Post Script

Here's a post script from our trip

1.  We wanted to be home by the middle of July. We planned to spend 3 - 4 months on the road. So we left home on March 29th. We thought that would get us up and back before the severe tourist season started. It seemed to be a good time to start the trip but we didn't realize two conditions existed.

2.  We figured that we would take a month and we would spend May in Maine and June in Canada and then head home. We ran into cold weather in MA and ever though we had a LP gas furnace in the RV we should stop a Walmart to buy an inexpensive electric heater, just so we didn't have to use all of our LP gas. That was a great idea because we were overnighting in RV campgrounds which had 30 amp electric service that saved wear and tear on the furnace and we actually used the heater all of our time in Canada. It also made us wonder just how long was the summer season.

3.  Speaking of season - we have seasons but every thing stays open during the off season. Not so, in the north. We didn't realize that their seasons are 'in season' and 'out of season'. We realized this a little bit on the way up but when we got to Cape May (which we liked a lot) it hit us in the face. As we called for reservations at the campgrounds we got mixed messages that they were closed, some would be open on May 1st, some on May 15th and others on Memorial Day weekend or some other date. As we drove north from Cape May all of the beach towns were empty, just like someone had given an  order to evacuate. I was difficult to find anything open, in fact, one toll bridge had a sign on the door of the toll booth "No toll. Closed till the season opens, Thanks". We found out that most of the campgrounds take about 6 weeks to shut down and 6 weeks to open back up. So when we could find someone on the phone we let them know that we were from Florida, we didn't know about the seasonal stuff and could we stay in their park just needing power and water - nothing else. That worked pretty good even got one spot for no charge at all.

4.  When we walk down Centre Street in Fernandina Beach people look at each other and usually exchange pleasantries. Not so, up north people look straight ahead and do not acknowledge anyone.  I talk to everyone and after I said hello to one couple I overheard the guy say to his wife " What do you think he mean be that?". Strange! However, if you can engage someone in conversation it's like they won't shut up. We had a lot of fun not talking and talking to people on the street and in the shops and restaurants. The best opener was to let someone know that we were from Florida and could they do us a favor and let us know where ?? was.

5.   One of our goals was to visit as many "working" waterfronts as possible. I'm not sure exactly what the term means. What we saw were waterfronts where they build boats and repair boats and have maritime museums, and some with restaurants, bars and shops and many that have harbor cruises from their docks and marinas. We saw a lot of fishing boats, some very heavy duty fishing boats, mostly tied up at the docks. At one RV park we met a couple who were working as campground hosts. They were from Plymouth, MA and they used to own a boat and were shrimpers until the government put them out of business with rules and regulations. We saw some fish processing plants but mostly the boats were tied up at the docks. The only lively fishing business, if you can call it that, was for lobsters. The lobsters were in season and the fishing was good. I hope that the government won't put them out of business, too.

6. We had a great trip except for the three times when it rained - rained for days and nights  and when we didn't go out except to take Shadow for a pee or poop. We actually stumbled into a great pet shop in Mystic, CT., the best that we've ever been to and bought Shadow a great rain slicker. We followed the coast as much as we could except for driving around New York and Boston. We visited seaports, forts, lighthouses, museums, state parks, yarn shops and many local places for breakfast and lunches.
Would we go back again to the northeast? Probably not, we've been there, done that. For our taste in traveling we like the west best. We've already enjoyed two RV trips out west and next year our blog will be
North to Alaska

Home Again

We spent two nights in Marion and looked at several preowned RVs but nothing that we really liked. Tom Johnson's facility is really nice and we had time to do our laundry and clean up the RV. We somehow have gotten into a larger RV mode and the next place that we wanted to visit was the Camping World dealership that was between Asheville and Hendersonville which we did, after a stop at the Southern Highlands Craft Guild Gallery on the parkway near Asheville.

The stop at Camping World was very brief and we decided to stop in Hendersonville for coffee and conversation. It was still early and we were in a "Lets head home" mode so we decided to pack it in. Our original plan included judging a BBQ contest in Washington but I didn't make the list so that's how we picked up the extra days. It turned out to be a bonus for us since I found out that there was a lot of rain in DC.

