Category Archives: RV

Back in the Saddle Again

Posted on by under Road Trip, RV, RV Travels, Travel, Zion National Park, Zion River RV Resort

Yahoo! We are just about to embark on a short RV trip to Zion. We really haven’t been anywhere since our return from our Epic Adventure around the U.S. and parts of Canada. It took quite some time to catch up with family, friends and things left undone for six months. Then  of course there was catching up with mail and a million other things, like Holidays, leaking faucets in the house, cleaning the RV from top to bottom, and  washing everything I had not been inclined to wash along the road.

We have all settled back into the rhythm of being in a house again. Even the dogs are back to chasing rabbits in the back yard and using the doggie door.  I was wondering if we would feel like getting right back on the road and becoming full timers, but that didn’t happen. I like living in the house, and as long as I know we can set out anytime we want for as long as we want, I’m happy with our choice.

We would like to take another long trip in the near future … maybe to the East Coast again, but we will have to settle for a couple of short trips in April.  However, in June we will be going on a trip to Montana and Wyoming for three weeks. I can hardly wait for that one.Zion River Resort IMG_1820

It will include the Tiffin Rally being held in Gillette, Wyoming and should be a lot of fun. Three friends of ours will be joining us for that expedition.

Like I said … Yahoo! Getting ready to saddle up again.

End of the Epic Road Trip

Posted on by under Epic Road Trip, Road Trip, RV, Tiffin, Tow Vehicle, Travel, Uncategorized

Well, we finally came to the end of our Epic Road Trip.  It was a combination of joy and sorrow.  We were sorry to leave our home on the road and all the adventures we had, but happy to return home to our family and friends.

We were on the road for six months and five days, 16,860 miles (a lot on gravel roads).  We saw 38 states, three Canadian Provinces and one Canadian Territory. On the maps below, the red lines show our planned route and the black line shows where we really went. Our RV map shows all the states we managed to visit.ERTMAP

We traveled from the redwoods of our rugged northwest coast, to the spectacular glaciers in Alaska, to the beauty of Alberta, Canada, to the magnificent Mount Rushmore, to the splendid Niagara Falls, to the beauty of the Maine coast, to the hills of Tennessee, to the windswept Outer Banks of South Carolina, to the Blue Water of the Florida Keys, and a lot of places in-between.

We lost one camera, broke another (me), dropped a cell phone in the water (Lennard), had several repairs on the road, lost the keys to the tow car and had a fabulous time doing it.  We saw bears, moose, elk, deer, caribou, went fishing, hiked on the Appalachian Trail, drove the Blue Ridge Parkway, tried to catch crabs, ate lobster, attended a Tiffin Ralley, kayaked, went sightseeing in every place we stopped, and met so many wonderful people. We stopped in several places to see relatives and long lost friends and went to Casey and Brian’s wedding.

I did laundry along the way, Lennard cleaned the RV and tow car (who would have guessed?) and we got our mail through a virtual mail box.  We found places to get hair cuts, groom the dogs and get minor medial care.  We ate in the RV, cooked on the grill and ate outside, ate in nice restaurants once in a while, and great little hole-in-the-walls a lot.

Six months is a lot of time out of your life, but I can tell you it was more than worth it.  We really weren’t sure how long we would last or how far we would get when we started, or even if we might kill each other. In the end, we were lucky to have so many memories and to have gained such lovely new friends along the way.  Its a trip not many people could or would make, but we are so grateful we were able to. Were glad to be home and don’t have plans for another trip yet, but I am sure we will be making another one. P1000346

 

BUFFALO WINGS AND THUNDERING FALLS

Posted on by under Epic Road Trip, Niagara Falls, RV, RV Travels, RV Trip

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Arriving in Buffalo, we pulled into the KOA on Grand Island.  What a great camping spot with ponds, a lease-free dog park, and a little creek running through the camp.  After two days of regrouping, we took a short trip to downtown Buffalo to see the new Canalside Park.  It is a redevelopment area next to the Military Remembrance Park.  It was hot, but we managed to cool down with a few minutes sitting in the shade and a beer. The next day we took the RV in to get the back air conditioner repaired.  While it was being worked on we went to Lewistown.

