Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Fall Trip
The fall is such a pretty time to pack up and go camping! It can be a scary time IF you have a new truck and new trailer to adjust to! There was quite a bit of “adjusting” to do on this trip.
When we returned home from our trip down to Cumberland Lake, H chose to not repair our beloved, yet aged 1994 Ford pickup but instead gave it a bath and put it out front with a for sale sign in the window. 15 minutes later it was sold. Since I would NOT give up my minivan, he had no choice but to trade in his Jeep Liberty. After test-driving the new Ford F150 4X4 with the ecoboost system – he had no trouble at all parting with his trusty green off road vehicle. And since the new BRIGHT BLUE truck will pull 9800 lbs, he also chose to go back out and find a bigger trailer. We no longer have a “mobile motel” – we now have a “rolling condo”! Compared to the Aerolite, this Rockwood Ultra Lite 2604 is HUGE!!
R&N also have gone to a bigger trailer this year and agreed to join us for our initial shake-down excursion. Their adjustment period is done because they have just returned from a gorgeous trip out west. We all met at the lovely campground at Sauder’s Village out in Archbold Ohio
Sitting side by side in the parking lot, the boys circled their respective new purchases to compare the differences and discuss the similarities like two teenage boys and their first hotrods. We went from a 7ft wide trailer to an 8ft wide: R’s is 7 ½ ft wide. His trailer box is 24ft long and H’s is 26. Ron went so far as to find his tape measure and checked heights, lengths and even the depths of the slides. Nancy and I sat and laughed at them both! Their new trailer is decorated in light tans and our “condo” has a 3ft slide equipped with a posh thick dark brown couch and matching dinette. I think H wanted this trailer because of the large windows that fill the back of the trailer wall and the two rocking easy chairs nestled in front of them!
Sauder’s Village is a collection of authentically restored pioneer homes and stores that over the years were discovered in the surrounding countryside and reassembled to form a model town that our ancestors could have, would have lived in. There is a pottery shop, a yarn shop, an herb store, a mercantile and even a train station. There’s a covered bridge on the lane that leads to the farm. Down another path is an Indian settlement complete with an interesting garden set-up called 3 sisters - plantings of corn, squash that grew to cover the base of the corn and beans to grow up the stalks.
Several “adjustments” to the condo have now been completed with a list of a few more to be addressed from the warmer weather of Florida when Harry will be fully recovered from his latest November surgery.
When we returned home from our trip down to Cumberland Lake, H chose to not repair our beloved, yet aged 1994 Ford pickup but instead gave it a bath and put it out front with a for sale sign in the window. 15 minutes later it was sold. Since I would NOT give up my minivan, he had no choice but to trade in his Jeep Liberty. After test-driving the new Ford F150 4X4 with the ecoboost system – he had no trouble at all parting with his trusty green off road vehicle. And since the new BRIGHT BLUE truck will pull 9800 lbs, he also chose to go back out and find a bigger trailer. We no longer have a “mobile motel” – we now have a “rolling condo”! Compared to the Aerolite, this Rockwood Ultra Lite 2604 is HUGE!!
R&N also have gone to a bigger trailer this year and agreed to join us for our initial shake-down excursion. Their adjustment period is done because they have just returned from a gorgeous trip out west. We all met at the lovely campground at Sauder’s Village out in Archbold Ohio
Sitting side by side in the parking lot, the boys circled their respective new purchases to compare the differences and discuss the similarities like two teenage boys and their first hotrods. We went from a 7ft wide trailer to an 8ft wide: R’s is 7 ½ ft wide. His trailer box is 24ft long and H’s is 26. Ron went so far as to find his tape measure and checked heights, lengths and even the depths of the slides. Nancy and I sat and laughed at them both! Their new trailer is decorated in light tans and our “condo” has a 3ft slide equipped with a posh thick dark brown couch and matching dinette. I think H wanted this trailer because of the large windows that fill the back of the trailer wall and the two rocking easy chairs nestled in front of them!