So we got on I-26 and headed south to Columbia, SC, then I-95 to Walterboro and the Cracker Barrel where we spent our first night out. We were home the next day - Monday - and at Dick Gore's on Tuesday. Interesting enough they had just taken a year old 30 footer in trade and after a couple days of negotiations we pick our "new"  RV up on Tuesday. The last stop on our original plan was to stop in Greenwood, SC for another BBQ contest, one that we had been to a couple of years ago.

We bring the "new" RV home on Tuesday, load it up on Wednesday and head to Greenwood for our first test ride. We'll be home on the following Monday.

Final thoughts about the trip:

1.  We had a wonderful time traveling up the coast and visiting some wonderful "working waterfront" seaport towns. We also went to several museums and spent time in a lot of historical towns and areas.
2.  Some of our favorite places were Cape May, NJ; in Maine, Brooklin and Castine, home of Maine Maritime Academy; in Canada, St Andrews in New Brunswick and Lunenburg in Nova Scotia.
3.  In Florida we have a summer and a winter season but none of our businesses close. As we moved north we found out that the seasons were 'in' and 'out'. In most areas the season only is for three or four months and if you're not there in the season most everything is closed including a lot of the RV parks that where we would have liked to stay. As we drove up the coast of NJ, the beach towns looked like there had been an evacuation with only a few people wandering around town, houses closed up and storefront shut down. We even went across a toll bridge that had a note on the door saying no toll until season opens.
4. Even with the US dollar worth more than the Canadian "Loonie" everything cost more in Canada. Diesel fuel at $1.16 per liter, at one market we walked out with a tab for $107 which probably would have been $65 at our Publix.
5. We used a Visa card with no transaction fees for almost all purchases. Most businesses had the handheld credit card swipers so you didn't have give the server your card with the numbers.
6. North of the Mason-Dixon line people were nervous when you passed them on the streets and said hello. In NJ it seemed they were thinking "What does he want?". In Maine they thought "It's cold, what does he mean by that?". But when we asked a question everyone became very friendly. In fact, most people, when they found we were from Florida couldn't wait to tell us where in Florida they or their relatives and/or friends spend their winters. Most were in the lower part of the state in the tropical weather.
7. We've had our RV for four years and traveled over 40K miles. We're now older and we both move a little slower. We love traveling in the RV but the Navion is a little tight for us on a long trip so we're looking forward to more trips in our new 30 footer. Next year "if the creek don't rise and......." we'll be traveling to Alaska for an even longer trip.

Thanks to you - all of our family and friends who track of us by our blog.

(Note from Susan - Thank you, Lou, for taking  the time to keep up the blog.  We had a lot of fun discussing it and it brings some wonderful memories.  Looking forward to the next  trip in the new RV.  I miss my family and friends, but we certainly have fun!)

Final note - 12/02/2017

We did buy the 30' Newmar RV and we did drive up to Greenwood, SC for our first trip BUT
there were a few things about the RV we didn't care for. And even though we knew it woudn't fit into our garage it really bothered us taking up so much room in our driveway. So another executive decision - we listed the RV on rvt.com and wound up selling it to a contractor from Gainesville, FL.

We looked at other 30 ' Class C RVs that would fit in our garage and finally decided on a Winnebago Aspect 27K. But that's another story.

Heading South

The forecast for Tuesday didn't sound too good. The remnants from Hurricane Bill was heading our way and some severe weather was expected. We were not sure exactly what that meant but we felt that we should make tracks to get out of the storms way. So we starting moving south in a westerly direction.

We soon were out of Maine and decided to skirt around Boston, Philadelphia and Washington. So we
drove through Massachusetts and continued into Connecticut. Looking through the RV Travel Guide we picked out a park that indicated that it was just off the Interstate - it just didn't say how far. Anyway we wound up here at Wilderness Lake RV Campground. Not bad for an over night - that's the lake through the trees - specially with the two thunder storms that passed over us. Fortunately just rain, lightning and thunder with no damage.