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Lewiston is a historical village and the site of the first European settlement in Western New York.  It was also the site from which the US invaded Canada in the first major battle of the War of 1812.  It sits just across the Niagara River from Canada.  We spoke to the Harbor Master there, who told us they have a couple of people a week try to cross over to the US from Canada every week.  You could almost throw a rock across the river it is so close. In fact, it is also an area where slaves were ferried over to Canada so they could be free.  A lot of history for a small town.

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Pointing the way to freedom

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We retrieved the RV and got ready to meet our good friends, Jim and Joanne, at their hotel for dinner at the Left Bank restaurant downtown Buffalo.  The next morning my cousins, Darlene and Rick, from Scarborough, Ontario, Canada joined us at the KOA. Jim and Joanne joined all of us for a sightseeing tour of the American side of the Falls, led by Rick, who seems to know every road in the nation!  We also saw the Whirlpool where the river has currents that can take you 150 feet under in a second.  That night we had a BBQ at our RV in perfect weather.

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The next day Rick took us to the Canadian side of Niagara, where we saw the US and Canadian falls, and the view is much more magnificent.  Then we drove to Niagara On The Lake for lunch.  This quaint, British style, town has so many beautiful flowers on the streets and near the stores and restaurants, you would think you were in a magnificent garden.  There were horse and carriages on the streets and old buildings with ornate facades from another century.  It was just beautiful.

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That night we went to the Anchor Bar for Buffalo Wings.  This restaurant was started by a family and still is owned by the same family.  One night the kids came in late with some friends and wanted something to eat.  Mom had some leftover wings so she fried them up, added some spicy sauce and Voila, Buffalo Wings were born.

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Sunday we took the morning Bedore tour of the American Falls.  Our first stop was back at the whirlpool and then we went to the Cave of the Winds.  What an experience.  You wear a poncho and traverse stairs until you are right next to the falls with the water cascading down and the wind carrying the water over you until you are drenched.  It was hilarious and so much fun!  We then went on the Maid of the Mist boat that takes you right next to the falls.  We of course wore the fashionable ponchos again to keep us sort of dry. It was very exciting as the falls thundered down above us.  You can’t imagine the power of the water and the thunderous noise unless you actually experience it.

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We were sorry to see Rick and Darlene leave that afternoon. That evening we took the tour to the Canadian side and went on the Journey Behind the Falls.  You take an elevator down about 150 feet and traverse a tunnel under the falls until you can see out a cave to the falls from the inside.  You can also go to a viewing station to get up close to the falls again.  Not quite as exciting as the morning, but great too. Then we drove to the Flower Clock and the Canadian Hydroelectric power station.  The hydroelectric power dam is not a large as Hoover Dam, but generates more electricity.

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After dark we went up the Skylon Tower to view the falls with the lights on them, and then to a parking spot to see the fireworks over the falls.  Both were exquisite.

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The next day we had lunch with Jim and Joanne before they left for Las Vegas.  Now we are getting ready to travel to Maine over the next couple of days. We are looking forward to visiting Bar Harbor before we travel down to Portland to meet up with Scott and Donna, who are making their way across country right now.  Stay tuned!

HOMER SPECTACULAR HOMER and SELDOVIA

Posted on by under Alaska, Epic Road Trip, Homer, RV, Seldovia

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As we crested the viewpoint hill just before Homer, our breath was taken away with the beauty of the mountains across from Homer and the Kachemak Bay. It was just spectacular. And that was after the beautiful drive to get there along the Kenai Mountains and past Cooper Landing, Soldotna, and Ninilchik, where we saw tons of people fishing for Salmon in Deep Creek. It was a beautiful clear day and we had the whole day to get to our camping site on the spit.P1010554 P1010557

The spit is a long, narrow protrusion 4.5 five miles into the bay with lots of tourists’ attractions. (Halibut and Salmon fishing, eating, drinking, camping and boat trips across the bay.)

IMG_0511 Heritage RV park offered us parking right on the bay. From our front window we could see the water and the mountains on the other side of Kachemak Bay. The beach was just below us.

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The next day was taken by mundane stuff as we had now been gone six weeks and traveled over 4,500 miles. The dogs got washed, the clothes got washed, we got haircuts at “Legends” and the RV got cleaned up. Eventually you do have to clean up a bit.

