On October 7th, 2019 we took off for our first trip to Branson Missouri to check out the area and take in a few shows. This is our first time to Branson and although we have heard a lot about the town we did not know what to expect since I am more of a rock & roll fan than country.

The trip is over 700 miles so we split it up into two days so the traveling would not wear us out. Our first night was spent at North Abutment COE campground in north Mississippi. It is a typical Corp of Engineers campground which was a nice place to spend the night and get in a few walks along the lake.

It was my first time towing the Jeep but it all went very well. I could hardly tell it was behind us.

We arrived at our destination on Tuesday. The Old Highway 86 Campground is also a COE park which proved to be perfect for us. The sites are spaced out nicely with most every one having a great view of the surrounding lake. The Branson Belle Showboat docks across the lake and made it’s rounds near the campground twice daily.

The campground is about 15 miles from downtown but close enough. We went to Silver Dollar City several times over the next two weeks. We purchased season passes since they were more economical that buying tickets each day. Silver Dollar City was not what I expected having visited many similar parks around the country.

The shows did not seem up to par with other places and several had already closed for the season. That did not seem to keep the crowds away. They did have the park decorated nicely for Halloween with pumpkins everywhere. We are not into the rides so much so, much of our time was spent just walking around and catching all the shows. They do have plenty of dining options with great food.

The first show we took in was Rick Thomas at the Andy Williams Theater. The show was a magical production with a lot of theatrics involved. All-in-all a great show I thought. Very well done.

One of the highlights of our trip was the Branson Belle. The paddle boat ride was nice, the food was great for dinner and the show was entertaining and filled with laughter. Mike Bliss was the main entertainer and MC.

We purchased discounted tickets to several other shows and the best by far was the Liverpool Legends. It was amazing how much they looked and sounded like the Fab Four. The show is actually a two night event with the first being the early Beatles years and the second the later years along with their individual music. Truly a great set of shows well worth the money.

Another show we were able to catch was Jim Stafford. I have always been a fan of his music and comedy. The show was good but he is definitely showing his age. A couple of times he forgot where he was in the show and had to start one song over after messing up the guitar solo. It was still worth the effort to see him live. He can play most any instrument it seems.

We stayed at the campground for fifteen nights. Much of the time was spent just relaxing and visiting the other sites around Table Lake.