Sauder’s Village is a collection of authentically restored pioneer homes and stores that over the years were discovered in the surrounding countryside and reassembled to form a model town that our ancestors could have, would have lived in. There is a pottery shop, a yarn shop, an herb store, a mercantile and even a train station. There’s a covered bridge on the lane that leads to the farm. Down another path is an Indian settlement complete with an interesting garden set-up called 3 sisters - plantings of corn, squash that grew to cover the base of the corn and beans to grow up the stalks.
Several “adjustments” to the condo have now been completed with a list of a few more to be addressed from the warmer weather of Florida when Harry will be fully recovered from his latest November surgery.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Summer 2011
Where did the summer of 2011 go??? In June we drug the mobile motel behind the 1994 Ford pickup along Rt 66 to St Louis and followed the Mighty (still flooded and muddy) Mississippi River down to Cairo Illinois where the Ohio River joins it.
In July, Bud and Carol raced ahead of us to visit friends in Wisconsin and we lingered at home for H to go visit one of his growing collection of doctors. We pulled out on Friday and stopped overnight at the Otsego Lake State Park just SW of Gaylord Michigan. We were able to enjoy breakfast and a nice - but not nearly long enough – visit with Glenn and Beth before we pressed on and over the Mackinac Bridge and across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to meet up with B&C. Munising Michigan has wonderful pasties (yummy hot stew baked in tender flaky pie type crust sandwiches), great views of Lake Superior and IF you’re lucky – weather nice enough to enjoy a boat tour out to the colorful Pictured Rocks! Well, 2 outta 3 ain’t bad. But the day that B&C were to take their boat tour was a day full of thick blanketing fog that kept rolling in and out ALL day long! H and I were out exploring in the Jeep but talked to them via walkie-talkies right before the boat turned around and headed back to the dock. The next day we took them to see Miners Castle, one of the rock formations that they would have seen IF the ride had continued. On this trip, H had no off road competition going so he never got stuck and hence, never needed his brother to rescue him. Bud had to ride co-pilot and did seem a bit nervous whenever H sloshed down, around and thru some of those vehicle devouring, massive mud puddles! Especially when the Jeep was at a sideways tilt entering some of those dark brown, seemingly bottomless “ponds”!!
The month of August was a stay near home month so the grass was kept mowed and the garden was tended. Lots of sewing got done and lots of tomatoes canned Even managed a few leisurely bike rides!
September – school was back in session and the wanderlust hit hard! This time we headed south to Kentucky. B&C drove their motorhome and pulled our big boat, just as they have in the past. H pulled the truck out of storage and chose to put miles on it since he was going to use the Jeep again this winter when we head to Florida. There are hills in Kentucky! Some bigger than others! In the Lexington area, whenever pressure was applied to get the truck and trailer up or down a “hill”, the back of the truck began rattling and clanging and clunking. Do we go on or do we turn around? At each place we stayed, the guys lined up a transmission mechanic – just incase his services would be needed. Each time H backed the truck down the lonnnnnnnnnnng STEEP boat ramp, the question was – will it make it back up? And of course, the boat ramps were steeper than some of those other “hills” the truck had to strain to get up. Lake Cumberland was created back in the early 1950’s by damning up the Cumberland River, which caused it to fill up all the valleys and made a meandering snake of a lake, 100 miles long with over 1200 miles of shoreline, that wandered along sheer cliffs and snuck into a multitude of tree lined nooks and crannies. The weather held out and we enjoyed taking B&C on their first visit to the lake. In the two days on the lake we put on at least 80 miles! The Friday evening that we camped at Cumberland Lake State Park we lucked out and arrived in time to THOUROUGHLY enjoy to our VERY fullest, the seafood laden evening buffet! Oh My!! Crab legs, shrimp, catfish, more shrimp & crab legs, scallops, and yes, even those slimy oysters! And as the sun set over the peaceful lake, Carol and I tried to memorize the entire view from our high perch on the deck of the lodge.