Seldovia called to us, so we took the Rainbow Cruise across the bay to the historical town settled by Russians prior to America buying it from them along with the rest of Alaska.

P1010709 IMG_0507This waterfront town can only be reached by boat or plane. That’s right- no roads to there. We passed Gull Rock on the way to see various types of birds including the lovely little Puffin with its black and white feathers and orange beak. We also saw red footed pigeon Guillmots, new to us, but common in Alaska.

P1010672  P1010643Seldovia was quaint with lots of flowers and eagles. They were so many eagles, making so much noise, we were surprised and loving taking photos of them diving to pick up salmon. Sometimes they choose unwisely and can’t get up into the air with their catch, so they fly/paddle to shore with their prize.

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That night we had the best dinner we have had in Alaska at Cups Café in town. This small, eclectic, art, restaurant serves local fresh fish and they did an outstanding job. It was delicious.

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Lennard was off to Halibut and salmon fishing on Mike Manns’ Artic Addiction the next day at 5AM. Of course I did not go. I stayed home to document our travels here! It turned out to be a very COLD, WET morning, but cleared up during the day.  Lennard caught his two allowed halibut, some rock fish and some pink salmon.  We had it flash frozen but shipping was prohibitive, so sorry everyone.

Homer is know for eagles and these two roosted on the light pole right next to us every day.

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Going down on the boardwalk on the spit to the famous Salty Dawg and to get Lennard his fish and chips dinner.

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Inside the Salty Dawg

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Lennard getting his local Cod fish and chips

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All in all we have had a wonderful week in Homer, and are looking forward to meeting up with Tom and Linda again tonight for dinner.

I appreciate all of you who are following and in particular your comments.  Please remember to like this on Facebook.   Till the next adventure I’ll see you soon.

ALASKA THE VAST WILDERNESS

Posted on by under Epic Road Trip, RV, Talkeetna

P1010415Alaska is a vast land of wilderness and beauty. You can drive, walk, bike, hike or boat for miles and not see a soul. It is also a land of friendly faces and people. We have met some lovely people on our journey these past few weeks and among the have been our current RV neighbors, Tom and Linda, from Arizona.

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Tom and Linda sharing happy hour with us.

After taking a jet boat cruise up the Susitna River today to the area where it begins to have class V rapids, they asked us to join them for Moscow Mules. Never having had them before we were pleasantly surprised. Served in a copper cup, they were delicious! The conversation was even better. We certainly hope to see them again along the road in Alaska.

Moscow Mule:       4 OZ. Ginger Beer

1 and ½ OZ Vodka

1/6 OZ Lime Juice.

Garnish with Lime slice and serve over ice.

Talkeetna is a lovely little town with several great restaurants and a local brewery. We had a late lunch / dinner at the Wildflower restaurant and it was terrific. The population of Talkeetna is 876 and is a mixture of old town and new. This time of year everyone puts out their rendition of a decorated moose, which makes a lovely addition to the already quaint town. It is located on a spur road only 14 miles from the highway, about half way between Denali and Anchorage. We stayed at Talkeetna Camper Park, which is located close enough to town (3/8 mile) to walk and right next to the train depot.

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The Hurricane train runs from Talkeetna to Hurricane Gulch. It is the only flagstop train left in America. That means you can get on or off anywhere you want just by flagging it down or letting them know where you want to be dropped off. Lots of campers and people rafting down the river use it to get out into the wild. It runs five days a week during the summer. (Thursday-Monday) It is a two hour, 55 mile route…well depending on how many stops it makes. Round trip ticket costs $96.00.

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Our RV camp was managed by a terrific couple, Noreen from Ireland and Trevor from Britain. They were helpful, friendly and funnier than heck. We loved our spot near the train tracks. It was a bit tight, but we had trees near us and the camp was clean and quiet, except for us of course. I highly recommend anyone touring Alaska to stop here.

The jet boat tour today took us about 65 miles up the Susitna River towards Mt. Denali to Devils Canyon. It was a very smooth ride until the rapids and then was a little bumpy. Our Captain, Eli, did a great job of keeping the boat in place while we took photos of the rapids. The naturalist on board, Emily, took us on a short walk in the forest to see an authentic trapper cabin and native Dena’ina Indian encampment. She carried a rifle with her in case of bears. She also pointed out several dangerous plants that we should avoid. It was a great day.P1010356 P1010315 P1010297 P1010391

It’s Father’s day so I took Lennard to the Roadhouse for breakfast. We met one of the mountain climbing guides, Tomas Ceppi from Argentina. He had just led a group to the top of Mt. Denali.