That was Tuesday night. We got up early on Wednesday and continued through New York and into Pennsylvania. Looking for a overnight stop near Carlisle the lady in the GPS was messing with us again. We turned on three or four country roads and we finally decided that there was no park where we where and that we were not lost, just disoriented. We stopped in a cleared area on the side of the road and now the GPS was in a dumb spot and we were unable to communicated with the nice lady. Susan wanted to get out of here since there was nothing around and we had seen just a few buildings and no people for quite a while. She likes syfy programs and I know she was thinking zombies. We made a 180 and tried to backtrack the roads that we had been on. One road looked promising so we figured it would take us somewhere and then we would know where we were. It did and after a few miles we saw the name Carlisle on the water tower.  Out came the book, the lady was back and we plugged in Western Village which was close to  us and just a mile and a half off of I-81. It was a nice park with nice RVers and one really nice dog that Shadow played with.

Thursday, after a super good breakfast at the local diner we got on the road and soon were in Virginia. I-8l weaves through the Shenandoah Valley and is a very scenic highway. Granted that there are more 18 wheelers on the road than there are cars you still get to see see the mountains and, oh yes, get a little rain on the wind shield.

Anyone know where the Pink Cadillac Diner is? This is Virginia's tribute to Elvis Presley. We stopped here for dinner before we drove across the street to the KOA campground for the night. Maybe 6 or 7 years ago on a motorcycle trip with some of my buddies we stayed at this motel and ate both dinner and breakfast at the diner. No, they didn't remember me.

OK, OK, it's in Natural Bridge, VA.

Friday, more of the same - I-81, 77 and 40 and here we are in Marion, NC at Tom Johnson's RV Sales and Campground. And yes, we may be looking for an RV with an island bed and a little more room inside.

On thee Road Again

On Thursday we drove into Old Orchard Beach and up to the Wild Acres RV Resort, maybe the nicest campground that we will visit on our trip. First of all the streets are all paved which means no dust, dirt or gravel. The place is huge, maybe 90 acres and contains cottages, both park model homes and sites that can be rented or purchased. There all all kinds of travel trailers, 5th wheels, pop ups and many people camping in tents. They also have several play areas for kids plus pickle ball courts, horse shoes and shuffleboard, really a complete campground with different activities on the weekends. We took a walk around the park and there were several campers with dogs. One of the campers told us that there was a PetsMart at a shopping center off of I-95 one exit down in Biddeford. We called and were able to get an appointment for Shadow on Friday.

In the afternoon I walked though the park and out the rear entrance to the beach. The pier in the distance is in the middle of town, It's low tide and those are rocks that guy is looking at.

Friday we took Shadow to the groomer for a bath, brush out and nail trim. While at the center we enjoyed lunch at Panera and did some shopping at the market. On the way home one of the dreaded lights on the dash came on - it was the engine diagnostic light. Back at the park we found that there was a M-B dealer in Saco, the next town north, about a 20 minute away. I called and was told that Saturday and Monday were out and maybe we could get in on Tuesday. We figured that we would show up on Monday and see if they could works in.

Ever since Susan's daughter, Deva, has lived in FB she has taken me out for breakfast on Father's Day. This year was no exception except she wasn't with us. Father's Day is on Sunday but I was judging a BBQ contest on Sunday and don't eat breakfast before the contest. Susan and I walked to Java Joe's which was right next to the campground. The sky was blue, the sun was out and the temperature was climbing up to the mid 70's. We had a great breakfast. Thank you, Deva

On Saturday the City trolley started running and on of the stops was in the park. The trolley makes a loop around the town with several stops every half hour and costs a dollar. We caught the trolley and rode down to the center of town where all the action was. This is the pier that is absolutely wild - apparently it's privately owned and there are many little shops for everything you think of all the way out to the restaurant at the end of the pier. Even the restrooms cost 50 cents to use.

