Phew! And it's only day 2!

Woke to about an inch of snow.  Delayed our departure from the Comfort Inn in Mt Aerie, PA because we could see delays on the local TV.  From the news we heard this morning, it seems we really dodged a bullet weather wise.  I heard about a bad accident on 95 in New Haven, and as we were traveling on 84W we could see a gigantic backup on 84E in PA, so good that we pulled over early.

Lunch stop in Carlisle, PA.   Note to self:  when stopping at a real rest area, try to park near the dog walking area!  

Decided we need some insulated bags to pack anything in that might freeze on the way down!  The olive oil has turned into a thick sludge.  I think the least expensive option would be the insulated bags they sell at grocery stores so we will look for them.

Next we needed to find a grocery store or a Super Walmart...need some provisions already!  This took longer than it should (of course, with us) so when we resumed we started to think about where we would land tonight.  We decided on Stephen City, VA just south of Winchester, VA

We missed our turn for the Comfort Inn and couldn't find a place to turn around.  We were on this backroad, and the speed limit signs kept decreasing...45 to 30 to 15...sharp turns, over RR tracks...oh yeah, it's pitch black with no street lights...we kept thinking we would see a sign for a rickety wooden bridge with a very low weight limit...

Anyway, we finally came to a church parking lot with a big parking area and cars with folks getting out!  Yeah!  Steve spoke to one kindly gentleman and he gave us some fuzzy directions.  Along the way we saw a jogger (crazy, I know in the pitch black) and spoke with him; he was much more clear.  Finally we found our way back to the hotel and straggled in.

On The Road Again, 2.0!

Our first day on the road!  It's a rainy day here in SE Connecticut, but I'll take that over freezing rain, sleet, hail or snow anyday!  We managed to leave at 10:00am which is really early for us!  But not twenty minutes in, the back up camera went out and we noticed a new sound...a thumping slapping kind of sound from somewhere in the front end!

We pulled over and luckily Steve could reset the camera.  He donned his rain gear and looked under the hood but nothing looked amiss.  We decided it was our awning strap flapping and resumed our trip.

Our route today is I-95S to Rt. 7N (exit 15) to Rt. 84W to Rt. 81S.  Our lunch break will be in Port Jervis, NY.  

I'm wearing my Seabands and have been able to read my Kindle while we are driving...yeah!

Stopped in Newburgh, NY for a quick break and it's getting colder and icy...not making good time so far because the driving is so hard because of the rain and sometimes sleet.  We have seen several sanding trucks.

Quick stop to make our lunch and then we will eat it while driving because we are behind schedule.  Pippin desperately wants to "go outside" but she won't if it is raining!

We are in the foothills of the Catskills and it's raining cats and dogs (sorry Pippin!)

Decided to change course and pull off in Lake Ariel, PA due to icing conditions.  We could see sanding trucks ahead of us on the highway, and decided to be prudent (I'm sure you're happy about this, Gram!)

Staying at a nice Comfort Inn, which is more than the Motel 6 we were going to stay in in Harrisburg, but Mother Nature had other ideas.

Advertising

I have decided to add advertising to my blog, but please be assured that any ads you see are only for products/services/sites that I personally use myself and endorse!  

You may have noticed that there is a button that will take you directly to Passport America.  Last winter, Steve and I saved $274 on campgrounds (not counting the $45 annual fee) by camping in as many Passport America Campgrounds as we could.  Their campgrounds are generally very nice, often also Good SAMs parks.

They offer 50% off their nightly rates, usually only on weekdays, but not always, and there is sometimes a limit on the number of nights the rate will apply.  There are also some limitations depending on whether it's on or off season for their location.

When you join they send you a nice campground guide to help you locate their parks.  They also have a nice app for Apple devices.

Check them out!

I also  have a button for E-Vitamins.  This is the website I use to order peppermint oil!  We use peppermint oil-soaked cotton balls to discourage mice from wintering in our rig in cold Connecticut!  Just tuck the cotton balls in all your drawers, cabinets, basically everywhere you can tuck them, and so far we have not opened up the rig to mouse droppings or chewed anything!  I know several members of our Good Sams camping club have used this technique with the same excellent results!

I use this same website to order many vitamins and supplements.   They are very reliable, and I fully recommend them.

A new year, a new rig, a new trip, a new blog!

2.0 is here!

Finally, our next trip south!  I just re-read all of last year's blog to re-familiarize myself with what we did and didn't do and more importantly, what we wanted to do differently next year.

In reviewing our wish list for our next rig, we got exactly what we wanted!!!   2002 Class A Fleetwood Flair, 32 ft with two slides, lots of storage for clothes and food and a great big cab with leather seats!   And two TVs!

No, we didn't win the lottery, we just found it on Craigslist and bought it from a really nice couple in Rhode Island.  We sold the Sunseeker on Craigslist as well.

We are leaving Connecticut on Jan. 18, 2015 with a much different plan!

We are driving a more inland route...Rt. 84 to Rt. 81, to Rt. 77 to Rt. 26 to 95S.

We also have reservations all the way until Feb. 25th after which we will meander north doing whatever we feel like.

