The View with a View - Part 2 - Find a spot to stay

The View with a View – Posted in installments, because it's almost a novel

Part 2: 

Road Warriors

September, 2017

9/4, Monday – Memorial Day

Well, the tourists should all be heading home today, clearing out the great destinations for us. Yesterday afternoon we drove through Flaming Gorge and camped nearby at Greens Lake. We're getting a taste of the amazing beauty and diversity out there in our country. 

Watching the sun set and the moon rise

Today we visited Dinosaur National Monument, where the sweetest ranger lady agreed to make a video greeting to send to 7-year-old Gibson, since he’s such a dino-nut. When he saw the video, he wanted to know how she knew his name. So sweet. We enjoyed the park, again free with my senior pass!

Trying to fit in with the environment...
NOT!
My friend Jill gave me this hat, and
whenever I wear it, it feels like she's with me.

We finished the day by stumbling across the most incredible National Park ever, Black Canyon of the Gunnison. We had never heard of it, and only ventured up there when we read that the other nearby camping area was right on the highway, noisy and ugly. Again, the power of the senior pass… we scored a spot with electricity for just $14, and the only downside was there was no cell service, nor wi-fi. Actually that may be a good thing, helping us be more in the here and now. The park was phenomenal, as good as the Grand Canyon in our opinion. We met another couple with an RV just like ours, and that’s how we learned it’s called a “Skinny Winnie” as opposed to regular Winnebago or “Mini Winnie,” a wider version than ours. They also advised us to get the AllStays app, which will help us find the best place to camp, wherever we go. It ended up being my go-to for almost every location,

and I submitted reviews and sent app modification suggestions to the developer. I really like the app. The people we met, and alas, didn’t get their contact info, live in their rig, and before that lived on a sailboat. They just love to travel, and haven’t kept a house in a number of years. The retired life rocks! They also suggested that we join the Skinny Winnie Yahoo user group. Here’s why we thought Black Canyon was so awesome: 

Painted Rock

I do love a bargain, and sometimes I think I'm a genius! Each day as we rode along, I made a batch of sun tea, using a 2-quart Mason jar on the dashboard. 

9/6, Wednesday – Drive all day to cousin Rick’s in Oklahoma City

On the way there, the AC went out. We were horrified, because in the heat, it quickly became uncomfortable. Bill got the idea that it might just be the air filter, since the rig only had 18,000 miles on it at this point, still practically new. There couldn't possibly be anything major wrong with it.  He took out the passenger air filter, and it worked fine after that. We stopped by a Napa Auto store to get a new one. “We don’ git much call fer Mercedes in these here parts. I kin getcha one tomorrow.” Uh, no thanks, we’ll just be moving along. After spending the night in front of Rick & Shelly’s place, we headed for the big city (OKC) where there’s a Mercedes dealer. We had to get the VIN, because apparently even within model years, some of the parts are different. $106 later, we went out with both a passenger and engine air filter, and 2 oil filters. Bill knew the oil would have to be changed along the trip, and he wasn’t about to pay the $375 the dealer wanted.

You can tell they were thrilled to see us! <JK>

9/7, Thursday, on the way to TN

We stopped outside Little Rock, AR, and discovered another amazing thing about ways the Federal government lets us enjoy our own land. The ACOE (Army Corps of Engineering) maintains amazing campgrounds all around the country, primarily near bodies of water, especially dams. The sites are spacious, level and have electricity, and in the case of Maumelle Park on the Arkansas River, only $12 a night with the senior pass. They can also be reserved through ReserveAmerica, so if we’re ever going during high season, that’s what we’ll do. I saw fireflies! I hate to admit it, but I think that was my first time. I guess I’ve led a sheltered life.

ACOE Campgrounds 💖 - They're the best!