From Jamestown and Somerset, we headed north to Frankfort, the capitol of the state. For H and I it was a case of SPB, but it was great to show our dear friends the views and sights of that neat town. We also decided to take them on a distillery tour because we had raved about our tour of Woodford Reserve several years ago. Our mistake was that we took them to a distillery that was closer to the campground where we were staying. H was hoping to get the truck back home before it quit all together yah know! Buffalo Trace Distillery was only a few miles away and is the oldest continually operating distillery from prohibition days. On the outside of the plant was the coolest painting. If you approach it from the right (see the picture) the angle of the picture faces you. As you pass it to the left – the picture angle follows with you! However - - the inside of the plant itself is loud, smelly and has 3 floors of open grated floors. Carol and I were both glad to get that tour over with. The guys weren’t even impressed with the bourbon that was offered as samples. Going out to dinner with Steve and Rachel made up for the bad taste in our noses and mouths! Now, hook onto this for a common thread - H, B and Mel (H’s buddy up in Michigan) all grew up together out in Swanton. H, Mel and Steve all went to Ohio University together! Anyway, it was wonderful to spend time with and introduce B&C to S&R!!
Between Frankfort KY and Madison Ind, the GPS took us north on some very narrow, up and down, winding 2 lane roads that had a lot of yellow paint down the middle. The scenery that was flashing by was full of red barns and colorful fall foliage but the guys did not get to enjoy much of it. H started going faster down hills so the truck would have a better running start up the next hill and would not rattle so much. Bud’s knuckles got pretty white, having to manhandle that milelong motorhome and boat around those curves. Ask Carol about crossing over the Ohio River on that extremely narrow old rickety bridge! She likes bridges about as much as she and I like open grated, 3 story high floors. NOT!! We all needed a break so we stopped for breakfast and a walking tour of that historic river town!
Once out of the “hills”, the truck quit clanking and just growled whenever pressure was applied. Yes, we did make it home! Three days later the truck was clean again and parked out in the front yard. 15 minutes later it was sold - - - bad differential and all.
H’s new love is a 2011 BRIGHT BLUE Ford F150, 4X4, complete with the new EcoBoost Engine. He traded in his beloved 2008 Jeep Liberty so our stable is down to only 2 vehicles. The new truck has a towing capacity of 9800lbs. Guess what he’s shopping for next! And the next trip will probably be to the sand dunes and/or the off road trails up north!
In July, Bud and Carol raced ahead of us to visit friends in Wisconsin and we lingered at home for H to go visit one of his growing collection of doctors. We pulled out on Friday and stopped overnight at the Otsego Lake State Park just SW of Gaylord Michigan. We were able to enjoy breakfast and a nice - but not nearly long enough – visit with Glenn and Beth before we pressed on and over the Mackinac Bridge and across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to meet up with B&C. Munising Michigan has wonderful pasties (yummy hot stew baked in tender flaky pie type crust sandwiches), great views of Lake Superior and IF you’re lucky – weather nice enough to enjoy a boat tour out to the colorful Pictured Rocks! Well, 2 outta 3 ain’t bad. But the day that B&C were to take their boat tour was a day full of thick blanketing fog that kept rolling in and out ALL day long! H and I were out exploring in the Jeep but talked to them via walkie-talkies right before the boat turned around and headed back to the dock. The next day we took them to see Miners Castle, one of the rock formations that they would have seen IF the ride had continued. On this trip, H had no off road competition going so he never got stuck and hence, never needed his brother to rescue him. Bud had to ride co-pilot and did seem a bit nervous whenever H sloshed down, around and thru some of those vehicle devouring, massive mud puddles! Especially when the Jeep was at a sideways tilt entering some of those dark brown, seemingly bottomless “ponds”!!
The month of August was a stay near home month so the grass was kept mowed and the garden was tended. Lots of sewing got done and lots of tomatoes canned Even managed a few leisurely bike rides!
