riorust, it's odd that the upper radiator hose would have been dry when you disconnected it. You can try burping the cooling system with a cold engine by removing the expansion tank cap and squeezing the upper radiator hose; however, from your description of "cold" running temperature the thermostat may be stuck open. If that's the case you need to replace it with an 87 degree thermostat.

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Fred Hoelzle