9/8-9, Fri/Sat, Cookeville, TN visiting Jodi & Family –

After fighting ugly commute traffic through Memphis, and a scary phenomenon where they use the shoulder as a regular lane during rush hour, we made it to Jodi’s house. Jodi said the she and the triplets were staying overnight next door at her mom’s house, so wouldn’t we like to have the whole house to ourselves, rather than sleeping in our RV? Well, that was an offer just too good to pass up. It was the only time we imposed on anybody along the way. We did laundry, too. You know anybody who has 3 five-year-olds will have strong laundry capacity!

We figured Cookeville would be an interesting town when we saw this on the way to Jodi’s.

And this was before Trump said we could have tropies!

The next day we gathered up the kids and headed to Standing Stone to camp. Jodi led us to the park across a one-lane bridge that clearly was not meant for RV’s. We really had to suck it in! Turns out there’s an alternate route, but Jodi didn’t know about it. We made it, so all was well. The kids had never really been camping, so Jodi figured it would be best if they just went back home to sleep that night. We still did the campfire, including roasting marshmallows on the mother of all forks. I could fit 10 at a time on there. The kids befriended others and all sorts of kids were soon lined up for my roasted marshmallow service. Emma, Khloe, and Aiden had a great time, Bill had a nice visit with his brother, and my cousin Kevin joined us.

I put 10 marshmallows on this baby!

This budding young scientist was doing color experiments.
Guess what? Blue and orange makes brown!

 For anybody who doesn't know these people, this may seem boring. But soldier on, you may find a pearl of camping wisdom buried within. I had never met the children, and when Bill and Jodi announced that they were going to the store, leaving me alone at the campsite with the kids, I was like, "Wait. What?" And they were gone! I imagine anyone with 3 young kids would love 'em like crazy, but take any opportunity have a little break. Right after they left, one of them announced it was time for a potty break. OK, I can handle that. Round them all up, and we all go together. "But I don't have to go (whine, whine)!"
"Too bad kid, you're coming with us."
So that was a bit of a challenge, but we survived. Not 15 minutes later, another one called for a potty break. So I had to round them up again, this time with the earlier participants complaining the whole way. After their mom got back, she said it would have been OK to let them go by themselves. Yeah, not on my watch. It was a good visit, and the kids were adorable.

9/10, Sunday

Overnight at Sherry’s, where we found her beginning to unwind from the shock of losing her husband, and the onslaught of family who came to say their good-byes and mourn together. When Bill offered to cook a steak dinner, and then breakfast the next day, she was relieved to let him do that. We went for pedicures on Monday before we hit the road again. 

9/11-12, Monday-Tuesday

Driving straight through to Potsdam to visit Bill’s mom. We tried an overnight at a PA rest stop…

NEVER AGAIN!!!

Neither of us got much sleep. The coming & going of big rigs and the constant highway noise was awful, even with earplugs. Plus, since it was late, our only option for dinner was the Waffle House. Not a stellar travel experience, to put it mildly. 

This is also the point in our trip where we learned about DEF. Turns out Bill already knew about it, but I had no idea, given that  I’d never had a diesel vehicle before. What is it, you ask? “Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) is a non-hazardous solution which is
32.5% urea and 67.5% de-ionized water.DEF is sprayed into the exhaust stream of diesel vehicles to break down dangerous NOx emissions into harmless nitrogen and water.” OK, so that’s the official scientific definition. The practical definition is it's jugs of blue stuff you add somewhere under the hood so the warning light goes off. But causing a bit of panic, the light didn’t go off. Some googling later found that it takes 20-30 miles for the light to go out. OK, problem solved.

About this time I read on Facebook about an RV club called Harvest Hosts, a resource of businesses across the country that will allow a self-contained unit to park overnight for free. The locations are wineries, farms, and other attractions. The hope is that you’ll buy something from the host, and they’ll let you stay. Well that sounded a whole lot better than trying to sleep at a rest stop, so I joined. It’s $40 for a year. You’re supposed to give 24-hour notice, arrive during business hours, and not ask for anything, like use of their bathroom facilities or a place to plug in. Website: https://harvesthosts.com 

9/12-15, Tuesday-Thursday, 3 nights at Mom’s, 4,280 miles so far (odometer 20,540)

We used this time to visit, and Bill did that somewhat-dreaded oil change. A couple trips to the local auto parts store, and he was all set to go, with many quarts of oil (it takes 12.5), and a big plastic drain tub. It turned out to be not that big of a deal. When he asked about it being done at the shop, and they quoted $375, he asked if they were nuts! “Well, do you know how much a quart of Mobil 1 costs?” Uh, yeah, that’s why I’m going it myself!