September – school was back in session and the wanderlust hit hard! This time we headed south to Kentucky. B&C drove their motorhome and pulled our big boat, just as they have in the past. H pulled the truck out of storage and chose to put miles on it since he was going to use the Jeep again this winter when we head to Florida. There are hills in Kentucky! Some bigger than others! In the Lexington area, whenever pressure was applied to get the truck and trailer up or down a “hill”, the back of the truck began rattling and clanging and clunking. Do we go on or do we turn around? At each place we stayed, the guys lined up a transmission mechanic – just incase his services would be needed. Each time H backed the truck down the lonnnnnnnnnnng STEEP boat ramp, the question was – will it make it back up? And of course, the boat ramps were steeper than some of those other “hills” the truck had to strain to get up. Lake Cumberland was created back in the early 1950’s by damning up the Cumberland River, which caused it to fill up all the valleys and made a meandering snake of a lake, 100 miles long with over 1200 miles of shoreline, that wandered along sheer cliffs and snuck into a multitude of tree lined nooks and crannies. The weather held out and we enjoyed taking B&C on their first visit to the lake. In the two days on the lake we put on at least 80 miles! The Friday evening that we camped at Cumberland Lake State Park we lucked out and arrived in time to THOUROUGHLY enjoy to our VERY fullest, the seafood laden evening buffet! Oh My!! Crab legs, shrimp, catfish, more shrimp & crab legs, scallops, and yes, even those slimy oysters! And as the sun set over the peaceful lake, Carol and I tried to memorize the entire view from our high perch on the deck of the lodge.
From Jamestown and Somerset, we headed north to Frankfort, the capitol of the state. For H and I it was a case of SPB, but it was great to show our dear friends the views and sights of that neat town. We also decided to take them on a distillery tour because we had raved about our tour of Woodford Reserve several years ago. Our mistake was that we took them to a distillery that was closer to the campground where we were staying. H was hoping to get the truck back home before it quit all together yah know! Buffalo Trace Distillery was only a few miles away and is the oldest continually operating distillery from prohibition days. On the outside of the plant was the coolest painting. If you approach it from the right (see the picture) the angle of the picture faces you. As you pass it to the left – the picture angle follows with you! However - - the inside of the plant itself is loud, smelly and has 3 floors of open grated floors. Carol and I were both glad to get that tour over with. The guys weren’t even impressed with the bourbon that was offered as samples. Going out to dinner with Steve and Rachel made up for the bad taste in our noses and mouths! Now, hook onto this for a common thread - H, B and Mel (H’s buddy up in Michigan) all grew up together out in Swanton. H, Mel and Steve all went to Ohio University together! Anyway, it was wonderful to spend time with and introduce B&C to S&R!!
Between Frankfort KY and Madison Ind, the GPS took us north on some very narrow, up and down, winding 2 lane roads that had a lot of yellow paint down the middle. The scenery that was flashing by was full of red barns and colorful fall foliage but the guys did not get to enjoy much of it. H started going faster down hills so the truck would have a better running start up the next hill and would not rattle so much. Bud’s knuckles got pretty white, having to manhandle that milelong motorhome and boat around those curves. Ask Carol about crossing over the Ohio River on that extremely narrow old rickety bridge! She likes bridges about as much as she and I like open grated, 3 story high floors. NOT!! We all needed a break so we stopped for breakfast and a walking tour of that historic river town!
Once out of the “hills”, the truck quit clanking and just growled whenever pressure was applied. Yes, we did make it home! Three days later the truck was clean again and parked out in the front yard. 15 minutes later it was sold - - - bad differential and all.
H’s new love is a 2011 BRIGHT BLUE Ford F150, 4X4, complete with the new EcoBoost Engine. He traded in his beloved 2008 Jeep Liberty so our stable is down to only 2 vehicles. The new truck has a towing capacity of 9800lbs. Guess what he’s shopping for next! And the next trip will probably be to the sand dunes and/or the off road trails up north!