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Family style breakfast at the Roadhouse. Lucky me got to sit next to a mountain climbing guide. Tomas Ceppi. Note small meals served here

Tomorrow we are off to Anchorage and meeting our friends from Vegas, Dennis and Sandy who also have a home and business in Alaska.

Moving up the OregonCoast

Posted on by under Epic Road Trip, Hiking, Oregon Coast, RV

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After a wonderful visit with my brother and sister-in-law, we headed over to the 101 via the 20. Oops, a little winding and narrow and harrowing.  We managed to get up the coast to the Willits KOA campground where two men helped us back into the narrow site. Lennard made beer drinking friends and played “Corn Hole”. (Something like horseshoes only with beer)

On Sunday we drove through the Avenue of the Giants in the redwoods.  Absolutely stunning. The redwoods are sentinels of time, withstanding fire and tree plagues. They can live for thousands of years, grow to over 300 feet and can be as wide as 20 feet.  The famous drive thru tree is 17 feet wide.

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On Monday the plan was to stay in the Jedidiah Smith State Park.  What was I thinking?  We almost got stuck in the entrance. The road was so narrow I had to get out to make sure we didn’t hit anything leaving.  We found a lovely campground just down the road…The Hiouchi RV resort.  We spent the rest of the day hiking through the spectacular Stout Grove of magnificent redwoods.
On the way to the redwoods, we drove along the coast and stopped at the Mystery Trees Visitor Center and took their one mile hike through the redwoods.
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The next day we drove back  Klamath to go to the drive through tree.  It is one of three in the world, all of which are in the redwoods.
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The rest of the day was spent back in Crescent City at the absolutely beautiful Battery Point Lighthouse, perched high on a hill.  It was first lit in 1856. You can only go over to it when the tide is at its lowest.  It was one of the first lighthouses on the Oregon coast. Dogs are not allowed, so don’t tell anyone we took them up anyway.
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On Wednesday we had Norwegian fish and chips along the highway.  They were fabulous.
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We arrived late at the Whaler’s Rest RV Park.  This is a Thousand Trails Encore Park and is set in the woods along the coast.  We love it here and got the Passport America discount too! They have a trail that leads to the beach which we took a walk along this morning.
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Just in case you were counting. We have now made it over two weeks, over 1,000 miles and seen three states.
On Thursday we went into historic Newport over the historic bridge and saw the harbor.
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Newport also has the oldest, wooden light house on this coast, set in the Yaquina Park.
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We also saw the Yaquina Head Lighthouse made of brick, which has been standing sine 1873. It was originally known as the Cape Foulweather Lighthouse as the fog was so bad on the coast.  We had a lot of foul fog today too! The lens was made in Paris and shipped to Oregon.  At least it made it! It is now operated by the Coast Guard and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
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Since we didn’t have lunch, we stopped for dinner at a fresh Crab place on the highway. Lennard had oysters and fresh  Halibut.  I had chicken tenders.  What a wimp I am.
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By the way, we saw an example of some type of natural or environmental oddity on the beaches all along the coast.  We were told it was the largest dying off of jellyfish that has been seen in years.  Maybe we should rethink our environmental policies.
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A late Happy Birthday to Frank and sorry we missed the party!! Keep track of us on Life 360, Right Rich?
Take care!

RV BOOT CAMP SABOTAGED BY WILD BILL’S SECURITY

Posted on by under Dry Camping, RV, RV Boot Camp

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Oh Darn! We got kicked out of RV driving boot camp.  Okay, not really out of the classes but out of the parking lot. Our Instructor had arranged for us to use the back parking lot at Wild Bill’s Casino in Primm Nevada.  He had utilized the same area last year.

As we drove up last Wednesday, the weather was very warm and we could see the old roller coaster high above the wooden structure of the casino.  We pulled around into the “way back” parking area.There were about eight of us there to learn the basics of RVing and how to drive, park and…heaven forbid…the dreaded back-up procedure. Everyone was riding high to have this special experience.