Highlights include spending a week with my mom in Georgia where she is renting a condo for two months, a trip to Lazy Days in Tampa to get some minor work done on the rig, an extended stay in Fort Meyers, a Passport America Rally in Sarasota, a visit to Hobe Sound to see my stepmom and her hubby along with seeing some of our camping friends in a nearby town, and we may try to hit Nashville on the way north to visit the Antique Archaeology Store there cuz we're American Pickers fans!  

On the trip north we will also be poking around for possible places we might like to relocate to, so we can summer in CT to visit all the kids and the grandkids, and winter in Florida to escape the cold.

Please come back here to the blog to follow our Camping Adventures 2.0!

March 10th...our last night on the road...

Missed the turn from the NJ Tpke to the Garden State so we ended up going over the GW Brridge.  We are spending the night at a Walmart in Norwalk...we just couldn't go any further...we were on the road the longest today!

Feb. 2-Mar. 11, 2014

At the end of this journey I wanted to provide some fun facts, so here goes!

License Plate Game:  We spotted 27 states, most notably Washington, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, and North Dakota.  We also spotted three Canadian Provinces, of note Manitoba.

Mileage/Gas:  Our average mpg was 8.4!  The average price for gas $3.34/gal.  We traveled almost 2800 miles!

Tolls:  $132

Passport America:  We saved $274 using Passport America campgrounds, not counting the $45 sign up fee for 2014.

Money spent on eating out:  $101. Money spent on groceries:  A lot.

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Notes for next year:

Get EZ Pass for tolls!  Joe is right!

Need bigger rig with two slides, more storage for clothes and food, more comfortable cab and better suspension.  First priority will be a visit to Lazy Days in Tampa!

Utilize space outside of rig more to extend living space.

Make beaches a priority!

We need Tv with cable hookup at campgrounds so we can relax with our favorite shows.  Robin sit in comfy chair with feet up, blanket on legs so Pip can relax into her spot!

Robin needs to be the one to sometimes go into stores leaving Pippin with Steve so she remains used to being apart from Robin for short periods and so Robin can enjoy shopping!

Stay in one place for a week or so, so we can really unpack, set up and relax!

       Manatee Hammock in Titusville

       Phipps Park or Army Corps of Engineers in Stuart

Drive more miles every day...200+/day if Robin can be more comfortable.

Can we figure out a route that avoids the NJ Tpke...the tolls are exorbitant!

Walk Pippin everyday we can on a leash so she gets exercise.

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This is the route we took which combines Frank & Julie's way with Carol & Jerry's way (Barb, this is for you!)

95S to Tappen Zee Bridge to Rt, 287W, exit 14A to GS Pkwy, exit 129 onto Nj Tpke/95S over the Del/Mem'l Bridge, exit 1A onto Rt 896 to Rt. 301/50 continue to Rt 207 to 95 in Richmond, continue on 95s

This route bypasses Baltimore, Philadelphia and DC!

3/9 -10/14

Woke to a chilly but delightfully sunny morning in Milford, VA.   We are headed to Middletown, DE today taking scenic Rt 301.  Not sure where we'll stop, but that's how we roll...

We made it to Frank & Julie's Walmart in Middletown, DE!  

Just wanted to let inquiring minds know of something Steve found at the last Walmart we stopped at:  In the frozen case he found Wild Salmon Fillets distributed by The Fishin' Co. in Seattle...six individually wrapped fillets for $9.68...that's a fantastic buy for wild caught salmon!  

Back to the Walmart in Middletwon, we don't have wifi so that's why two days will be posted tomorrow.

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It's Monday the 9th and we finally took the plunge and bought a Straight Talk Mobile Hotspot at the Walmart we are parked at.  It's the TracPhone of Mobile Hotspots, and I can't believe we only have one more night on the road when we finally bought one of these!!!  But that's how I am posting this!

We are going to continue north stopping one more time.  We called Joe to figure out how to start winterizing.  We can't get the plug off the hot water heater to drain that, but we did find the plugs under the rig to drain the lines and we are going to let the water in the holding tank drain as we drive.  We will try to stay in a truck stop tonight and perhaps they will have a place to dump our tanks.  More tonight!

First Snow Sighted, in Virginia

Woke to a beautiful sunny day...the weather so far has been either beautiful or horrible, very few so-so days.  We are headed for Ashland, VA to look at Class As.  Steve got some very good advice in the laundry room last night from a seasoned RVer...his perfect rig would be 32 feet and no more than 12 ft high with two slides...make sure when the bedroom slide is in you can still easily get to the bathroom...really check out whatever you think you might buy...lie down on the bed and the couch...make sure you fit...can you see the TV from wherever you might sit or lie without craning you neck, etc.  The rigs we expect to see are really too long, but at least he can test drive one.

Well, the first RV dealership was closed when we got there, and when we pulled in we couldn't turn around so Steve had to unhook the car, get both vehicles turned around and then had to retook the car.  By that time he had had enough!  So we saw a Goodwill that we are going to, and then the campground.

It's absolutely beautiful today, but sad to say we have seen our first snow here in Ashland, VA!

We ended up at R&D Family Campground where ironically we stayed on the way down!  Passport America (even though they say not on Fri or Sat, they gave it to us anyway!) and we paid $24 for the night, saving us $24.  Can't wait to tally up at the end to see how much PA saved us!

For the record the wifi is only so-so...