Thursday, July 14, 2011
RT 66
No - we haven’t really been staying home since our return from Florida this past March. Come on – you should know H better than that by now. In Mid May we took a long weekend jaunt up to Holland Michigan, accompanied by H’s brother Ron and wife Nancy. The multitude of beautiful tulips in my own yard rivaled the gorgeous blooms we saw during our stay in Holland, but we HAD to go see the parade – and thankfully it quit raining about an hour before the costumed teens clomped their big wooden shoes, showing their well practiced talents at performing the many Dutch dances. Following the parade the 2 camping units hustled up the road to Silver Lake Sand Dunes. If I had written this back then, I would have said SPB (See Previous Blogs). The new thing on that trip was our “discovery” of SP Hoffmaster State Park, just south of Muskegon Michigan. It’s very easily one of our favorite state parks!
Now, it’s mid June and once again we are “going places we have never been”. Last year we followed the famous Lincoln Highway (RT 30) from mid-Ohio to the New Jersey border when we went to Cape May. Get ready – SPB!! Now we have driven west on route 20 from Toledo to South Bend Indiana. The Kankakee River runs right thru downtown South Bend and used to be the source of waterpower for several factories and mills along its banks. The river has been given a new life by building a fish ladder along the side of the dam and on another section a kayak racecourse, originally done for the Olympic training teams. I would love to show you beautiful pictures of it all, but the batteries in the camera were dead and the replacements were in the charger back at home. The Potato Creek State Park just south of town was our home for the night. On Tuesday morning we finally connected with the Lincoln Highway heading west to Joliet Illinois where it crossed the Historic RT 66. After stopping at the Welcome Center and Museum we walked around the city. From the city of Joliet we followed the old Rt. 66 southwest to St. Louis, stopping at many of the quaint old little towns that were the stopping points when Rt. 66 was the main road from Chicago to Los Angeles. Some of the old towns are still preserved as they were then and many of them have museums that show what the road was like when it was the “ mother road to the west”. Traveling thru Illinois one has to stop in Springfield. There we toured the Lincoln museum and library and the city checking out the state capitol and the old state capitol building and the law office where Lincoln practiced law.
Moving on from the St. Louis area we traveled south following the Mississippi River to where it joins up with the Ohio River. From there we followed the Ohio to central Indiana and headed northeast stopping in Knoxville, In. and Santa Claus, In. then back home to Michigan for awhile to plan for our next trip.
Now, it’s mid June and once again we are “going places we have never been”. Last year we followed the famous Lincoln Highway (RT 30) from mid-Ohio to the New Jersey border when we went to Cape May. Get ready – SPB!! Now we have driven west on route 20 from Toledo to South Bend Indiana. The Kankakee River runs right thru downtown South Bend and used to be the source of waterpower for several factories and mills along its banks. The river has been given a new life by building a fish ladder along the side of the dam and on another section a kayak racecourse, originally done for the Olympic training teams. I would love to show you beautiful pictures of it all, but the batteries in the camera were dead and the replacements were in the charger back at home. The Potato Creek State Park just south of town was our home for the night. On Tuesday morning we finally connected with the Lincoln Highway heading west to Joliet Illinois where it crossed the Historic RT 66. After stopping at the Welcome Center and Museum we walked around the city. From the city of Joliet we followed the old Rt. 66 southwest to St. Louis, stopping at many of the quaint old little towns that were the stopping points when Rt. 66 was the main road from Chicago to Los Angeles. Some of the old towns are still preserved as they were then and many of them have museums that show what the road was like when it was the “ mother road to the west”. Traveling thru Illinois one has to stop in Springfield. There we toured the Lincoln museum and library and the city checking out the state capitol and the old state capitol building and the law office where Lincoln practiced law.
Moving on from the St. Louis area we traveled south following the Mississippi River to where it joins up with the Ohio River. From there we followed the Ohio to central Indiana and headed northeast stopping in Knoxville, In. and Santa Claus, In. then back home to Michigan for awhile to plan for our next trip.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
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