The day was going great.  We had all learned the safety and emergency basics and even had lunch.  I made a salad in the RV.  Some of the rest went into the casino to eat. After lunch we were hearing some rules of the road and our Sun City Anthem RV club rules, when along comes this little economy car and out steps a security guard.  “What are you doing here? You can’t camp here.”

“Why, we have permission from the director of sales to have our RV meeting and driving lessons here.” said our esteemed leader and instructor, Roy.

You can imagine the rest of the story.  We did not win the battle or the war.  Eventually we were instructed that we could park – not sleep or extend our pop-outs – and we could use the casino, gamble and eat.  Huh?  We were going to do that anyway as good members of this community, but if we can’t dry camp then we  all decided to leave.

So, just before happy hour most of the crew packed up and left.  We did have a good day and learned a lot from our esteemed instructors, Roy and Tom, but were disappointed to have to cut short instruction.  One of the things we learned is that when you are RVing, you have to be flexible.  This was our first lesson in flexibility.

(I did finally drive in the parking lot and did not knock over any light poles)

Wheel Bearings Up!

Posted on by under RV, RV Maintenance

So, we sent our RV to the Ford place because I had seen a small oil leak underneath it while it was parked.  The mechanic found out that there was not a leak.  He said that sometimes, if you take it uphill too fast you might get a small amount of transmission fluid that leaks.  Good, I thought, nothing to be worried about.

Then he called and said our friends had trouble with their ball bearings on the same type of vehicle, and he wanted to check ours.  Yep! sure enough we had one set (do they come in sets?) that was not right.  At least it was covered by warranty and he changed them all for good measure, as we will be embarking on our trip to Alaska and around the US beginning in the first or second week in May.  It is getting exciting.

I have been planning our trip on MapQuest and the Family Motor Coach website.  Right now we have a trip that will be about 18,000 miles.  Did I say 18,000 miles?  Yes I did.  That is really ambitious, and maybe we will be back in three weeks. Ha!

Who knows, maybe we will hate it and come home after Alaska.  Or maybe even before we get there.  All our friends have a bet on just where our “This is frigging not fun anymore” point will be.  They range anywhere from 500 miles to 1,600 miles.  None of them picked any point more that 2,00 miles.  Hmmmm, they don’t have much faith in us do they?

Husband is Obsessive Compulsive

Posted on by under RV, Tow Vehicle, Travel

I have mentioned before that my husband has a little bit of obsessive compulsive disease.  That can be a good thing most of the time.  No, he does not have the kind where he washes his hands fifteen times an hour, or the kind where he won’t shake hands with anyone or is afraid of germs.  He has the good kind.  He likes everything to be perfect.

He and his wonderful friend finished hooking up the tow bar to the Honda Fit and wiring the lights.  I thought he was done and came into the garage to find he has now rubber coated the attachment links and locks so they won’t cause damage to the paint of the car.  YES! What a good job he does.

Now we are all set for a trial tow tomorrow.  I’ll let you know how it goes!  I do know one thing, there won’t be an accidental scratches to the car.

What? Fitting a Tow Bar is not Easy.

Posted on by under RV, Travel

To tow a vehicle you have to get a tow bar attached, of course.  Most people would pay to have someone do it for them, but my husband, who is very handy, decided he and a friend would get our manual transmission, Honda Fit all hooked up.  He did know it might be a big job, but I don’t think he realized just what a monstrous job it would be. His friend is also very handy, and I would call them both obsessive compulsive, so the job would have to be done right.

It took three days! Yes, three days.  But, they did a fabulous job.  You can’t see any of the parts and, the electrical worked perfect.  I would say they did a fabulous job.  Probably saved a fortune.  I would not advise anyone to try this themselves, unless they are really good with tools and knowing how to do things.

Now, we just have to try it out!

So, another thing off the list in preparation for our big trip around the U.S. and Canada.

I have signed up to join a RV caravan from Dawson Creek, British Columbia going to the Alaskan Highway and to Fairbanks and Denali Park.  We are really excited about that.   That will be the one portion of the trip where we will have to be somewhere at a specific time and place.  The rest of the trip will be where we want and when we want.  If we like a place we will stay awhile and if we don’t…Adios amigo!