. show, Reza - Edge of Illusion was the most creative, captivating, non-stop and fascinating performances. On TV we have all seen such illusionists perform where you uttered, "Wow" many times and marveled asking, "How did he do that?" Witnessing it live however brings that "wow" to a higher level. Watch the trailer HERE.

As I wasn't allowed to video anything, I checked for video clips on YouTube and found his Oreo Cookie illusion. Check it out HERE; and finally, what I thought amazing, a card trick that defies explanation as seen on "Fool Us" with Penn and Teller HERE.

After the show, we dined at Florentina's Ristorante Italiano.

True, it was early but the large, roomy restaurant was quite empty. By the time we left, it was packed. Tables of six to 13 evidently were coming in after the afternoon shows. We timed it perfectly.

Lasagna Della Casa: Homemade with layer upon layer of fresh pasta, our house cheese blend, eggs, spinach, onions, garlic, fresh basil, meat sauce, and parmesan alfredo sauce. For me, delicious as it was, I found there was more creamy blended cheese which took away from my appreciation of the "layer upon layer of fresh pasta."

Wednesday:

Once again, we made another good choice by planning a 3:00 pm. "dinner" cruise aboard the Branson Belle paddlewheel on Table Rock Lake. 

All our entertainment venues were within a 5-mile radius of our campground. This made the ABC Campground a popular and desirable base from which to see all Branson has to offer. As we made our way to Table Rock Lake, the countryside displaying rolling hills and deep valleys along with beautiful cloud formations made the trip picturesque.

The rolling hills and steep valleys ranging from 700' in valley floors to over 1,300' atop knobs, are carved into Mississippian limestone and cert (a hard, fine-grained sedimentary rock composed mainly of microcrystalline quartz (silica, SiO₂).

This beautiful T-boat (theater/dining vessel) is one of the largest paddle-wheelers on a landlocked lake in the U.S. Costing $8 million to build with more to upgrade, the 278 foot, 1,250 ton vessel was launched in 1994 using two tons of bananas to grease the 140' launch ramp; a biodegradable alternative to the traditional lubricants. It slide in at about 14 knots, faster than it ever cruises on the lake.

For two hours, we will be entertained with live music, dancing, comedy and the magic of the master of ceremonies, Christopher James.

A very impressive sight upon entering and being shown to our reserved seats. The dinner program accommodates 750 passengers.

From the Internet...not a bad seat in the house. On the second and third levels, the VIP ticket holders received a more varied menu.

Prepared right on board, the meal was delicious and the portions perfect. Iced tea and/or Coke. No alcohol. Read the menu below.

SALAD

Crisp chopped iceberg lettuce, fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, shredded carrots, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, seasoned croutons, and finished with our signature Showboat Branson Belle sweet Vidalia onion dressing

MAIN COURSE

A duet of slowly roasted tender beef pot roast topped with a rich demi-glace sauce and lightly seasoned grilled chicken breast, and served with fresh green beans and garlic mashed potatoes

DESSERT

Ooey Gooey Butter Cake, a Missouri tradition, is scratch made by the bakers at Silver Dollar City, drizzled with a seasonal fruit sauce, light and creamy whipped topping and finished with a dusting of powdered sugar

Thursday:

The Baldknobbers Show is probably the longest running show (in their 66th year) in Branson and boasts their show as beginning of what made Branson entertainment what it is today. The Bald Knobbers back in 1883 were a vigilante group that made a notorious and controversial mark in the Ozark history book. A fascinating read HERE. The Mabe family in 1959 borrowed the name from the region’s vigilante lore to evoke a colorful, local identity—but they redefined it into something joyful and uniquely Branson. They're all about God, Country and Family. A very entertaining afternoon filled with twangy banjoing, hillbilly humor, country and gospel rock. 

Friday:

As our week was coming to an end, we gave ourselves the day off from shows to begin that mixed-feeling task of packing up for departure. We agreed however that a final dinner would be nice and went to Landry's Seafood House.

With fourteen location, this upscale restaurant had something for everyone.

A good sized restaurant with a dark wood motif, it was quite busy; the acoustics weren't that great.

I chose the stuffed flounder with a side of garlic mashed. (I passed on the orzo and asparagus.)

Surprisingly, they featured Butter Chardonnay, one of my favorites: With flavors of butter, vanilla and toasted oak, it has notes of ripe pear, apple pie and lemon curd and no, DW, no evidence of pencil shaving and saddle leather (private joke).

I couldn't pass up the flavorful bread pudding with a dolop of vanilla, whipped cream in a vanilla sauce.

With coffee at 8 am with Jack and Dan and cocktails at anytime o'clock with Melanie it was truly a wonderful, memorable week. We had breezes most of the time; the rest of the heat sufferers probably did not. The major complaint for us about this campground was...FLIES.

At any given time, if you stopped

 swatting, they congregated.

And if you're finished with your burrito, lay it
down and blink, they're there to help you clean it up.

Now, for me, it's four, 2-night stops back to CPP the way I came: Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania. So, on that note, the week in Branson ends. Despite the oppressive heat that kept temps in the 90's, Mel/Dan, Jack and I agreed that it was perfect...shows, dinners and company; a beautiful chapter in the story of my travels with friends.

Here's to Branson and all the adventures still ahead. Until our next get-together, safe travels and happy trails to my friends, Jack, Dan and Melanie.