This is what goes on at the beach. Main St. is a divided street with shops and food vendors on both sides of the street. There is also a huge amusement part with every type of ride that you can imagine. The beach and streets were packed with people and I'm glad we'e leaving before the "season" starts.

The Maine Championship BBQ contest and car show was scheduled for Sunday. Unfortunately the remnants of Hurricane Bill passed over and it rained all day. The car show was a bust but the BBQ contest goes on rain or shine. And it produced some very good Que. Susan didn't to cook tonight.

Monday we spent most of the day at the M-B dealership and whatever was wrong was fixed. We don't like the mechanical problems but the M-B dealers all have a very nice customer lounge with coffee, drinks and pastries. Not to shabby.

So now it's Tuesday we we are ready to hit the road. Shadow has had his lap around the park and I'm walking over to JJ's for two breakfast sandwiches.

Destination - Somewhere in CT.

Old Orchard Beach

Our goal today was to drive from the campground in Phippsburg to Old Orchard Beach where we are staying for three nights for a little R & R plus judging a KCBS BBQ contest on Sunday. Our return list was now down to Just two items. They are a return visit to J Jill in Kittery and our final knit shop stop in York which on the way up we couldn't find because we thought it was in Kittery, too. Our initial plan was to make those stops after OOB because they are on the way but plans never are set in concrete.

Since we got started early we decided to knock them off the list and then drive back up to Old Orchard Beach. That's done and there wasn't anything worthwhile for pictures so this blog is done, too.

Rockport

Just after Camden we made a second visit to the huge, two level Maine Sports Outfitters. We had stopped there before but obviously there were a couple of items that both had missed. Afterwards we located our campground in Rockport - the office was closed when we arrived and we left before it opened in the morning. So on the way out we left $40 in an envelope, wrote thanks and left our phone number.

In Rockland we visited the Farnsworth Art Museum. On our trip up the museum was closed for renovations and so it was put on our list for the return home. Along with MAINE in America and CONTEMPORARY Maine the museum is home to the wonderful WYETH FAMILY in Maine exhibit. Showcasing works from three generations of this family of American art, the Wyeth Center offers visitors a comprehensive survey of the Maine related work of N. C. Wyeth, his son Andrew and Andrew's so, Jamie. N. C. Wyeth was the foremost illustrator of his time, whose work enriched children's classics such as Treasure Island and Robinson Crusoe.

Since we were retracing our trip Susan felt a need to revisit the knit shop in Damariscotta and a little shop in Wiscasset where she wanted to buy another hair clip. On a previous blog was a picture of Red's Eats where the lobster roll contains more than a whole lobster. 

We didn't sample one then but we did yesterday along with a couple of crab cakes. Some kind of good!  Just in case, those are Farnsworth stickers on our shirts.

On Hwy US 1

I forgot to mention that the first stop on our return trip was just a few miles from Calais - the International Historic Site, Saint Croix Island. This is where Pierre Dugua was commissioned by King Henri IV to establish a French settlement. Arriving in April 1604 the 79 settlers began building but after 35 deaths in the harsh winter the remaining men, after the supply ships returned, moved back to Port Royal on Nova Scotia. There is a wonderful trail down to the banks of the river with some interpretive panels and several bronze statues to tell the story. Unfortunately, my iPhone/camera was back in the RV.

Right after driving through Bucksport our next stop was at Fort Knox State Historic Site, America's first Fort Knox. This was the first and largest granite fort built in Maine. It was built to protect the Penobscot River valley from navel attack with construction started in 1844. Similar to Fort Clinch the construction finally stopped in 1869, the fort was still not completely finished. This picture is from the upper level of the interior. This is a massive structure with batteries both inside and outside of the fort.

This is the entrance in the front of the fort facing the Penobscot River.

This is the new bridge across the river which is similar the the Dames Point Bridge except that the supporting cables are in the center and the traffic lanes are on either side of the cables. Another difference is that the tower to the right is the home of the Tallest Public Bridge Observatory in the World - 420 feet tall. Susan and I rode the elevator up and I enjoyed the view especially looking down at our teeny, weeny RV. I'm not sure if Susan opened her eyes at all.