The most difficult thing to do was re-set the service interval indicator. After both of us viewing a YouTube video multiple times, pressing two buttons while leaning our heads to the right, holding our mouths in a certain position,  humming “Dixie,” and still getting the darned overdue beep, we were about to remove the fuse to get it to SHUT THE HELL UP!!! But one final attempt got it, YAY!

We held court at mom’s, visiting with whomever stopped by (see collage). It was nice catching up with folks, but a number of relatives weren’t available those days. Oh well, maybe next visit.  

9/15, Friday Heading for Halifax,

through Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia

 Converting liters to gallons, Canadian to US $$, our brains were taxed, but we did our best, and our reward was a lovely day visiting the Maritime Museum, then spending the night in an apple orchard behind Harvest Host Hennigar’s Farm Market near Wolfeville, NS.

 

    

Message to Sharon: So on Monday we'll make a beeline for the border, and head for Bar Harbor. We're always trying to stay ahead of the rain, and so far we've only had to drive in it once, and never when camping. Knock on wood! Plans are fuzzy after that, but we have to be in Miami on 10/2 for the cruise. We were going to go there the day before, but with all the Irma-displaced residents, we're afraid the campgrounds will either be full or uninhabitable.

Tonight we're at the apple farm, our first stay using Harvest Hosts. As you see, we're far away from any other people. That's great after last night where all the sites had just a picnic table's worth of space between them. It was ok though, because we had a young Aussie couple next to us, and they were very friendly. They were from Perth, and like to travel a lot. They rented (or should I say "hired") a van style RV, and were headed for Ontario next. 

It was such a long drive,I had plenty of time to look at maps. I pictured retracing our route to get back to the USA, and hatched a plan to take a ferry from Digby, NS to Saint John, NB. Yes, it costs $200, but the fuel would have been at least $100, and it's 2 1/2 hours instead of 8, and we'll have some great sightseeing and no backtracking. I ended up having to call to make the reservation since they only let cars reserve online. 2 seniors, please! Finally Bill qualifies. 

Boy, you can keep Quebec! Why is it that all the other provinces have to put everything in French, but there they don't have to show English? It's rather important when you're driving and don't know where you're going! But at least the moose apparently know French! 

Nova Scotia, on the other hand is great. We enjoyed going through New Brunswick, too. Next trip we’re going to visit Prince Edward Island.

 We enjoyed walking around Halifax today, and Bill was happy that he got to see the maritime museum. 

RJ on the Titanic!

We were warmly greeted by our farm host, Doug, and we bought $30 worth of stuff from his store. The ground is covered with fallen apples, but they're not all that good. They might make ok applesauce but we probably wouldn't eat it, so why bother? Our host said the Odwalla e-coli issue 20 years ago killed their juicing efforts, so now they just leave the fruit on the ground. There is only one guy in the area who does all the commercial juicing now. Doug was pretty funny, as he was babysitting his three-year-old grandson. His wife was inside with the one-year-old. His son and wife went to Scotland for a wedding, and left the kids with grandma and grandpa for 10 days. He said it was torture, because they're not used to it.

              We had to use our giant Duplo blocks to get level, and it was a bit like mosquito heaven, but it was a lovely, quiet place to spend a night. And free!

Took a shortcut back – couldn’t see a thing, but the Digby ferry got us there

So we leave you here, as we head back to the USA. Stay tuned for Part 3 of "The View with a View," brought to you in periodic posts as the spirit moves me. There's so much more to come... hurricanes, Cuban cigars, and many more View with a view experiences.